BaseCloud Tasks¶

Tasks are the building blocks of your automation workflows. Each task performs a specific function, and by connecting tasks together, you create powerful automated processes.

Task Types: Triggers vs Actions¶

Trigger Tasks¶

Trigger tasks START your workflows. They listen for events and initiate workflow execution.

Every workflow must begin with exactly one trigger task.

Common Trigger Tasks: - Webhook In - Starts when external service sends data - Timer Trigger - Starts at specific times/intervals - Website Form - Starts when website form is submitted - Inbound Email - Starts when email arrives - CRM Trigger - Starts when contact data changes - Call Connect Trigger - Starts when phone call occurs

How They Work:

Event Occurs → Trigger Task Activates → Rest of Workflow Runs

Example: A customer submits a contact form → Website Form trigger starts → Send welcome email → Create CRM record → Notify sales team

Action Tasks¶

Action tasks DO things in your workflow. They execute operations, send data, make decisions, and transform information.

You can have multiple action tasks in a workflow, running in sequence or parallel.

Common Action Tasks: - Email - Send emails - Webhook Out - Call external APIs - If Statement - Make decisions - Delay - Wait before continuing - Match to Client - Find existing CRM records - Loop - Repeat actions for multiple items - Code - Run custom JavaScript - Variable - Store and manipulate data - Text Formatter - Transform data

How They Work:

Trigger → Action 1 → Action 2 → Action 3 → ...

Example Workflow: 1. Webhook In (Trigger) - Receives order data 2. Match to Client (Action) - Find existing customer record 3. If Statement (Action) - Check if VIP customer 4. Email (Action) - Send confirmation 5. Webhook Out (Action) - Update inventory system

Complete workflow showing trigger and action tasks

Key Differences¶

Aspect	Trigger Tasks	Action Tasks
Purpose	Start workflows	Perform operations
Quantity per Workflow	Exactly 1	Multiple (unlimited)
Position	Always first	After trigger
Examples	Webhook In, Schedule, CRM Trigger	Email, Webhook Out, If Statement
Icon Color	Green (typically)	Blue/Purple (typically)
When They Run	When event occurs	After trigger activates

Building Your First Workflow¶

Choose a Trigger - How should the workflow start?
Add Actions - What should happen when triggered?
Connect Tasks - Link tasks in the order they should run
Test - Verify it works as expected
Enable - Turn on the workflow for production

[SCREENSHOT NEEDED: Task picker dialog showing Trigger Tasks and Action Tasks categories]

Understanding Task Data: JSON vs Flattened¶

Every task in BaseCloud receives input data and produces output data. Understanding how to access this data is crucial for building effective workflows.

How Task Data Works¶

When a task runs, it receives data from previous tasks and produces output for subsequent tasks. BaseCloud provides two ways to access this data:

1. Flattened Fields (Recommended for Most Cases)¶

BaseCloud automatically flattens nested JSON structures for easy access using simple variable names.

Example Input JSON:

{
  "customer": {
    "name": "Jane Doe",
    "email": "jane@example.com"
  },
  "order": {
    "id": "ORD-5560",
    "total": 109.97
  },
  "items": [
    {"name": "Product A", "quantity": 2, "price": 29.99},
    {"name": "Product B", "quantity": 1, "price": 49.99}
  ]
}

Access as Flattened Fields:

{{task_46171_customer_name}}      → "Jane Doe"
{{task_46171_customer_email}}     → "jane@example.com"
{{task_46171_order_id}}           → "ORD-5560"
{{task_46171_order_total}}        → 109.97
{{task_46171_items_0_name}}       → "Product A"
{{task_46171_items_0_quantity}}   → 2
{{task_46171_items_1_name}}       → "Product B"

Why Use Flattened Fields?

Simple: Just use underscores instead of dots and brackets
Compatible: Works in all tasks and text fields
Clear: Easy to read and understand
Reliable: No syntax errors from brackets or quotes

2. JSON Notation (For Advanced Scenarios)¶

Access the original JSON structure directly when you need more control.

Same data, JSON notation:

{{task_46171.JSON.customer.name}}       → "Jane Doe"
{{task_46171.JSON.order.id}}            → "ORD-5560"
{{task_46171.JSON.items[0].name}}       → "Product A"
{{task_46171.JSON.items[1].price}}      → 49.99

When to Use JSON Notation?

