Set up Event Assistant with AI Reply

Table of Contents

1. Quick Setup (5 mins)
2. Overview
3. Before You Start
4. Setting Up Stage-Specific Instructions
5. What to Write in Each Stage
6. First Reply: Additional Controls
   1. What Not to Say
   2. Auto-Send Guest Greeting
7. What Your AI Knows
8. Tips
9. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Quick Setup (5 minutes)

Want to get AI Reply working better right now? Do this first:

1. Click Settings in the top navigation, then select Event Assistant from the left sidebar
2. Go to the First Reply tab. This is the highest-impact stage to configure first.
3. Edit the Instructions box to describe how your AI should greet and qualify a new inquiry
4. Optionally, add anything to What Not to Say (e.g. don't quote pricing, don't confirm availability)
5. Click Save
6. Want to go even faster? Click the checkbox for Send first reply automatically within about 10 minutes to hook in leads! 

That's it. AI Reply will now use your instructions the next time it drafts a response to a new inquiry.

We've already written helpful defaults for every stage so AI Reply works well out of the box, but we encourage you to customize them to match your venue's tone and voice. The more it sounds like you, the better it performs.

Overview

Event Assistant is the control center for AI Reply. AI Reply is the feature that drafts message responses to your guests. Instead of one generic set of instructions for every situation, Event Assistant lets you customize how AI Reply behaves at each stage of the event sale, from the first inquiry all the way to post-event follow-up.

The result: faster responses, fewer generic replies, and an AI that actually sounds like your team.

Before You Start

There are two separate settings that work together:

• AI Reply is a per-user setting. Each user can turn it on or off using the toggle in the Email editor.
• Event Assistant is a venue-level setting. Admins configure it once and it applies to all AI Reply usage across the venue.

This article covers Event Assistant settings. For questions about the AI Reply toggle, reach out to our support team.

Event Assistant is available on all plans.

Setting Up Stage-Specific Instructions

Event Assistant lets you set custom instructions for each stage of the event pipeline. AI Reply uses these instructions to know what to say and what to focus on based on where the guest is in the process.

To edit a stage:

1. Click Settings in the top navigation, then select Event Assistant from the left sidebar
2. Click the tab for the stage you want to edit
3. Edit the Instructions box and click Save

Changes take effect immediately.

What to Write in Each Stage

Each stage has a tooltip (the ⓘ icon) with guidance on what to write when you click Edit. We've pre-filled each stage with a default description to get you started. Here's a summary of what we wrote, and what you can change it to:

• First Reply How to respond to a brand new inquiry. Cover the tone to use, the key details to collect, and what next step to guide the guest toward. Ask only for what's needed to qualify the event. Don't try to answer every possible question at once.

• Lead How to qualify the inquiry. Include what details to collect (event date, guest count, event type, budget, timing, must-haves) and the goal of moving the guest toward a qualified conversation.

• Qualified How to build confidence and move toward a proposal. Include what's already known, what still needs confirming, and what the guest should expect next.

• Proposal Sent How to follow up and create urgency without being pushy. Include proposal highlights, expiration dates, deposit requirements, and next steps needed to secure the event.

• Confirmed How to reassure the guest and explain what happens next. Include planning steps, required forms, menu selections, payment schedule, and points of contact.

• Balance Due How to remind the guest about payment and make it easy. Include the amount due, due date, and payment instructions.

• Completed How to close the loop after the event. Include whether to thank the guest, ask for feedback, request a review, or encourage future bookings.

First Reply: Additional Controls

First Reply has two extra settings that don't appear in other stages.

What Not to Say

Use this to set explicit guardrails. These are things the AI should never mention or commit to in an opening message.

Common examples:

• Don't confirm availability
• Don't quote pricing
• Don't promise the venue can accommodate the event
• Don't discuss contracts or deposits unless previously approved

Auto-Send Guest Greeting

This is the single fastest way to improve your response time. Most venue managers turn this on first.

Enable AI Reply to automatically send the first response within 10 minutes of receiving a new inquiry. No staff action required.

To enable:

1. Go to the First Reply tab
2. ✅ Check Send first reply automatically within about 10 minutes.

Note: Auto-send will only fire if the inquiry's requested date meets your minimum lead time. If an inquiry is for a date too soon, no automatic reply will go out. You can adjust your minimum lead time in Settings (top nav) > Venue Profile (left sidebar).

What Your AI Knows

In Event Assistant, the AI Knowledge Resources section shows everything AI Reply can automatically reference when drafting replies. The more complete these settings are, the better your replies will be.

Resources with an arrow icon are editable. Click them to jump directly to that settings page.

Tips

• Be specific. Vague instructions produce vague replies. Instead of "be friendly," try "open with the guest's name, acknowledge their event type, and ask for their guest count and preferred date if not provided."

Frequently Asked Questions

• Does changing instructions affect past conversations? No. Updated instructions apply to new AI Reply drafts going forward. Existing conversations are not affected.

• Can I have different instructions for different venues? Yes. Instructions are set per venue. If you manage multiple venues in Perfect Venue, each one has its own Event Assistant settings.

• What happens if I leave an instruction box empty? AI Reply will fall back on its general settings and available context. We recommend using the defaults we've written at minimum, and customizing from there to match your venue's tone and voice.

• Where did my old AI Reply settings go? If you had instructions in the previous AI Reply Customization box, they've moved to the General Instructions section at the top of Event Assistant. Nothing was lost.