> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.fanaura.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Delays

> Learn how to use time delays, fan-action delays, and date-based delays to control the timing and pacing of your automation flows.

Delays are what turn a barrage of messages into a thoughtful sequence. Without delays, every action in your flow would fire instantly — one email, one SMS, and one DM all arriving within seconds of each other. Delays give your fans breathing room and make your automation feel natural.

***

## Adding a Delay

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the Add Menu">
    In the Flow Builder canvas, click the **add button** ("+") below any node.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select Delay">
    Select **"Delay"** from the node type menu.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose Your Delay Type">
    Choose from Time Delay, Fan-Action Delay, or Until Date.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Configure Duration">
    Set the duration, timeout, or date for your delay.
  </Step>
</Steps>

***

## Delay Types

Fanaura offers three types of delays, each designed for different timing needs.

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Time Delay">
    The simplest type: wait a fixed amount of time before continuing.

    ### Configuration

    Set the duration using:

    * **Seconds**: Wait 30 seconds (useful for rapid sequences like IG DM conversations)
    * **Minutes**: Wait 5 minutes (good for a brief pause after a trigger before the first message)
    * **Hours**: Wait 2 hours (allow time for the fan to take an action before following up)
    * **Days**: Wait 3 days (standard drip sequence spacing)
    * **Weeks**: Wait 1 week (longer nurture sequences)

    ### Examples

    **Quick follow-up after presave:**

    ```
    Fan presaves -> Wait 1 minute -> Send thank-you email
    ```

    The 1-minute delay prevents the email from arriving before the presave confirmation page has loaded.

    **Drip email sequence:**

    ```
    Send welcome email -> Wait 3 days -> Send "Here's my story" email -> Wait 3 days -> Send "Check out my latest" email
    ```

    Three days between emails keeps fans engaged without overwhelming them.

    **Release day countdown:**

    ```
    Send "1 week to go!" SMS -> Wait 4 days -> Send "3 days!" SMS -> Wait 2 days -> Send "Tomorrow!" SMS -> Wait 1 day -> Send "It's live!" SMS
    ```

    A countdown sequence that builds anticipation.

    ### How It Works Behind the Scenes

    When a fan hits a time delay, Fanaura schedules the next action using a **reliable message queue**. The scheduled message fires at exactly the right time — even if your Fanaura account is not actively being used. Delays are reliable to the second.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Fan-Action Delay">
    Wait until the fan takes a specific action — or until a timeout period expires.

    ### Configuration

    1. **Select the action to wait for**: Choose from available fan actions:
       * Fan opens an email
       * Fan clicks a link in an email
       * Fan replies to an SMS
       * Fan streams your music
       * Fan purchases merch
       * Fan RSVPs to an event
       * Fan clicks a ticket link

    2. **Set a timeout**: How long should the delay wait before giving up?
       * Example: "Wait for email open, timeout after 3 days"

    3. **On timeout**: What happens if the fan does not take the action within the timeout?
       * **Continue**: Move to the next node in the flow (the fan proceeds even though they did not act)
       * **Exit flow**: Remove the fan from the flow entirely

    ### Examples

    **Email open follow-up:**

    ```
    Send email -> Wait until fan opens email (timeout: 3 days) -> Send SMS follow-up
    ```

    If the fan opens the email within 3 days, the SMS fires immediately after the open. If they do not open it within 3 days, the timeout kicks in.

    **Purchase confirmation:**

    ```
    Send merch promo email -> Wait until fan purchases (timeout: 7 days) -> Condition: Did they purchase?
    |-- Yes -> Send thank-you email
    |-- No  -> Send discount offer email
    ```

    **SMS reply collection:**

    ```
    Send SMS: "What city should I tour next? Reply with your city!" -> Wait until fan replies (timeout: 2 days)
    ```

    Collects fan replies for a fun, interactive campaign.

    <Warning>Set reasonable timeouts. A 30-day timeout on a fan-action delay means the fan might forget why they are hearing from you. Keep timeouts under 7 days for most use cases.</Warning>

    ### How It Works Behind the Scenes

    Fan-action delays set up a listener for the specified event. When Fanaura detects the fan action (via webhook, API, or real-time update), it immediately advances the fan past the delay. A scheduled timeout acts as a fallback.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Until Date">
    Wait until a specific calendar date, typically derived from your asset metadata.

