opencode-skills-collection 4.0.53 → 4.0.54

package/bundled-skills/zapier-make-patterns/references/detailed-guide.md

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+# Zapier & Make Patterns - Detailed Guide
+
+> This file contains the detailed procedure and reference material extracted from `SKILL.md` for focused loading. The root skill defines activation, examples, safety constraints, and limitations.
+
+## Principles
+
+- Start simple, add complexity only when needed
+- Test with real data before going live
+- Document every automation with clear naming
+- Monitor errors - 95% error rate auto-disables Zaps
+- Know when to graduate to code-based solutions
+- Operations/tasks cost money - design efficiently
+
+
+## Capabilities
+
+- zapier
+- make
+- integromat
+- no-code-automation
+- zaps
+- scenarios
+- workflow-builders
+- business-process-automation
+
+
+## Scope
+
+- code-based-workflows → workflow-automation
+- browser-automation → browser-automation
+- custom-integrations → backend
+- api-development → api-designer
+
+
+## Tooling
+
+### Platforms
+
+- Zapier - When: Simple automations, maximum app coverage, beginners Note: 7000+ integrations, linear workflows, task-based pricing
+- Make - When: Complex workflows, visual branching, budget-conscious Note: Visual scenarios, operations pricing, powerful data handling
+- n8n - When: Self-hosted, code-friendly, unlimited operations Note: Open-source, can add custom code, technical users
+
+### Ai_features
+
+- Zapier Agents - When: AI-powered autonomous automation Note: Natural language instructions, 7000+ app access
+- Zapier Copilot - When: Building Zaps with AI assistance Note: Describes workflow, AI builds it
+- Zapier MCP - When: LLM tools accessing Zapier actions Note: 30,000+ actions available to AI models
+
+
+## Patterns
+
+### Basic Trigger-Action Pattern
+
+Single trigger leads to one or more actions
+
+**When to use**: Simple notifications, data sync, basic workflows
+
+# BASIC TRIGGER-ACTION:
+
+"""
+[Trigger] → [Action]
+  e.g., New Email → Create Task
+"""
+
+
+## Zapier Multi-Step Zap
+"""
+Zap: "New Lead → CRM → Slack → Email"
+
+1. TRIGGER: Typeform - New Entry
+   - Form: Lead Capture Form
+
+2. ACTION: HubSpot - Create Contact
+   - Email: {{Typeform Email}}
+   - First Name: {{Typeform First Name}}
+   - Lead Source: "Website Form"
+
+3. ACTION: Slack - Send Channel Message
+   - Channel: #sales-leads
+   - Message: "New lead: {{Typeform Name}} from {{Typeform Company}}"
+
+4. ACTION: Gmail - Send Email
+   - To: {{Typeform Email}}
+   - Subject: "Thanks for reaching out!"
+   - Body: (template with personalization)
+"""
+
+
+## Make Scenario
+"""
+[Typeform] → [HubSpot] → [Slack] → [Gmail]
+
+- Each module passes data to the next
+- Use {{N.field}} to reference module N's output
+- Add error handlers between critical steps
+"""
+
+### Conditional Branching Pattern
+
+Different actions based on conditions
+
+**When to use**: Different handling for different data types
+
+# CONDITIONAL BRANCHING:
+
+"""
+              ┌→ [Action A] (condition met)
+[Trigger] ───┤
+              └→ [Action B] (condition not met)
+"""
+
+
+## Zapier Paths (Pro+ required)
+"""
+Zap: "Route Support Tickets"
+
+1. TRIGGER: Zendesk - New Ticket
+
+2. PATH A: If priority = "urgent"
+   - Slack: Post to #urgent-support
+   - PagerDuty: Create incident
+
+3. PATH B: If priority = "normal"
+   - Slack: Post to #support
+   - Asana: Create task
+
+4. PATH C: Otherwise (catch-all)
+   - Slack: Post to #support-overflow
+"""
+
+
+## Make Router
+"""
+[Zendesk: Watch Tickets]
+      ↓
+[Router]
+   ├── Route 1: priority = urgent
+   │     └→ [Slack] → [PagerDuty]
+   │
