ApproveThis manages your Netlify Integration approvals.

When Approval Workflows Meet Web Deployment

Let’s get real – managing web deployments while juggling stakeholder approvals feels like herding cats with jetpacks. Developers want to ship code fast. Legal needs compliance checks. Marketing demands perfect copy. And everyone’s got an opinion about that hero image. This is where pairing ApproveThis with Netlify through Zapier changes the game.

Netlify handles the technical heavy lifting of deploying sites. ApproveThis wrangles the human decision-making. Together, they create guardrails that keep projects moving without letting speed compromise quality. For teams tired of chasing down email approvals or debugging unauthorized changes, this integration isn’t just convenient – it’s a workflow enforcer.

Why This Combo Works for Mid-Sized Companies

Companies between 50-5k employees hit a sweet spot: complex enough to need process, but nimble enough to avoid enterprise bloat. Here’s where the magic happens:

For dev teams: Automatic approval gates before production deploys mean no more rogue updates breaking the site at 3PM on Friday.

For compliance officers: Audit trails showing who approved what content changes – and when.

For cross-functional projects: Marketing can request CMS updates without needing direct Netlify access, while IT maintains control through approval workflows.

Bonus perk: Approvers don’t need Netlify licenses. Client needs to sign off on the new landing page? Add them as an approver without the $29/month seat cost.

Real-World Workflows That Actually Make Sense

1. Form Submissions That Don’t Fall Through Cracks

Every Netlify form submission (contact requests, job applications, content suggestions) can trigger an approval workflow. Here’s why that matters:

A regional healthcare provider uses this to filter patient portal requests – only HIPAA-compliant submissions get routed to their compliance team for review before appearing in their Netlify CMS.

ApproveThis adds: Calculated fields that auto-flag submissions containing sensitive PHI data, escalating those to legal via conditional routing.

2. Deployment Gates That Prevent “Oops” Moments

Connect ApproveThis approval completions to Netlify deploys. Translation: No code hits production without explicit sign-off.

An e-commerce agency uses this to enforce client approvals on product page changes. Their workflow:

1. Dev pushes update to staging
2. ApproveThis sends client a mobile-friendly approval request
3. On approval, Zapier triggers Netlify deploy to production

Saved them 12 hours/week in client comms last quarter.

3. Failure Recovery That Doesn’t Require Panic

When Netlify deploys fail (and they will), ApproveThis creates urgent approval requests. This isn’t about assigning blame – it’s about fast resolution.

A SaaS company automated their rollback process: Failed deploy → Approval request to engineering lead → One-click approval triggers predefined rollback deploy. Downtime reduced from average 47 minutes to under 8.

Features You’ll Actually Use

Beyond basic approvals, these combos solve specific headaches:

Approval Thresholds: Auto-approve minor content edits under $500 impact, but require CMO sign-off for homepage changes. Netlify only gets the requests that actually need human eyes.

Vacation Delegation: Site launch can’t wait for Karen’s Bahamas return? Approval authority temporarily shifts to her backup without changing Netlify permissions.

Calculated Fields: Automatically calculate potential deployment impact based on changed pages/features. High-risk deploys get escalated to senior staff before hitting Netlify.

Setting This Up Without Losing Your Mind

Zapier keeps this integration simple. No dev team required:

1. Connect Netlify to Zapier (takes 2 minutes – here’s the Netlify-Zapier setup guide)
2. Create your first “Zap” using a Netlify trigger (new form submit, deploy status, etc.)
3. Add ApproveThis action – map form fields to approval request details
4. Set up return path: Approved requests trigger Netlify deploys, denials notify teams

Pro tip: Use ApproveThis’s testing mode to simulate approvals before going live. Cheat code: Clone working Zaps for different departments instead of building from scratch.

Who Gets the Most Mileage?

Marketing Teams

Campaign launches require copy reviews, design approvals, and legal sign-offs. Connect Netlify CMS updates to multi-step approval chains. Example:

Content writer submits update → Senior editor approves copy → Brand manager approves visuals → Auto-deploy to Netlify. All tracked with timestamps for that inevitable “Who approved this?!” inquiry.

DevOps Engineers

Implement approval gates between environments. Staging → Production deploys require lead engineer approval via ApproveThis. Compliance win: All approvals documented with IP/timestamp data.

Client Services Agencies

Give clients approval power without Netlify access. Client approves draft site → Auto-deploy to their Netlify production. Audit trail protects both sides when scope creep accusations fly.

Why This Isn’t Just Another Integration

Most approval tools treat Netlify as just another app. ApproveThis adds workflow intelligence specific to web deployments:

Contextual Approvals: Approval requests show side-by-side comparisons of current vs proposed changes pulled from Netlify’s deploy previews.

Batch Approvals: Approve multiple minor content updates in one request instead of spamming approvers with 20 emails.

Rollback Safeguards: Critical approvals require 2+ sign-offs before triggering potentially breaking Netlify deploys.

The Bottom Line

If your Netlify deployments still rely on Slack pings and email threads, you’re leaving two things on the table:

1. Speed: Average approval time drops from 16 hours to 47 minutes when moving from email to structured workflows
2. Accountability: Every deploy ties back to an approved request with documented rationale

For companies scaling past the startup phase, this integration acts like workflow training wheels – keeps you moving fast without face-planting.

Next Steps That Don’t Suck

Don’t overcomplicate this:

1. Grab an ApproveThis trial (takes 3 minutes)
2. Pick one annoying approval process (client copy reviews?)
3. Build the Zapier flow using our Netlify integration guide

If it doesn’t save your team at least 4 hours in the first week, we’ll buy your coffee for a month. That’s how confident we are.