Creating multi-step Zaps in No-Code - Try It Yourself

Creating multi-step Zaps

📖 Scenario: You want to automate your daily work tasks by connecting different apps. For example, when you receive a new email, you want to save the attachment to cloud storage and then notify your team in a chat app.

🎯 Goal: Build a multi-step Zap that starts with a trigger, adds a filter condition, and then performs two actions in sequence.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create a Zap with a trigger from Gmail for new emails

Add a filter step to only continue if the email has an attachment

Add an action to save the attachment to Google Drive

Add a final action to send a message to Slack notifying the team

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Automating repetitive tasks like saving email attachments and notifying teams saves time and reduces errors.

💼 Career

Knowledge of creating multi-step Zaps is valuable for roles in operations, marketing, and IT where workflow automation improves productivity.

1

Set up the trigger for new Gmail emails

Create a Zap and add a trigger step using the Gmail app. Select the trigger event New Email to start the Zap when you receive any new email.

No-Code

# Add a Gmail trigger for new emails
# Your code here

Hint

Look for the Gmail app and choose the trigger event called New Email.

2

Add a filter to check for attachments

Add a filter step after the trigger. Configure the filter to continue only if the email Has Attachment field is true.

No-Code

Trigger: Gmail - New Email
# Add a filter step to check if the email has an attachment
# Your code here

Hint

Use the filter step and set the condition to check the Has Attachment field equals true.

3

Add an action to save attachments to Google Drive

Add an action step using the Google Drive app. Choose the event Upload File and map the attachment from the email to upload it to your Drive.

No-Code

Trigger: Gmail - New Email
Filter: Only continue if Has Attachment is true
# Add Google Drive action to upload the attachment
# Your code here

Hint

Choose Google Drive as the app and select Upload File as the action event. Map the email attachment to the file upload field.

4

Add a final action to notify your team on Slack

Add another action step using the Slack app. Select the event Send Channel Message and configure it to send a message to your team channel notifying about the new saved attachment.

No-Code

Trigger: Gmail - New Email
Filter: Only continue if Has Attachment is true
Action: Google Drive - Upload File (attachment from email)
# Add Slack action to send a message to the team channel
# Your code here

Hint

Use Slack as the app and select Send Channel Message as the action. Choose your team channel and write a message like "New attachment saved from email."

Practice

1. What is the main purpose of creating multi-step Zaps in automation?

easy

A. To connect multiple apps and automate several tasks in order

B. To manually perform tasks faster

C. To write code for app integration

D. To create a single-step notification

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand what multi-step Zaps do

   Multi-step Zaps link several actions across apps to run automatically in sequence.

2. Step 2: Compare options to the purpose

   Only To connect multiple apps and automate several tasks in order describes connecting multiple apps and automating tasks in order, which matches the purpose.

3. Final Answer:

   To connect multiple apps and automate several tasks in order -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Multi-step Zaps automate tasks in order = D [OK]

Hint: Multi-step means several actions connected automatically [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking multi-step Zaps require coding
• Confusing manual tasks with automation
• Assuming multi-step Zaps only notify

2. Which of the following is the correct way to add a new action step in a multi-step Zap?

easy

A. Only use one app per Zap

B. Write a script to connect the apps

C. Click 'Add a Step' and choose the app and action

D. Manually run each step one by one

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify how to add steps in Zapier

   Zapier allows adding steps by clicking 'Add a Step' and selecting the app and action.

2. Step 2: Eliminate incorrect options

   Options B, C, and D do not describe the correct process for adding steps in a multi-step Zap.

3. Final Answer:

   Click 'Add a Step' and choose the app and action -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Add step by clicking and choosing app/action = A [OK]

Hint: Add steps via 'Add a Step' button, no coding needed [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking coding is required to add steps
• Believing only one app can be used
• Assuming steps run manually

3. Consider a multi-step Zap where Step 1 creates a new contact, Step 2 sends a welcome email, and Step 3 adds the contact to a mailing list. What happens if Step 1 fails?

medium

A. Steps 2 and 3 will not run because Step 1 failed

B. Only Step 3 will run, skipping Step 2

C. Steps 2 and 3 will still run as normal

D. The Zap will restart from Step 1 automatically

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand Zap step dependency

   In multi-step Zaps, later steps depend on earlier steps completing successfully.

2. Step 2: Apply failure impact

   If Step 1 fails, subsequent steps (2 and 3) do not run because they rely on Step 1's output.

3. Final Answer:

   Steps 2 and 3 will not run because Step 1 failed -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Step failure stops next steps = C [OK]

Hint: If one step fails, next steps usually stop [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming later steps run despite failure
• Thinking Zap restarts automatically
• Believing steps run independently

4. You created a multi-step Zap but notice the second action never runs. What is the most likely cause?

medium

A. The Zap is running too fast to trigger the second step

B. You forgot to add the second step

C. Zapier requires manual approval for each step

D. The first step failed or filter blocked the Zap

Solution

1. Step 1: Check Zap step dependencies and filters

   If the first step fails or a filter condition is not met, the next step won't run.

2. Step 2: Evaluate other options

   Options B, C, and D are less likely because Zapier does not require manual approval per step and speed does not block steps.

3. Final Answer:

   The first step failed or filter blocked the Zap -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Step failure or filter stops next step = A [OK]

Hint: Check if first step or filter stopped the Zap [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming Zapier needs manual step approval
• Ignoring filters that block steps
• Thinking speed affects step execution

5. You want to create a multi-step Zap that only sends a notification email if a new form submission contains the word "urgent". Which feature should you add to your Zap to achieve this?

hard

A. Add a delay step before sending the email

B. Add a filter step that checks if the form submission text contains "urgent"

C. Add a code step to rewrite the email content

D. Add a second trigger for urgent submissions

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify how to conditionally run steps

   Filters in multi-step Zaps allow running actions only if certain conditions are met.

2. Step 2: Match the condition to the feature

   Adding a filter step to check if the submission contains "urgent" ensures the email sends only then.

3. Final Answer:

   Add a filter step that checks if the form submission text contains "urgent" -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Use filters to run steps conditionally = B [OK]

Hint: Use filters to run steps only when conditions match [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using delay instead of filter for conditions
• Adding unnecessary code steps
• Trying to use multiple triggers for one Zap