+   ├── Route 2: priority = normal
+   │     └→ [Slack] → [Asana]
+   │
+   └── Fallback route
+         └→ [Slack: overflow]
+
+# Make's visual router makes complex branching clear
+"""
+
+### Best Practices:
+- Always have a fallback/else path
+- Test each path independently
+- Document which conditions trigger which path
+
+### Data Transformation Pattern
+
+Clean, format, and transform data between apps
+
+**When to use**: Apps expect different data formats
+
+# DATA TRANSFORMATION:
+
+
+## Zapier Formatter
+"""
+Common transformations:
+
+1. Text manipulation:
+   - Split text: "John Doe" → First: "John", Last: "Doe"
+   - Capitalize: "john" → "John"
+   - Replace: Remove special characters
+
+2. Date formatting:
+   - Convert: "2024-01-15" → "January 15, 2024"
+   - Adjust: Add 7 days to date
+
+3. Numbers:
+   - Format currency: 1000 → "$1,000.00"
+   - Spreadsheet formula: =SUM(A1:A10)
+
+4. Lookup tables:
+   - Map status codes: "1" → "Active", "2" → "Pending"
+"""
+
+
+## Make Data Functions
+"""
+Make has powerful built-in functions:
+
+Text:
+  {{lower(1.email)}}           # Lowercase
+  {{substring(1.name; 0; 10)}} # First 10 chars
+  {{replace(1.text; "-"; "")}} # Remove dashes
+
+Arrays:
+  {{first(1.items)}}           # First item
+  {{length(1.items)}}          # Count items
+  {{map(1.items; "id")}}       # Extract field
+
+Dates:
+  {{formatDate(1.date; "YYYY-MM-DD")}}
+  {{addDays(now; 7)}}
+
+Math:
+  {{round(1.price * 0.8; 2)}}  # 20% discount, 2 decimals
+"""
+
+### Best Practices:
+- Transform early in the workflow
+- Use filters to skip invalid data
+- Log transformations for debugging
+
+### Error Handling Pattern
+
+Graceful handling of failures
+
+**When to use**: Any production automation
+
+# ERROR HANDLING:
+
+
+## Zapier Error Handling
+"""
+1. Built-in retry (automatic):
+   - Zapier retries failed actions automatically
+   - Exponential backoff for temporary failures
+
+2. Error handling step:
+   Zap:
+     1. [Trigger]
+     2. [Action that might fail]
+     3. [Error Handler]
+        - If error → [Slack: Alert team]
+        - If error → [Email: Send report]
+
+3. Path-based handling:
+   [Action] → Path A: Success → [Continue]
+            → Path B: Error → [Alert + Log]
+"""
+
+
+## Make Error Handlers
+"""
+Make has visual error handling:
+
+[Module] ──┬── Success → [Next Module]
+           │
+           └── Error → [Error Handler]
+
+Error handler types:
+1. Break: Stop scenario, send notification
+2. Rollback: Undo completed operations
+3. Commit: Save partial results, continue
+4. Ignore: Skip error, continue with next item
+
+Example:
+[API Call] → Error Handler (Ignore)
+           → [Log to Airtable: "Failed: {{error.message}}"]
+           → Continue scenario
+"""
+
+### Best Practices:
+- Always add error handlers for external APIs
+- Log errors to a spreadsheet/database
+- Set up Slack/email alerts for critical failures
+- Test failure scenarios, not just success
+
+### Batch Processing Pattern
+
+Process multiple items efficiently
+
+**When to use**: Importing data, bulk operations
+
+# BATCH PROCESSING:
+
+
+## Zapier Looping
+"""
+Zap: "Process Order Items"
+
+1. TRIGGER: Shopify - New Order
+   - Returns: order with line_items array
+
+2. LOOPING: For each item in line_items
+   - Create inventory adjustment
+   - Update product count
+   - Log to spreadsheet
+
+Note: Each loop iteration counts as tasks!
+10 items = 10 tasks consumed
+"""
+
+
+## Make Iterator
+"""
+[Webhook: Receive Order]
+      ↓
+[Iterator: line_items]
+      ↓ (processes each item)
+[Inventory: Adjust Stock]
+      ↓
+[Aggregator: Collect Results]
+      ↓
+[Slack: Summary Message]
+
+Iterator creates one bundle per item.
