Glossary
What is Workflow?
A repeatable series of steps, like quote, follow up, book, that software runs for you every time the trigger happens.
Also written as workflow automation, automated workflow.
Every business already has workflows; most of them just run on people. A new lead comes in, someone replies, someone adds them to the CRM, someone sends the quote, someone remembers to follow up. Workflow automation hands those steps to software.
How one is built
Every workflow has a trigger (a form is submitted, a payment arrives, a date is reached) and a series of actions (send this, create that, wait two days, check a condition, notify a person). Tools like Zapier, Make or n8n build them by connecting apps through their APIs.
Where AI changes it
Classic workflows follow fixed rules. Adding an AI step lets a workflow read a message and decide what kind it is, draft a reply in your voice, or pull the key details out of a document, so it can handle the messy real world instead of only perfectly filled forms.
