🎯 AskElephant Trigger Types — Complete User Guide

Welcome to the comprehensive guide for AskElephant Trigger Types. This document covers the three primary trigger types available in the platform: New Meeting, Scheduled, and Manual triggers. Each trigger type serves specific automation needs and understanding their configuration options will help you build powerful, efficient workflows.

Overview of Trigger Types

AskElephant offers three primary trigger types, each designed for different automation scenarios:

1. New Meeting - Activates when a new meeting is created or recorded
2. Scheduled - Runs at predetermined times based on your schedule
3. Manual - Executes when a user clicks a button within the platform

Important Concept:

Every node in an agent has both inputs (configuration settings) and outputs (data that can be used in subsequent workflow steps).

New Meeting Trigger

What It Does (New Meeting)

The New Meeting trigger activates whenever a new meeting is created in AskElephant. This includes:

• Meetings recorded through direct integrations (Google Meet, Zoom, Teams)
• Uploaded meetings
• Meetings recorded via mobile app
• Meetings captured by note-takers

Conceptual Model:

Think of this trigger as having someone constantly refresh the search page, waiting for a new meeting to appear. As soon as one does, the workflow begins.

Configuration Options (New Meeting)

When setting up a New Meeting trigger, you can configure it to run for specific scenarios:

Priority Setting

• Purpose: Determines where this workflow appears in your list of workflows
• High Priority: Appears at the top of workflow lists
• Low Priority: Appears below other workflows
• Use Case: Helpful when managing multiple workflows

Who It Runs For

You can specify exactly whose meetings should trigger the workflow:

1. All Workspace Members
• Toggle this on to trigger for every new call from any user
• Most comprehensive option
2. Groups
• Select specific team groups (e.g., Product, Sales)
• Multi-select enabled - can choose multiple groups
• Example: Run only for Product team meetings
3. People
• Select specific individuals
• Multi-select enabled
• Example: Run only for meetings involving Eli and Tyler
4. Exclude People
• Specify people whose meetings should NOT trigger the workflow
• Example: Run for everyone except Woody

Input Fields (New Meeting)

Required Fields

• Priority: Workflow display priority
• Who it runs for: At least one selection (All, Groups, or People)

Optional Fields

• Meeting Type:
• Internal: Only attendees from your organization
• External: Includes outside participants
• All: Any meeting type (default)
• Tags: Filter by existing meeting tags
• Media Type: How the meeting was recorded
• Defaults to "Meeting" if not specified

Multi-Select Capability:

You can combine multiple conditions. Example:

• Run for Product group
• Also run for Tyler individually
• Exclude Dylan from Product group

Output Fields (New Meeting)

The trigger provides extensive meeting data for use in your workflow:

Meeting Object

Contains all meeting information:

• Title - Meeting name
• Transcript - Full text of the conversation
• Link - URL to access the meeting
• Start/End Date - Meeting timing
• Attendees - Participant information and emails
• Company - Associated organization
• Video Link - Recording URL

Practical Application:

These outputs mirror what you see on the search page for any meeting, giving your workflow access to all the same information.

Use Cases (New Meeting)

• Automatic Meeting Summaries: Generate and send summaries immediately after meetings
• CRM Updates: Log external meetings in your CRM system
• Follow-up Tasks: Create action items based on meeting type
• Compliance Recording: Archive specific types of meetings
• Team Notifications: Alert managers about important client calls

Scheduled Trigger

What It Does (Scheduled)

The Scheduled trigger runs workflows at predetermined times, similar to hiring an employee to perform a task every Friday at 8 AM.

Key Concept:

This trigger converts natural language scheduling (e.g., "Every Friday at 8 AM") into cron expressions that the system understands.

Configuration Options (Scheduled)

Schedule Setting

• Natural Language Input: Type when you want the workflow to run
• Examples: "Every Friday at 8 AM", "Daily at 5 PM", "First Monday of each month"
• Automatic Cron Generation: System converts your input to a cron expression
• No Manual Cron Editing Needed: The system handles the technical details

Who It Runs For

Critical Understanding:

The workflow runs once for each selected person at the scheduled time.

1. Groups
• Selecting a group runs the workflow for each member individually
• Example: Product group with 3 members = 3 separate workflow runs
2. People
• Select specific individuals
• Each person gets their own workflow execution
3. Exclude People
• Remove specific individuals from group selections

Important Consideration:

If you want the workflow to run only once but send results to multiple people:

1. Set it to run for a single person
2. Define multiple recipients later in the workflow actions

Input Fields (Scheduled)

• Schedule: When to run (required)
• Groups: Team groups to run for (optional)
• People: Specific individuals (optional)
• Exclude People: People to skip (optional)

Multi-Select Behavior:

Can combine groups and individuals with exclusions.

Output Fields (Scheduled)

• Run Date: The date when the workflow executed
• Run Time: The exact time of execution
• Workflow User: The person this run is for
• User Name: Name of the workflow user

Verification Use:

These outputs help confirm the workflow is running at the correct time for the right people.

