When setting up a Zap in Zapier, you may notice that no variables are available to select when configuring a step. This is one of the most common issues when building automations and usually means that Zapier has not received any sample data from your trigger yet.
It's very important to note that Zapier relies on test data from the trigger step to display available fields. If no data has been captured, Zapier simply has nothing to show, which is why variable fields appear empty.
This can be rather frustrating, as it means you need test data to work with before you are actually able to build an automation fully, but the positive side means that you can ensure that the automation will get the intended information and carry out the intended behaviour.
Below we will show a simple example of a Zap and explain how you can provide test data to ensure the automation will work as intended.
Simple Zap with test data
Say, for instance, you wanted to create an automation that sent a WhatsApp template from Superchat every time a new customer was added to a CSV on Google Sheets. You can write that information into the Zapier Copilot and it will suggest a trigger and action flow such as the one below.
In the trigger node, once you have completed the Setup section (which usually only requires logging into the relevant platform or attaching an API Key), you will then get to the Configure section.
The Configure section in the trigger node is relatively simple, as in this case, once you have linked your Google Sheets, Zapier has access to all spreadsheets and worksheets, allowing you to select the relevant one for this automation.
For the sake of this example, we have created a Test Spreadsheet, which you can also do if you do not currently have the CSV (or whatever data you would need for the intended automation) ready to hand or you would like to try out the process before applying it to true data.
Our test spreadsheet looks like this:
We can then select and add this in Zapier.
In the Test section, we can then test the trigger and see what test data comes back. We can select one of these to use going forward to see how the flow would work using actual data values.
When you press Continue with selected record, you will then be forwarded onto the next node, the action node. In this case, we have a Superchat node with a Send WhatsApp Template function.
Once you have completed the Setup section, you will then arrive at the Configure section, which will have various variables you need to enter values into. These will vary depending on which action node you have selected, but the principles of what you need in order to make the node work remain the same.
In this use case, we are sending a WhatsApp template, meaning we need a phone number value set up in the automation to know where this message is going to. As shown in the Test Spreadsheet above, we have a column for Number, meaning that every contact should have a phone number attached to it.
We can then select this in the Phone number value by inserting a '/' and choosing the Number option (note that the name you gave the value will appear here, so if you have named a column 'Phone number' in your CSV, that is what you will be looking for).
You will notice there is a value (in this case a phone number) next to the option. This is the test data that we needed in order to create the Zap. Without it, Zapier wouldn't know what it was looking for with and so the automation would never work.
We can see that when we select Number, the value is then next to it, but this would be individual for each time this automation runs. Meaning, of course, a template wouldn't be sent to this number each time, but instead the number associated with each user that triggers this automation.
Note: When setting up a Zap, it is best to use a phone number or email address you can access as test data, as this will allow you to see whether or not the automation has the intended outcome (in this case, a WhatsApp template arriving).
After choosing the sender, we would then also need to select the template we would like to send. This is also where you need to add any variables (e.g wildcards) that would appear in the template itself.
After that, you can Test (or Retest depending on whether this is your first effort) the step (which in this case will test the entire automation).
The intended action (in this case: a WhatsApp template being sent) should then take place (which you should be able to see if you have entered a phone number you have access to).
At that point, you know that the automation is set up for use and can Publish it.