Zapier and Service M8 integration with Smarthseet

Wayne Merlino

Hi,

I was wondering if anyone has any info on how to achieve what i am trying to do:

 

I have field management software that I use called Service M8 - it works with Zapier to update and or create rows in Smartsheet. We use Zapier to make a new row in Smartsheet and the trigger is when we make a new client in Service M8. That works fine. The issue is when we then go out and perform an inspection at the new clients location we gather additional data (through a form in Service M8) that we want to send to Smartsheet - on the same row as originally created - in essence updating it with the new data. From what I can tell / have managed to make happen so far is that I can update the row with the new data captured from our Service M8 form, but only when that is the only row on the sheet. I haven't been able to figure out how to have it "look" for the same row based on something like the customer name and update it. My thinking is if it was looking for the same name on the row it would udpate the correct row.....

 

Ultimately, we want to do this throughout the life of the job - which in our case is usually 5 visits. It isn't very practical to have my crews update it directly in Smartsheet in the field as they have a lot of other industry specific things to do on the visit, and I ultimately want them this to be automated off the form they are filling out.

 

Thanks in advance for any thoughts anyone may have.

 

J. Craig Williams

Wayne,

 

I use Zapier a lot, primarily with Smartsheet.

The only way I have found to do something like what you describe is to capture (as a number) the RowID that you are interested in.

 

For my most recent testing, the workflow was something like this:

 

1. copy row from one Smartsheet to another via Zapier.

- during this copy the RowID is captured into a column in the second Smartsheet

Basically, this provides the pointer back to the row where it came from.

 

2. The second row was linked out to another program via Zapier too.

 

3. The other program would be used to modifiy the data and send it back to the first sheet, on the correct row.

I turned that part over to someone else to test, but the theory is sound as I tested it back and forth between the two Smartsheet's successfully.

 

From re-reading your post, it sounds like Service M8 is putting data INTO Smartsheet. Does it ever get it back? That might be what you need. Something needs to remember the RowID.

 

Craig

 

Wayne Merlino

Thanks for responding. I am not necessarily wanting to push back to Service M8 as much as take a row that we started with one phase of work and then update the same row as we add data. I will try your suggestion but had a question as far as if I am thinking this through correctly:

 

If we are adding new jobs via zapier all the time (which is the trigger for a new line in Smartsheet), and the next Zap that runs is after we go out and inspect - meaning after the orignal row is created - and the zap appears to require the row ID to understand where to place the additional data, how would it know which row to go to as the zap requires me to specity a row ID.

 

I am pretty limited as to my programming skils (i.e. I have none!) so maybe I am missing some fundamental script or formula that would need to be added.... If that is the case, any suggestions on how to have someone program this for me / where to find that person, etc., would be much appreciated. 

Thanks again.

J. Craig Williams

If the beginning of your workflow is pushing something to Smartsheet via Zapier, then you might be out of luck.

 

M workflow captured the RowID when it left Smartsheet and used it when it came back.

Note that the RowID is not something like 23 for row 23, but rather a longer number like 34755234570241

Like a serial number.

 

Your problem will also be that each form from Service M8 will need to remember that particular row. Somehow, that data needs to be fed back.

 

There is no way (that I currently know of) to have Zapier scan the system and say "Ah! This company name matches what I'm looking for, this must be the row I need!".

 

That could be done with the API but not with Zapier as it currently stands.

 

Is there some key in Service M8 that you would search for if you could?

 

Craig

Shaine Greenwood

Hi Wayne,

 

You can find our full API documentation here: https://smartsheet-platform.github.io/api-docs/?javascript#overview

Dan James

Hi Wyane,

 

Ia also a serviceM8 user, with similar needs. Long story short, I have had Wink Reports (Which reports on all servicem8 data)setup a connector with smartsheet to export sheets right from wink to smartsheet. 

 

In addition to that, we are working on a "Live sales tracking board" within smartsheet where the fields from servicem8 are updated whenever we want....

 

It is pretty cool stuff, let me know if you want more info on it.