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Automation Platform Connections

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Overview#

AutomateNexus CRM connects with popular automation platforms including Zapier, Make (formerly Integromat), n8n, and Pabbly Connect. These platforms allow you to build custom workflows that connect AutomateNexus CRM with hundreds of other applications without writing code. Whether you want to sync contacts with your email marketing tool, create deals from form submissions on another platform, or push data to your analytics stack, automation platform connections make it possible. This guide covers the setup process for each supported platform.

All four platforms connect through the same two building blocks, both managed under Settings → Integrations:

  • CRM → platform (triggers): an outbound webhook that POSTs a signed JSON payload to the platform's webhook URL whenever a selected event happens.
  • Platform → CRM (actions): the REST API, authenticated with an API key, for creating and updating contacts, deals, tasks, notes and more.

AutomateNexus CRM does not publish a native app in the Zapier, Make, n8n or Pabbly directories, so you use each platform's generic webhook and HTTP modules. The Automation platforms section under Settings → Integrations → Automation shows how many webhooks and API keys are active, links to where each is created, and gives a quick-reference card for each platform.

Prerequisites#

Before connecting automation platforms, ensure you have:

  • An AutomateNexus CRM administrator account.
  • An account on the automation platform you want to connect (Zapier, Make, n8n, or Pabbly Connect).
  • An AutomateNexus CRM API key (see the next section).
  • Basic understanding of automation workflows (triggers, actions, and filters).

Generating Your API Key#

Actions that write to AutomateNexus CRM call the REST API with an API key:

  1. Navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer and scroll to API keys.
  2. Under Generate New API Key, enter an API Key Name (e.g., "Zapier Connection" or "Make Integration") and click Generate.
  3. The key appears at the top of Your API Keys with read and write permissions. Use the eye and copy buttons to reveal and copy it now: the full key is shown only once, at creation, and only its prefix is displayed afterwards.
  4. Store the key securely. Never share it in public repositories, emails, or chat messages.
  5. To retire a key, delete it with the trash button on its row.

Administrators can also create keys under Settings → API keys: click Create key, enter a Name, optionally a comma-separated list of Scopes and an Expiration (Never, 30 days, 90 days or 1 year), then copy the key from the Key created dialog. Keys created there start with ank_ and can be revoked or deleted from the row menu.

REST API Basics#

The API base URL is shown under Settings → Integrations → Developer → API endpoint, with a copy button and a Docs button that opens the API Documentation page. Send the key on every request as Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY. Resources include /contacts, /customers, /deals, /tasks, /notes, /invoices, /search and /bulk; the API Documentation page lists every endpoint with its payload shape and a webhook signature-verification example. The API allows 120 requests per minute per key and answers 429 with a Retry-After header when the limit is exceeded.

Zapier Integration#

About Zapier#

Zapier is the most widely used no-code automation platform. It connects AutomateNexus CRM with thousands of apps through automated workflows called "Zaps." Each Zap consists of a trigger (an event that starts the workflow) and one or more actions (tasks performed when the trigger fires). AutomateNexus CRM connects through Zapier's built-in Webhooks by Zapier app: Catch Hook for triggers and POST for actions.

Triggering a Zap from AutomateNexus CRM#

  1. Log in to your Zapier account at zapier.com and click Create Zap.
  2. For the trigger, choose Webhooks by Zapier and the Catch Hook event. Zapier shows a webhook URL; copy it.
  3. In AutomateNexus CRM, navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer → Webhooks and create a webhook that points at that URL, selecting the events you want, such as contact.created, deal.stage_changed or form.submitted (see Webhook Setup for All Platforms below).
  4. Click Test on the new webhook in AutomateNexus CRM, or create a real record that fires the event, so Zapier receives a sample payload.
  5. Add your action step (e.g., add a row to Google Sheets, send a Slack message, add to Mailchimp).
  6. Test and publish your Zap.

Creating CRM Records from a Zap#

  1. Start a Zap with the trigger of your choice (a Typeform submission, a Calendly booking, etc.).
  2. Add an action using Webhooks by Zapier with the POST event.
  3. Set the URL to your API base URL followed by the resource, for example …/functions/v1/api/contacts, choose JSON as the payload type, map your fields, and add a header named Authorization with the value Bearer YOUR_API_KEY.
  4. Test the action and confirm the record appears in AutomateNexus CRM.
  • New Contact → Mailchimp: Automatically add new CRM contacts to a Mailchimp audience for email marketing.
  • Form Submission → Slack Notification: Send a Slack message to your sales channel when a form is submitted.
  • Deal Stage Changed → Google Sheets: Log deal stage changes to a spreadsheet for reporting.
  • New Contact (external) → AutomateNexus CRM: Create contacts in AutomateNexus CRM when new leads appear in another tool (e.g., Typeform, Calendly).

