If you’re drowning in a sea of post-meeting to-dos, you’re not alone. Most people get to the end of a meeting, scribble a note or two, and then... nothing happens. Or worse, you spend your day chasing down action items and sending “just checking in” emails. If you want to stop babysitting your own calendar and actually get stuff done, this guide is for you.
I’ll walk you through how to use Appoint workflows to automate those pesky after-meeting tasks. Whether you’re a solo operator, a team lead, or just tired of letting things slip through the cracks, you’ll get practical steps—plus a few honest warnings about what not to bother with.
Why Automate After-Meeting Tasks?
Let’s get real: most follow-ups don’t happen because we forget, get busy, or just plain hate doing them. Automation fixes that. Here’s what you actually get out of setting up automated workflows:
- Less mental clutter: No more “What did I promise to do?” at 11pm.
- Fewer mistakes: The right people get the right info, every time.
- Time saved: No more copying notes, sending reminders, or double-checking who owes what.
But don’t expect automation to solve every problem. If your meetings are chaos, or your tasks aren’t clear, no amount of workflow magic will help. This is about making reliable stuff even more reliable—not fixing a broken process.
What You Can (and Can’t) Automate
Before you dive in, it’s worth knowing what’s realistic. Appoint workflows excel at:
- Sending follow-up emails to attendees or specific people.
- Creating tasks in tools like Asana, Trello, or your calendar.
- Notifying people in Slack or Microsoft Teams.
- Logging meeting outcomes to a CRM or database.
But, here’s what you shouldn’t expect:
- Summarizing meetings automatically (unless you want to pay extra for AI, and even then, take it with a grain of salt).
- Human judgment: Automation won’t know if your “next steps” make sense. Garbage in, garbage out.
If you’re looking for a robot to write your project plan, you’ll be disappointed. But if you want to make sure you never forget to send those tasks or reminders, you’re in the right place.
Setting Up Appoint Workflows: Step-by-Step
Here’s the no-fluff guide to getting your after-meeting tasks on autopilot.
1. Map Out Your Real Follow-Up Process
Don’t just automate for the sake of it. Spend 5 minutes sketching out what actually needs to happen after each meeting. For most people, this is:
- Email a summary to attendees
- Create tasks for action items
- Remind yourself (or others) about deadlines
- Update project management boards
Pro tip: If you can’t write your process in less than five bullet points, it’s too complicated. Start simple.
2. Connect Appoint to Your Calendar and Tools
Appoint works best when it’s plugged into the tools you already use. Here’s the usual order:
- Connect your calendar (Google Calendar or Outlook)
- Add integrations for email (Gmail, Outlook), task management (Asana, Trello, Todoist), and chat (Slack, Teams)
- Authorize permissions—yes, this is boring, but it’s how the magic happens
Heads up: Be careful about what permissions you grant. If you’re using sensitive data, check your company’s policies.
3. Create a New Workflow
This is the guts of the automation. In Appoint, go to the “Workflows” tab and click “Create New Workflow.” Give it a clear name, like “Client Meeting Follow-Up.”
Now, you’ll set up triggers and actions:
- Trigger: Meeting ends (or meeting is marked as completed)
- Actions: Send an email, create tasks, post to Slack, etc.
You can stack actions, so don’t be shy about chaining them together. But again, keep it simple at first.
4. Customize Your Follow-Up Templates
Automated emails and tasks are only as good as what they say. Spend a few minutes making your templates useful. For example:
- Email subject: “Follow-Up and Next Steps from Today’s Meeting”
- Body: Quick summary, list of action items, who’s responsible, and due dates
Appoint lets you use variables (like attendee names, meeting titles, etc.), but don’t get lost in the weeds. The goal is clarity, not cleverness.
What to skip: Don’t automate long-winded meeting summaries unless you’re sure the info is accurate. Keep it short and actionable.
5. Test the Workflow
Before you trust your life to automation, run a test. Schedule a fake meeting, see what gets sent, and check for mistakes. Things to look for:
- Are the right people getting emails or tasks?
- Do the tasks have actual deadlines?
- Does anything look embarrassing or robotic?
You’ll almost always spot something you want to tweak. That’s normal—fix it now, not after your real clients see it.
6. Set It and (Mostly) Forget It
Once you’re happy with your workflow, turn it on and let it run. You don’t need to babysit it, but check in every couple of weeks to make sure it’s still working the way you want.
If your process changes (new tools, different team members), update your workflow. Don’t be afraid to pause or delete workflows that aren’t pulling their weight.
What Actually Works (and What Doesn’t)
Here’s the straight talk, based on real use:
What Works Well
- Short, actionable follow-up emails: Automated emails with a bulleted summary and action items work almost every time. People appreciate clarity.
- Task creation for recurring meetings: If you always have the same next steps (like “Send invoice” or “Update CRM”), this is a slam dunk.
- Reminders for yourself: Automate reminders for critical follow-ups. It’s easy to forget, and automation never gets tired.
What Usually Flops
- Overly detailed summaries: Automation can’t read between the lines. If your meetings are nuanced, don’t expect AI to capture the context.
- Complicated branching logic: The more “if this, then that” rules you pile on, the more likely something breaks. Start simple.
- Automating accountability: You can automate reminders, but you can’t force people to care. Some things still need a human touch.
Common Pitfalls (and How to Dodge Them)
- Over-automation: If you automate too much, you’ll end up ignoring the alerts. Only automate what you’d actually do by hand.
- Bad templates: A poorly written template just spreads confusion faster. Keep your language clear and direct.
- Forgetting to review: Automations aren’t “set it and forget it” forever. Check back after a month and make sure it’s still working—and still needed.
Quick Wins and Pro Tips
- Start with one workflow. Don’t try to automate everything at once. Get one thing working, then expand.
- Use clear labels. Name your workflows and tasks so you know what’s what at a glance.
- Loop in your team. If you’re automating follow-ups for a group, make sure everyone knows what’s going to happen. Surprises are rarely welcome.
Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Automation is supposed to make your life easier, not more complicated. Start small, fix what doesn’t work, and only add complexity when you absolutely need it. The best workflows are the ones you barely notice—because everything just happens. Don’t waste time chasing perfection on day one. Build, test, and tweak as you go.
And most importantly: if automation starts creating more work than it saves, shut it down. You’re here to get stuff done, not manage robots.