WiFi Automations - Schedule Splash Pages, WiFi Names & Guest Tags

The Problem

Event nights are when guest WiFi earns its money, and they are also when nobody has time to touch it. So the quiz night splash page goes up late, the festival network name never gets changed back, and the crowd that filled the room on match day walks out without ever becoming a marketing list.

The CaptiFi Solution

CaptiFi turns those jobs into scheduled automations. Pick the day, pick what should happen, set a start and end time, and it runs itself. The end time is required, so nothing is ever left switched on: your default splash design and your original WiFi name always come back on their own.

Key Benefits

Four automations per event: swap the splash page, rename the WiFi, show a message banner, or tag every guest who connects

Mandatory end time on every automation, so your normal setup always returns without anyone remembering to undo it

Tag everyone who connects on a given day, then email or text that exact crowd before the next one

Weekly repeats for recurring nights, pinned to your venue's local clock through daylight saving changes

Edit or cancel anything still queued, and stop a running automation early with an instant revert

A morning-of email listing what will run, plus an immediate alert if anything fails to apply or revert

Screenshots

See it in your dashboard

CaptiFi Planner calendar showing an event day badged with four scheduled WiFi automations and a countdown panel beside it — The Planner calendar, with every scheduled automation badged on its day.

Your marketing calendar, running your WiFi

Plan events on the calendar and each day shows a small badge for every automation queued against it. The panel beside it counts down to the next one, so you can see at a glance what is about to change and when it changes back.

A badge per automation kind on the day itself
Live countdown to the next run

CaptiFi scheduled automations list showing a WiFi name change, a guest tag, a splash page swap and a message strip queued for the same event day — All four automations queued for one event, each with its window.

Four automations, one event

Switch on any combination for the same day. Each row shows exactly what will happen, the window it runs in, who scheduled it and how long until it starts, with Edit and Cancel while it is still waiting.

Mix and match all four on one event
Edit or cancel anything not yet started

CaptiFi tag guests who connect automation, with a tag name and a start and end time for the day — Tag every guest who connects between two times on a chosen day.

Turn one busy day into a marketing list

Give the day a tag and every guest who connects inside the window gets it on their profile, first visit or fiftieth. When the window ends the tagging stops, and everyone tagged keeps the tag, so the list is still there when the fixture comes round again.

Catches returning regulars, not just new guests
Tags are never removed when the window ends

CaptiFi audiences list showing a segment built from a guest tag with a live count of matching guests — The tagged crowd as a saved audience, ready for a campaign.

Then email or text that exact crowd

Build an audience with a Guest tag condition and the tagged guests become a saved segment with a live count, selectable in the email and SMS campaign wizard. Tag matching is exact, so a "VIP" audience never picks up someone tagged "MVP".

Live guest count on the saved audience
Works for both email and SMS campaigns

CaptiFi splash page swap automation showing the design library picker with a live design marker and a preview link — Pick the event design from your library, and preview it first.

Swap the splash page for the night

Choose any saved design for the window and CaptiFi puts your default back at the end time. Preview opens the real splash page in a new tab first, and a design in use by a scheduled automation cannot be deleted by accident.

Reverts to your default design, not just the previous one
Preview the exact page guests will see

CaptiFi change WiFi name automation with a temporary network name, a time window and a warning that renaming disconnects guests — A temporary network name, with the disconnect warning shown up front.

Rename the network, then put it back

Run a festival or sponsor name for the day and your original name returns automatically. CaptiFi warns you plainly that renaming drops every connected guest, so you schedule the switchover for quiet hours rather than mid-service.

Original name restored at the end time
Needs a CaptiFi device or a linked UniFi controller

What is a guest WiFi automation?

A guest WiFi automation is a scheduled change to what your WiFi does, set once against a date and then run for you. In CaptiFi you plan an event on the Planner calendar and attach the automations you want: a different splash page, a temporary network name, a message banner on the splash page, or a tag applied to every guest who connects. Each one starts at a time you choose and puts itself back at the end time, using your venue's own local clock.

Can you schedule a captive portal splash page to change?

Yes. Choose any saved design from your splash page library, set a start and end time, and CaptiFi puts that design live for the window and restores your default design afterwards. The end time is required rather than optional, which is the part that matters in practice: an event design can never be left up for a week because somebody forgot to change it back.

Why tag the guests who connect on one day?

Because a busy day is a marketing list you only get one chance to record. A pub near a stadium fills up on match day with people who may never be identified again. Tagging everyone who connects during that window puts a label on their guest profile, including the regulars who came back, and that label becomes an audience you can email or text before the next fixture. Tags are never removed when the window ends, so the list keeps its value.

How it works

How to schedule a guest WiFi automation for an event

1

Plan the event on the Planner calendar

Open Planner in the dashboard, click the day and give the event a title, a date and a type. This is the day your automations will run.

2

Choose the venue and switch on the automations you want

Open the WiFi automation section, pick the venue, then switch on any combination of splash page swap, WiFi name change, message strip and guest tagging. Anything your hardware cannot do is greyed out with the reason.

3

Set a start and end time for each one

Times are your venue's local clock, and the end time is required. Every automation reverts itself, so you never schedule the undo.

4

Save, and let it run

The event day gets a badge per automation and the panel beside the calendar counts down to the next run. You get an email on the morning of the event listing what will happen.

5

Turn the tagged guests into a campaign

After the day, build an audience with a Guest tag condition matching the tag you used, then send an email or SMS campaign to exactly that crowd before the next event.

Four automations

Pick any combination for the same event

Switch on one or all four. Every automation gets its own window, and every window reverts itself.

