How to Automate Approval Processes Between ApproveThis and Smart Sender (Without Losing Your Mind)

When Approval Workflows Meet Chatbot Automation

Let’s cut to the chase: approvals suck. They’re the traffic jam in your productivity highway. Now imagine if your marketing team could automatically escalate high-value leads for approval while your ops team greenlights purchase orders directly from customer chat interactions. That’s what happens when you connect ApproveThis’ structured approval workflows with Smart Sender’s multi-channel messaging automation using Zapier.

Why This Combo Works for Mid-Sized Companies

Smart Sender handles conversations across 10+ platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. ApproveThis handles the "we need someone to sign off on this" part of business operations. Together, they solve two critical problems for companies scaling from 50 to 5,000 employees:

• No more approval black holes: Customer-facing actions get automatic oversight
• Zero manual handoffs: Chatbot interactions trigger approval workflows automatically

Best part? Approvers only need ApproveThis access - no extra Smart Sender licenses required. Perfect for collaborating with external partners or cross-departmental reviews.

Real-World Use Cases That Don’t Feel Like Corporate Fluff

1. High-Stakes Lead Qualification

Marketing teams running paid ads often waste days getting legal approval for premium content offers. Here’s the fix:

Automation Flow:
Smart Sender detects high-intent lead → Tags contact as "VIP" → ApproveThis triggers compliance review → Legal team approves/denies via email → Approved leads get instant access

Sales teams at SaaS companies use this to fast-track enterprise demo requests without manual follow-ups.

2. Purchase Order Approvals via Chat

Operations managers in e-commerce hate chasing down department heads for order approvals. Try this instead:

Automation Flow:
Customer confirms large order via WhatsApp → Smart Sender logs purchase → ApproveThis checks against budget thresholds → Auto-approves or escalates to CFO → Customer gets real-time updates

Bonus: ApproveThis’ calculated fields automatically flag orders exceeding $10k for extra scrutiny.

3. Campaign Launch Guardrails

Marketing agencies waste 22% of project time getting client sign-offs (Smart Sender customers report this stat constantly). Fix it with:

Automation Flow:
New campaign draft in Smart Sender → ApproveThis routes to client stakeholders → Sequential approvals with deadlines → Auto-publishes upon final sign-off

Pro tip: Use vacation delegation so client approvals never get stuck with unavailable execs.

Setting This Up Without IT Involvement

Here’s the no-BS guide to connecting Smart Sender and ApproveThis:

1. Create Zapier account (takes 2 minutes)
2. Choose your trigger in Smart Sender (new contact, purchase, tag, etc.)
3. Select ApproveThis as the action app
4. Map Smart Sender data to ApproveThis fields
5. Test with real data

Key configuration detail: Set approval thresholds in ApproveThis to auto-approve routine requests, only escalating exceptions. Saves 60% of manual review time according to our users.

Department-Specific Wins

For Marketing Teams

Auto-approve standard promo messages, but require CMO sign-off for campaigns mentioning:

- New product features
- Pricing changes
- Regulatory-sensitive claims

Smart Sender’s tag system flags these automatically, kicking off ApproveThis workflows.

For Customer Support

Escalate refund requests over $500 via chat interactions:
Customer requests refund → Smart Sender tags conversation → ApproveThis routes to finance → Resolution sent via original chat channel

For Procurement

Supplier contract renewals via Messenger:
Vendor messages renewal request → Smart Sender captures details → ApproveThis routes with:
- Previous contract terms
- Spend analysis
- Auto-calculated negotiation thresholds

The Hidden Advantage: Audit Trails

Both platforms automatically log:
- Who approved what
- When they approved it
- Attached conversation history
- Alternative options considered

This audit trail becomes gold during compliance checks or contract disputes.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Don’t: Auto-approve all small purchases → leads to death by 1,000 paper cuts
Do: Set dynamic thresholds based on department budgets

2. Don’t: Use sequential approvals for time-sensitive requests
Do: Enable parallel approvals with consensus rules

When to Consider Custom Development

While Zapier handles 90% of use cases, enterprises might need:

- Custom API connections for real-time inventory checks during approvals
- Bi-directional data sync for contract terms
- Advanced reporting integrations

But honestly? Start with Zapier. Our clients typically get 80% of benefits without custom code.

Getting Started (Without the Sales Pitch)

If you’re managing approvals across teams and chat platforms:

1. Register for ApproveThis (free 14-day trial)
2. Connect your Smart Sender account via Zapier
3. Clone our pre-built templates for:
  - Lead qualification approvals
  - Purchase order workflows
  - Campaign sign-offs

Or book a 20-minute demo to see how manufacturing companies cut approval delays by 73% using these integrations.

Final Reality Check

This isn’t magic. You’ll still need to:
- Define clear approval rules
- Train teams on escalation paths
- Monitor exception rates
But by automating the grunt work between Smart Sender conversations and ApproveThis workflows, you’ll finally stop being the approval bottleneck.