If you’re wondering what all the fuss about automation is then here’s our simple guide to Zapier. We will explain how it can save you hours of time that you can spend growing your business, being creative, or simply reading that book that you haven’t got around to doing because you’re too busy!
First things first, do you know how to say ‘Zapier’? The best way to remember is that Zapier rhymes with ‘happier’, which is a great aide-memoire as you’ll be happier when you’ve saved yourself a ton of time from automating boring repetitive tasks!
What Is Zapier?
Zapier is an online application that allows you to configure connections or automations between applications. This may sound like you need to be a super-geek but you really don’t; it’s a “no-code solution” which means that it’s aimed at non-technical people so as long as you know how to log into the apps you want to connect then anyone can do it.
In the world of IT, the interfaces between different pieces of software were typically a challenge, with both parties needing to specify the data exactly which was sent to and forth, generally coded by top tech whizzes.
Zapier is completely different. It has done all the hard work for you. It has programmed thousands of interfaces as pre-built integrations which means that all you have to do is provide the access. For example, if you’re connecting your Xero accounting software to your Gmail then Zapier will ask you to log into both as part of the configuration so that it can securely save those credentials, allowing it to then send data from one to the other.
Your role is that of configuring the connection rather than coding it, meaning that anyone can do it.
What Is A Zap?
The process of setting up a ‘zap’ (a connection between two apps) is really simple and the interface takes you through it in plain language. You’re simply asked for the ‘trigger’ which is how Zapier knows to do something and then the ‘action’ which is what it should do when that thing happens.
Here is an example :
Image courtesy of Zapier
A zap is one of these workflows, a thing which is triggered by something which then goes on to do something else. So when this happens in one place, do this in another.
It can be a really simple two-step scenario like the example above or could involve more steps, including filters that only trigger the event if a particular thing is true. In the above example, I could add a filter to say that only running activities should be stored in the Google Sheet, if I wanted to track those for a particular fitness challenge.
Which Applications Can Zapier Connect?
There are currently over 6,000 applications that can talk to each other via pre-built integrations using Zapier, including most of the everyday apps that we all use, and the list is growing every week.
These apps include the Microsoft suite, including Outlook, Excel, Office 365, and Teams. The Google suite is covered, including Sheets, Calendar, Forms, and Google Analytics. Social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Finance packages such as Xero, Quickbooks Online, and Sage Business Cloud Accounting. CRMs such as Salesforce, Zoho, Hubspot, and Pipedrive, project management tools such as Trello, Jira, and Asana, file storage such as DropBox, Google Drive, and Box, the list is endless!
Who Can Use Zapier?
The simple answer is that anyone can use Zapier. If you’re a business owner or your job means you do a lot of repetitive tasks that you think could be automated then it’s ideal for you. If you’re a VA (Virtual Assistant) then it’s ideal for task management, social media posting, and collaborating with clients. If you’re an accountant or bookkeeper, you can automate your client onboarding and projects, as well as, your clients’ bookkeeping processes. If you struggle to manage your email inbox then there’s a good chance it can be kept under control with a few well-designed zaps. If your to-do list is overflowing or disorganised then automations might help.
Our mantra is ‘work smarter, not harder’ and Zapier is the best way to achieve this!
What Are The Benefits Of Zapier?
Having Zapier in your life brings so many benefits. For a start, you can forget about some of the mundane tasks you do in the knowledge that they have been automated. This increases efficiency, saves time, and removes human error caused by mistyping or forgetting a step of the process. You will be so much more productive and be able to concentrate on the core tasks in your business rather than the more menial ones.
Do I Need The Paid Version Of Zapier?
To get started with Zapier we would recommend trying the free version. This allows you to configure up to five zaps which is a great way to see how easy it is to configure. There is a limit of 100 tasks per month (a task is an action that happens as a result of a trigger) which should be plenty when you’re first starting out. The free Zapier plan only allows single-step zaps, but new users probably wouldn’t need to create complex, multi-step workflows.
If you want to progress then the paid versions start at $19.99/month (approx. £15.43) and rise depending on how many zaps, tasks, and features you want.
Paid plan features include using Premium apps (such as Salesforce and Xero), data formatters, filters, custom logic paths, and auto replay.
Click here to check out Zapier’s pricing plans.
Where Can I Find Examples Of Zaps?
Zapier has a page which has links to hundreds of examples of zaps, including pre-built templates for note-taking, project management, email, backups, customer support, and social media.
What’s great about the Zapier examples is that they can be shared really easily as templates, meaning that you can set them up extremely quickly and just tweak them to meet your requirements.
Here is a link to the Zapier page.
We have also written a guide to some of our favourite zaps here: 5 Quick Wins With Zapier.
If you enjoyed our simple guide to Zapier then you can find out more from our handy videos. These are quick explanations to some useful zaps and you can listen to Kelly, our Chief Problem Solver, describe each step. Here is a link to the demo videos we have created so far: Watch our Zapier Demo Videos.
More Zapier tips
If this has piqued your interest then we have some other Zapier tips and tricks you can use to connect your business apps.
Our other resources
We also have plenty of free resources:
- Our free e-book is the perfect introduction to business automation.
- Our Zapier functions cheat sheet delves into the powerful inbuilt helper apps which can supercharge your automations.
- A free checklist to help you justify an automation budget.
And finally, our founder / chief problem solver / chief automator Kelly Goss’ new book, Automate It with Zapier, is out now and is the most comprehensive Zapier guide on the market. It will get you up and running and to the stage where you can build and debug advanced automations. Buy your own copy today directly from publisher Packt using this link. Or here are links to Amazon (.co.uk) and Amazon (.com) if you prefer.
Solvaa: Strategy, Solutions, Support, Education
UK-based Solvaa® is a systems, process and automation consultancy specialising in improving business workflows. Solvaa® works with SMEs worldwide to implement digital tools, better processes, use business process automation and generative AI to boost productivity, enhance lead management, and remove unnecessary time, costs and hassles from stretched business owners’ days.
We help you simplify and streamline existing processes, integrate your business tools to make data transfer more efficient, and automate manual tasks. Our business process automation specialists have extensive experience using multiple cloud-based business tools, including Zapier, Pipedrive CRM, SmartSuite, Xero, Google Suite, ClickUp, Asana, Airtable, Hubspot, Active Campaign, Salesforce, Mailchimp, Quickbooks and many more. We are Zapier Certified Experts, SmartSuite Certified Partners, Pipedrive Certified Partners and Xero Certified Advisors. We also educate teams about using AI in their daily roles, mindset, governance and strategy in our Solvaa AI Academy.
Solvaa® was founded in 2016 by Kelly Goss, a no-code solutions architect, business process automation specialist and author of Automate It with Zapier (first edition) and Automate It with Zapier and Generative AI (second edition).
A thought leader on business process automation and digital adoption, Kelly attended an invite-only Roundtable on Artificial Intelligence (AI) with the UK government at No.10 Downing Street, providing insights and recommendations on how SMEs can benefit from productivity gains by using digital technologies, automation and AI. She has also been invited to speak at the House of Lords and at many other events.
Contact us today to find out how Solvaa can help your business make big savings on operational costs and time, and significantly increase productivity.
