Every action in a flow needs a trigger — the condition that tells Dubsado when to run it. This article covers the two general-purpose triggers you'll reach for most often: after this workflow starts and after all previous actions are completed.
Trigger configuration overview
Each action you add to a flow has its own trigger. To set or change a trigger, you work in the When section of the action's configuration panel.
Here's how to get there:
Navigate to Flows in the main sidebar, then go to Flows ➔ Flow Templates to open your templates. You can also access flows from inside a project using the Flows tab.
Open the flow template you want to edit and click Edit to open the node-based editor.
In the Flow Actions panel, click any action node to open its configuration.
Find the When section. It contains a Relative / Fixed toggle, a value field, a time unit dropdown, and a trigger dropdown.
For the two triggers covered in this article, keep the toggle set to Relative. The time unit dropdown offers hour(s), day(s), week(s), and year(s) — there is no month option, though decimal values work (for example, 0.25 hours equals 15 minutes). The trigger dropdown is organized by category; both general triggers sit under the Workflow category at the top.
The trigger dropdown labels this group Workflow, and the first option reads "after this workflow starts." In Dubsado, "workflow" and "flow" mean the same thing — the builder uses the older wording in a few places.
You can also set an action to fire on a fixed date instead of a relative offset, which is useful when you need something to happen on a specific calendar date regardless of when the flow started.
After this workflow starts
The "after this workflow starts" trigger counts forward from the moment the flow is applied to a project — whether that's done manually or automatically from a lead capture form or public proposal.
Use this trigger for the first action (or first few actions) in your flow, any time you want to measure from the very beginning.
Example: send an email the moment a lead submits a form
If your flow starts when a lead capture form is submitted and you want to send an immediate response, add a Send email action and set it to 0 day(s) after this workflow starts. Because the flow starts the instant the form is submitted, the action runs right away. This behavior is the same no matter how the flow is applied.
Set the value to 0 with this trigger to make an action run the instant the flow starts.
After all previous actions are completed
The "after all previous actions are completed" trigger waits until every preceding action in the flow — including any Create a task action — is finished before it counts down.
Dubsado checks off automated actions as they run. A Create a task action is complete once you manually check off the task. This makes the trigger useful for chaining steps in sequence or holding actions until a task is checked off.
Example: hold an email until you've personalized it
Say you want to send a follow-up email after a consultation call, but you need to customize it with details from your conversation first. You can:
Add a Create a task action to remind yourself to personalize the email.
Add a Send email action directly after it, set to 0 day(s) after all previous actions are completed.
The email won't send until you check off the task. When you're ready, open the email action to customize the content, then check off the task to let the flow continue.
For triggers that fire when a client completes a form, signs a contract, or pays an invoice, see task and form completion triggers.
Common pitfall: too many actions firing at once
Stacking multiple actions all set to 0 day(s) after all previous actions are completed causes them to fire in immediate succession. For example, if three actions — a booking invite, a proposal, and a questionnaire — all use this trigger with a 0 offset, your client receives all three at the same time.
Stacking multiple actions on after all previous actions are completed with a 0 offset sends them all at once. Be deliberate with your triggers so clients receive the right thing at the right time.
A better approach is to use more specific triggers to space things out. In the example above, you might send the proposal after the consultation appointment ends, then send the questionnaire after the client completes the proposal. Those are different trigger categories — appointment triggers and client-progress triggers — that give you precise control over timing. You can also time actions around project dates, such as the project's start or end.
FAQ
What's the difference between "after this workflow starts" and "after all previous actions are completed"?
"After this workflow starts" counts from the moment the flow was applied to the project — it's best for the first actions in your flow. "After all previous actions are completed" waits for every prior action (including tasks) to finish before it starts counting — it's best for chaining steps in sequence.
If the first action in a flow uses "0 day(s) after all previous actions are completed" as its trigger, that action will fire immediately after the flow is applied, since there are no previous actions waiting to be completed. This means that for the first action in a flow, these two triggers function identically.
My action set to "after all previous actions are completed" isn't running — why?
A preceding action hasn't been completed yet. Often, a Create a task action earlier in the flow is still open. Check that every action before the stuck one is checked off. You can track your flow's progress to see the state of each action.
How do I make an action run immediately when the flow starts?
Set it to 0 day(s) after this workflow starts. With a 0 offset, the action runs the instant the flow is applied.