If you’re sick of chasing down contracts, missing deadlines, or cobbling together reminders in three different apps, you’re not alone. This guide is for anyone who needs a real system to know where contracts stand, what’s due, and what actually needs their attention—using Contractbook workflows. No fluff, no “digital transformation” talk, just a step-by-step on how to do this in the real world.
Why Bother With Workflows?
Let’s be honest: contract admin is boring and easy to mess up. Manual tracking (spreadsheets, sticky notes, calendar reminders) breaks as soon as you get busy or someone else joins in. Contractbook’s workflows let you automate the grunt work—tracking status, chasing signatures, and reminding you about deadlines—so you can focus on the stuff that matters.
But here’s the thing: Workflows only help if you set them up to match your process. Out-of-the-box, they’re a blank slate. If you just check every box and turn on every notification, you’ll drown in noise and ignore the alerts that actually matter. So let’s walk through setting it up the right way.
Step 1: Map Out Your Contract Stages
Before you even touch Contractbook, sketch out how contracts move through your business.
- What are the key stages? (Drafting, review, negotiation, signing, active, expiry, renewal…)
- Who’s responsible at each step?
- Where do things usually get stuck?
Pro tip: If you can’t explain your process on a sticky note, it’s too complicated. Start simple.
What to ignore: Don’t try to track every micro-step. Focus on the moments when the contract actually changes hands, status, or risk (like “sent for signature,” “signed,” “expires soon”).
Step 2: Set Up Your Contractbook Workspace
Once you know your stages, log in to Contractbook and get your workspace in order.
- Organize folders: Use folders for contract types (e.g., Sales, Vendors, NDAs) or teams. This keeps things tidy.
- Templates: If you use the same contract over and over, set up templates now. It’ll save you a ton of time later.
- User roles: Make sure only the right people can edit, approve, or sign contracts. Don’t give everyone admin access “just in case.”
Real talk: If you skip this and just dump everything into “My Contracts,” you’ll regret it in a month when you’re hunting for that one version from last quarter.
Step 3: Build a Basic Workflow
Now, let’s set up your first workflow to track status and deadlines. In Contractbook, “automations” are the core building blocks. Here’s a straightforward process to get you started:
- Trigger: Decide what kicks things off. For tracking, this is usually “When a contract is created” or “When a contract is signed.”
- Conditions: Add filters if needed. (Example: Only contracts over $10,000, or only NDAs.)
- Actions: What do you want to happen? Common actions:
- Change contract status (e.g., move from “Draft” to “Pending Signature”)
- Assign tasks (like “Legal review”)
- Send reminders (more on this below)
- Update fields (e.g., set “Effective Date” automatically)
Setting up reminders: This is where most people go overboard. Set a reminder for: - Contract expiry or renewal (e.g., 30 days before) - Key deadlines (like deliverable due dates, if you add them as fields) - Maybe a “nudge” if a contract sits unsigned for more than a week
What doesn’t work: Daily notifications, reminders for every status change, or copying everyone “for visibility.” You’ll just train yourself to ignore all of it.
Step 4: Automate Deadline Tracking
Deadlines are where contracts fall apart. Here’s how to automate this in Contractbook:
- Use custom fields: Add a “Renewal Date” or “Expiry Date” field to your contract templates.
- Automation triggers: Set up automations that run based on these dates, like:
- “Send email to owner 30 days before expiry”
- “Update contract status to ‘Expiring Soon’ 15 days in advance”
- “Notify finance team on renewal date”
Don’t: Rely only on your memory or on your team to manually update statuses. If the data’s in the contract, automate the tracking.
Pro tip: If you have a lot of contracts, create a dashboard or report filtered by “Expiry Date” so you can see what’s coming up without digging.
Step 5: Use Task Assignments and Comments (But Don’t Overdo It)
Contractbook lets you assign tasks or add comments to contracts. This is helpful for: - Chasing down approvals - Reminding someone to upload missing docs - Tracking who’s responsible at each stage
But too many tasks or comments, and you’re back in notification hell. Keep it action-focused: assign tasks only when something’s truly blocking progress.
Step 6: Monitor Status with Dashboards and Filters
Once your workflows are running, use Contractbook’s dashboards or filters to keep an eye on things.
- Filter by status: See all contracts “Awaiting Signature” or “Expiring Soon” in one click.
- Export to CSV (if you must): For sharing with the old-school folks who still want a spreadsheet.
- Set up saved views: For each team or contract type, so you’re not recreating filters every time.
What to ignore: Don’t obsess over every contract’s micro-status. Focus on the ones that are stuck, overdue, or about to expire. That’s where trouble starts.
Step 7: Review and Adjust (Yes, Really)
No system is perfect out of the box. Every couple of months:
- Check which automations are actually useful. Turn off the ones you ignore.
- Ask your team what’s working (or not). Are you missing deadlines? Are reminders being seen?
- Update your stages or fields if your process changes.
Pro tip: The best workflow is the one you actually use. Don’t be afraid to keep it simple. Complexity just creates new problems.
What Works, What Doesn’t, and What to Skip
What works: - Automating deadline reminders for renewals and expiries - Clear, simple status stages (Draft, Sent, Signed, Active, Expired) - Limited, targeted notifications to the right people
What falls flat: - Over-complicating workflows with dozens of steps and conditions - Sending reminders for every minor change - Relying on manual updates or “just checking in”
Ignore: - Fancy dashboards if you and your team never look at them - Tracking every possible contract detail “just because the system allows it”
Wrapping Up: Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
Setting up contract tracking in Contractbook isn’t rocket science, but the temptation to over-engineer things is real. Start small: a couple of key stages, a handful of automations, and only the deadlines that actually matter. As you use the system, tweak it. Kill what’s not working. Add what’s missing. Your future self—and your team—will thank you.