+Aggregator combines results back together.
+Use Array Aggregator for collecting processed items.
+"""
+
+### Best Practices:
+- Use aggregators to combine results
+- Consider batch limits (some APIs limit to 100)
+- Watch operation/task counts for cost
+- Add delays for rate-limited APIs
+
+### Scheduled Automation Pattern
+
+Time-based triggers instead of events
+
+**When to use**: Daily reports, periodic syncs, batch jobs
+
+# SCHEDULED AUTOMATION:
+
+
+## Zapier Schedule Trigger
+"""
+Zap: "Daily Sales Report"
+
+TRIGGER: Schedule by Zapier
+  - Every: Day
+  - Time: 8:00 AM
+  - Timezone: America/New_York
+
+ACTIONS:
+  1. Google Sheets: Get rows (yesterday's sales)
+  2. Formatter: Calculate totals
+  3. Gmail: Send report to team
+"""
+
+
+## Make Scheduled Scenarios
+"""
+Scenario Schedule Options:
+  - Run once (manual)
+  - At regular intervals (every X minutes)
+  - Advanced: Cron expression (0 8 * * *)
+
+[Scheduled Trigger: Every day at 8 AM]
+      ↓
+[Google Sheets: Search Rows]
+      ↓
+[Iterator: Process each row]
+      ↓
+[Aggregator: Sum totals]
+      ↓
+[Gmail: Send Report]
+"""
+
+### Best Practices:
+- Consider timezone differences
+- Add buffer time for long-running jobs
+- Log execution times for monitoring
+- Don't schedule at exactly midnight (busy period)
+
+
+## Sharp Edges
+
+### Using Text Instead of IDs in Dropdown Fields
+
+Severity: CRITICAL
+
+Situation: Configuring actions with dropdown selections
+
+Symptoms:
+"Bad Request" errors. "Invalid value" messages. Action fails
+despite correct-looking input. Works when you select from dropdown,
+fails with dynamic values.
+
+Why this breaks:
+Dropdown menus display human-readable text but send IDs to APIs.
+When you type "Marketing Team" instead of selecting it, Zapier
+tries to send that text as the ID, which the API doesn't recognize.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# ALWAYS use dropdowns to select, don't type
+
+# If you need dynamic values:
+
+### Zapier approach:
+1. Add a "Find" or "Search" action first
+   - HubSpot: Find Contact → returns contact_id
+   - Slack: Find User by Email → returns user_id
+
+2. Use the returned ID in subsequent actions
+   - Dropdown: Use Custom Value
+   - Select the ID from the search step
+
+### Make approach:
+1. Add a Search module first
+   - Search Contacts: filter by email
+   - Returns: contact_id
+
+2. Map the ID to subsequent modules
+   - Contact ID: {{2.id}} (from search module)
+
+# Common ID fields that trip people up:
+- User/Member IDs in Slack, Teams
+- Contact/Company IDs in CRMs
+- Project/Folder IDs in project tools
+- Category/Tag IDs in content systems
+
+### Zap Auto-Disabled at 95% Error Rate
+
+Severity: CRITICAL
+
+Situation: Running a Zap with frequent errors
+
+Symptoms:
+Zap suddenly stops running. Email notification about auto-disable.
+"This Zap was automatically turned off" message. Data stops syncing.
+
+Why this breaks:
+Zapier automatically disables Zaps that have 95% or higher error
+rate over 7 days. This prevents runaway automation failures from
+consuming your task quota and creating data problems.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# Prevention:
+
+1. Add error handling steps:
+   - Use Path: If error → [Log + Alert]
+   - Add fallback actions for failures
+
+2. Use filters to prevent bad data:
+   - Only continue if email exists
+   - Only continue if amount > 0
+   - Filter out test/invalid entries
+
+3. Monitor task history regularly:
+   - Check for recurring errors
+   - Fix issues before 95% threshold
+
+# Recovery:
+
+1. Check Task History for error patterns
+2. Fix the root cause (auth, bad data, API changes)
+3. Test with sample data
+4. Re-enable the Zap manually
+5. Monitor closely for next 24 hours
+
+# Common causes:
+- Expired authentication tokens
+- API rate limits
+- Changed field names in connected apps
+- Invalid data formats
+
+### Loops Consuming Unexpected Task Counts
+
+Severity: HIGH
+
+Situation: Processing arrays or multiple items
+
+Symptoms:
+Task quota depleted unexpectedly. One Zap run shows as 100+ tasks.
