Workflow Template
Paint sample / test patch approval Workflow
Collects paint sample and test patch details from the intake form, sends the customer an approval request showing colours, sheens and patch locations, loops through painter revisions if changes are requested (up to 3 times), and on approval confirms with the customer and tasks the office to order paint and confirm the start date.
Painting businesses handling multiple sites and customers need a consistent, visible way to manage colour and test patch approvals before work begins, rather than relying on scattered emails and phone calls. This workflow takes intake form details through a structured approval cycle involving the customer, the painter and the office, tracking each request as a record with a clear status from submission to confirmed start date. It is designed to help teams coordinate revisions, keep a record of customer decisions, and hand off approved samples for paint ordering and scheduling.
Business Outcomes
- Reduces back-and-forth by giving customers a single clear form to approve or request changes to samples
- Supports faster revision cycles with a bounded, trackable loop of up to 3 painter updates
- Improves visibility into approval status across all active paint sample requests
- Helps ensure paint ordering and start date confirmation only begin after customer approval is recorded
- Makes it easier for teams to reference a timeline of approvals, revisions and decisions per record
Workflow Steps
Steps
- 1Create Paint Sample Recordcreate record
Registers the submitted paint sample and test patch details as a record.
- 2Set Status: Awaiting Approvalupdate record
Sets the record status to Awaiting Approval.
- 3Request Customer Approvalrequest external input
Emails the customer a form showing colours, sheen and test patch locations, asking them to approve or request changes.
- 4Route Customer Decision
Branches based on whether the customer approved or requested changes.
customer_decision: "Approve"→Set Status: Approvedcustomer_decision: "Request changes"→Set Status: RevisingDefault→End - 5Set Status: Revisingupdate record
Sets the record status to Revising when the customer requests changes.
- 6Painter: Revise Colours and Test Patchescreate task
Tasks the painter to update the colours, sheens and test patch notes based on the customer's comments, due in 2 days.
- 7Save Revisions to Recordupdate record
Saves the painter's updated colours, sheens and test patch notes to the record.
- 8Restart Approval Cyclerestart from step
Restarts the workflow from the customer approval request with the revised sample details.
- 9Set Status: Approvedupdate record
Sets the record status to Approved when the customer approves the sample.
- 10Send Approval Confirmationsend email
Emails the customer a confirmation of the approved colours and sheens.
- 11Office: Order Paint and Confirm Start Datecreate task
Fire-and-forget task for the office to order the paint and confirm the painting start date, due in 2 days.
Fields
- Customer Name*
- Customer Email*
- Site Address*
- Areas*
- Colours Sampled (brand, colour name, sheen for each)*
- Test Patch Locations*
- +9 more fields
Forms
Paint Sample & Test Patch Submission
8 fields
Data Views
Paint Samples
customer_name, site_address, areas, colours_sampled +1 more
Dashboard Widgets
Recommended integrations
Setup the following integrations to extend workflow capability.
Send email in the workflow
AWS SES
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FAQs
What does this workflow record about customer approvals?
Each customer response to the approval request — whether they approve or request changes, along with any comments — is saved on the record because the workflow waits for that task. The record's status updates accordingly, moving to Revising or Approved, and this history remains visible in the record's timeline for later reference.
Who is involved at each stage of this workflow?
The customer receives the approval request form by email and responds without needing an account. The painter is tasked with revising colours, sheens and test patch notes when changes are requested, and the office is tasked with ordering paint and confirming the start date once the sample is approved.
How do we change what the intake form asks for?
A workspace admin can edit the request form fields directly in the workflow editor, or describe the change in plain English to adjust which details are collected, such as additional site or colour information. Earlier versions of the workflow are kept, so changes can be reviewed or reverted if needed.
What happens when the customer requests changes to the sample?
The record status is set to Revising and the painter is tasked with updating the colours, sheens and test patch notes based on the customer's comments, due within 2 days. Once the painter submits the updates, they are saved to the record and the approval cycle restarts, sending the revised sample back to the customer.
How many times can the revision cycle repeat?
The workflow supports up to 3 rounds of painter revisions before requiring resolution, giving the team a defined limit for back-and-forth on colours and test patches. Each cycle updates the record with the latest revised details before the customer is asked to approve again.
What is recorded once the customer approves the paint sample?
The record status is set to Approved, and the customer is emailed a confirmation showing the approved colours and sheens. This approval is reflected in the record's timeline alongside earlier revision activity, giving a full picture of how the sample reached final approval.
Who confirms the paint order and start date, and where is that information kept?
The office is given a task to order the paint and confirm the painting start date, due in 2 days. Because the workflow does not wait for this task, the details entered — Paint Ordered and Confirmed Painting Start Date — stay with that task in the record's task list rather than on the record itself.
How can we adjust who handles the painter or office tasks?
Tasks are assigned to members within the workspace, so an admin can reassign the revision task or the paint-ordering task to a different team member as workloads change. This can be done directly in the workflow editor without affecting the rest of the approval process.
Can we customise the approval request emailed to the customer?
Yes, the wording, layout and details shown in the approval request — such as colours, sheens and test patch locations — can be adjusted by describing the desired change in plain English or editing the step directly in the workflow editor. This allows the workspace to tailor the customer-facing message while keeping the underlying approval logic intact.
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