Step 5. Set up the trigger
At this step, you'll set up your Google Sheets trigger to watch for new rows in your spreadsheet. You'll specify which spreadsheet to monitor and how many rows to process at once.
To set up your Google Sheets trigger:
Select your Drive from the dropdown menu. You can leave the Search Method field at its default setting ("Search by path").
In the Spreadsheet ID field, click "Click here to choose file". Search for and select the "Prospects" spreadsheet you created during Step 2.
Select "Sheet1" in the Sheet Name field. This specifies which sheet contains the rows you want to monitor.
For Table contains headers, select "Yes". This tells Make that the first row contains column names, which you'll use for mapping data later.
For Row with headers, leave the default "A1:Z1" value. This indicates where your column headers are located.
Set the Limit to 20. This tells the module to process up to 20 new rows in a single run. You can adjust this based on your needs.
Click Save. This saves your module settings, but not the entire scenario.
Remember to click the Save icon in the Scenario Builder toolbar to save your entire scenario. It's good practice to save your scenario regularly as you build it.
In the Choose where to start window that appears, select "All".
If you accidentally close that window, right-click the Google Sheets module and select Choose where to start from the menu.
The "Choose where to start" option determines which rows the module will process. By selecting "All," the module will first process the existing rows in the sheet, and then any new rows added afterwards. Also, the module will track which rows it has already processed and only fetch the ones it hasn't processed yet.
Your Google Sheets trigger is now configured to detect new rows in your Prospects spreadsheet. Next, you'll test the module to ensure it works properly.
Understanding trigger modules
Trigger modules like the one you've just configured can only be used at the beginning of scenarios. They process data when specific events occur in connected applications. There are two main types:
- Instant triggers start your scenario immediately when an event occurs in the connected application (marked with an "instant" tag in Make). These are ideal when you need real-time responses.
- Polling triggers (like your Google Sheets module) check for new data at regular intervals when your scenario runs. The module remembers what it has already processed and only retrieves new items each time.
The Google Sheets "Watch New Rows" module you're using is a polling trigger, which will check for new rows each time your scenario runs.