Auto AppyFor everyone15 min read

Lesson 1: Reply to every enquiry in seconds

VCVidya Coaching CentreLesson 1 of 6 · 15 min

Goal: Website form → enquiry sheet → WhatsApp demo-class invite.

Website enquiry formGoogle Sheets: add rowWhatsApp: demo invite

You'll learnWebhook trigger Google Sheets Mapping data Testing and Live

What we’ll build

One workflow, three steps. The moment the form is submitted, Auto Appy saves the enquiry to the Enquiries 2026 sheet and sends the parent a WhatsApp invite to a free demo class.

Animated explainerHow a workflow runs

1Something happens: a parent fills the enquiry form on Vidya Coaching's website at 9:40 pm. This is the trigger, the "when".

2Auto Appy receives the answers straight away: student name, phone and course (JEE).

3Step 1 runs: the enquiry is added as a new row in the "Enquiries 2026" Google Sheet.

4Step 2 runs: the parent gets a WhatsApp message inviting Rahul to a free demo class.

5Done in about two seconds, at 9:40 pm, while the centre is closed. Every enquiry, every time.

In Auto Appy terms: a Webhook trigger (the form), a Google Sheets step and an Auto Appy WhatsApp step. We’ll name the agent Asha, after the front-desk role she takes over.

Before you start

An Auto Appy account (Neha signs in with her work email; see sign in).
The Google account that owns the enquiry sheet.
An approved WhatsApp template for the invite, here called demo_class_invite, created in Auto Appy WhatsApp.
Access to the website’s enquiry form settings, or someone who can edit the form.

Watch the build

WalkthroughVidya Coaching: reply to every enquiry1 / 11

Step by step

1. Create the agent

Go to Agents and click New agent.
Open New agentautoappy.com/agents/new
Under Start from a job, choose Welcome new leads. Keep the build method on Routine.
Name it Asha and set the job to Reply to every enquiry. Pick a character if you like.
Click Create and open the workflow editor.

2. Catch the enquiry with a webhook

Click Add your first step, search Webhook, choose Webhook (Auto Appy) → Global Trigger, and click Add starting step.
On the Setup tab, click Your Webhook URL to copy it.

Give the URL to whoever manages the website, and ask them to send the enquiry form to it. For a plain HTML form it looks like this:

<form method="POST" action="https://api.autoappy.com/workflows/execute/YOUR_WORKFLOW_ID">
  <input name="student_name" placeholder="Student's name" required>
  <input name="parent_name" placeholder="Parent's name">
  <input name="phone" placeholder="WhatsApp number, e.g. 9198XXXXXXXX" required>
  <select name="course"><option>JEE</option><option>NEET</option><option>Foundation</option></select>
  <select name="class"><option>11</option><option>12</option><option>Dropper</option></select>
  <select name="branch"><option>Kothrud</option><option>Hadapsar</option><option>Wakad</option></select>
  <button>Book a free demo</button>
</form>

WordPress form plugins (Elementor, WPForms, Contact Form 7 add-ons) have a Webhook setting where you paste the same URL.

Click Start Capturing Sample Data, then submit the form once with test details. Click Check Status.

The Test tab showing the captured enquiry: student_name Rahul Patil, parent_name Sunita Patil, phone, course JEE, class 11 — The captured enquiry. These field names are what later steps use.

3. Save the enquiry to Google Sheets

Click + to the right of the trigger and choose Google Sheets → Insert a row in google sheet → Add step.
On Setup, choose Create New Connection, name it Vidya Google, click Connect with Google, sign in with the account that owns the sheet and click Allow.
On Configure, choose the Enquiries 2026 spreadsheet and its sheet. Each column appears as a field.
Fill the columns. Type / in a field to pick from the enquiry: Student_name into Student, Phone into Phone, Course into Course, and so on. Type fixed text where you need it, for example Website in a Source column.
Save & continue, then Test This Node. A new row appears in the sheet and the step turns Live.

4. Send the WhatsApp demo invite

Click + after Google Sheets and choose Auto Appy WhatsApp → Send approved template.
On Setup, connect Vidya’s WhatsApp account (organisation ID plus a Read and write API key from Auto Appy WhatsApp). See Connect an app.
On Configure:
- WhatsApp account and Phone number: the centre’s business number.
- Recipient phone with country code: type / and pick Phone.
- Approved template name: demo_class_invite. Language code: en.
- Template components JSON: fill the template’s variables in the format Meta uses (the field’s help text shows it). For a template that reads “Hi {{1}}, thanks for your interest in our {{2}} batch…”:
```
[{ "type": "body", "parameters": [
  { "type": "text", "text": "{{workflow.student_name}}" },
  { "type": "text", "text": "{{workflow.course}}" }
]}]
```
Save & continue, then Test This Node with your own number as the sample phone first.

The WhatsApp step's Configure tab: recipient phone mapped from the webhook, template name demo_class_invite, language en, and the / picker showing Student_name and Parent_name — Type / in any field to pick the enquiry's details.

5. Go Live and watch it work

The status pill should say Live (capturing the sample switched it on). Each step turns Live when its test passes. Submit the website form for real, then open History:

Run history listing two successful runs of Reply to every enquiry — Every enquiry is one run. Click a run to see each step.

What changed for Vidya

Before	After
Reply the next morning, if someone remembered.	Reply in about two seconds, any hour.
An hour a day copying enquiries into the sheet.	The sheet fills itself.
No record of which enquiries were contacted.	Every run is in History, with the time and result.

At 40 enquiries a day this workflow uses about 3 tasks per enquiry, roughly 3,600 tasks a month. See Plans and billing.

Try it yourself

Add a Branch column to the sheet and map branch into it.
Change the invite so it mentions the branch: add a third template variable with {{workflow.branch}}.
Submit the form from your own phone and find your run in History.

Using this for your own business?

A clinic would capture patient_name and doctor; a gym would capture plan and preferred_time. The three steps stay exactly the same.

What you learned

Webhook triggerA private URL that starts the workflow when a form sends data to it.
Capture sample dataOne real submission teaches Auto Appy which fields exist.
App connectionsSign in once (Google) or paste a key (WhatsApp); every workflow can reuse it.
MappingType / to put the enquiry's details into later steps.
Test and LiveA passing test switches a step Live; tests are real.

Next: Send each student to the right counsellor →

For trainers: how to teach this lesson

Open with a question: “How long does your business take to reply to a new enquiry at 9 pm?” Write the answers on the board.
Demo live: build the trigger, then ask a student to submit the form from their phone while everyone watches the sample arrive.
Common mistakes: the phone without 91 (WhatsApp fails); testing the WhatsApp step with a real parent’s number; a form whose field names differ from the captured sample.
Check understanding: “What would change if enquiries also came from Google Forms?” (Answer: add another trigger; that’s the real-estate Lesson 1.)