Looping through arrays with unknown length
Accessing deeply nested structures dynamically
Working with complex data transformations
Building advanced conditional logic

Viewing Task Output¶

Every task shows both formats in the OUTPUT panel:

Flattened View:

task_46171_customer_name     Jane Doe
task_46171_customer_email    jane@example.com
task_46171_items_0_name      Product A
task_46171_items_1_name      Product B

JSON View:

{
  "customer": {
    "name": "Jane Doe",
    "email": "jane@example.com"
  },
  "items": [
    {"name": "Product A"},
    {"name": "Product B"}
  ]
}

Quick Reference¶

Access Pattern	Flattened	JSON Notation
Top-level field	`{{task_ID_fieldname}}`	`{{task_ID.JSON.fieldname}}`
Nested object	`{{task_ID_parent_child}}`	`{{task_ID.JSON.parent.child}}`
Array item (first)	`{{task_ID_items_0_name}}`	`{{task_ID.JSON.items[0].name}}`
Array item (second)	`{{task_ID_items_1_name}}`	`{{task_ID.JSON.items[1].name}}`

Common Status Fields¶

Every task also outputs these status fields:

{{task_ID_run}} - Whether the task succeeded (true/false)
{{task_ID_run_text}} - Status message describing what happened
{{task_ID_task_id}} - The task's unique identifier

Example: Building an Email¶

Using flattened fields in an Email task:

Subject:

Order {{task_46171_order_id}} Confirmation

Body:

Hi {{task_46171_customer_name}},

Thanks for your order! 

Order Details:
- Order #: {{task_46171_order_id}}
- Total: ${{task_46171_order_total}}

Items:
- {{task_46171_items_0_name}} (Qty: {{task_46171_items_0_quantity}})
- {{task_46171_items_1_name}} (Qty: {{task_46171_items_1_quantity}})

Thanks!

Pro Tip: Use the Variable Task

If you need to work with complex JSON, use a Variable task to extract and simplify the data first, then reference the cleaner output in subsequent tasks.

Trigger Tasks¶

Tasks that start your workflows based on events. Every workflow must begin with exactly one trigger task.

Webhook In

Receive incoming data from external applications via HTTP POST requests.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Schedule

Trigger workflows on a schedule (hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, custom cron).

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 2 min
Form Submission

Capture data when forms are submitted on your website.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 10 min
Inbound Email

Start workflows when emails arrive matching specific criteria.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
CRM Trigger

Trigger workflows when CRM contacts are created, updated, or tagged.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Client Date Trigger

Trigger workflows based on dates in contact records (birthdays, renewals, anniversaries).

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Call Connect Trigger

Start workflows when phone calls connect through your call tracking system.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 20 min
Call Tracking Trigger

Advanced call lifecycle tracking with multiple states (ringing, answered, completed, missed).

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 25 min
Leads Mail Trigger

Parse and process leads from structured emails (Facebook Lead Ads, Google Ads, partners).

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
Facebook Lead Ads

Capture leads directly from Facebook and Instagram Lead Ads campaigns.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 20 min

Action Tasks¶

Tasks that perform operations in your workflow after the trigger starts execution.

Email ⭐ Most Used

Send emails with dynamic content, attachments, and HTML formatting.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Match to Client ⭐ Essential

Find existing contacts or create new ones. Prevent duplicates automatically.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
If Statement ⭐ Essential

Make decisions and route workflows based on conditions.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Edit Client ⭐ High Usage

Update contact fields, manage tags, and append notes.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Delay

Pause workflow execution for specified time or until specific date.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 2 min
Webhook Out

Send Webhook Out requests to external APIs and webhooks.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
MySQL Query ⭐ Power User

Execute database queries for advanced data operations.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 15 min
Code ⭐ Power User

Execute custom JavaScript for complex logic and calculations.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 5 min
Loop ⭐ High Value

Iterate through arrays and process multiple items.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Google Sheets ⭐ Popular

Read and write data to Google Sheets spreadsheets.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
Phone Formatter

Standardize phone numbers to E.164 and display formats.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Variable

Store temporary data for use later in the workflow.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 2 min
AI Prompt ⭐ Advanced

Use AI to analyze, generate, classify, or extract information.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 10 min
Formatter

Transform data formats: dates, numbers, strings, case conversion.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Pattern Regex ⭐ Power User

Extract, validate, or replace patterns using regular expressions.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 15 min
PDF ⭐ Popular

Generate PDF documents from templates with dynamic data.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 20 min
Date Formatter

Parse, format, and manipulate dates with timezone support.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
SMS

Send text messages for notifications, reminders, and alerts.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Coalesce

Return first non-empty value from a prioritized list with fallbacks.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 3 min
New Client ⭐ Core CRM

Create new client (company) records with optional primary contact.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Contact

Get, add, or edit contact records and link them to clients.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Merge Data

Consolidate parent task outputs into clean, named variables.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 5 min
Workflow Note ⭐ Core CRM

Create or fetch CRM tasks, activities, and communications.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 15 min
Table

