Communication Templates, Document Templates, and Booking Contact Communications

Purpose: This article explains the difference between Communication Templates, Document Templates, and email-based sending workflows in Administrate, and clarifies how Booking Contacts fit into those communication patterns.

These features are related, but they are not interchangeable. The correct choice depends on whether you need triggered delivery, multilingual communication behavior, dynamic attachments, generated PDFs, or manual sending to a booking-related contact.

Contents

• Overview
• Communication Templates
• Document Templates
• Email-based sending workflows
• Booking Contacts and recipient logic
• How to choose the right option
• Best practices

Overview

In Administrate, there are several ways to send or generate communication-related content:

• Communication Templates are used for structured, reusable communications that can be triggered and can include dynamic content and attachments.
• Document Templates are used to generate documents such as quotations or form documents, which can then be viewed, downloaded, printed, or emailed.
• Manual email workflows, such as the Booking Ad-hoc Emailer, are used when a user needs to send something directly rather than relying on a trigger.

A common source of confusion is that booking-related communication may involve both a generated document and an email, but those are not always driven by the same template type.

Communication Templates

Communication Templates are the best choice when you need a reusable message that can be sent automatically through configured workflow logic.

They are designed for communication scenarios where the system determines the recipient based on the audience configured on the template or trigger.

What Communication Templates are good for

• triggered communications
• recipient targeting by audience
• dynamic merge-field content
• dynamic attachments based on context
• multilingual communication behavior

Languages and translations

Communication Templates can be configured for multiple languages. When they are sent through system logic, the platform determines which language to use based on the relevant language configuration. In ad hoc scenarios, users can typically choose the language to send.

Dynamic attachments

Communication Templates can dynamically attach documents by Document Category.

For example, if a Course Template or Event has a document categorized as Agenda, a Communication Template can be configured to attach that document automatically when the trigger fires.

This is especially useful when the template should always include a document of a given type, but the actual file differs by Course Template or Event.

When to use Communication Templates

• when the communication must be sent automatically by workflow or trigger
• when the recipient is determined by audience logic
• when attachments should be resolved dynamically from course or event context
• when the same communication must support multiple languages

Document Templates

Document Templates are used to generate structured documents, typically rendered as PDFs.

In booking workflows, these are commonly used to create documents such as Quotations and Form Documents.

What Document Templates are good for

• generating formal documents from booking data
• creating PDFs for quoting or booking administration
• producing documents that can later be viewed, printed, downloaded, or emailed

Dynamic document content

Document Templates support dynamic merge-field behavior and are used to create personalized documents based on the record being generated from.

Booking workflows

In Booking workflows, generated documents can then be emailed manually from the Booking. When a user emails a Quotation or Form Document:

• the generated document is attached as a PDF
• the booking-linked email address is used as the default recipient source
• the sender can optionally adjust recipients and email content before sending

Languages

Document output can participate in alternate-language workflows in certain booking scenarios, such as quotations, where the user can choose the language when emailing, viewing, downloading, or printing the generated document.

This is different from saying the underlying Document Template itself behaves like a multilingual Communication Template. The document-generation workflow and the communication workflow are related, but not identical.

When to use Document Templates

• when you need a generated document, not just an email body
• when the output should be a PDF or printable document
• when users may need to send the document manually from a Booking
• when formal booking or quote documentation is required

Email-based sending workflows

Administrate also supports manual email sending workflows, especially from Bookings.

The Booking Ad-hoc Emailer is used when a user wants to send an email directly and have it tracked against the Booking timeline.

In that model:

• the email is sent from the logged-in user’s name and email address
• templates and attachments can be used to speed up sending
• the email is not relying on a workflow trigger to decide when to send

This is often the right choice when communication needs human review, custom wording, or a generated document attachment before sending.

Booking Contacts and recipient logic

A Booking Contact is the contact designated on the Booking.

In practice, booking-related communications can use Booking-linked data in several ways:

• as the recipient of booking-level emailing
• as the source of booking email details in manual sending workflows
• as the context for merge fields used in generated documents or communications

Booking Contact vs learner

The Booking Contact is not always the learner.

In some workflows, the booking-level contact is the coordinator, administrator, or purchaser rather than the attendee. This is why booking-related communications should be designed carefully: the correct recipient depends on whether the message is intended for the learner, the booking owner, or another booking-related audience.

Unnamed learners

Unnamed learner workflows make this distinction even more important.

When the actual learner records are not yet known, booking-related contact logic is often used in place of learner-targeted communication until named learners exist.

This is one reason recipient rules should be documented separately from the template body itself.

Merge field context

Booking-related templates can also use booking-linked merge fields such as Order Retrieval URL, which allows the booker or learner to review and pay for an order through a secure link.

How to choose the right option

Best practices

• Use Communication Templates when timing and recipients should be controlled by workflow logic.
• Use Document Templates when the primary output is a document, especially a PDF.
• Do not assume that “document” and “email” are the same step in the workflow.
• Design booking-related communications with the recipient model in mind: learner, booking contact, or another workflow audience.
• Use Document Categories when attachments should vary by Course Template or Event without changing the template itself.
• Document your booking-contact communication rules separately if your process includes unnamed learners, manual booking workflows, or coordinator-led registrations.