Use Cases (Scheduled)

• Weekly Reports: Generate team performance summaries every Friday
• Daily Standup Reminders: Send meeting prep notifications each morning
• Monthly Reviews: Compile meeting metrics on the first of each month
• Recurring Tasks: Automate any time-based repetitive task
• Batch Processing: Process accumulated data at specific intervals

Manual Trigger

What It Does (Manual)

The Manual trigger creates clickable buttons throughout AskElephant that execute workflows on demand. It's the most user-controlled trigger type.

Core Concept:

Manual triggers appear as buttons in specific locations within the platform, allowing users to initiate workflows when needed.

Configuration Options (Manual)

Related Object Type

This crucial setting determines where your workflow button appears:

1. Meeting Page
• Button appears on recorded meeting pages
• Access to full meeting context and transcript
2. Calendar Event
• Button appears on upcoming meetings
• Limited context (no transcript yet)
• Different metadata available
3. Person/Contact Page
• Button appears on individual contact pages
• Access to person-specific information
4. Company Page
• Button appears on organization pages
• Access to company-wide context
5. Conversation
• Button appears in conversation interfaces
• Available in multiple locations (contact pages, AskElephant chat)
• Access via "+" button → "Run Workflow"
6. None
• Workflow doesn't appear anywhere
• Useful as placeholder for testing
• Can be triggered programmatically

Note: This is NOT multi-select - choose one location only.

Visibility Controls

Define who can see and use the workflow button:

1. Groups
• Only members of selected groups see the button
• Applies to the chosen object type location
2. People
• Specific individuals who can access the button
• Multi-select enabled
3. Exclude People
• Hide button from specific individuals
• Overrides group membership

Button Naming

• Button Label: Uses your agent's name
• Example: Agent named "Generate Summary" appears as "Generate Summary" button

Input Fields (Manual)

• Related Object Type: Where the button appears (required)
• Groups: Who can see the button (optional)
• People: Specific users with access (optional)
• Exclude People: Users without access (optional)

Output Fields (Manual)

Output fields vary based on the Related Object Type:

Meeting Page Outputs

• Meeting information
• Conversation data
• Meeting documents
• Workflow user

Calendar Event Outputs

• Event details
• Scheduled attendees
• Meeting metadata

Person/Contact Outputs

• Contact information
• Related meetings
• Communication history

Company Outputs

• Organization details
• Associated contacts
• Meeting history

Conversation Outputs

• Conversation context
• Participants
• Related data

Use Cases (Manual)

• On-Demand Summaries: Generate meeting summaries when needed
• Contact Actions: Update CRM data from contact pages
• Meeting Follow-ups: Create tasks directly from meeting pages
• Company Reports: Generate account summaries from company pages
• Conversation Analysis: Analyze specific conversations on demand
• Testing Workflows: Use "None" type for development and testing

Best Practices Across All Triggers

General Configuration Tips

1. Start Simple
• Begin with basic configurations
• Add complexity as you understand the workflow better
2. Test Thoroughly
• Verify triggers fire when expected
• Check output data is correct
• Test with different user permissions
3. Document Your Logic
• Note why specific people/groups are included or excluded
• Document the business reason for the trigger

Combining Multiple Conditions

• Use Multi-Select Wisely: Combine groups and individuals thoughtfully
• Exclusions Override Inclusions: Excluded people won't trigger even if in selected groups
• Consider Overlap: Avoid redundant selections (e.g., selecting a group and its members individually)

Performance Considerations

New Meeting Triggers

• Avoid overly broad configurations that fire for every meeting
• Use meeting type and tags to narrow scope

Scheduled Triggers

• Remember each person = one execution
• Consider system load for large groups
• Stagger schedules if running multiple workflows

Manual Triggers

• Place buttons where users naturally look for them
• Don't overcrowd interfaces with too many buttons
• Use descriptive agent names for clear button labels

Troubleshooting Common Issues

1. Trigger Not Firing
• Check user permissions
• Verify configuration settings
• Ensure workflow is activated
2. Firing Too Often
• Review who it runs for
• Check for overlapping group/people selections
• Consider adding exclusions
3. Wrong Output Data
• Verify correct trigger type for your needs
• Check object type matches expected context
• Review output field mappings

Summary

AskElephant's three trigger types provide comprehensive automation capabilities:

New Meeting Trigger

• Best For: Immediate post-meeting actions
• Key Feature: Automatic detection of new meetings
• Configuration Focus: Who and what type of meetings

Scheduled Trigger

• Best For: Regular, time-based tasks
• Key Feature: Natural language scheduling
• Configuration Focus: When and for whom

Manual Trigger

• Best For: User-initiated workflows
• Key Feature: Strategic button placement
• Configuration Focus: Where and who can access

Remember:

• Each trigger type serves distinct automation needs
• Proper configuration ensures workflows run exactly when needed
• Understanding outputs enables powerful multi-step workflows
• Testing and iteration lead to optimal automation

By mastering these trigger types, you can create sophisticated automations that enhance team productivity, ensure consistent processes, and scale your operations efficiently.

Need Help?

• Start with the trigger type that best matches your use case
• Test configurations with small groups before organization-wide deployment
• Contact support for complex multi-trigger scenarios

End of Guide