Documentation User Guide

Create Your First Automation

This guide helps you create your first Elzo Forms PRO automation.

Use it when you want a form submission to trigger an action, such as sending an email, calling a webhook, redirecting a visitor, or setting a cookie.

Before you begin

Make sure:

  • Elzo Forms PRO is installed and active;
  • your PRO license is active for the site;
  • you already have a form;
  • the form can submit successfully;
  • submissions are being saved.

Create the form first. Add the automation after the basic form works.

Choose a simple first workflow

Start with one automation and one action.

Good first workflows include:

  • send an internal email after submission;
  • redirect the visitor after submission;
  • set a cookie after submission;
  • send submitted data to a webhook.

Avoid building a complex workflow first. A small workflow is easier to understand and troubleshoot.

Open the automations area

To start:

  1. Open your WordPress dashboard.
  2. Go to the Elzo Forms area.
  3. Open the form you want to automate.
  4. Find the automations area.
  5. Add a new automation.

The exact menu labels may depend on your installed version.

Name the automation

Use a name that describes what the automation does.

Good examples:

  • Send admin notification
  • Redirect after request
  • Send data to webhook
  • Set returning visitor cookie

A clear name helps you understand the workflow later, especially when a form has more than one automation.

Decide whether to use conditions

Conditions decide whether the automation should run.

For your first automation, you can leave conditions empty if the action should run for every submission.

Use conditions when the automation should only run in specific situations.

For example:

  • only when a specific option is selected;
  • only for logged-in users;
  • only when a URL parameter exists;
  • only during a specific date range.

If this is your first automation, start without conditions. Add conditions after the action works.

Add one action

Add the action you want the automation to run.

Depending on your installed version, actions may include:

  • email;
  • webhook;
  • redirect;
  • cookie;
  • form behavior actions.

Configure the action settings carefully.

For example:

  • for an email action, check recipients, subject, and message;
  • for a webhook action, check the destination URL and request settings;
  • for a redirect action, check the redirect URL;
  • for a cookie action, check the cookie name, value, and timing.

Save the automation

After configuring the action:

  1. Save the automation.
  2. Save the form if required.
  3. Open the form on the frontend.
  4. Submit a sample entry.
  5. Check whether the action ran.

Do not add more actions until the first action works.

Check the result

After submitting the form, check the expected result.

For example:

  • if the action sends an email, check the inbox;
  • if the action calls a webhook, check the receiving service;
  • if the action redirects, confirm that the browser goes to the expected page;
  • if the action sets a cookie, check the browser cookies;
  • if logs are available, review the automation log.

Add conditions after the action works

After the action works without conditions, you can add conditions.

To add conditions:

  1. Open the automation.
  2. Add one condition.
  3. Save the automation.
  4. Submit a sample entry that should match.
  5. Submit a sample entry that should not match.
  6. Confirm that the action runs only when expected.
  7. Review logs if available.

Add one condition at a time. This makes it easier to find mistakes.

Add more actions gradually

If the automation needs more than one action, add actions one by one.

After each new action:

  1. Save the automation.
  2. Submit a sample entry.
  3. Check the result.
  4. Review logs if available.

Avoid changing several actions at the same time when troubleshooting.

Troubleshooting

I do not see the automations area

Confirm that Elzo Forms PRO is installed, active, and licensed on the site.

The automation does not run

Check whether the automation is enabled. If it has conditions, confirm that the submitted entry actually matches those conditions.

The action does not work

Review the action settings. For email, check delivery settings. For webhooks, check the URL and receiving service. For redirects, check the redirect URL. For cookies, check browser behavior.

The automation works without conditions but fails with conditions

The condition may not match. Add one condition at a time and check the exact value, operator, and source.

I am not sure what happened

Review automation logs if available. Logs can show which automation ran and which action needs attention.

  • Automations Overview
  • Common Automation Recipes
  • Advanced Conditional Logic in PRO
  • Webhooks
  • Troubleshooting Automations

Applies to

  • Elzo Forms PRO
  • WordPress admin
  • Automations
  • Form submissions

Last reviewed

2026-07-04

 
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