Fetch and search data from custom tables in your CRM.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Key Match

Dynamic lookups - match values against key-value pairs with fallback.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Random

Randomly select one value from comma-separated list. Perfect for A/B testing.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 3 min
Round Robin

Cycle sequentially through list with state persistence. Fair distribution guaranteed.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 5 min
Math Formula

Evaluate mathematical expressions with functions, operators, and conditionals.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 5 min
Hash

Generate cryptographic hashes (SHA-256/512, SHA-1, MD5) for integrity and signatures.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 5 min
Find Replace

Multiple find-and-replace operations for text cleaning and normalization.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 5 min
Files ⭐ Power User

Download files, organize into folders, and create directory structures.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 15 min
Call Connect

Initiate two-legged phone calls connecting two parties with whisper messages.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min
Email Forwarder

Forward incoming emails to recipients while preserving attachments and content.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 5 min
Paystack 💳

Process payments for African markets (Nigeria, Ghana, SA, Kenya) with stored payment methods or payment links.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
Stripe 💳

Global payment processing with 135+ currencies, stored payment methods, and hosted payment pages.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
BaseCloud Accounting 🧾

Internal accounting with quotes, invoices, PDF generation, payment links, and tracking categories.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 30 min
Sage 🧾

Integrate with Sage One accounting for South African businesses - quotes, invoices, and customer management.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 20 min
Xero 🧾

OAuth-authenticated Xero integration with multi-organization support, contacts, and invoicing.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 30 min
WATI 💬

WhatsApp messaging via WATI platform with templates, session messages, media handling, and contact sync.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
WhatsApp Business 💬

Official Meta WhatsApp Business Cloud API with OAuth, multi-WABA support, and template management.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 30 min
Google Ads 📊

Ad performance analytics, GAQL queries, and offline conversion tracking with Google Ads API.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 30 min
Facebook Marketing 📊

Campaign management and performance reporting across Facebook and Instagram ads.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 20 min
Google Docs 📊

Automated document creation, content extraction, and template management with Google Docs API.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min

Data Tasks¶

Tasks that transform and manipulate data.

Coalesce

Return the first non-empty value from multiple fields.

Difficulty: Beginner · Setup: 2 min
Table

Work with tabular data and perform operations.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 10 min

Integration Tasks¶

Tasks that connect with external services.

Everlytic

Send marketing emails via Everlytic.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
Sage

Integrate with Sage accounting software.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 30 min
WATI

Send WhatsApp messages via WATI.

Difficulty: Intermediate · Setup: 15 min
Accounting

Connect with accounting systems.

Difficulty: Advanced · Setup: 20 min

Example: Complete Workflow¶

Here's how trigger and action tasks work together:

Scenario: Process new customer orders from website

graph LR
    A[Form Submission<br/>TRIGGER] --> B[Match to Client<br/>ACTION]
    B --> C[If Condition<br/>ACTION]
    C -->|New Customer| D[Email Welcome<br/>ACTION]
    C -->|Existing Customer| E[Email Thank You<br/>ACTION]
    D --> F[Webhook Out<br/>ACTION]
    E --> F
    F[Update Inventory]

Flow: 1. Form Submission (Trigger) - Customer submits order form 2. Match to Client (Action) - Find existing customer record 3. If Condition (Action) - Check if new or existing customer 4. Email (Action) - Send appropriate welcome or thank you email 5. Webhook Out (Action) - Update inventory system

[SCREENSHOT NEEDED: Actual workflow in BaseCloud showing this complete example with connected tasks]

Finding the Right Task¶

By Use Case¶

Receiving Data: Webhook In, Website Form, Inbound Email, Facebook Lead Ads
Time-Based Automation: Schedule, Client Date Trigger, Delay
CRM & Contact Events: CRM Trigger, Client Date Trigger
Phone & Call Tracking: Call Connect, Call Tracking
Lead Capture: Form Submission, Facebook Lead Ads, Leads Mail
Sending Notifications: Email, SMS, WATI
API Integration: Webhook Out, Webhook Out
Conditional Logic: If Statement, Switch
Data Processing: Formatter, Regex, Table

By Difficulty¶

Beginner-Friendly¶

Start with these if you're new to automation:

Intermediate¶

Once you're comfortable with the basics:

Advanced¶

For complex integrations:

Call Tracking Trigger
Sage
Accounting
Custom Code
Advanced Regex patterns

Task Documentation Format¶

Each task documentation includes:

Overview - What the task does
Parameters - All configuration options
Examples - Real-world usage
Best Practices - Tips and recommendations
Troubleshooting - Common issues and solutions
Related Tasks - Similar or complementary tasks

Can't find what you need?

Check our Examples section for real-world workflow patterns, or contact support for help.