Make.com Tutorial

How to Build Your First Automation Scenario in Make.com

Make.com (formerly Integromat) connects your apps using visual “scenarios” — workflows built on a drag-and-drop canvas rather than written code. This tutorial walks through building a real, working scenario from scratch: a form submission that automatically logs to a spreadsheet and sends a team notification. The same trigger-action pattern applies to almost any automation you’ll build afterward.

What this tutorial covers: understanding Make’s core terminology, setting up connections, building a multi-module scenario, mapping data between apps, and testing before activating.

Prerequisites:

• A Make.com account (the free plan includes 1,000 operations/month, enough to build and test several scenarios)
• A Google account (for Forms and Sheets) and a Slack workspace, if following along with the example — or substitute your own apps using the same pattern

For how Make compares to Zapier, see our Make.com vs. Zapier comparison or the Sales & Marketing Automation pillar page.

Step 1: Understand the Core Terms

Before building anything, five terms cover most of what you need:

• Scenario: the automated workflow itself
• Module: a single step inside a scenario — the first module is always the trigger, everything after is an action
• Trigger: the event that starts the scenario (a new form submission, a new email, etc.)
• Operation: each time a module runs, it counts as one operation against your monthly limit
• Filter: a condition that determines whether a module runs or a path continues

Modules connect left to right on the canvas, and data flows between them in that order.

Step 2: Set Up Your Connections First

Go to Connections in the left sidebar and authorize the apps you’ll use — in this example, Google (for Forms and Sheets) and Slack. Connecting apps before you start building means you won’t be interrupted mid-scenario to authenticate, which is a common point of confusion for first-time users.

Step 3: Create a New Scenario

From the dashboard, click Scenarios, then Create a new scenario. This opens the Scenario Editor — a blank canvas with a large + icon representing your starting trigger module.

Step 4: Add Your Trigger Module

Click the + icon and search for your trigger app — for this example, Google Forms. Select Watch Responses as the trigger module. Connect your Google account if you haven’t already, and select the specific form you want to monitor.

Step 5: Add Your First Action Module

Click the + icon on the right side of the trigger module to add the next step. Search for Google Sheets and select Add a Row. Choose the spreadsheet and sheet where responses should be logged, then map each form field to the corresponding spreadsheet column — Make will show you the available data fields from the trigger module to drag into each mapping.

Step 6: Add a Notification Module

Add a third module by clicking + again, search for Slack, and select Create a Message. Choose the channel for notifications and write a message that pulls in the submitter’s details using the same field-mapping approach — for example, “New form submission from {{Name}} ({{Email}}).”

This three-module scenario — form submission → spreadsheet row → Slack message — covers the fundamental trigger-action-action pattern used in the majority of real-world automations.

Step 7: Test the Scenario

Click Run once at the bottom of the editor. Make will check for new trigger data (a recent form submission) and run the scenario end to end. Review the output of each module by clicking on it after the run — this is where you’ll catch field-mapping mistakes, such as mapping “Full Name” to a column intended for “First Name.”

Step 8: Activate and Schedule

Once the test runs successfully, toggle the scenario from Draft to Active (or ON) using the switch at the bottom left of the editor. By default, Make checks for new trigger events on a schedule you can configure — click the clock icon on the trigger module to set how frequently it checks (every 15 minutes on the free plan is common; paid plans allow more frequent or real-time checks).

Settings That Are Easy to Miss

• Error notifications aren’t on by default: go to the scenario’s settings (the three-dot menu) and enable email notifications for errors. Without this, a broken connection or rejected API call can fail silently for days before anyone notices.
• Field mapping after testing: always re-check field mappings by reviewing the actual output in the destination app after a test run — similarly named fields (First Name, Full Name, Display Name) are a common source of mismatched data.
• Operations add up per module, not per scenario run: a single scenario run through three modules consumes three operations, not one — this matters when estimating whether your plan’s monthly operation limit will cover your expected volume.
• Start small and add complexity in layers: build a 2–3 module scenario that works end to end first, then add filters, routers, and error handling afterward. Attempting a 7-module scenario with branching logic before testing the basic flow is one of the most common reasons beginners get stuck.
• Scheduling interval affects both cost and speed: a trigger set to check every 15 minutes means notifications can lag by up to 15 minutes — for time-sensitive workflows, this may need adjusting on a higher-tier plan that supports more frequent or instant triggers.

Related Reading

• See our Make.com vs. Zapier comparison for how the two platforms compare on pricing, app support, and ease of use
• Return to the Sales & Marketing Automation hub for more tools in this category