Swap splash page

Show a different saved design for the window, then return to your venue default. Preview the exact page guests will see before you schedule it, and a design in use by a scheduled automation cannot be deleted by mistake.

Best for: Quiz nights, seasonal menus, sponsored events, a themed weekend.

Change WiFi name

Run a temporary network name of up to 32 characters and get your original name back automatically at the end time. CaptiFi warns you up front that renaming drops every connected guest, so you can pick quiet hours for the switchover.

Best for: Festivals, sponsor activations, private hire, pop-ups.

Message strip

Add a short dismissible banner on top of whatever design is already live, in one of four styles. No design work at all, and it disappears for everyone at the end time.

Best for: Happy hour, kick-off times, last orders, a one-off offer.

Tag guests who connect

Label every guest who connects during the window, first visit or fiftieth, then build an audience from that tag and send to it. Tagging stops at the end time and everyone tagged keeps the tag.

Best for: Match days, festival weekends, ticketed events, launch nights.

Use cases

What venues schedule

Pubs and sports bars

Tag everyone who connects on a home game day, swap to a fixture splash page for the afternoon and run a message strip with the kick-off time. Before the next home game, text the tagged crowd.

Restaurants and cafes

Schedule a seasonal menu splash page for the weeks it applies, and a message strip for a set-menu window, without touching the builder again once it is planned.

Events and festivals

Rename the network to the event name for the weekend, swap to an event splash page and tag every attendee who connects, so the audience survives after the site clears.

Hotels and venues for hire

Run a private-hire network name and splash page for the duration of a booking, with the house setup returning automatically the moment the window ends.

Gyms and studios

Use weekly repeats for recurring classes or member nights: one schedule, pinned to your local clock, running every week until you stop it.

Multi-site operators

Automations belong to the venue, not the person, so anyone on the team with splash page permission sees what is scheduled where, with the creator named on every row.

Hardware

Which automations work on your WiFi

Splash swaps, message strips and guest tagging work everywhere, because CaptiFi serves your splash page and logs your guests itself. Renaming the network needs remote-rename support from your controller.

Your WiFi hardware	Splash swap	Message strip	Tag guests	WiFi name change
CaptiFi plug-and-play device	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
UniFi (all connection types)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
TP-Link Omada	Yes	Yes	Yes	Not yet
Cisco Meraki	Yes	Yes	Yes	Not yet
Ruckus	Yes	Yes	Yes	Not yet
Aruba Instant On	Yes	Yes	Yes	Not supported

Where renaming is not available the toggle is disabled in the dashboard with the reason for your setup, rather than failing silently on the night. Full detail is in the Planner guide.

FAQs

WiFi automation questions answered

Can I schedule my guest WiFi splash page to change automatically?

Yes. Pick a day on the Planner calendar, choose a saved design from your splash page library and set a start and end time. CaptiFi puts the design live at the start time and restores your default design at the end time, in your venue's own timezone. You can preview the exact page guests will see before you schedule it.

Do scheduled WiFi changes undo themselves?

Always. Every automation has a required end time, so there is no way to leave one switched on by accident. At the end time your default splash design comes back, your original WiFi name is restored, a message banner disappears, and guest tagging stops. You never schedule the undo yourself.

Can I tag every guest who connects on a particular day?

Yes. Switch on the "Tag guests who connect" automation, give the day a tag such as a fixture or festival name, and every guest who connects inside the window gets that tag on their profile, whether it is their first visit or their fiftieth. Tagging stops when the window ends and everyone tagged keeps the tag, so the list is still there next time.

How do I market to the guests a tag collected?

Build an audience in Marketing with a Guest tag condition matching the tag you used. The tagged guests become a saved segment with a live count that you can select in the email and SMS campaign wizard. Tag matching is exact, so an audience for "VIP" never picks up a guest tagged "MVP".

Can I run the same automation every week?

Yes. Switch Repeat to Weekly, choose the days and optionally an end date. Each week appears as its own entry, so you can cancel a single week without touching the series. Times stay pinned to your venue's local clock, so a 17:00 slot is still 17:00 after the clocks change.

Can CaptiFi change my WiFi network name for an event?

On a CaptiFi plug-and-play device or a linked UniFi controller, yes: set a temporary network name and the original returns at the end time. It is not available yet on TP-Link Omada, Cisco Meraki or Ruckus, and Aruba Instant On offers no management API for it, so the toggle is disabled with the reason for your setup. Splash swaps, message banners and guest tagging work on every platform because CaptiFi serves the splash page itself.

Will renaming the WiFi disconnect my guests?

Yes, and CaptiFi says so before you schedule it. Changing a network name drops every connected device, and phones do not join a renamed network on their own, so guests have to pick the new name and sign in again. Schedule the switchover for quiet hours rather than mid-service.

Can I change or cancel an automation after scheduling it?

Yes. While an automation is still waiting to run you can edit its times and its details, such as the tag, the message or the chosen design. Once it is running you can stop it early, which reverts your venue immediately, and finished automations stay in a history list with their final status.

How do I know an automation actually ran?

On days with automations scheduled the account owner gets an email at 8am venue time listing what will run. Every automation also carries a status you can check, and if one fails to apply or fails to revert you get an immediate alert rather than finding out from a guest.

What Our Customers Say

CaptiFi completely changed my business. Before, every guest was a one-time booki...

CaptiFi completely changed my business. Before, every guest was a one-time booking. Now I have a direct line to thousands of people who've stayed in the plane. I can offer them return deals, send updates about new features, and keep them engaged. My repeat booking rate went from almost zero to 35%. It's been incredible.

J

Johnny Palmer

Owner, PytchAir Boeing 727 Airbnb

Schedule Your Guest WiFi Around Your Busiest Days