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Build Your First Workflow

Wire up a trigger, an AI step, an approval, and an action

A workflow is a visual diagram: nodes do work, arrows connect them, you save it, and it runs. This walkthrough builds a simple workflow with four nodes, a trigger, an AI step, an approval, and an action.

#What a workflow looks like

Every workflow starts with a trigger node and reaches a final node along the way. Common shape:

  1. Trigger: what starts the run (manual click, webhook, schedule, or an integration event)
  2. AI step: does something that needs judgment (classify, summarize, draft)
  3. Approval: pauses the run and shows you the AI’s proposal before the next step
  4. Action: runs the approved step (send email, create record, hit an API)

You can add conditions, loops, and delays in between as needed.

#Walk through it

#1. Start a new workflow

From the dashboard, click New Workflow. The builder opens to a blank canvas.

#2. Name it

Give it a clear name like “Triage support email” or “Follow up on new lead.” You’ll thank yourself later.

#3. Add a trigger

The first node is always a trigger. Pick one:

  • Manual Trigger: you click “Run” yourself. Good for testing.
  • Schedule: runs on a cron schedule (every hour, daily at 9am, etc.). Timezone-aware.
  • Webhook: runs when an external system POSTs to a unique URL. Used for HTTP integrations not handled by the catalog.
  • Integration Event: runs when a connected integration emits an event (Gmail message received, Stripe charge succeeded). Pick the integration and the event.

You can attach more than one trigger to the same workflow if you want.

#4. Add an AI step

Click + after the trigger and pick AI. AI steps run a prompt against a model and return text or structured data.

Configure:

  • Prompt: what you want the model to do, e.g. “Classify this email as urgent, normal, or spam based on subject and sender.”
  • Model: Claude or GPT models from the dropdown. Cheaper models for classification, more expensive models for drafting.
  • Output: choose Text for free-form output or JSON with a schema if you want structured fields downstream.

The AI step’s output is available to every node after it.

#5. Add an approval

Click + and pick Human Review. This pauses the run and queues a proposal for you to review.

Configure:

  • Prompt: what the reviewer (you) sees, e.g. “Send this reply?”
  • Approval type: Approve / Reject, Multi-choice (custom buttons), or Free Text (open-ended input)
  • Priority: Low, Normal, High, or Urgent. Affects queue ordering and notification urgency.
  • Timeout (optional): what happens if you don’t respond in N hours

When the run hits this node, it pauses. Paused runs cost nothing, you’re never charged for an approval sitting in your queue.

#6. Add an action

Click + and pick an action. Built-in actions:

  • HTTP Request: call any REST API
  • Send Email: send from Rills (with optional attachments and templates)
  • Custom Code: JavaScript or Python in a sandbox
  • Transform Data: reshape data between steps

Plus every action exposed by the integrations you’ve connected: send Slack message, create Notion page, refund a Stripe charge, and so on.

Reference data from earlier nodes using {{variable}} syntax, the builder shows what’s available.

#7. Save

Click Save. The workflow is live. If you used a manual trigger, click Run to test it.

#If a blank canvas feels intimidating

Use a template instead. Click Templates in the workflow builder to browse pre-built workflows for email triage, lead follow-up, meeting scheduling, invoice processing, and more. Install with one click and customize.

If you can’t find a template, open the chat and ask Ford for help. He’ll be able to suggest templates or build a custom workflow for you after asking a few questions.

#Next

Review and approve the proposals your workflow creates.