How to Automate Form Approvals with ApproveThis + FormBackend (No More Spreadsheet Chaos)

When Forms Meet Approvals: The Power Couple You Didn't Know You Needed

Let's be real – forms are where good ideas go to die. Someone submits a request, it gets lost in someone's inbox, three people need to sign off, and suddenly you're playing detective to figure out why the Q4 campaign budget still isn't approved. This is why pairing FormBackend's form superpowers with ApproveThis' approval automation isn't just nice-to-have – it's your ticket to actually getting shit done.

Why This Combo Works Like a Swiss Watch

FormBackend handles the "what" – collecting data, processing submissions, keeping things organized. ApproveThis owns the "who" and "when" – routing decisions to the right people, enforcing rules, and making sure nobody's approval power goes on vacation. Together, they turn your form submissions into action items that don't require babysitting.

Business Benefits That Actually Matter

We're not here to sell you vaporware. These are the concrete improvements companies see when they connect these tools:

Kill the Approval Black Hole

That IT equipment request form? Now it automatically kicks off an approval chain: your local office manager > regional director > CFO (for anything over $5k). No more guessing games about where the request is stuck.

Stop Playing Middleman

HR teams using this integration report slashing 15 hours/week manually routing onboarding requests. The form data flows directly into approval workflows – no copy-paste, no missed emails.

Audit Trail Without the Spreadsheet Voodoo

Every approved/denied request in ApproveThis automatically updates FormBackend records. When compliance comes knocking, you've got timestamps, comments, and decision reasons all in one place.

Real-World Use Cases That Don't Suck

Let's break this down by team – because nobody cares about features unless they solve actual problems:

For Marketing Teams: Campaign Budget Approvals That Don't Require 17 Signatures

Here's how it works: Your agency submits a new campaign brief via FormBackend. Zapier triggers ApproveThis to:

• Route to the Marketing Director first (sequential approval)
• If over $20k, add CFO approval
• Auto-calculate agency fees + platform costs using calculated fields

Bonus: Approvers get email notifications they can approve/reject without logging in – crucial when working with external contractors.

For Operations: Facility Requests That Actually Get Processed

Maintenance request form submissions trigger:

• Immediate approval from department head
• If safety-related, auto-escalate to facility manager AND safety officer
• Approved requests sync to your maintenance tracking system

Pro tip: Use approval thresholds to auto-approve routine requests under $500 – your team has better things to do than approve lightbulb replacements.

For HR: New Hire Setups That Don't Require 12 Forwarded Emails

Onboarding form submissions become approval workflows for:

- Equipment allocations (laptop specs, software access)
- Security badge access levels
- Departmental budget approvals for hiring bonuses

Key move: Set up vacation delegation so approvals never get stuck when someone's OOO – critical for global teams.

Setting This Up Without Losing Your Mind

Here's the 3-step process even your least techy manager can handle:

1. Connect the Dots in Zapier: Create a Zap that triggers on new FormBackend submissions
2. Map Your Fields: Tell ApproveThis which form data matters (amounts, request types, notes)
3. Set Approval Rules: Define who approves what, in which order, with which conditions

Pro tip: Start with one form type first – like purchase requests – before scaling to other processes.

Why This Isn't Just Another Integration

Most form tools stop at "notify someone via email." Here's where we level up:

Approval Logic That Actually Thinks

ApproveThis handles complex scenarios most spreadsheets can't:

- Conditional Routing: High-value IT purchases go to CTO, low-value to department heads
- Consensus vs. Sequential: Require 3/5 managers to agree, or strict hierarchical sign-off
- Dynamic Calculations: Automatically flag requests that exceed budget thresholds

External Approvers Without the Headache

Client needs to sign off on a project scope? Vendor requiring PO approval? They get email links to approve/reject – no need for them to have FormBackend logins or ApproveThis licenses. Game-changer for agencies and consultants.

Real-Time Visibility That's Actually Usable

The ApproveThis dashboard shows:

- Requests pending approval (with due dates)
- Bottlenecks in your process
- Average approval times per department

No more status update meetings – just send the dashboard link.

Who Benefits Most? (Spoiler: Everyone)

Different teams get different wins:

Finance Teams

- Enforce spending policies before money moves
- Auto-archive approved requests for audit trails
- Reduce rogue purchases by 68% (actual client result)

IT Departments

- Standardize software access requests
- Require security reviews for high-risk tools
- Auto-provision accounts post-approval

Operations Managers

- Track facility requests from submission to resolution
- Prioritize approvals based on impact
- Identify frequent request types for process improvements

Common Objections (And Why They're BS)

"We already have an approval process."
Cool. How many hours are you spending chasing signatures? Our clients cut approval time by 40% on average.

"Our team hates new tools."
Approvers interact via email – zero learning curve. Admins get a centralized dashboard. Everybody wins.

"We're too small for this."
If you have more than 50 employees and still route approvals manually, you're wasting money. Period.

How to Not Screw This Up

Avoid these rookie mistakes:

- Don't: Try to automate every approval process on day one
- Do: Start with your most broken process (you know the one)
- Don't: Let IT build some custom solution
- Do: Use Zapier to connect FormBackend + ApproveThis in 20 minutes

Ready to Stop Being a Human Routing Bot?

If you're still manually processing form submissions, you're not just wasting time – you're creating compliance risks and employee frustration. The fix takes less time than your next pointless status meeting.

Get Started with ApproveThis (free 14-day trial)
Already use FormBackend? Check their docs for pre-built templates.

Or schedule a 15-minute demo to see how other 50-5000 employee companies killed their approval chaos.