Make (Integromat) Integration#

About Make#

Make is a visual automation platform that uses "Scenarios" to connect apps. It offers more complex workflow capabilities than Zapier, including branching logic, iterators, and aggregators, making it suitable for advanced automation needs.

Connecting AutomateNexus CRM to Make#

In Make, the Webhooks module is the trigger and the HTTP module performs actions.

  1. Log in to your Make account at make.com and click Create a new scenario.
  2. Click the + button, add a Webhooks module with a custom webhook, and copy the webhook URL Make generates.
  3. In AutomateNexus CRM, navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer → Webhooks, create a webhook pointing at that URL, and select the events to forward.
  4. Click Test on the webhook in AutomateNexus CRM so Make can determine the data structure, then add the modules that process the data.
  5. To write back to the CRM, add an HTTP module that makes a request: the URL is your API base URL plus the resource (e.g., /deals), the method is POST or PUT, the header is Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY, and the body is JSON.
  6. Click Run once to test, then toggle the scenario to Active.

Make-Specific Features#

  • Data stores: Use Make data stores to cache CRM data for complex lookups and transformations.
  • Error handling: Add error handlers to your scenarios to manage failed API calls gracefully.

n8n Integration#

About n8n#

n8n is an open-source workflow automation platform that can be self-hosted or used as a cloud service. It provides full control over your data and workflows, making it ideal for privacy-conscious organizations.

Connecting AutomateNexus CRM to n8n#

  1. Open your n8n instance (self-hosted or cloud at app.n8n.io).
  2. Create a new workflow.
  3. For actions, add an HTTP Request node and configure it as follows:
    • Method: GET, POST, PUT, or DELETE depending on the operation.
    • URL: your API base URL followed by the resource (e.g., …/functions/v1/api/contacts).
    • Authentication: Select Header Auth.
    • Header Name: Authorization
    • Header Value: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY
  4. For triggers, use the Webhook node in n8n:
    • Add a Webhook node to your workflow.
    • Copy the webhook URL generated by n8n.
    • In AutomateNexus CRM, navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer → Webhooks and create a webhook pointing to the n8n webhook URL.
    • Select the events you want to forward (e.g., contact.created, deal.updated).
  5. Build your workflow by adding action nodes after the trigger.
  6. Activate the workflow.

Self-Hosted n8n Considerations#

  • Ensure your n8n instance is accessible from the internet if AutomateNexus CRM needs to send webhooks to it. Use a reverse proxy with SSL (e.g., Nginx or Caddy) in front of n8n.
  • Set up proper authentication and access controls on your n8n instance.
  • Configure environment variables for your AutomateNexus CRM API key rather than hardcoding it in workflows.

Pabbly Connect Integration#

About Pabbly Connect#

Pabbly Connect is an automation platform that supports webhook-based integrations, making it compatible with AutomateNexus CRM. Use its Webhook trigger to receive CRM events and its API/HTTP action step to write back to the CRM.

Connecting AutomateNexus CRM to Pabbly Connect#

  1. Log in to Pabbly Connect at connect.pabbly.com.
  2. Click Create Workflow.
  3. Name your workflow (e.g., "AutomateNexus CRM to Google Sheets").
  4. For the trigger, select Pabbly's Webhook trigger. Pabbly generates a webhook URL; copy it.
  5. In AutomateNexus CRM, navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer → Webhooks.
  6. In Create webhook, paste the Pabbly webhook URL as the Endpoint URL, select the events to send (e.g., contact.created, deal.stage_changed), and click Create webhook.
  7. Back in Pabbly Connect, click Capture Webhook Response, then click Test on the webhook in AutomateNexus CRM (or trigger a real event) to verify data is received.
  8. Add your action step (e.g., Google Sheets, email, Slack, etc.). To write to the CRM, use an API/HTTP action step with your API base URL and the Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY header.
  9. Save and enable the workflow.

