Assigning and attaching workflows

A workflow is a reusable checklist of steps (send an email, create a task, schedule an event, change a stage, and more) that you build once and then reuse across many leads and matters. Building the workflow is only half the job. This page explains the other half: how a workflow's steps actually land on a real lead or matter so your team can work through them.

There are several ways a workflow reaches a record. You can attach one by hand, have it attach automatically when a lead or matter is created, or have it ride along with a client's public booking or form submission. This page walks through each path and explains the one rule that ties them all together: attaching a workflow copies its steps, it does not run them for you.

Before you begin

• You build and manage workflows under Workflows in the sidebar. If you have not created any yet, start with Workflows and the builder.
• To create or edit a workflow, your role must include the right access for workflows. If your role does not include workflow access, you will not see the Workflows item in the sidebar or the workflow pickers described below.
• A workflow only appears in the pickers on event types, forms, and the matter wizard while it is Active. A workflow you are still drafting (status Draft) or one you have archived will not show up as an option. Activate a workflow first if you want to assign it.
• Several paths described here require other features to already exist: an event type to attach a workflow to a booking, a lead-intake form for public submissions, or a matter (created through the new-matter wizard) to attach a workflow at matter creation.

How a workflow gets attached to a record

Before the specific paths, it helps to understand the shared model. Every workflow has an ordered list of steps. Those steps are a template. They do nothing on their own. A workflow only starts doing work once its steps are attached (copied) onto a specific lead or matter. From that point on, the copied steps live on that one record, and your team works through them there.

A workflow reaches a record in one of these ways:

• Automatically, when a record is created. A workflow whose trigger is When a lead is created copies its steps onto every new lead the moment the lead is created. The same automatic behavior can attach a workflow to a new matter through the new-matter wizard.
• By hand, from the record. From a lead's or matter's Workflow section, you can pick any active workflow and apply its steps on demand. This works for Manual workflows and is the main way you use them.
• From the new-matter wizard. When you create a matter, the wizard has a Workflow step where you can attach a workflow to the matter you are about to create.
• Through a public submission. When a client books an event type or submits a lead-intake form that has a workflow assigned to it, that workflow's steps are copied onto the new lead the submission creates.

Whichever path is used, the result is the same kind of thing: a set of steps copied onto one record, each starting as a to-do for your team. The difference is when the copy happens and who triggers it.

Auto-attach a record-created workflow when a lead or matter is created

The simplest way to make a workflow run every time is to set its Trigger to the automatic option. You set this when you create the workflow.

1. In the sidebar, click Workflows.
2. Click New workflow in the top right.
3. In the Create workflow dialog, enter a Workflow name (for example, New client onboarding).
4. Under Trigger, choose how the workflow starts:
   • Manual ("Start this workflow yourself from a lead.") The workflow never runs on its own. You attach it by hand whenever you want it.
   • When a lead is created ("Run automatically when a new lead is created.") Every new lead automatically receives this workflow's steps.
5. Click Create workflow. Esqase opens the builder so you can add the steps. Add and arrange your steps, then click Save.

Once a workflow is set to When a lead is created and is Active, here is what happens:

• On a new lead. Every active workflow with this trigger has its steps copied onto the lead automatically when the lead is created (whether the lead came from a manual entry, a form, or a booking). The lead's Workflow section fills in with those steps, ready for your team.
• On a new matter (through the wizard). If you pick an automatic workflow in the new-matter wizard, its steps are attached to the matter and the workflow's first step starts right away. The rest of the steps are added for your team to work through from the matter's Overview tab. See the wizard section below for how to choose it.

What "automatic" does and does not do

For leads, automatic attachment copies the steps as to-dos. Your team still works through them. (The one nuance is the matter wizard, where the first step of an automatic workflow starts immediately. See "The difference between attaching steps and running them" below.)

Assign a workflow to a lead-intake form (so submissions receive it)

A lead-intake form is a public form whose every submission creates a new lead (and a contact). You can attach a workflow to that form so each new lead arrives with a ready-made set of next steps.

1. In the sidebar, open Forms and either create a new form or open an existing one in the builder.
2. In the form's settings, turn on Lead intake form. This is a checkbox. Turning it on tells Esqase that each submission should create a lead and a contact. (A Name field and an Email or Phone field are required on a lead-intake form.)
3. With Lead intake form turned on, two extra settings appear beneath it: Public link and Workflow.
4. Open the Workflow dropdown and choose the workflow you want every submission to receive. Leave it on Don't attach a workflow if you do not want one.
5. Save the form.

The settings text spells out the behavior: "Any workflow you assign is attached to the new lead for your team to run from its Workflow section." In other words, when a member of the public submits the form, the lead it creates gets a copy of that workflow's steps, and you finish them from the lead's Workflow section.

