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Google Sheet 'New/Updated Spreadsheet' not consistently triggering

  • 16 February 2022
  • 5 replies
  • 1037 views

I have a zap with Google sheet to Active campaign. The trigger is a new or updated spreadsheet row and the result is to update a contact inside AC.

My concern is, sometimes the contact is not being updated even if the trigger is fulfilled or done.

When you say new or update a spreadsheet row, Does it only mean the last row of the sheet?

Because I noticed that in most cases this issue happens when the trigger column is not the last row. 

In the example below: In the trigger column, there is a white space there and it’s not the last row, so when I put yes there, it sometimes won’t work. 

 

 

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5 replies

Troy Tessalone
Userlevel 7
Badge +14

Hi @Anna Bonga 

Make sure to review the available help articles for using GSheets in Zaps: https://zapier.com/apps/google-sheets/help

 

Can you post screenshots with how your Zap trigger step is configured?

 

GSheets need to be configured in a specific way to ensure they work in Zaps.

 

The "Updated Spreadsheet Row" trigger stopped triggering

If you're watching for changes to a column, we only see new values in that column. If you update the column of an existing row to a value that Zapier previously saw in that column, in that row, we won't see the new value. You will need to either choose a column that will only have unique values, or make a new one which will.

For example, if you had X in the Trigger column, then changed it to Y, the Zap would trigger. If you then changed it back to X it would not trigger again, because the Zap has already seen X in that column.

 

 

I’d recommend using Airtable instead of GSheets as your operational database.

⚡ Troy Tessalone - AutomationAce.com | Premier Certified Zapier Expert | #1 Zapier Community Contributor
A

Hi Troy,

Thanks for the response.

Actually the google sheet we are using is also connected to another automation. What happens in the sheet is that, there is a formula that when we complete the whole row (no empty rows) it will put a “YES” to the trigger column which will then triggers the zap.

I have attached some photos. 

Trigger set up in zapier

 


Flow inside zapier:

 

Actual sheet:

In the trigger column the YES is not put manually but it will automatically appear ones the conditions are met. If you look at the lowest row, there are blank rows that is why the trigger column row at the end is empty too.

But conditions aren’t met in an ascending order all the time, there are time that lower rows meet the conditions first so they get the “YES” first compared to the others on top, and that is where the trigger issue comes in. But in zapier my trigger is New or Updated spreadsheet row, my understanding is that, like in your example, if there is a “YES” and I refresh it or put yes again it won’t trigger but in our issue, the row is empty all along, but when we meet the conditions and the ‘yes” appears, it won’t fire the trigger anymore. 
 

 

Troy Tessalone
Userlevel 7
Badge +14

@Anna Bonga 

When Zaps add rows to a GSheet, it actually adds new rows, instead of populating existing blank rows.

For example, if your GSheet has 100 rows, then the Zap runs to add a row, the GSheet will now have 101 rows.

This means that the new rows likely don’t have the formulas in the desired column, which you can check by testing.

You’d have to use advanced ARRAYFORMULAS in the header row in order for the formulas to dynamically populate for each new row.

 

As an alternative, you may want to consider using Airtable instead of GSheets, which is more robust for using with Zaps.

⚡ Troy Tessalone - AutomationAce.com | Premier Certified Zapier Expert | #1 Zapier Community Contributor
Troy Tessalone
Userlevel 7
Badge +14

@Anna Bonga

Other things to try…

Check your Zap Runs to see if the Zap triggered but had an error on a step: https://zapier.com/app/history/

You can open a ticket with Zapier Support for further assistance: https://zapier.com/app/get-help

 

The Google Sheets trigger is marked "instant" but it still takes a few minutes to trigger

The triggers for Google Sheets are unique among Zapier triggers. When there is a trigger event in the spreadsheet, Zapier gets a notification webhook from Google about this. After that, Zapier sends Google Sheets a request for new data, so it uses both the polling and instant trigger methods. This process takes about 3 minutes overall.

While not being "instant", these triggers are faster than regular polling ones, as they don't depend on the polling interval of the plan your account uses.

⚡ Troy Tessalone - AutomationAce.com | Premier Certified Zapier Expert | #1 Zapier Community Contributor
A

@Troy Tessalone Thank you so much. I will use the history and check on it for now. 

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