How to create your first automation workflow with MAKE.com? 🤖

EDITOR’S NOTE

Dear Nanobiters,

As you know we're kicking off an exciting new chapter here at Nanobits!

While we've been busy exploring the vast world of AI tools and concepts, we realized something was missing: the "how-to." Knowing about cool AI tools is one thing, but actually building automated workflows with them? That's where the real magic happens.

So, we're rolling up our sleeves and diving headfirst into the world of AI automation. Imagine this:

• Marketers effortlessly generating high-converting ad copy and scheduling social media posts weeks in advance, all while sipping their morning coffee.

• Product managers analyzing user feedback in seconds, identifying key trends and feature requests to inform their product roadmap.

• Sales teams automatically qualifying leads, personalizing outreach messages, and scheduling follow-up emails, leading to more closed deals.

These are just a few examples of how AI automation can transform the way we work.

But we don't want to stop there! We're also fascinated by the potential of agentic AI – AI agents that can act autonomously and complete tasks with minimal human intervention. Think of it like having a super-intelligent assistant who can anticipate your needs and take care of things before you even ask.

And that's not all! We'll be exploring the exciting world of custom GPT creation, prompt engineering to unlock the full potential of LLMs, and even computer-human interfaces like Claude, which allows you to interact with your computer using voice commands.

But here's the thing: we want to make sure we're focusing on the areas that YOU find most interesting.

That's why we recently ran a poll asking about your preferred AI workflow use cases. We were curious to see what sparked your curiosity – whether it was automated blog creation, job searching, or webpage generation.

Your responses are incredibly valuable to us, and they'll help shape the direction of our upcoming newsletters. So, keep an eye out for deep dives into the topics that matter most to you.

In the meantime, if there's a specific AI automation use case or concept you'd love to learn more about, don't hesitate to drop us a line! We're always eager to hear from you.

Happy automating!

Are you tired of boring and repetitive tasks at work?

Do you want to save time and boost your productivity?

Well, here you go! In this newsletter, we'll show you how to use Make.com (formerly Integromat) to automate almost anything.

If you're new to automation, this tutorial is perfect for you.

So, let’s get started!

WHAT IS MAKE?

Make is a platform that allows you to automate tasks by connecting different apps and services.

Think of it as a visual workflow builder with a drag-and-drop interface. Instead of manually performing repetitive tasks, Make lets you create automated workflows, called "scenarios," that handle these actions for you.

Here are some of Make's key features:

Visual Workflow Builder:

Make's intuitive interface makes it easy to build automation even if you have no coding experience.

You can visually connect different apps and services, define the actions you want to perform, and set up the logic for your workflows.

For instance, you can simply click on the canvas to add a module, representing a step in the automation process.

Vast App Ecosystem:

Make offers a vast library of pre-built integrations with thousands of popular apps and services.

This means you can connect virtually any tool you use in your work or personal life and automate tasks across these platforms.

For example, you can connect apps like Google Forms, Google Sheets, Microsoft Teams, Email, and Telegram; this shows the platform's ability to integrate with various services.

Advanced Automation Features:

Make provides advanced features that let you create more complex automation.

You can use data parsing to extract specific information from text, make HTTP requests to interact with APIs, and even create custom functions to handle unique tasks.

You can parse data from Google Forms and map to specific columns in a Google Sheets spreadsheet, illustrating the use of data parsing to automate data entry.

Flexibility and Scalability:

Make is suitable for both individuals and businesses of all sizes.

You can use it to automate simple tasks like sending notifications or backing up files or create complex workflows for business processes like lead management, order fulfillment, or social media management.

The platform scales with your needs, allowing you to add more steps and integrations as your automation requirements grow.

A free account allows 1,000 operations per month, while a pro account provides 10,000 operations and additional features.

Make empowers users to automate a wide range of tasks, freeing up time and increasing efficiency by seamlessly connecting and managing interactions between different applications.

BENEFITS OF MAKE AUTOMATION

Make offers a wide range of benefits for individuals and businesses alike.

Here are some of the key advantages:  

Increased Efficiency and Productivity: Make can automate time-consuming tasks associated with lead generation and follow-up, allowing you to focus on higher-value activities.

Imagine a workflow where a new lead submits their information through a web form. Instead of manually transferring this data to your CRM, sending a welcome email, and scheduling follow-up tasks, Make can handle all these actions automatically.

