An automation is a set of instructions your workspace follows on its own: when this happens, do that. Build one once and it handles the follow-ups, tagging and alerts you would otherwise have to remember yourself.
What automations are
You will find them in Marketing → Automations. Each automation is a sequence: a trigger (the event that starts it — say, a form being submitted) followed by one or more actions (what happens next — send an email, wait a day, add a tag). There is no coding involved: you assemble the sequence on a visual canvas by dragging steps, or use the simpler form builder.
Every automation is either a draft or active. Drafts never fire. Active automations run every time their trigger happens, and you can pause or reactivate one instantly from its card — which also shows its trigger, its step count and how many times it has run.
Building your first one
- Open Marketing → Automations and create a new automation — or start from a template. Templates are pre-built flows for common jobs (a welcome series, re-engagement, lead routing) that prefill the canvas so you only tweak and activate.
- Name it and pick the trigger — the event that starts each run.
- Add your actions in order. A classic first automation: when a form is submitted, send a welcome email, wait a couple of days, then notify a teammate to follow up personally.
- Test the flow with sample data from the editor.
- Activate it when you are happy. Until you do, nothing fires.
Forms are the most common starting trigger — if you have not built one yet, see Audience tools.
Triggers & actions available
Triggers your automations can react to:
- A form is submitted
- A contact is created
- A deal moves to a stage in your pipeline
- A payment is received
- A tag is added to — or removed from — a contact
- A task goes overdue
- A campaign email is opened, or a link in one is clicked (where enabled for your workspace)
- An appointment is created or completed
- A lead arrives by webhook (an automated message another system sends to yours)
Actions a running automation can take:
- Send an email
- Wait for a set amount of time
- Add or remove a tag
- Notify a teammate inside the app
- Update a field on the contact's record
- Ask the AI to draft personalised text
- Branch — follow a different path depending on a condition, such as a contact field
- Create a deal in your pipeline
Tips
- Keep the first one simple. One trigger, two or three steps. The highest-leverage automations are usually the plainest — a welcome email when a form is submitted, a tag when a payment comes in.
- Remember automations act for real. Unlike the work your AI teammates draft — which waits for your yes in the Approvals inbox — an active automation sends its emails and applies its changes on its own. Test it as a draft first.
- Watch the run counts. Each card shows how many times an automation has run — a number that never moves, or one that jumps unexpectedly, is worth a look.
- Pause freely. Pausing takes effect immediately and loses nothing; reactivate whenever you are ready.
- Mind your plan's cap. Depending on your plan there may be a limit on how many automations can be active at once — the page will tell you if you reach it. See Plan limits.