Sales operations is basically a game of “how do I get the right info to the right people, at the right time, without making everyone want to throw their laptop out the window?” If you’re already using a sales tool, or you’re drowning in spreadsheets and Slack threads, automating your workflows can save your sanity. But let’s be honest: most automation promises are way too rosy. You need something that actually works, and doesn’t create more problems than it solves.
This guide is for sales ops folks who want to set up and actually optimize workflow automation inside Fluint—without drinking the Kool-Aid or getting lost in the weeds.
1. Map Out What Actually Needs Automating
Before you even open Fluint, step away from the keyboard. It’s easy to get excited about automating everything, but that’s a good way to create a mess. Here’s what you should do first:
- List your biggest time sinks. What are you or your reps doing over and over? (Think: logging activities, chasing approvals, updating deal stages.)
- Ask the team what annoys them most. You’ll get honest answers and uncover steps you might miss.
- Be ruthless about what not to automate. If a task is rare, ambiguous, or needs human judgment, leave it alone. Automate the stuff that’s clear, repeatable, and frequent.
Pro tip: Don’t try to automate broken processes. Fix them manually first—then automate.
2. Get to Know Fluint’s Workflow Automation Features
Now, open up Fluint. If you haven’t used it before, it’s a sales workflow platform that lets you build automations without (much) code. The basics:
- Automated triggers: Set things in motion based on events—like a deal moving stages or a new lead coming in.
- Conditional logic: “If this, then that.” You can branch automations based on deal size, owner, etc.
- Integrations: Fluint connects to CRMs, email, Slack, and other tools. Check what you actually use—ignore the rest.
What works well: Fluint’s UI is pretty straightforward, and their templates are a good starting point.
What to ignore: Don’t go wild with every integration. More moving parts = more stuff to break.
3. Build Your First Simple Automation (Don’t Overcomplicate)
It’s tempting to build a 20-step Rube Goldberg machine. Don’t. Start with a single, high-impact workflow. For example:
Example: Automate Lead Assignment
- Trigger: New lead comes in from your website.
- Condition: If lead fits your target profile (industry, size, etc.).
- Action: Assign to a specific rep, send intro email, log activity in CRM.
How to set this up in Fluint: - Go to “Automations” and hit “Create New.” - Pick your trigger (e.g., “New Lead Created”). - Add a filter/condition to weed out junk leads. - Drag in the actions you want (assign, notify, log). - Set up notifications—email, Slack, whatever your team actually checks. - Test it on yourself before rolling out to the team.
Pro tip: Always run a few test cases with fake data. You’ll catch dumb mistakes before they annoy your reps.
4. Connect Fluint to Your Existing Tools—But Keep It Lean
Automations are only as good as the data flowing between your tools. Fluint can connect to the usual suspects: Salesforce, HubSpot, Gmail, Slack, etc. Here’s how to keep things sensible:
- Integrate only what you use daily. If you haven’t logged into a tool in a month, skip it.
- Map fields carefully. Don’t just sync everything—decide which data is actually useful.
- Watch for duplicate notifications. If your CRM and Fluint both ping you for the same thing, turn one off.
- Limit permissions. Only connect what’s necessary, and avoid giving blanket access to everything.
What goes wrong: Most teams try to sync too much data, leading to clutter, confusion, and privacy headaches.
5. Optimize and Refine Your Workflows
Once you’ve got a few automations running, resist the urge to add more for the sake of it. Instead, focus on making the existing ones work better.
- Check your logs and analytics. Fluint gives you a history of what’s running and where things get stuck.
- Ask for feedback. If reps are ignoring automated notifications, find out why. (Usually, it’s too much noise.)
- Tweak timing and frequency. Maybe daily summaries work better than real-time pings.
- Consolidate notifications. Bundle non-urgent updates so people aren’t getting pinged every five minutes.
What to skip: Don’t automate for automation’s sake. If a workflow isn’t saving time or making life easier, kill it.
6. Troubleshoot the Common Pitfalls
Even with the best setup, stuff will break. Here’s what to watch out for:
- Automations that loop or spam. If you don’t set exit criteria, you can accidentally create infinite loops. Always double-check logic.
- Missed handoffs. Automated assignments are great, but if someone’s out sick or changes roles, leads can fall through the cracks.
- Permissions issues. Make sure team members have the right access to view or act on tasks Fluint creates.
- Integration changes. If an API key expires or a tool changes its structure, your workflows can quietly fail. Check integrations monthly.
Pro tip: Set up alerts in Fluint to notify you (not just the team) if an automation fails.
7. Measure the Impact (and Don’t Fake the Numbers)
It’s easy to claim automation “improves productivity.” But what really matters is whether people are actually getting more done, and if deals are moving faster.
- Track before-and-after metrics: Average deal cycle, response time, manual tasks completed.
- Ask the team. Is their day easier? Are they spending less time on busywork?
- Watch for new bottlenecks. Sometimes, automating one thing just creates a jam somewhere else.
If you’re not seeing real improvements, go back and simplify.
8. When (and When Not) to Scale Up
You’ll know you’re ready to scale when: - Your current automations are stable and getting used. - The team trusts the system (and doesn’t complain about it). - You have a list of real pain points you haven’t solved yet.
Don’t scale just because Fluint keeps emailing you about “taking it to the next level.” Add new automations one at a time, and always start with a test group.
Quick Tips for Staying Sane
- Document everything. Even if it’s just a Google Doc with screenshots.
- Have a rollback plan. If an automation goes rogue, know how to turn it off fast.
- Keep the team in the loop. People hate surprise changes to their workflow.
Keep it simple. Start small. Iterate only when things are actually working. Workflow automation in Fluint can save you a ton of time, but only if you use it to fix real problems—not chase shiny objects. Focus on what really matters, and you’ll build a sales ops machine that works for you, not the other way around.