Workflows: Automate Your Communication & Content Delivery

Workflows in Subflow allow you to automate both internal and external actions based on a wide variety of triggers and conditions. From streamlining patient intake to sending follow-up messages after surgery, workflows help reduce manual tasks, ensure consistency, and improve overall engagement.

💡 See our Workflow Use Case Guide to explore ideas and industry-specific examples.

Accessing Workflows

To get started, click “Workflows” in the lower section of the left-hand navigation.
This brings you to the Workflow Dashboard, where you can view all active, scheduled, and archived workflows.

You’ll see details like:

• Workflow names and descriptions

• Total runs

• Trigger type

• Last run time

Creating a New Workflow

1. Click “New Workflow” in the top-right corner

2. You’ll enter the Workflow Builder Interface

Step 1: Name & Describe

• Give your workflow a clear name using a naming convention (e.g., “Post-Op Follow-Up – Knee”)

• Add a short internal description for context

Step 2: Choose a Trigger

A trigger starts the workflow. Common triggers include:

• Manual Trigger – Start the workflow manually

• New Contact Created

• Form Submitted

• Subscription Created

🔗 Team plans or higher can integrate with your EHR system to trigger workflows based on real-time patient events.

🔌 Coming Soon: Subflow + Zapier integration to trigger workflows from tools like Stripe, Hubspot, Calendly, and more.

Adding Workflow Actions

Click the “+” icon to add steps to your workflow. These can include:

⚙️ Flow Controls

• Wait Until – Delay the next action for a specific duration (e.g., 5min, 30s, 2h)

• Wait for Event – Pause until a defined event occurs (e.g., a form is submitted or a subscription is created)

• Timeout – Cancel the workflow if the event doesn’t happen within a set time

🔀 Paths (If/Then Logic)

Use Paths to create conditional branches based on:

• Contact field values

• Tags

• Form responses

Example:

If a contact completes a post-op survey → send follow-up message
If not → notify the care team to check in manually

✉️ Actions

These are the messages and content delivery components:

• Send SMS Message

• Send Email Message

🔜 Coming Soon:

• Update contact records

• Send internal notifications

• Trigger other workflows

• Create tasks or alerts

🛑 Exit Workflow

End the workflow or chain it into another one. You can also run other workflows after a delay or based on conditional steps.

Customizing Workflow Steps

Click the three-dot menu on any step to:

• Rename the action

• Add internal notes

• Duplicate, copy, paste, or delete

• Change the action type

✅ A green checkmark indicates a completed step

⚠️ A yellow caution icon means required info is missing—click the step to finish setup

Managing & Running Workflows

Once saved, return to the Workflow Dashboard to:

• View Total Runs

• Trigger Manually – Select a contact and run the workflow immediately

• Schedule Workflow – Set a future date/time to begin the workflow

• View Runs – See individual contact runs and status

• Edit or Archive – Make changes or retire the workflow as needed

Viewing Individual Workflow Runs

Click “View Runs” to see which contacts are currently in or have completed the workflow.
Select “View Run” to open a visual map showing:

• The exact path the contact took

• Timestamps for every message, wait, or action

• Current step status (completed, active, or pending)

This detailed audit trail helps you monitor effectiveness and troubleshoot issues.

Triggering Workflows Manually

There are multiple ways to start a workflow manually:

🧍 From a Contact Record

• Go to Contacts > Manage Contact

• Click the dropdown in the top-right corner

• Select “Trigger Workflow”, choose your workflow, and confirm

💬 From a Conversation

• While in a 1:1 conversation, click the Play icon in the top nav

• Select the workflow you’d like to run for that contact

✅ Best Practices

• Use clear naming conventions for easy identification

• Test workflows using internal test contacts before going live

• Use Paths to handle edge cases and non-responses

• Keep messages short and personalized

• Combine Wait for Events and Timeouts to reduce drop-off

Need help mapping out your first workflow? Contact support@subflow.com or request a free onboarding session—we’re happy to help you bring your automations to life.