A Workflow comprises of a set of actions executed at specific instances to automate routines in an application. When you trigger the workflow, it executes the set of associated actions. Workflows let you automate and map different activities, data, and people involved in the business process.

Assume an Order management application, in which a customer chooses a product and makes online payment. The order details are then sent to the warehouse for quality assurance check. Finally, the customer receives a notification when the shipment is out for delivery. All these actions can be automated using Workflows.

It can be used to calculate the total order value, send order details to the warehouse, notify the shipment and delivery status to the customer, and update the available stock. A payment workflow can also be initiated to make online payments easily. The process can be streamlined easily. 

1. Setting the default value for the quantity field in an Order form
2. Disabling student registration number in an exam application form
3. Hiding experience field for a fresher in a New Joinee form
4. Redirecting a user to the thank you webpage on record submission
5. Sending event confirmation email to attendees
6. Sending appointment reminder SMS to patients
7. Adding product subscribers to CRM systems such as Zoho CRM, Salesforce CRM, etc.
8. Assigning customer requests to available support reps
9. Checking an employee's leave availability on a vacation request  
   

Perform actions in instances

You can trigger a workflow within your application in any of the below scenarios. They are:

1. While using the form
   Create and execute actions in the workflow when a new record is created or when an existing record is modified or deleted. Learn more
   
   
2. On a scheduled date
   Create and execute actions on a scheduled date and time without any user input. These timed actions can be executed periodically based on the date and time values present in your form or on fixed date and time. Learn more
   
   
3. In approval process
   Create and execute actions in the approve/reject processes on record addition. Learn more
   
   
4. During payment process
   Create and execute actions in the payment process. Learn more
   
   
5. In batch workflows
   Create and efficiently execute customized Deluge scripts on a large volume of data, either after successful import or at scheduled intervals. Learn more
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6. In blueprints
   Create and customize every detail of the processes you design in your Creator application. Learn more
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7. In functions
   ​Create and reuse modular scripts to manipulate data and trigger actions across applications using functions. Learn more
   

Actions in a workflow

Actions are the tasks that you can add and trigger in a workflow. You add and configure multiple actions in a workflow. The list of actions that you can execute in a workflow is given below.  

• Send Email
  You can send email notifications to your application users while adding a new record or while editing or deleting an existing record in the form. Learn more
• Send SMS
  You can send SMS notifications to your application users while adding a new record or while editing or deleting an existing record in the form. Learn more
• Show success message
  This action allows you to display a custom confirmation message to users on form submission. Learn more
• Redirect to a URL
  This action allows you to redirect the form to another web page, post form submission. Learn more
• Hide fields
  This action allows you to hide a field in the form based on the value specified in another field. Learn more
• Show fields
  You can show a field(if previously hidden) in the form based on the value specified in another field. Learn more
• Disable fields
  You can disable a field in the form based on the value specified in another field. Learn more
• Enable fields
  You can enable a field(if previously disabled) in the form based on the value specified in another field. Learn more
• Set field value
  This action allows you to assign a default value to a form field. Learn more
• Integrate with Zoho and third-party services
  You can perform actions like create, fetch, search and update records from/to other Zoho applications or third-party applications like Salesforce, Quickbooks, etc. Also, you can add and configure the third-party SMS service providers to send SMS notifications. Learn more
• Define a custom action
  This action lets you define a custom process to automate your unique business processes using the drag and drop interface. Learn more