Basic: Schedule a GroupMe bot message

[Shalom_Karr]

Auto-Send “Good Morning” Messages in GroupMe with Google Apps Script

Want your GroupMe bot to greet your group every morning—without lifting a finger? This tutorial sets up a Google Apps Script that:

• Sends a “Good morning” message via your GroupMe bot
• Creates a Google Sheet to manage schedule, message, and recurrence
• Lets you customize the time, date, and message easily

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What You’ll Need

• A GroupMe account
• A GroupMe bot (we’ll create one below)
• A Google account

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Step-by-Step Setup

1. Create Your GroupMe Bot

1. Go to dev.groupme.com/bots
2. Click “Create Bot”
3. Fill in:
   • Name: “MorningBot”
   • Group: Select your GroupMe group
   • Callback URL: Leave blank
4. Submit and copy your Bot ID

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2. Create the Script

1. Go to script.new to open a new Google Apps Script project
2. Paste the following code:

const BOT_ID = 'YOUR_BOT_ID'; // Replace with your actual GroupMe Bot ID

function setupSheet() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.create('GroupMe Scheduler');
  const range = sheet.getActiveSheet().getRange('A1:D1');
  range.setValues([['Date', 'Time', 'Message', 'Recur']]);

  const sampleRow = sheet.getActiveSheet().getRange('A2:D2');
  sampleRow.setValues([[
    Utilities.formatDate(new Date(), Session.getScriptTimeZone(), 'yyyy-MM-dd'),
    '07:00',
    'Good morning!',
    'Daily'
  ]]);

  Logger.log('Sheet created: ' + sheet.getUrl());
}

function sendScheduledMessages() {
  const sheet = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getActiveSheet();
  const now = new Date();
  const today = Utilities.formatDate(now, Session.getScriptTimeZone(), 'yyyy-MM-dd');
  const currentTime = Utilities.formatDate(now, Session.getScriptTimeZone(), 'HH:mm');

  const data = sheet.getDataRange().getValues();

  for (let i = 1; i < data.length; i++) {
    const [date, time, message, recur] = data[i];

    const shouldSend =
      (date === today && time === currentTime) ||
      (recur === 'Daily' && time === currentTime);

    if (shouldSend) {
      const payload = {
        bot_id: BOT_ID,
        text: message,
      };

      const options = {
        method: 'post',
        contentType: 'application/json',
        payload: JSON.stringify(payload),
      };

      UrlFetchApp.fetch('https://api.groupme.com/v3/bots/post', options);
    }
  }
}

3. Replace 'YOUR_BOT_ID' with your actual GroupMe Bot ID
4. Save the project

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3. Run the Setup

• In the Apps Script editor, click the dropdown and run setupSheet
• This will create a Google Sheet and log the URL in View > Logs

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4. Set the Trigger

1. In Apps Script, click the clock icon (Triggers)
2. Add a new trigger:
   • Function: sendScheduledMessages
   • Event source: Time-driven
   • Type: Every minute (or every 5 minutes)

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You’re Done!

Your bot will now send “Good morning!” at the scheduled time. You can update the sheet to:

• Change the message
• Set a specific date
• Use “Daily” in the Recur column for recurring posts