Build an automation

An automation is an “if this happens, do that” you set up once. Something happens in Zippendo, such as a shipment being sent, and the automation does the next step for you: post a message in Slack, tell your email tool, put a shipping rule on the shipment, and so on. An automation is not a shipping rule. A shipping rule picks the carrier, product and services for a shipment. An automation can put a shipping rule on a shipment at the right moment. Short overview: Automations overview. If an automation never starts: Automation not triggering.

Build automations in a browser on a computer. On a phone the builder shows The automation builder isn’t available on mobile.

How many automations you can have

Plan	Automations
Free	1
Standard	5
Growth	20
Pro	50
Enterprise	Unlimited

When you reach your plan’s limit, Zippendo asks you to upgrade before you can create another one. See Billing and usage.

Where to find it

Click Automations in the sidebar. The page lists All automations.

Automations page with the All automations table and the New automation button — The Automations page with the list of automations and New automation

Column	What it shows
Name	The name and description you gave the automation.
Brand	The brand the automation belongs to. Shown only if your organization has brands.
Status	Active, Paused or Draft.
Trigger	What starts the automation, or No trigger if you have not added one yet.
Actions	How many actions it has, for example 3 actions.
Updated	When it was last changed.

Click a row to open it. The ⋯ menu on a row has Edit, Test run and Delete.

Automations row menu with Edit, Test run and Delete — The row menu: Edit, Test run and Delete

To find an automation, click Filters above the list. You can search by name and pick a Status (Draft, Active or Paused). If your organization has brands, you can also pick a Brand. Click Add filters to apply. More on lists: Search and filters.

Filters panel with Search and Status on the Automations list — Filters on the Automations list: Search and Status

What an automation is made of

You build an automation on a canvas by adding blocks and drawing lines between them. Every automation has:

Block	What it does	Examples
A trigger	The event that starts the automation. Each automation has exactly one.	Shipment sent, Tracking updated
Actions	What Zippendo does next, in the order you connect them.	Send Slack message, Apply shipping rule
Checks (optional)	Look at one detail of the event and send the automation down a Yes path or a No path.	Field match, Branch
A wait (optional)	Pause before the next step.	Delay
An end	Every path must finish at an Exit.	Exit

Triggers

Trigger	Starts when
Shipment created	A shipment is created: by hand, through the API, or when Zippendo imports an order from your webshop.
Shipment sent	A shipment is sent to the carrier.
Shipment cancelled	A pending shipment is deleted.
Shipment error	Sending a shipment to the carrier fails.
Order created	An order is created through the API.
Order updated	An order is edited in Zippendo (order lines, address or shipping rule) or through the API.
Tracking updated	The carrier reports a new tracking event for a parcel.

Orders that come in from a connected webshop, and the changes the webshop sends later, do not start Order created or Order updated. To react to new webshop orders, use Shipment created: Zippendo creates a shipment for each order it imports.

There is no trigger for “shipment updated”. To get that event in your own system, use Webhooks.

Actions

Shipments

Action	What it does	What you fill in
Apply shipping rule	Puts the shipping rule you pick on the shipment. Zippendo uses that rule when the shipment is sent.	Shipping rule (required)
Assign carrier	Sets the carrier on the shipment. It does not pick a product or services, so use Apply shipping rule when you want the full setup.	Carrier (required)
Update shipment reference	Changes the shipment’s reference, for example to `REF-` plus the order number.	Reference template (required). See “Insert details from the event” below.
Set shipment on hold	Puts a pending shipment On hold.	Nothing
Send shipment	Marks a pending or on-hold shipment as Sent in Zippendo.	Nothing
Cancel shipment	Marks the shipment as Cancelled in Zippendo.	Nothing
Create return shipment	Creates a return shipment for the shipment.	Return shipping rule. The list shows only rules for return shipments. Pick one: the action fails without it.

Send shipment and Cancel shipment only change the status in Zippendo. They do not contact the carrier: Send shipment does not create a label, and Cancel shipment does not cancel anything the carrier already has. To send shipments, see Send a shipment. What you can do with a shipment that should not go out: Hold, cancel, or delete a shipment.

Orders

Action	What it does	What you fill in
Create shipment from order	Creates a pending shipment for the order, from your sender address to the order’s shipping address. It does not send it. Use it after Order created or Order updated.	Shipping rule (optional) to put on the new shipment

Printing

Action	What you fill in
Print label	Label printer (optional). Leave it empty to use your default label printer.
Print document	Document type (Proforma invoice, Commercial invoice, Packing slip, CN22 or CN23) and Printer (optional).