Error Reduction: Automating lead management tasks with Make significantly reduces the likelihood of human errors that can occur during manual data entry and processing.

For example, Make can accurately transfer lead information from a web form to your CRM, ensuring that all data fields are populated correctly. This automation eliminates the potential for typos, missed fields, or incorrect data mapping, which can lead to lost leads and wasted effort.

Improved Data Accuracy and Consistency: Make ensures consistent and accurate lead data across all your marketing and sales systems.

Think about a scenario where you're using multiple tools for lead capture, email marketing, and CRM. Make can synchronize lead information across these platforms, ensuring data integrity and providing a unified view of your leads.

Seamless Integration: Make seamlessly integrates with a wide array of lead generation and marketing automation tools, enabling a smooth and automated flow of lead data. Make connects different applications like Google Forms, Google Sheets, email, and Microsoft Teams. Applying this concept to lead generation, you could connect tools like web forms, CRMs, email marketing platforms, and social media platforms to create a comprehensive lead management system.

Enhanced Workflow Visibility and Control: Make's visual workflow builder allows you to clearly visualize and manage your lead generation and nurturing processes. This transparency helps you monitor the progress of leads, identify potential bottlenecks, and optimize your workflows for better conversion rates. Make's visual interface is a key feature, allowing users to easily create and modify workflows.

Scalability and Flexibility: Make adapts to your lead generation needs, whether you're a small business or a large enterprise. You can start with a simple lead capture and follow-up workflow and gradually add more sophisticated features as your business grows. Make can handle both simple and complex automations, accommodating a wide range of use cases.

Cost-Effectiveness: Make offers a free plan with a reasonable number of operations, allowing you to experiment and test its capabilities for lead generation without a significant upfront investment. A free Make account allows for 1,000 operations per month!

Make empowers you to work smarter, not harder, by automating tasks, streamlining workflows, and providing valuable business insights.

MAKE vs. ZAPIER: A Comparative Analysis

Choosing between Make and Zapier depends on your specific requirements. Here's a side-by-side comparison to help you decide:

Making the Right Choice

When deciding between Make and Zapier, consider the following:

• Budget Constraints: If cost is a significant factor, Make's pricing structure might be more appealing.

• Complexity of Workflows: For intricate, multi-step automations, Make's visual interface offers greater flexibility.

• App Requirements: If your workflows depend on less common apps, Zapier's extensive integration list could be beneficial.

Now, let’s create a workflow with MAKE.

Context for building MAKE automation workflows

Let’s take a look at any B2B SaaS company. Prospects visit the website through lead generation channels like LinkedIn, Google/AI Search, Ads, etc.

They fill out the interest form on the website for a demo call. Then, someone manually adds the lead to the CRM or, in most cases, a tracking spreadsheet [especially in early-stage start-ups].

When I say someone, that person is usually from the inbound team.

They email the prospect to let them know that a meeting with someone from the sales team will be set soon. Then, the inbound team messages the Sales Team Channel on Slack to inform them of the new lead.

As you can imagine, this takes up a big chunk of the day. And sometimes, the inbound team includes the wrong details in the email. Ideally, they would like to automate all of this.

Now, this is just a simple example, but you can automate just about anything with Make.

You could connect thousands of different apps and services. Best of all, it's completely free to start using.

Benefits of this Automation:

• Efficient Lead Capture: No manual data entry, reducing errors and saving time.

• Personalized Communication: Tailored messages to improve lead engagement and conversion.

• Automated Follow-Up: Ensures timely and consistent communication with leads, nurturing them through the sales funnel.

• Improved Lead Tracking and Management: Integration with the CRM provides a centralized system for tracking lead interactions and progress.

• Increased Sales Productivity: The automation frees up the sales team to focus on higher-value activities, like qualifying and closing deals.

Create your first custom automation on MAKE

So, let’s get started.

Head to Make’s website.

Click on “Get started free.”

You can sign up with Google, Facebook, Github, or directly via your email address. Once you finish signing up for a free account, you'll land here on the main Make dashboard.

Let’s start by clicking on templates on the left-hand side.

This page has thousands of templates that show you how to connect various types of applications.

Right up here, as an example, we see the most popular at the top. You can collect data via a webhook and then feed that into Google Sheets. Or maybe you'd like to take all of your new Telegram messages and forward them to Discord. You can do all of that and more.

