Work sample 17 / 17Automations

Booking form to CRM, invoice and Slack, in one automated workflow

How I connect a booking form to the CRM, invoicing and team chat so every valid booking is processed once and every bad one is stopped with a reason.

Area
Automations
Tools
CRM · Xero · Slack
Typical scope
US$1,000–2,500
Timeline
About 2 weeks · 4 fixed milestones

Work sample: realistic data, built to show how I approach this kind of project. Not a past client job.

01The problem

Bookings that arrive through a website form are often retyped into the CRM, then into invoicing, then announced to the team. Each step is a chance to miss a booking or create a duplicate contact.

One workflow can do all of it, as long as it validates first, handles duplicates and logs every run.

Owners usually notice it as

  1. Bookings retyped by hand
  2. Duplicate contacts in the CRM
  3. Invoices raised days later
  4. The team hears about bookings by word of mouth

02Scope

A fixed scope agreed in writing before anything is built. The table shows what a project like this usually covers and what it leaves out.

Exhibit 1Scope: what a project like this covers
AreaIncluded
ValidationRequired fields, dates and service rules checked first
CRMFind or create the contact, no duplicates
InvoicePriced from the service list, created as a draft
NotificationA Slack message to the team
LoggingA run log with every accept and reject
Not includedPayment gateway set-up
Exhibit 2Typical data volumes for this kind of project (log scale)
Bookings a year2,400
CRM contacts3,000
Services priced25
Workflow nodes14
Test submissions14

Typical volumes for a business of this size. The sample files are sized as described in section 05.

Exhibit 3Fixed milestones, each released when you sign off its deliverable
MilestoneDeliverableTimingShareWeeks 1–2
M1 MapSteps, rules and test cases agreedWeek 125%
M2 BuildWorkflow built in your Make or Zapier accountWeek 1–240%
M3 TestTest submissions, edge cases, run logWeek 220%
M4 HandoverGuide and walkthroughWeek 215%

Typical scope for this kind of project: US$1,000–2,500

About 2 weeks across 4 fixed milestones. The fixed quote follows a US$300 Systems Health Check, which confirms the volumes and the scope first. Your software subscriptions are billed to you by the vendors.

03What I fixed, and why

Exhibit 4How the work flows, from the first record to sign-off
φ = 1.61801FORMbooking02VALIDATErules03CRMfind / create04PRICEservice list05INVOICEdraft06SLACKnotify6 STAGES · ONE PASS FROM FIRST RECORD TO SIGN-OFFi. write the test cases firstii. find before createiii. log everything01FORMbooking02VALIDATErules03CRMfind / create04PRICEservice list05INVOICEdraft06SLACKnotify

Construction drawing. Each stage has its own check before the next one starts.

  1. 01

    Write the test cases first

    Good, bad and duplicate bookings, agreed before building.

  2. 02

    Validate before acting

    Nothing is created until the booking passes.

  3. 03

    Find before create

    The CRM is searched before a contact is added.

  4. 04

    Draft, don't send

    Invoices are drafts until approved.

  5. 05

    Log everything

    Each run records what happened and why.

04Checks

Nothing goes live on trust. These checks run before sign-off and stay in the files, so they can be re-run after every change.

  1. Every test submission accepted or rejected with a reason
  2. No duplicate contacts
  3. Invoice totals match the price list
  4. Re-running a booking creates nothing new
  5. Errors alert a person
Exhibit 5Controls in the sample files: 3 of 4 pass
CheckWhat it catchesStatus
Valid bookings processed end to endSteps that fail silently12 of 14
Invalid email rejectedContacts that cannot be invoicedPASS
Unknown service rejectedInvoices priced off the rate cardPASS
Repeat customers reuse their contactDuplicate CRM contactsPASS

Status read from the sample workbook. Each check is a formula, not a typed value.

05Handover

Everything is handed over in editable files you own, with the steps written down so your team is not dependent on me.

In this work sample

An automation workflow with 14 steps, run against 14 test submissions with a run log.

  1. Workflow export and code nodes
  2. Test submissions and run log
  3. Short guide to changing prices and rules
  4. A recorded walkthrough

06Files in this work sample

Screens from the sample files. Select one to open it full size.

Workflow diagram: form webhook, validate and price, find or create CRM contact, create invoice, Slack message, review alert
Exhibit 6Workflow diagram: form webhook, validate and price, find or create CRM contact, create invoice, Slack message, review alert

booking-crm-invoice-slack.workflow.json

Invoice record created by the workflow, rendered from the invoice data
Exhibit 7Invoice record created by the workflow, rendered from the invoice data

invoice.html

Slack message posted for a new booking with contact, invoice number and total
Exhibit 8Slack message posted for a new booking with contact, invoice number and total

Slack · #bookings

FilesDownload the work sample
FileWhat it isSize

Tell me what’s bugging you and I’ll tell you where I’d look first.

Send a short note on Upwork about what is slowing the business down. I’ll reply with where I’d start, and whether the US$300 Systems Health Check is the right first step.

Book a Systems Health Check (opens in a new tab)See prices