For more on building these forms, see Public lead-intake forms and Building forms.

Assign a workflow to an event type (so bookings receive it)

An event type is a bookable meeting (for example, an Initial consultation) that clients can schedule from your public booking page. You can attach a workflow to an event type so every booking starts a lead with the right follow-up steps.

1. In the sidebar, open Event types and create or edit an event type.
2. Scroll to the Workflow dropdown in the event type's settings.
3. Open the dropdown and choose the workflow you want bookings to receive. The field's description reads: "Attach a workflow to the lead created when someone books this event type." Leave it on Don't attach a workflow to skip.
4. Save the event type.

From then on, when a client books this event type, Esqase creates a lead for that booking and copies the assigned workflow's steps onto it. Your team works the steps from the lead's Workflow section.

For details on event types and scheduling, see Event types (scheduling) and How clients book meetings.

Attach a workflow to a matter from the new-matter wizard

When you create a matter through the new-matter wizard, one of the steps lets you attach a workflow to the matter you are about to create. This is the cleanest way to give every new matter a standard opening checklist.

1. Start a new matter (in the sidebar, open Matters, then New matter, or use the new-matter shortcut).
2. Work through the wizard steps until you reach the Workflow step.
3. Use the Workflow dropdown to pick the workflow you want to attach. The placeholder is Don't attach a workflow, so leaving it untouched simply skips this. Only active workflows appear here.
4. The wizard shows a short note under the picker that tells you what will happen, which depends on the workflow you chose:
   • No workflow selected: "Leave blank to skip. You can also assign a workflow later from the matter's Overview tab."
   • An automatic workflow (When a lead is created): "This workflow runs automatically, so its first step starts as soon as the matter is created. The rest are added for you to run from the Overview tab."
   • A manual workflow: "This is a manual workflow. Its steps are added to the matter for you to run from the Overview tab."
5. Finish the wizard and create the matter. The workflow's steps are attached to the new matter.

After the matter exists, you find and complete its workflow steps in the matter's Workflow section (reachable from the matter's Overview tab). If you skipped the wizard step, you can still assign a workflow later from there: open the matter, find the Workflow section, and use Add workflow to apply one.

For the full matter-creation walkthrough, see Creating a matter and The matter workspace.

The difference between attaching steps and running them

This is the single most important idea on this page, and it explains why a "completed" workflow assignment can still look like a list of unfinished tasks.

Attaching a workflow copies its steps. It does not run them. When a workflow is attached to a lead or matter, Esqase makes a copy of each step on that record. Every copied step starts as a to-do (its status is pending). Nothing is emailed, scheduled, or created until someone actually runs that step. Your team opens the record's Workflow section and works through the steps one by one: sending the email, creating the task, scheduling the event, and so on, then marking each one done.

There is one deliberate exception, and it is small:

• Automatic workflows attached through the new-matter wizard. When you attach a workflow whose trigger is When a lead is created during matter creation, the first step starts automatically as soon as the matter is created. Every later step is still attached as a pending to-do for your team. A Manual workflow attached in the wizard stays fully pending, with nothing started for you.

For everything else, attachment is just a head start on the checklist:

• Public submissions always attach steps as pending, never run them. When a client books an event type or submits a lead-intake form, the assigned workflow's steps are copied onto the new lead as pending to-dos. None of them run on their own. Your team reviews the lead and runs the steps from its Workflow section. This is intentional: a public booking or form submission happens without anyone on your team present, and steps like sending an email need your firm's context (the right sender, the right details), so Esqase waits for a member to run them.

Where to find and run attached steps

• On a lead: open the lead and go to its Workflow section. You will see the attached steps, a count of how many are still pending, and overall progress. Run each step, then mark it done.
• On a matter: open the matter and find its Workflow section (from the Overview tab). The same idea applies: run the steps and mark them done.

Common questions

I set a workflow to "When a lead is created" but new leads have no steps. Why? Most often the workflow is not Active. Automatic attachment only happens for active workflows. Open the workflow, confirm its status is Active (not Draft or Archive), and make sure it actually has steps saved in the builder.

I attached a workflow but no email went out. Is it broken? No. Attaching copies the steps as to-dos. The email step (like every step) only runs when someone runs it from the record's Workflow section. Open the lead or matter and run the step.

Can I assign a workflow to a matter after it is created? Yes. Open the matter, find its Workflow section, and use Add workflow to apply any active workflow. You are not limited to the wizard.

Why don't my draft workflows show up in the form, event type, or matter wizard pickers? The pickers only list Active workflows. Activate the workflow first, then it will appear as an option.

Related

• Workflows and the builder
• Workflow step types
• Managing leads
• Public lead-intake forms
• Event types (scheduling)
• Creating a matter