Automations allow you to perform an action whenever a record fires the trigger for that automation. When building an automation, the first step is to the choose the trigger that will start that automation. The "When a record matches conditions" trigger will trigger (or run) when a record matches the conditions you define within your trigger step.
Select the trigger
After you add an automation, the first step is to select the trigger you want to use. In this example, we'll use the "When a record matches conditions" trigger.
Note that your automation won't trigger for any existing records in your base—this automation will only be triggered by records that meet the conditions after your automation is turned on. If you do find yourself needing to update existing data in your tables we recommend checking out the Batch update extension.
Select your data
After choosing the trigger, you need to select the table that you want to setup your filter conditions for. Then, add in the filter criteria you want to use to trigger the automation. In the example below, we've configured the automation to trigger every time a project in out "Video Tracker" table has it's "Project Status" field equal to the exact value, "Ready to Publish". You'll then want to test your trigger to make sure it works.
TIP
This trigger is similar to the When a record enters view trigger, except that you don't need to create a view to set it up. This should allow creating more self-contained automations and avoid the problems of accidentally triggering executions or breaking the automation by changing the view it depends on.Add an action
After you’ve configured and tested the trigger, it’s time to add an action. In the example below, we’ll use the “Send Email" action to send a message to the person who requested this project initially, populating the message with information from the record that triggered this automation:
Once you've setup the action, run a test on the action to make sure it's configured correctly. Lastly, make sure to turn your automation on. You can then view information on any past automation occurrences in that automation's run history.
TIP
For more help with configuring Automation actions, view these support articles.
FAQs
Why aren't the date, or time-based, conditions in my "When a record matches conditions" trigger evaluating correctly?
Automations run on GMT since that is the default timezone that Airtable operates on behind the scenes. When setting up time-based conditions in Automations you may need to adjust times manually or create a formula to auto-adjust times so that the conditions evaluate according to your timezone.