+Monthly limit reached in days. "You've used X of Y tasks" surprise.
+
+Why this breaks:
+In Zapier, each iteration of a loop counts as separate tasks.
+If a webhook delivers an order with 50 line items and you loop
+through each, that's 50+ tasks for one order.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# Understand the math:
+
+Order with 10 items, 5 actions per item:
+= 1 trigger + (10 items × 5 actions) = 51 tasks
+
+# Strategies to reduce task usage:
+
+1. Batch operations when possible:
+   - Use "Create Many Rows" instead of loop + create
+   - Use bulk API endpoints
+
+2. Aggregate before sending:
+   - Collect all items
+   - Send one summary message, not one per item
+
+3. Filter before looping:
+   - Only process items that need action
+   - Skip unchanged/duplicate items
+
+4. Consider Make for high-volume:
+   - Make uses operations, not tasks per action
+   - More cost-effective for loops
+
+# Make approach:
+[Iterator] → [Actions] → [Aggregator]
+- Pay for operations (module executions)
+- Not per-action like Zapier
+
+### App Updates Breaking Existing Zaps
+
+Severity: HIGH
+
+Situation: App you're connected to releases updates
+
+Symptoms:
+Working Zap suddenly fails. "Field not found" errors. Different
+data format in outputs. Actions that worked yesterday fail today.
+
+Why this breaks:
+When connected apps update their APIs, field names can change,
+new required fields appear, or data formats shift. Zapier/Make
+integrations may not immediately update to match.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# When a Zap breaks after app update:
+
+1. Check the Task History for specific errors
+2. Open the Zap editor to see field mapping issues
+3. Re-select the trigger/action to refresh schema
+4. Re-map any fields that show as "unknown"
+5. Test with new sample data
+
+# Prevention:
+
+1. Subscribe to changelog for critical apps
+2. Keep connection authorizations fresh
+3. Test Zaps after major app updates
+4. Document your field mappings
+5. Use test/duplicate Zaps for experiments
+
+# If integration is outdated:
+- Check Zapier/Make status pages
+- Report issue to support
+- Consider webhook alternative temporarily
+
+# Common offenders:
+- CRM field restructures
+- API version upgrades
+- OAuth scope changes
+- New required permissions
+
+### Authentication Tokens Expiring
+
+Severity: HIGH
+
+Situation: Using OAuth connections to apps
+
+Symptoms:
+"Authentication failed" errors. "Please reconnect" messages.
+Zaps fail after weeks of working. Multiple apps fail simultaneously.
+
+Why this breaks:
+OAuth tokens expire. Some apps require re-authentication every
+60-90 days. If the user who connected the app leaves the company,
+their connection may stop working.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# Immediate fix:
+1. Go to Settings → Apps
+2. Find the app with issues
+3. Reconnect (re-authorize)
+4. Test affected Zaps
+
+# Prevention:
+
+1. Use service accounts for connections
+   - Don't connect with personal accounts
+   - Use shared team email/account
+
+2. Monitor connection health
+   - Check Apps page regularly
+   - Set calendar reminders for known expiration
+
+3. Document who connected what
+   - Track in spreadsheet
+   - Handoff process when people leave
+
+4. Prefer connections that don't expire
+   - API keys over OAuth when available
+   - Long-lived tokens
+
+# Zapier Enterprise:
+- Admin controls for managing connections
+- SSO integration
+- Centralized connection management
+
+### Webhooks Missing or Duplicating Events
+
+Severity: MEDIUM
+
+Situation: Using webhooks as triggers
+
+Symptoms:
+Some events never trigger the Zap. Same event triggers multiple
+times. Inconsistent automation behavior. "Works sometimes."