Now, you may very well find the exact automation scenario that you're looking for, in which case, congratulations. Or you could click on any of these examples to learn more about how they work. That way, it will make it easier to build your own.

You can build upon any one of these scenarios. For example, you might add another step after this Telegram bot. You could do that by clicking on the “+“ icon next to the “Telegram Bot“ module where it says, “Add another module.“

To understand how Make works and how you can use it, we will build our own scenario. This will give you a good feel for the fundamentals of what's possible.

Let's click on scenarios on the left-hand side. You'll notice that we don't yet have any scenarios, and that's because we haven't built anything yet.

Let's change that in the top right-hand corner by clicking “Create a new scenario.”

This now drops us into the scenario editor or designer, where we can start building our automation.

At first glance, it might seem that there are numerous different options here, but don't worry—we'll make sense of them.

You can either start from scratch, use a pre-existing template, or use Make’s newly launched AI assistant to create a scenario.

You get 30 free credits to use the AI Assistant; these credits reset every 7 days. This is enough for you to tinker around and do your own experiments.

In the center of the screen, you'll see this large plus icon. This is the first step of our scenario. We need some trigger, and this will kick off the scenario or the automation. Here, we can see all the different apps we can use to kick off our scenario. As I said, there are so many different apps that you can connect to. This list goes on and on. There are thousands of different options.

Prospects in a B2B SaaS company submit product demo requests via Google Forms. So, I will type Google Forms in the search bar. You will see all sorts of different actions that you could take.

In my case, a prospect submitting a new demo request triggers this automation. There's an option for “watch responses” when a new response is received. That's exactly what I want, so I'll click on this. This now opens up a dialogue where you'll need to establish a connection with Google Forms.

Now, anytime you want to connect to an app or a service, you will have to establish a connection. This allows Make to access the data stored on different devices.

You can easily create a connection by integrating and authenticating your Google account with Make. If you have any difficulties with this step, you can click on online Help. It's a very rich resource that'll walk you through, step by step, how you can connect to various services.

We need to provide the form ID that we would like to work with in this automation. Now, chances are you have many different Google Forms. You need to tell Make which one you want to work with. You can type in the name of the form in the document title under the Search option. For the sake of this newsletter, I have restricted the limit [how much data you want to pull out of the form at one time] to 2 for one execution cycle of the workflow.

Now, let’s test to make sure that this is working as expected. Before we do that let’s submit a sample demo request.

After filling the form, I clicked on “Run once“ to check whether the response got accurately captured in Make. It did!

Now, let’s add this data to a Google Sheet. Click on the “+“ icon to add the Google Sheets module to the workflow and map the form responses with the relevant headers from the sheet.

Once the configuration is done, let’s check if the flow is working as intended.

And, it does! The lead has been captured in the sheet.

We've now connected two different applications, and we're feeding data from one application to another application. And soon, we'll connect even more.

But before we do that, I need to make one small tweak to this scenario.

Let’s say the team is currently focussed on catering to requests from only India. I don’t want to confuse my sales team by sending them demo requests from other geographies. I can do this by adding a filter between two modules, Google Form and Google Sheets.

Now, let’s add an email module to send the lead information to the sales team. You can also set up a Slack module where you can send the same information to a Slack channel as well. For this newsletter, I will stick to sending email to the sales team.

Let’s see the end result:

The workflow is now ready!

And there are a few different approaches that you could use to test it to make sure that everything is working well. You can either test the entire module at once or run specific modules at a time.

The next step is to schedule it. I mean, I don't want to have to come in here and have to manually run this every time I think a demo request has been raised. Down in the bottom left-hand corner, we can press this toggle and this turns scheduling on. And over here, we can configure the schedule. Currently it's set to every 15 minutes. But when we click on this, we have a few different options. Currently it's set to at regular intervals, but here I could set it to every day, on certain days of the week, or certain days of the month. And here we have some additional options where we can configure how often this runs. Now keep in mind, the more often it runs, the more operations your scenario will consume. So, think of a reasonable interval to run this at.

And just like that, we've automated our way to extra free time.

Keep in mind, your automations can connect to thousands of different services and can be far more complex than what we looked at today. You could have multiple steps and stages to your automations. You can add filters, aggregate data, parse text, branch your workflows into separate paths, and so much more.

Feel free to browse through all the different templates to see what all is possible. In the comments, let me know how you plan to start automating your tasks and how much time you think you'll get back in your day.