    ### Configuration

    1. **Select the date source**: Choose from:
       * Release date (from your music asset)
       * Event date (from your tour asset)
       * On-sale date (from your tour or merch asset)
       * Pre-order date (from your merch asset)
       * Custom date (enter manually)

    2. **Optional offset**: Add or subtract time from the date
       * "Release date minus 3 days" (fire 3 days before release)
       * "Event date minus 1 hour" (fire 1 hour before the show)
       * "On-sale date plus 0 days" (fire at midnight on on-sale day)

    ### Examples

    **Release day blast:**

    ```
    Fan presaves -> Send thank-you email -> Wait until release date -> Send "It's live!" email
    ```

    The fan presaves weeks or months before release. The delay holds them in the flow until release day.

    **Pre-show text:**

    ```
    Fan buys ticket -> Send confirmation -> Wait until event date minus 1 day -> Send "See you tomorrow!" SMS
    ```

    The fan might buy a ticket months in advance. The delay waits until the day before the show.

    **Presale code delivery:**

    ```
    Fan RSVPs -> Wait until presale date minus 24 hours -> Send presale code email
    ```

    Delivers the presale code exactly 24 hours before presale opens.

    <Note>If you update the date on your asset, existing delays will respect the new date. Until-date delays dynamically read from your asset metadata.</Note>

    ### How It Works Behind the Scenes

    Until-date delays read the relevant date from your asset metadata, apply the offset, and schedule the next action for that exact timestamp.
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

***

## Timezone Awareness

Delays respect timezone settings configured in [Flow Settings](/flow-builder/settings):

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Account Timezone">
    All delays use your account's default timezone. A "Wait until 9 AM" delay fires at 9 AM in your timezone for all fans.

    This works well when your fan base is concentrated in one timezone or region.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Fan Timezone">
    Uses each fan's local timezone (if known) for time-based operations.

    * A "Wait until 9 AM" delay fires at 9 AM in each fan's local time
    * A time window of 9 AM to 5 PM means different actual hours for each fan
    * If a fan's timezone is unknown, falls back to your account timezone

    This is ideal for:

    * International fan bases
    * Artists with fans across multiple US time zones
    * Any flow where you want to avoid sending messages at inappropriate hours
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

<Tip>If your fan base is primarily in one country, account timezone works fine. If you have international fans, enable fan timezone for a better experience.</Tip>

***

## Combining Delays

You can chain multiple delays for sophisticated timing:

```
Trigger: Fan presaves
  |
Wait 1 minute
  |
Send thank-you email
  |
Wait 3 days
  |
Wait until fan opens email (timeout: 2 days)
  |
Condition: Did they open it?
  |-- Yes -> Wait until release date -> Send "It's live!" email
  |-- No  -> Send re-engagement SMS -> Wait until release date -> Send "It's live!" SMS
```

This flow uses all three delay types:

1. **Time delay** (1 minute) — Brief pause before the thank-you
2. **Time delay** (3 days) — Spacing between messages
3. **Fan-action delay** (email open, 2-day timeout) — Waiting for engagement
4. **Until-date delay** (release date) — Scheduling the release announcement

<Info>A delay followed by a condition is a powerful pattern — "Wait 3 days, then check if they opened the email, then branch accordingly."</Info>

***

## Tips and Best Practices

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Always include a delay after the trigger">
    Even 1 minute prevents your message from arriving before the fan's browser has finished loading the trigger confirmation page.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Respect your fans' attention">
    Space messages at least 1-2 days apart in a drip sequence. More than one message per day feels aggressive.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Use fan-action delays for engagement gating">
    Only send follow-ups to fans who engaged with the previous message.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Set reasonable timeouts">
    A 30-day timeout means the fan might forget why they are hearing from you. Keep timeouts under 7 days for most use cases.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Test your delays">
    Activate a flow and trigger it yourself. Make sure the timing feels right from the fan's perspective.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Combine with conditions">
    A delay followed by a condition is a powerful pattern — "Wait 3 days, then check if they opened the email, then branch accordingly."
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

***

## What Happens Next

Delays control when things happen. Conditions control what happens. Learn about branching logic in [Conditions](/flow-builder/conditions).