Print label and Print document do not print anything yet. The run shows them as done, but no print job is sent. To print labels and documents automatically, turn on Auto-print on the shipping rule.

Messages and other apps

Action	What it does	What you fill in
Send Slack message	Posts a message in a Slack channel, without connecting Slack under Apps & integrations.	Slack webhook URL: create an incoming webhook in Slack and paste its address. Message: the text to post.
Send webhook	Sends the event to an address in your own system. Mostly for developers.	URL, HTTP method (POST, PUT or PATCH) and Body template, the text to send.
Send Slack notification	Posts in Slack through a connected Slack integration.	Connection (required), Custom properties (optional)
Send Klaviyo event	Sends the event to Klaviyo.	Connection (required), Custom event name and Custom properties (optional)
Send Customer.io event	Sends the event to Customer.io.	Same as Klaviyo
Send Mailchimp event	Sends the event to Mailchimp.	Same as Klaviyo
Send SendGrid email	Sends an email through a SendGrid template.	Connection (required), Custom properties (optional)
Trigger Zapier Zap	Starts a Zap in Zapier.	Connection (required), Custom properties (optional)
Trigger Make scenario	Starts a scenario in Make.	Connection (required), Custom properties (optional)

The actions that use a Connection need the app connected first under Apps & integrations: Connect Slack, Klaviyo and other apps. The Connection list shows only active connections for that app. Custom event name changes the event name the app receives. Custom properties sends extra details: click Add, then type a name and a value.

Checks, waits and the end

Field match and Branch both check one detail of the event. Fill in Field (which detail, see “Insert details from the event” below), Comparison (for example Equals, Contains or Greater than) and Value. Connect both the Yes path (the detail matches) and the No path. The check is exact, including capital letters: postnord does not match PostNord.
Delay waits before the next step. Fill in Duration (1 or more) and Unit (Seconds, Minutes or Hours).
Exit ends a path. Connect every path to an Exit.

Field match settings with Field, Comparison set to Equals, and Value — Field match: Field, Comparison and Value

Delay settings with Duration 5 and Unit Minutes — Delay: Duration and Unit

Example: post in Slack when a shipment is sent

Create the automation

On Automations, click New automation. Enter a Name * such as “Notify #shipping when sent” and, if you like, a Description. If your organization has brands, pick a Brand here: the automation then runs only for that brand’s shipments. You cannot change the brand later in the app. Click Create automation. The builder opens on an empty canvas.

Add the trigger

Click Elements on the left. Under Triggers, click Shipment sent or drag it onto the canvas.

Add the action

Under Actions, add Send Slack message. Drag a line from the trigger to it. Click the action and fill in Slack webhook URL and Message, for example Shipment {{shipment.reference}} is on its way.

End the path

Add Exit from Logic and draw a line from Send Slack message to it.

Save

Click Save. The button changes to Saved.

Test it

Click Test run, then open Runs to see the result. See “Test run” below.

Switch it on

Click Paused in the top bar. It changes to Active, and the automation now runs every time a shipment is sent.

New automation window with Name, Description, Cancel and Create automation — New automation: Name and Description

Empty automation builder with a hint to drag elements from the panel — An empty automation, ready for its first block

Elements panel listing triggers and actions for the automation builder — The Elements panel lists Triggers, Actions, Conditions and Logic

Send Slack message settings with Slack webhook URL and Message — Send Slack message: the Slack webhook URL and the message

The builder

Control	What it does
Go back	Returns to the list.
The name	Click it to rename the automation. Press Enter to keep the new name.
Runs	Shows the latest runs. See “Runs” below.
Active / Paused	Switches the automation on or off.
Save	Saves your changes. It shows Saved when there is nothing new to save.
Test run	Starts a test. Unsaved changes are saved first.
Elements	Opens the Elements panel with Triggers, Actions, Conditions and Logic. A trigger already on the canvas shows Added.
Auto layout	Tidies the canvas: Arrange vertically or Arrange horizontally.
Canvas settings	Snap to grid, Animate connections, Show background grid and Always show connectors. These only change how the canvas looks to you.
Zoom out, Zoom in, Fit to screen	Zoom the canvas.

Click a block to see its settings on the right. To delete a block, click Remove block at the bottom of its settings.

