How to Automatically Forward Third-Party Leads via Email to Smith.ai for Outbound Calls

Tom Armitage Updated by Tom Armitage

Our Zapier integration helps business owners save time by automating processes that are typically done manually.

This guide will walk you through how to automatically forward third-party leads via email to Smith.ai with Zapier and an Email Parser.

This will allow you to automatically (or manually) push third-party leads via email to your Smith.ai account so those leads can receive a call back through Smith.ai's virtual receptionist services.

This solution could come in handy if you generate leads through a third-party service or form system that does not have a native Zapier integration and doesn't have webhook capabilities.

Prerequisites

For this solution, you will need:

Request a Smith.ai Outbound Call to a Lead from a Forwarded Email

  1. Sign up for a Zapier account. If you already have one, log in.
  2. Toggle to a new window. Sign up for an Email Parser by Zapier account. Since you already have a Zapier account now, you can login with your Zapier account.
  3. Authorize the connection.
  4. Select "Create Mailbox."
    1. Email Parser by Zapier will issue you a new email that may look something like the email address below. That's the email address you'll want to forward new leads to in order to automate this process.
    2. Emails can be forwarded in a few different ways:
      1. You can manually hit forward on any email and send it to this email address.
      2. If you are generating leads through a form system, you can make this email be the receipt where form completions are sent.
      3. You can go into the settings of your email client (such as gmail) and set up a forward so all new emails sent to your original email address are automatically forwarded to the new email address. Click here to view an article from Google on how to set up gmail forwarding.
  5. Submit a test email by forwarding an email to the new email address provided by Email Parser by Zapier.
  6. Once the test comes through successfully (it refreshes every 10 seconds), you will need to highlight important pieces of the email to match them to certain data types. For instance, you will highlight the person's name and tell the tool that that particular piece of data means "Name." Do this for all important data points in your email.
    You'll need to teach the parser how to interpret your emails. This may take at least 5 tests for the tool to have an understanding of what the data means in your emails. The more emails that pass through the system, the smarter it gets at more accurately interpreting your data. Click here to read an additional guide from Zapier on how to teach your Email Parser.
  7. Toggle back to your Zapier window. Click "Create Zap" in the upper left corner.
  8. Name your Zap. An example could be "Forward Emails to Smith.ai."
  9. In the App event search bar, type in "Email Parser" and select "Email Parser by Zapier" from the drop-down.
  10. For the trigger event, choose "New Email."
  11. For the account field, sync with your Email Parser by Zapier account. Click continue.
  12. For the mailbox field, select the email created for you in your Email Parser by Zapier account.
  13. Select continue and test data will appear from a recently forwarded email. Verify that that information is accurate. Then click continue.
  14. Next, add an Action titled "Formatted by Zapier." (This will allow you to separate the first and last name of your forwarded emails, so the information is sent to Smith.ai in the right format.)
  15. For the event, select "Text." Then click "Continue."
  16. Under the Transform field, select "Split Text."
    1. Under the Input field, select "Name."
    2. Under the Separator field, type [:space:].
    3. Under the Segment Index field, select "All (as Separate Fields)."
    4. Click the "Continue" button to move forward.
  17. Verify the names have been split successfully.
  18. Click "Continue" again.
  19. Click Action. In the App event search bar, type in "Smith.ai." Click the option with the orange logo.
  20. For the trigger Event, click "Call Someone (Virtual Receptionist)."
  21. Connect your Zapier account to your Smith.ai account.
    1. You'll need to add your API key when prompted. You can get your API key in your Smith.ai Call Dashboard under Integrations. Click here for further instructions on how to connect Smith.ai to Zapier.
  22. After inserting your API Key, select "Yes, Continue."
  23. Under Set up action, map your contact fields by pairing data with what is being sent from the emails routed through the Email Parser by Zapier trigger.
    1. In the "What should we do?" required field, include instructions for the Smith.ai receptionists who will be making the call. You can simply write "Follow instructions in account" if you want Smith.ai to follow default directions.
    2. In the "What if they don't answer" field, include instructions for the Smith.ai receptionists for if the customer doesn't pick up the phone. You can simply write "Follow instructions in account" if you want Smith.ai to follow default directions.
    3. Complete the final required field "When would you like us to call back?" This can be based on your Smith.ai default settings, or you can choose the option for 24/7 (i.e. whatever time the lead comes through).
  24. Once you finish mapping your fields, select "Continue."
  25. In the "Test action" section, select "Skip test." (That will avoid Smith.ai from calling this test lead!)
  26. Once you have confirmed all of the Zap details, publish your Zap and turn it on.
How to Connect to Smith.ai Outreach Campaigns

If you subscribe to Smith.ai Outreach campaigns, you can set up a Zap in Zapier to trigger a call for this separate service. In the "Choose app and events" step, instead of selecting "Call Someone (Virtual Receptionist)," you'll select "Call Someone (Outreach Campaign Only)." Follow the same proceeding steps as above. When mapping your fields, the default directions will not be editable, since Smith.ai will follow the directions for that campaign. Follow the remaining steps to save the Zap and turn it on. If you'd like to pass additional data to your outreach campaigns, click here.
If it's your first time building a Zap, review the basics of creating Zaps to get started. You're not limited to a single action. Try using filters, formatting, and other advanced Zapier actions.

Additional Resources:

Using Email Parser by Zapier

Connecting Smith.ai to Zapier

Questions? Contact us!

If you're already a Smith.ai client and need help, please email us at support@smith.ai or call us at (650) 727-6484 for assistance.

If you're not yet a Smith.ai client, please schedule a free consultation to get started with our virtual receptionist services or email us at sales@smith.ai. We'll help you select the best plan to match your business’s growth goals and budget.

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