+
+Why this breaks:
+Webhooks are fire-and-forget. If Zapier's receiving endpoint is
+slow or unavailable, the webhook may fail. Some systems retry
+webhooks, causing duplicates. Network issues lose events.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# Handle duplicates:
+
+1. Add deduplication logic:
+   - Filter: Only continue if ID not in Airtable
+   - First action: Check if already processed
+
+2. Use idempotency:
+   - Store processed IDs
+   - Skip if ID exists
+
+### Zapier example:
+[Webhook Trigger]
+   ↓
+[Airtable: Find Records] - search by event_id
+   ↓
+[Filter: Only continue if not found]
+   ↓
+[Process Event]
+   ↓
+[Airtable: Create Record] - store event_id
+
+# Handle missed events:
+
+1. Use polling triggers for critical data
+   - Less real-time but more reliable
+   - Catches events during downtime
+
+2. Implement reconciliation:
+   - Scheduled Zap to check for gaps
+   - Compare source data to processed data
+
+3. Check source system retry settings:
+   - Some systems retry on failure
+   - Configure retry count/timing
+
+### Make Operations Consumed by Error Retries
+
+Severity: MEDIUM
+
+Situation: Scenarios with failing modules
+
+Symptoms:
+Operations quota depleted quickly. Scenario runs "succeeded" but
+used many operations. Same scenario running more than expected.
+
+Why this breaks:
+Make counts operations per module execution, including failed
+attempts and retries. Error handler modules consume operations.
+Scenarios that fail and retry can use 3-5x expected operations.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# Understand operation counting:
+
+Successful run: Each module = 1 operation
+Failed + retry (3x): 3 operations for that module
+Error handler: Additional operation per handler module
+
+# Reduce operation waste:
+
+1. Add error handlers that break early:
+   [Module] → Error → [Break] (1 additional op)
+   vs
+   [Module] → Error → [Log] → [Alert] → [Update] (3+ ops)
+
+2. Use ignore instead of retry when appropriate:
+   - If failure is expected (record exists)
+   - If retrying won't help (bad data)
+
+3. Pre-validate before expensive operations:
+   [Check Data] → Filter → [API Call]
+   - Fail fast before consuming operations
+
+4. Optimize scenario scheduling:
+   - Don't run every minute if hourly is enough
+   - Use webhooks for real-time when possible
+
+# Monitor usage:
+- Check Operations dashboard
+- Set up usage alerts
+- Review high-consumption scenarios
+
+### Timezone Mismatches in Scheduled Triggers
+
+Severity: MEDIUM
+
+Situation: Setting up scheduled automations
+
+Symptoms:
+Zap runs at wrong time. "9 AM" trigger fires at 2 PM. Different
+behavior on different days. DST causes hour shifts.
+
+Why this breaks:
+Zapier shows times in your local timezone but may store in UTC.
+If you change timezones or DST occurs, scheduled times shift.
+Team members in different zones see different times.
+
+Recommended fix:
+
+# Best practices:
+
+1. Explicitly set timezone in schedule:
+   - Don't rely on browser detection
+   - Use business timezone, not personal
+
+2. Document in Zap name:
+   - "Daily Report 9AM EST"
+   - Include timezone in description
+
+3. Test around DST transitions:
+   - Schedule changes at DST boundaries
+   - Verify times before/after change
+
+4. For global teams:
+   - Use UTC as standard
+   - Convert to local in descriptions
+
+5. Consider buffer times:
+   - Don't schedule at exactly midnight
+   - Avoid on-the-hour (busy periods)
+
+### Make timezone handling:
+- Scenarios use account timezone setting
+- formatDate() function respects timezone
+- Use parseDate() with explicit timezone
+
+
+## Collaboration
+
+### Delegation Triggers
+
+- automation requires custom code -> workflow-automation (Code-based solutions like Inngest, Temporal)
+- need browser automation in workflow -> browser-automation (Playwright/Puppeteer integration)
+- building custom API integration -> api-designer (API design and implementation)
+- automation needs AI capabilities -> agent-tool-builder (AI agent tools and Zapier MCP)
+- high-volume data processing -> backend (Custom backend processing)
+- need self-hosted automation -> devops (n8n or custom workflow deployment)
+
+
+## Related Skills
+
+Works well with: `workflow-automation`, `agent-tool-builder`, `backend`, `api-designer`