Automations set-up guide

How to set up automations in HoneyBook

Updated over a week ago

Automations allow you to automate tasks in your project's lifecycle, sending out emails or files at the cadence of your choice—so you can spend less time on administrative tasks and more time on the parts of business that you love.

In case you missed it, find more info on what automations are and how their actions and triggers work.

📣 Note

This article references automations, available for Essentials and Premium plan members. Learn more about the features included in each plan here.


Setting up your automation: the basics

In this section, we’ll just review the basics of setting up an automation. There's no limit to the number of automations you can create!

To create a new automation:

1. From your HoneyBook home page, click the Tools menu.

2. Select Automations from the menu.

3. Click + New Automation.

4. Click the automation title to rename it as you see fit. This will make it easy to find when you're adding an automation to a specific project.

5. Click + Add First Action to begin building the automation. You can choose to:

The email and file-based actions are customer-facing; your clients will receive whatever it is you choose to send. Tasks, however, are just for your internal use and organization, and will not be visible to your clients anywhere.

Learn more about actions here.

6. If your action sends an email and/or a file to a client, select the template (or templates) you’d like to send.

  • If you selected the Send an Email action, you’ll simply select the email template you’d like to go out at this step of the automation

  • If you chose an action that sends a file, you’ll select both the smart template and, since files always go out with an email, the email template that should send with it

7. In the When section, choose when you’d like this first step to trigger.

📚 Tip

Setting an action to fire "0 days after" a trigger will ensure that the action happens immediately after the trigger occurs.

For example, you can create an automation that begins as soon as it is activated—which can be done manually, or automatically via a contact form or lead form—by setting the first action to trigger "0 days after automation is activated."

8. Choose the trigger you’d like to base the delay (if any) on.

For example, if you select Contract is Signed as the trigger, the delay you set will begin as soon as your client signs their contract. So, if you set this actions’ delay to 30 minutes after, the action will occur 30 minutes after the contract is signed.

We’ll walk you through how to set up each action below, and you can learn more about triggers here.

📣 Note

The first trigger is NOT what will activate/start the automation as a whole. Automations are only considered “activated” when applied to a project, either automatically (via the contact form), automatically (via the lead form), or manually.

So, for example, if the first trigger you create states that the action should occur 30 minutes after a contract is signed, this automation will not automatically begin simply because a contract has been signed. The automation will need to have been applied to the project before the contract is signed in order for the automation to function as intended.

9. To continue building out the automation, click the plus (+) button to add another step. You can add as many steps as you’d like.

10. Click Save when you're finished!

11. Now, you can apply this automation manually to projects, or set it up to automatically begin when a contact form or lead form is submitted.

And remember, if you need to make changes, you can edit automations once they’re applied to projects—or remove them entirely!


Sending an email via automation

When you select Send Email as an action, you can choose to send any email template you've created, then edit the email as necessary (without changing the original template!), select when the email should send, and decide whether the email should go out automatically or with your review.

To send an email through an automation:

1. Select Send Email as your action.

2. Choose the email template you'd like to send.

📚 Tip

Have an attachment you'd like to include in the emails you send through automations? Create an email template that includes whatever attachments you need, then be sure to select that email when creating your automation!

3. Click Preview & Edit to make sure the email looks good for this particular client or scenario. If you need to make changes, click Edit This Email at the bottom of the email composer, make your changes, and click Use This Email when you’re finished.

📚 Tip

Any changes you make to the email template you’ve selected will only apply to the email within this individual automation—it will not update the original email template, or any other automations in which you’ve used it.

4. Select your trigger and delay.

5. Select whether this email requires your approval before sending.

📚 Tip

If you check Require Approval Before Sending, a task will appear in your project task list on the day your email should send (according to your automation rules). You’ll have the option to send the email as-is, edit the message first and then send, or delete the step (via the trash can icon). Note that if you check the task off, the email will send right away!

6. Add more steps by clicking the plus (+) button, or click Save if you’re finished editing this automation.

When the selected trigger date and time hits, your email will send! The email will appear as though it came directly from the project owner, and will go right to the inbox of the participant(s) associated with the project or Inquiry to which the automation was applied.

And remember, if you need to make changes, you can edit automations once they’re applied to projects—or remove them entirely!


Sending a smart file via automation

To streamline your workflow even further, you can also use automations to send smart files at the appropriate points in your business process!

📚 Tip

You can automate any type of smart file: including invoices, contracts, scheduling, and more!

To send a smart file through an automation:

1. Select a Send smart file via email from the Actions menu.

2. Choose the smart template you'd like to send.

3. Choose the email template you'd like to send along with the file—remember, smart files will always send out with an email!

a. Make changes to this email by selecting Preview & editEdit this email. This also detaches this email from the original template, so future changes to that template won't affect this email.

b. You can also change the button's default text when editing the email. If you don't change the button's text, it will say "Get Started" and won't appear in the preview.

4. Select your trigger and delay.

5. Select whether this email & document require your approval before sending.

📚 Tip

If you toggle Require approval before sending to ON (blue), a task will appear in your project task list on the day your email should send (according to your automation rules). You’ll have the option to send the email as-is, edit the message first and then send, or delete the step (via the trash can icon). You will not be able to edit the smart template itself. Note that if you check the task off, the email and smart file will send right away.

6. Add more steps by clicking the plus (+) button, or click Save if you’re finished editing this automation.

When the selected trigger date hits, your file and email will send out to your client(s)! The email will appear as though it came directly from the project owner, and will go right to the inbox of the participant(s) associated with the project or inquiry to which the automation was applied.

And remember, if you need to make changes, you can edit automations once they’re applied to projects—or remove them entirely!


Creating a task via automation

Tasks allow you to keep track of all your to-dos, and customize them for your unique automation.

When you select Create Task as an automation action, you can edit the task itself, choose the assignee, as well as select when it should appear in the task list.

To create a task through an automation:

1. Select Create Task as your action.

2. Name the task.

3. Select the assignee from the Assign to drop-down: the project owner, yourself, or another member of your team.

📣 Note

If the assignee is not a project participant, the task will be assigned to the project owner.

4. Set your trigger and delay.

5. Add more steps by clicking the plus (+) button, or click Save if you’re finished editing this automation.

Now, when you apply this automation to a project, the task will appear in the task list for that project at the time designated by the delay you set, as well as in the assignee's main task list. And remember, if you need to make changes, you can edit automations once they’re applied to projects—or remove them entirely!


Moving Pipeline stage via automation

The Move Pipeline stage action takes manual work out of moving projects through your pipeline. It allows the automation to move the associated project to a specific pipeline stage, when the chosen trigger occurs.

To move the associated project's stage through an automation:

1. Select Move Pipeline stage as your action.

2. Select the Pipeline stage.

3. Set your trigger and delay.

4. Add more steps by clicking the plus (+) button, or click Save if you’re finished editing this automation.

Now, when you apply this automation to a project, the project will move to the chosen stage when the trigger occurs.

And remember, if you need to make changes, you can edit automations once they’re applied to projects—or remove them entirely!


Applying & activating an automation

You can activate an automation in three ways:

Remember that since you can create as many automations as you’d like, you can mix and match across projects, contact forms, and lead forms as necessary!

For example, you may have an Onboarding Automation that triggers immediately when a contact form inquiry comes in, and a separate Offboarding Automation that you manually apply to a project, which is set to start 3 days after the project date.


🚀 Get help from an automations expert: HoneyBook Pros are trusted professionals who can set up your automations and help take your business to the next level!



Still have questions? Feel free to send us a message by clicking the Question Mark icon on any HoneyBook page. Our team is always happy to help!

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