How to Create a Flow

To use this article: sign in to eCourtDate here.

You must be a Super Admin user or have the following permissions: create flows update flows

Flows are used to automate a sequence of messages to a client. You can create a flow to remind and inform clients about events, payments, cases, and more.

Flows are used to automate a sequence of messages to a client. You can create a flow to remind and inform clients about events, payments, cases, and more.

Prerequisites

You should have an eCourtDate agency that you want to create a flow for.

You should be a super admin user or have the Create Flows and Update Flows permissions.

When Should You Use a Flow?

Flows are ideal to send a series of messages for the following record types:

EVENTS
PAYMENTS
CASES
FILES and FORMS
TASKS
WARRANTS

Each flow can be used for a single record type. For example, you can create a flow to send a series of messages for events.

When the event is created
When the event is updated (based on a status change)
Based on the event date (for example, 3 days before the event)

How to Sign into your Agency

Ensure that you are signed into the correct agency to follow the steps below.

Sign into your staging or production agency.
Verify that you see the correct agency name in the top right corner of the screen.

How to Import a Sample Flow

Importing a sample flow is a quick way to get started.

Click on the Admin > Message Templates tab in the top navigation bar.
Click on the Sample Templates tab.
Scroll down to the Flows section.
Click on the Import button for the sample flow you want to import.
You will be redirected to the newly created flow.
You can edit the flow to customize it for your agency or start assigning it to records.

How to Create a Flow from Scratch

Click on Admin > Message Templates in the top navigation bar.
Click on the Flows tab.
Fill out the Create Flow form.
Click on the Create button.
You will be redirected to the newly created flow.
Follow the steps below to create messages for the flow.

How to Create Messages for a Flow

In the Create Flow Message section, click on an option for the Choose a Trigger.
For example, if you want to send a message 3 days before an event date, click on the By Event Date option.
Set the Difference from Event Date to 3, the Unit to Days, and the Operation to Before.
Choose any Enabled Statuses if you only want to send the message for events with certain statuses.
Fill in the English Subject and English Message fields.
(Optional) Fill in any additional multilingual fields based on your agency's enabled languages. Once you have an English message, you can click the Auto Translate button to translate the message to other languages.
Click on the Save button to apply your changes.

How to Use the Default Flow Setting

When editing a flow, you can enable the Default option. This will automatically assign the flow to any new records created unless the record is assigned to a different flow.

This is ideal if you only have one flow and want it to be used for all new records or if you have a general flow that you want to use for any records that don't have a specific flow assigned.

Click on the Edit button for the flow you want to edit.
Click on the Default checkbox to enable the setting.
Click on the Save button to apply your changes.

Any newly created records will be assigned to the flow unless they are assigned to a different flow.

How to Update a Flow that is Already in Use

If you need to update a flow that is already in use, you can do so by editing the flow.

Click on the Edit button for the flow you want to edit.
Click on the Edit Message button for the message you want to update.
Make any necessary changes to the message.
Click on the Save button to apply your changes.

Any records that are created or updated after the change will use the updated flow version.

To apply the changes to existing records, click the Tools button then click Sync Messages in the dropdown menu.

Alternatively, when viewing the record that is assigned to the flow, you can click the Tools button and select Sync Messages from the dropdown menu. This will only sync the messages for the specific record and is recommended when testing new changes.

How to Preview a Flow

When editing a flow, click the Preview button to see what the message(s) will look like.

Click on the Preview button.
Click the Simulate Client checkbox to see a preview with fake client information.
Or use the Search Clients to filter for a specific client.
If the client has any related records (events, payments), the preview will list them.
Click on the Preview button to see any messages.

How to Enable Simulate Mode for a Flow

When editing a flow, enable the Simulate Mode and click the Save button to apply your changes.

Any messages assigned to the flow will be created in simulate mode and will not be sent.

This allows you to test the flow and see what the message(s) will look like without actually sending them.

How to Assign a Flow Manually

Once you have a flow created, you can assign it to a record manually.

EVENTS

Click on the Events tab in the top navigation bar.
Fill in the Create Event form.
Select the Flow option from the dropdown menu.
Click the Create button to create the event.
Any messages assigned to the flow will be synced based on the event and client information.
Click on the Edit button to see the event details with the flow assigned and any messages synced.
If you make changes to the event, click the "Save" button. The messages will automatically resync based on the new event information.
(optional) If you make changes to the flow, click the Tools button and select Sync Messages from the dropdown menu to sync the messages for the specific record.

PAYMENTS

Click on the Payments tab in the top navigation bar.
Fill in the Create Payment form.
Select the Flow option from the dropdown menu.
Click the Create button to create the payment.
Click on the Edit button to see the payment details with the flow assigned and any messages synced.
If you make changes to the payment, click the "Save" button. The messages will automatically resync based on the new payment information.
(optional) If you make changes to the flow, click the Tools button and select Sync Messages from the dropdown menu to sync the messages for the specific record.

WARRANTS

Click on the Cases tab in the top navigation bar.
Fill in the Create Warrant form.
Select the Flow option from the dropdown menu.
Click the Create button to create the warrant.

How to Assign a Flow through Uploads

Ensure that you already have an Upload Template created. You can learn more about how to upload flat files here.

Click on the Uploads tab in the top navigation bar.
Click on the Upload Templates tab.
Click on the Edit button for the upload template you want to assign a flow to.

There are two options for assigning a flow to an upload template:

Option 1: Auto assign the flow to any new records created from the upload. You won't need to add a column in your file with the flow identifier.

In the Auto Populate Fields section, set the Default Flow field to the flow you want to assign.

Click on the Save button to apply your changes.

Option 2: Manually assign the flow to each record created from the upload. You will need to choose a column in your file with the flow identifier. This can be an existing column or a new column.

In the Field Mapping section > Search Fields, type Flow to filter for the flow fields.

Copy the column name from your file and paste it in the Flow field.

Click on the Save button to apply your changes.

The value of the Flow field will be the flow identifier.

When editing your flow, either the Flow Reference or Flow Name field will need to match the value of the Flow field in your upload file.

For example, if your flow reference is Court Hearing, then each file row will need to have Court Hearing in the Flow field.

If the flow is not found, then it will use the Default Flow setting from the upload template (if configured). Otherwise the default flow will be assigned to the record (if configured).