If you’re drowning in post-meeting to-dos, this is for you. Maybe you’re a sales rep, a consultant, or just the unlucky soul who always has to chase next steps after meetings. Manually tracking follow-ups is tedious and—let’s be honest—easy to mess up. The good news: you can automate a ton of this in Face2Face if you know where to look. Here’s how to set things up so tasks make themselves (almost), and your follow-ups don’t fall through the cracks.
Why Bother Automating Follow-Ups?
- Time savings. Less admin, more actual work (or, you know, lunch).
- Consistency. Every client gets the same level of follow-up, even if you’re running on fumes.
- Fewer mistakes. Automation catches things you forget when you’re multitasking.
- Better client experience. Quick, reliable follow-up looks professional.
But—here’s the thing—automation isn’t magic. It works best when you know what should happen after a meeting, and you’re realistic about what Face2Face can and can’t do out of the box.
Step 1: Map Out Your Typical Follow-Up Tasks
Before you click a single button, write down what usually needs doing after a client meeting. Don’t get fancy—think checklists, not flowcharts.
Typical follow-ups might include: - Sending a summary email to the client - Assigning action items to team members - Scheduling the next meeting - Updating CRM notes or deal stages - Sending a contract or proposal
Pro tip: If you’re not sure, skim your last few meeting notes. What tasks keep popping up? Those are your candidates for automation.
Step 2: Set Up Meeting Templates in Face2Face
Face2Face has “meeting templates” (sometimes called playbooks or protocols, depending on the version). These let you pre-define agendas, note sections, and—most importantly—follow-up task lists.
How to do it:
- Go to Templates: In the sidebar, find “Templates” or “Meeting Templates.”
- Create New Template: Click “New Template.” Give it a name you’ll recognize.
- Add Agenda & Follow-Up Tasks: Most versions let you add default tasks or checklists that appear at the end of every meeting using this template.
- Save. That’s it.
What works: Templates are great for recurring meeting types (sales calls, onboarding, QBRs, etc.). They keep your process tight and repeatable.
What doesn’t: They can’t predict everything. If your meetings are highly custom, you’ll need to tweak tasks each time. Don’t get stuck trying to automate 100%—aim for 80%.
Step 3: Use Automated Task Creation
Face2Face can automatically generate tasks based on meeting notes or action item sections. Here’s the catch: it’s only as good as what you write down during the meeting.
How it typically works:
- During the meeting: You (or Face2Face’s AI assistant) tag items as “Action Items” or assign to people in real time.
- After the meeting: Face2Face turns those into tasks, assigns owners, and sets due dates—sometimes based on AI-suggested deadlines.
Honest take:
- Works well if: You’re disciplined about taking notes and using the action item feature.
- Doesn’t work if: You scribble all over the notes section and forget to mark tasks. The automation can’t read your mind.
- Ignore the hype: “AI-powered” task capture is helpful, but it still needs human review. Don’t trust it to catch nuanced or sensitive follow-ups.
Step 4: Connect Face2Face to Your Other Tools
Most folks don’t live in one app. If your team uses Slack, Asana, Outlook, or Google Calendar, you’ll want Face2Face to play nice with them.
Integrations worth setting up:
- Calendar sync: Automatically schedule follow-up meetings or reminders.
- Task manager integrations: Push action items to tools like Asana, Trello, or Todoist.
- CRM sync: Update deal status, add notes, or trigger next steps in HubSpot, Salesforce, etc.
- Email workflows: Auto-send recap or thanks-for-meeting emails.
How to do it:
- Find “Integrations” in settings.
- Choose your tool: Click connect, follow the authentication steps.
- Set up triggers: For example, “When a meeting ends, create tasks in Asana for each action item.”
- Test it. Run a fake meeting to make sure tasks show up where they should.
Reality check: Some integrations are seamless, others are… not. If you run into weird mapping issues (e.g., tasks missing assignees, due dates messing up), don’t fight the system. Sometimes it’s faster to adjust your template or workflow than troubleshoot a janky integration.
Step 5: Use Automation Rules (If Available)
Some Face2Face plans let you set up automation rules—think “If this, then that.” For example, “If a meeting is tagged as ‘Client: Acme Corp,’ assign follow-up to Jamie and send a summary email to the client.”
To set up:
- Go to Automation or Workflows in settings.
- Create a new rule: Pick your trigger (e.g., meeting ends, action item created).
- Set the action: Assign tasks, send emails, update CRM, etc.
- Save and test.
What works: Great for repetitive, high-volume tasks or accounts.
What doesn’t: Overcomplicating rules. If you need a whiteboard to explain your automation, it’ll break or confuse someone (maybe you) down the road.
Step 6: Review and Refine Your Automation
Don’t set it and forget it. Check in after the first week.
- Are tasks being created as expected?
- Are they assigned to real people, not the void?
- Are important follow-ups slipping through?
Tweaks to try: - Adjust template checklists based on real-world feedback. - Simplify rules if you’re getting weird results. - Turn off or re-configure integrations that don’t pull their weight.
Pro tip: Ask your team what’s confusing them. If they’re ignoring automated tasks, the system’s not working for them.
What to Ignore
- Hyped “AI summaries” that promise to write your follow-up emails flawlessly. They’re fine for a draft, but never send without proofreading.
- Automation for one-off, complex deals. Don’t try to automate the bespoke stuff. Focus on the routine.
- Notifications for every task. Too many pings = ignored pings. Pick your battles.
Common Pitfalls (And How to Avoid Them)
- Automating chaos. If your process is messy, automation will just speed up the mess. Clean up your follow-up checklist before you automate.
- Over-automation. If you need a manual to explain your system, it’s too complex.
- Forgetting the human touch. Some follow-ups need a phone call, not a task. Use automation to create space for real conversations—not to dodge them.
Keep It Simple, Check Back Often
Start with a basic template and a couple of rules. Get those working, then layer on as needed. If something breaks, scale back.
Automation’s supposed to make life easier, not more annoying. Tweak, test, and don’t be afraid to kill off automations that cause more headaches than they solve. The goal: less busywork, more real work. That’s a win.