Inbound Quick-Send URLs#

Each platform card under Settings → Integrations → Automation → Automation platforms also shows an Inbound quick-send URL of the form …/functions/v1/webhooks/zapier (or /make, /n8n, /pabbly), with a copy button. It is a lightweight alternative to the REST API for simple "send data to the CRM" actions: POST a JSON body with an event_type (or action) and a data object or array, and send your API key in an x-api-key header (an Authorization: Bearer header also works). Supported event types are contact.created, contact.updated (matched by email or id), deal.created, customer.created and activity.created; records created this way carry the platform name as their source. For anything richer, with full field support and proper responses, use the REST API.

Webhook Setup for All Platforms#

Creating Webhooks in AutomateNexus CRM#

All automation platforms can receive data from AutomateNexus CRM through webhooks. Here is the general process:

  1. Navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer and scroll to Webhooks.
  2. In the Create webhook card, fill in the details:
    • Name: A descriptive name (e.g., "Zapier — new leads").
    • Endpoint URL: The HTTPS webhook URL from your automation platform.
    • Events: Tick one or more events. They are grouped by Contacts, Deals, Customers, Companies, Tasks and Forms:
      • contact.created, contact.updated
      • deal.created, deal.updated, deal.stage_changed
      • customer.created, customer.updated
      • company.created, company.updated
      • task.created, task.updated
      • form.submitted
    • Description: Optional.
  3. Click Create webhook. A signing secret is generated and shown once; copy it if you intend to verify signatures. The webhook is active immediately.

The webhook then appears under Active webhooks with its Active or Inactive status, URL, events, and the time of its last success and last failure. Each row has Test (sends a real, signed webhook.test payload), Deliveries (opens the delivery log), a rotate-secret button (the new secret is revealed once), a switch to pause the webhook without deleting it, and a delete button, which also removes its delivery log.

Webhook Payload Format#

AutomateNexus CRM sends webhook payloads as JSON with the following structure:

  • event: The event type (e.g., "contact.created").
  • occurred_at: ISO 8601 timestamp of when the event occurred.
  • organization_id: Your AutomateNexus CRM organization identifier.
  • object: The type of record the event concerns.
  • data: The full record data associated with the event.
  • previous: For update events, the record as it was before the change; otherwise null.

Every delivery carries the headers X-Webhook-Id, X-Webhook-Event, X-Webhook-Timestamp and X-Webhook-Signature. The signature has the form t=<unix seconds>,v1=<hex HMAC-SHA256>, computed with your signing secret over the timestamp, a period, and the raw request body. Failed deliveries are retried up to three times, after 1 minute, 5 minutes and 30 minutes; each attempt times out after 10 seconds.

Testing Automation Connections#

  1. Trigger a test event: Click Test on the webhook, or create a test contact, deal, or form submission in AutomateNexus CRM.
  2. Check the automation platform: Verify the event was received by checking the run history in Zapier, Make, n8n, or Pabbly.
  3. Verify the action: Confirm the downstream action was executed (e.g., row added to Google Sheets, Slack message sent).
  4. Check the delivery log: In AutomateNexus CRM, navigate to Settings → Integrations → Developer → Webhooks and click Deliveries on the webhook. The delivery log shows each delivery's status, the HTTP response code, and every attempt with the payload that was sent.

Troubleshooting#

Webhook Events Not Being Received#

  • Verify the webhook URL is correct and accessible from the internet.
  • Check that the webhook's switch is on (the row shows Active) in AutomateNexus CRM.
  • Review the delivery log for failed attempts (HTTP 4xx or 5xx responses) and watch for a "consecutive failures" badge on the webhook.
  • Ensure the automation platform workflow is active and listening for incoming webhooks.

API Authentication Errors#

  • Verify your API key is correct and has not been deleted or revoked.
  • Check that the API key is being sent in the correct format: Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY.
  • For the inbound quick-send URLs, send the key in the x-api-key header.

Duplicate Records Being Created#

  • Check whether both a webhook and a scheduled API poll are feeding the same workflow.
  • Add deduplication logic to your automation workflow (e.g., check if a contact with the same email already exists before creating a new one).
  • Use the AutomateNexus CRM /search endpoint to look up existing records before creating new ones.

Rate Limiting#

  • The AutomateNexus CRM API allows 120 requests per minute per API key and returns 429 with a Retry-After header when you exceed it.
  • If you hit rate limits, add delays between API calls in your automation platform.
  • For bulk operations, use the /bulk endpoint (POST with an entity_type, an operation of create or update, and a data array) instead of individual calls.

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