Webhook.

What is a webhook?

A webhook is an automatic message that one system sends to another the moment a specific event happens, such as a form being submitted, a payment succeeding or a booking being cancelled.

Instead of one system repeatedly asking 'anything new?', the system where the event happens pushes the details straight to a web address you provide, and the receiving system acts on them immediately.

Why it matters

Webhooks make your business react in seconds rather than hours. A new enquiry can trigger an instant acknowledgement, a CRM record and an alert to the right person. A failed card payment can start a polite chaser before the customer forgets. A completed booking can send joining instructions. Speed of response is often what wins an enquiry, and webhooks are the cheapest, most reliable way to build that speed into your systems.

How it works

• An event Something happens in the source system, such as a new order.
• A destination URL You give the source system a web address to notify, usually supplied by your automation tool or receiving app.
• The payload The source sends a small package of data describing the event, such as the customer's name and order value.
• The action The receiving system uses that data to do its job: create a record, send an email or start a workflow.
• Signature verification A signature or secret proves the message came from the genuine source and not an impostor.

What to do about it

List the events in your business where speed matters: new enquiries, payments, bookings, cancellations. Check whether the systems involved offer webhooks, usually in their settings under integrations or developers. Where you use them, turn on signature verification, keep a log of received events and set an alert for failures. Test each one end to end after any change to either system.