Automation canvas with Shipment created, Field match, Apply shipping rule, Delay, Send Slack message and Exit connected — A finished automation: trigger, Field match, Apply shipping rule, Delay, Send Slack message and Exit

Apply shipping rule settings with the Shipping rule list — Apply shipping rule: pick the rule from the list

When it won’t save

If something is missing, a red count appears in the top bar, for example 2 issues blocking activation. Click it to see the list, then click an issue to jump to the block it is about (Whole automation means the problem is not in one block). Save and Test run show Can’t save. Fix the issues first. or Can’t run. Fix the issues first. until every issue is fixed. The most common ones:

Message	What to do
Add a trigger to start the automation.	Add a trigger.
An automation can only have one trigger. Remove the extra one.	Remove the extra trigger.
Add at least one Exit block to end the automation.	Add an Exit.
Connect this block to another step or an Exit block.	Draw a line from that block to the next step or to an Exit.
Connect both the Yes and the No path.	Connect both the Yes and the No path of the Field match or Branch.
This block isn’t connected to the trigger.	Connect the block to the rest of the automation, or remove it.
No path from the trigger reaches an Exit block.	Make sure the lines from the trigger lead to an Exit.

A block with an empty required field also counts as an issue: This block has a setting that is missing or not valid. Open it to fix it. The block’s settings then show what is missing, for example Shipping rule is required or Message is required.

Insert details from the event

In Message, Reference template, Body template and the values under Custom properties, you can insert details from the event that started the automation. Type the name of the detail between double curly brackets. In Field match and Branch, type the name without brackets in Field.

Trigger	Details you can use
Shipment created, Shipment sent	`{{shipment.reference}}`, `{{shipment.status}}`
Shipment cancelled	`{{shipment.reference}}`
Shipment error	`{{reference}}`, `{{orderNumber}}`, `{{carrier}}`, `{{errorMessage}}`
Order created, Order updated	`{{order.orderNumber}}`, `{{order.customerName}}`, `{{order.customerEmail}}`, `{{order.status}}`
Tracking updated	`{{reference}}`, `{{trackingNumber}}`, `{{carrier}}`, `{{trackingStatus}}`, `{{trackingEvent}}`

A detail that does not exist on the event is left empty. The Sample data shown on a trigger’s settings is only an example; use the names in this table. On Shipment error and Tracking updated, carrier is the carrier’s short code in lower case, such as postnord or gls_dk.

Settings for the Shipment created trigger with sample data — A trigger has no settings to fill in

Test run

Test run in the builder (or in the row menu on the list) starts the automation once, straight away. A test run has no real shipment or order behind it. It shows you that the steps are connected and that messages go out (with the event details left empty), but actions that change a shipment or an order fail in a test. To try those, switch the automation on and let a real event start it. A test run toasts Test run started. If you see Couldn’t start the test run, check that the automation has a trigger and is saved.

Runs

Click Runs in the top bar to see the latest runs. Each run shows the event that started it, when it started, how many steps ran, and how long it took. A green check means it finished, a red cross that it failed (or that it is still waiting on a Delay). Click a run to see each step and the error, if there was one. Before the first run you see No runs yet.

More on reading runs: Runs and debugging.

Turn it off or delete it

Turn it off: open the automation and click Active. It changes to Paused and stops running. Click Paused to switch it on again. You can only switch it on when there are no issues: until then it shows Fix the issues before you activate it.
Delete: on the list, open the row menu and click Delete. Type DELETE and click Delete. The automation and its run history are removed for good.

A new automation starts as Draft. It changes to Active the first time you switch it on, and never goes back to Draft.

Delete automation window asking you to type DELETE to confirm — Delete automation: type DELETE to confirm

Messages you may see

Message	What it means
Automation created / Couldn’t create automation	Creating the automation worked or failed. If it failed, you may have reached your plan’s limit.
Couldn’t save automation	Your changes were not saved. Try Save again.
Automation deleted / Couldn’t delete automation	Deleting worked or failed.
Automation not found	The automation was deleted. Click Back to automations.

Journeys: Shipping rules · Returns
Shipping rule fields · Apply a shipping rule · Auto-print
Return shipments · Hold, cancel, or delete a shipment · Send a shipment
Connect Slack, Klaviyo and other apps · Webhooks
Search and filters · Create a brand · Billing and usage

Overview

Shipments

Orders & channels

Carriers

Connect a carrier

Connect an integration

Printing

Automation

Account

Search & dashboard

API & events

Build an automation

How many automations you can have

Where to find it