A Workflow in Sprout Studio allows you to define a step-by-step process one time and then apply it over and over again. This allows you to save time and create a more consistent experience for your clients.
A workflow is made up of a series of steps, where each step follows a basic "when this, then that" structure, where:
- When is the relative amount of time from the trigger when the action should happen. For example, 1 week after the client booking.
- This is the event that triggers the step in the workflow. For example, a client booking.
- That is what action happens when the step in the workflow is triggered. For example, sending an email.
Together, the three elements of a workflow step come together to get a singular action. In the example above - 1 week after the client books, send an email. When you add multiple steps to a workflow, you create a powerful engine that can automate your to-do list and automatically send emails and questionnaires to your clients at the right time.
The "this" workflow step component, explained
The "this" component of a workflow step is the event that triggers the step in the workflow. Even if you apply a workflow to a lead or shoot, a step will only be trigger when the "this" event occurs.
The "this" event can be any of:
- Workflow is applied
- Inquiry date
- Booking proposal is sent
- Client signs booking proposal
- Booking proposal is canceled
- Lead becomes shoot
- Status change
- Shoot date
- Custom date
The "when" workflow step component, explained
The "when" component of a workflow step is the amount of time in relation to the "this" event when the workflow step should trigger. It can be one of:
- Immediately
- Relative to (before or after)
The "when" component in combination with the "this" component dictate exactly when the workflow step is triggered. For example:
- Immediately upon inquiry date
- 5 days after booking proposal is sent
- 2 days before shoot date
- 1 week after status changes to "follow-up"
The "that" workflow step component, explained
The "that" component of a workflow step is the action that happens when the workflow step is triggered. It can be one of:
- Send email
- Create task
- Send questionnaire
- Change status
- Apply another workflow
When a workflow step is triggered (with the "when" and "this" component), the action occurs. So, for example:
- Immediately upon inquiry date, send "thank you" email
- 5 days after booking proposal is sent, change status to "not booking"
- 2 days before shoot date, create task "call bride to confirm times"
- 1 week after status changes to "follow-up", apply "follow-up" workflow
How to create and edit a workflow
To create workflow, go to Settings > Automation > Workflows and click the "New Workflow" button.
When building a workflow, you can add a new step by clicking the "Add Workflow Step" button at the bottom of the modal, or you can click the "+" button at the end of the row for any existing step to add a new workflow step before or after that step.
While building a workflow, you can drag-and-drop workflow steps by grabbing any part of the step and dragging it up or down.
Automatically applying workflows
To specify automatic workflow settings, go to Settings > Automation > Workflows. Lead workflows can be automatically applied to leads that are a certain shoot type by specifying this in the Default Workflow section.
