Definition:
Zapier is an automation platform that connects applications and performs actions in response to events through workflows called Zaps. For example, it can receive data from a form and use it to create a contact in another application.
It is used in digital marketing and other fields to connect tools without developing each integration from scratch. Many automations can be configured through a visual interface, although their scope depends on the features available in the connected applications and the access permissions granted.
What Zapier is used for
Zapier transfers data and coordinates tasks between applications. It can be used to record enquiries, update contacts, add rows to a spreadsheet or send notifications when an event occurs.
A Zap starts with a trigger, which identifies the initiating event, and continues with one or more actions. The connection to an application provides the available events and operations; the Zap combines those capabilities to perform a specific task.
Its applications include:
- Contact management: transferring form submissions to a CRM and updating existing records.
- Sales follow-up: creating tasks or notifying the team when an opportunity arrives.
- Communication: adding contacts to a list or initiating follow-up actions while respecting recorded permissions and preferences.
- Information organisation: saving data in spreadsheets, creating documents or transferring files between services.
- Team coordination: connecting project management tools, calendars and messaging applications to reduce repeated data entry.
These automations can reduce manual operations, but they do not eliminate the need to review errors or adapt workflows when applications, fields or permissions change.
How Zapier works
Zapier connects the accounts of the participating applications and uses the trigger data in subsequent steps. Field mapping determines, for example, that an email address received through a form is saved in the destination system’s email field.
Triggers can work through periodic checks or through notifications sent by the application when an event occurs. As a result, detecting a change is not always immediate. Zapier’s documentation on triggers explains these differences.
A workflow can combine several operations to process information before sending it to its destination:
- Chained actions: using the result of one step in subsequent steps, such as creating a contact and then assigning a task to it.
- Filters: stopping processing when the data does not meet a condition, for example, when a required field is missing.
- Conditional paths: performing different actions depending on the values received, such as assigning an enquiry to the appropriate team.
- Data transformation: adapting dates, splitting names or normalising text to fit the fields in another application.
Workflows can also include steps that use artificial intelligence services to classify messages, extract information or generate text. Their output is not equivalent to a deterministic rule: it can vary or contain errors, so the workflow design must account for how that result will be used.
The run history shows which steps have been performed, the data used and any errors encountered. An expired connection, an empty required field or a limit in the destination application can prevent an action from completing successfully.
Zapier uses tasks as a unit of consumption for certain actions performed. A multi-step workflow can consume more than one task per run; counting rules and available features depend on the step type and the plan’s terms. Consequently, the number of configured Zaps does not, on its own, indicate usage volume.
Example of automation with Zapier
A company can connect a contact form to its CRM. A new form submission acts as the trigger and starts a sales follow-up workflow.
The process can be organised into these steps:
- Receive the enquiry: collect the submitted fields, such as name, email address, telephone number and service of interest.
- Check the data: verify that the information needed to continue is present and adapt its format.
- Find the contact: check whether the email address is already in the CRM.
- Create or update the record: save a new contact or add the information to an existing one, depending on the operations supported by the integration.
- Prepare the follow-up: create a sales task and send a notification to the responsible team.
If several enquiries arrive, the workflow processes the events it receives according to its configuration. A new run should not automatically be interpreted as a new customer: the same person may submit the form more than once.
A preliminary search can help avoid duplicates, but its result depends on the identifier used and how the CRM manages records. Likewise, creating a follow-up task does not mean that the person has been contacted or that the opportunity has become a sale.