If you’ve ever tried setting up Zapier Paths, you might have hit a wall. It seems straightforward—directing different outcomes based on user input—but once you get into the details, things can get messy fast. The good news? It doesn’t have to be complicated.
With zapier paths, you can automate quote form responses like a pro, making sure leads get the right follow-up based on their selections. Instead of sorting through submissions manually, you can route auto insurance requests one way, home insurance another, and handle multi-line requests seamlessly—all without lifting a finger.
In this guide, we’ll break down:
- What zapier paths are and why they’re so useful.
- A step-by-step setup for automating quote form responses.
- Best practices to keep your automation clean and efficient.
By the end, you’ll be able to build a powerful workflow that saves time and improves customer response times. Let’s get into it.
What Are Zapier Paths and Why Use Them?
At its core, zapier paths let you create different outcomes based on conditions you set. Think of it like a decision tree—if someone selects one option, their data goes down one path, and if they choose another, it follows a different route.
For example, let’s say you have a quote form for auto and home insurance. A customer might request just an auto quote, just a home quote, or both. Without zapier paths, you’d have to build multiple Zaps to handle each possibility, which gets messy fast. Instead, zapier paths let you keep everything in a single Zap, automatically directing each request where it needs to go.
How Zapier Paths Work
Here’s a simple breakdown of how they function:
- Trigger – The process starts when someone submits a form (like through Gravity Forms or another tool).
- Path Step – Instead of sending every submission down the same route, Zapier checks the data and decides which path it should take.
- Conditional Routing – You define the rules, such as “If the request is for auto insurance, send it to Path A. If it’s for home insurance, send it to Path B. If it’s for both, send it to Path C.”
- Final Action – Based on the path, the data gets sent to the right CRM, email sequence, or follow-up workflow.
Why Zapier Paths Are a Game Changer
Instead of setting up multiple Zaps for different scenarios, you can keep everything streamlined in one place. That means:
- Less clutter – One well-structured Zap does the work of many.
- More control – You can fine-tune automation with custom conditions.
- Better accuracy – Leads always end up in the right workflow.
If you’ve been manually sorting form submissions or dealing with a tangle of separate Zaps, zapier paths can make a huge difference. They not only save time but also reduce the risk of human error, so every lead gets the right response instantly.
Up next, we’ll walk through setting up zapier paths step by step to automate your quote form responses. Let’s get started.
Setting Up Zapier Paths for a Quote Form
Now that you know what zapier paths are and why they’re useful, let’s go through setting them up step by step. If you’ve never used them before, don’t worry—I’ll break it down in a way that makes it easy to follow.
Step 1: Connect Your Form Submission as a Trigger
Every automation in Zapier starts with a trigger. In this case, the trigger is a new quote request submitted through your form.
- If you’re using Gravity Forms, select it as your trigger app.
- Choose “New Form Submission” as the event.
- Connect your form and pull in a test submission so Zapier has some sample data to work with.
At this point, you have a basic Zap that fires every time someone fills out your quote form. Now, let’s add zapier paths to handle different request types.
Step 2: Add the Path Step and Rename Your Paths
Once your trigger is in place, it’s time to add a “Path” step.
- Click the “+” button in Zapier to add a new step.
- Select “Paths” from the options.
- By default, Zapier gives you two paths, but you can add a third (or more) if needed.
- Rename each path to match its function—this makes things easier to manage later. For example:
- Path A: Auto Insurance
- Path B: Home Insurance
- Path C: Auto & Home
Keeping clear names prevents confusion, especially when working with multiple automations.
Step 3: Define Path Conditions
Each path needs conditions to determine when it should run. In this case, we’ll filter based on the type of insurance the customer selected.
- Open Path A (Auto Insurance) and set the condition:
- “Continue if ‘Line of Business’ contains ‘Auto’”
- “AND ‘Line of Business’ does NOT contain ‘Home’” (to make sure it’s auto-only)
- Open Path B (Home Insurance) and set the condition:
- “Continue if ‘Line of Business’ contains ‘Home’”
- “AND ‘Line of Business’ does NOT contain ‘Auto’” (to make sure it’s home-only)
- Open Path C (Auto & Home) and set the condition:
- “Continue if ‘Line of Business’ contains ‘Auto’”
- “AND ‘Line of Business’ contains ‘Home’” (so it runs only when both are selected)
By setting these conditions, each form submission automatically flows to the right path without any manual sorting.
Step 4: Test Each Path
Testing is critical to make sure everything works as expected.
- Run a test submission through your form with different inputs (auto only, home only, both).
- Check if Zapier routes each one to the correct path.
- If something isn’t working, double-check the conditions and make sure they match your form data.
Once everything is working correctly, you’re ready to move to the final step—deciding what happens next.
Avoiding Common Mistakes in Zapier Paths
Setting up zapier paths is a game changer for automation, but there are a few pitfalls that can cause issues if you’re not careful. Let’s go over some of the most common mistakes and how to avoid them, so your workflows run smoothly every time.
1. Not Naming Paths Clearly
One of the biggest mistakes people make is leaving the default names like “Path A” and “Path B.” That might seem fine at first, but as your automation grows, it quickly becomes a headache.
✅ Fix: Rename your paths to something meaningful. Instead of “Path A,” call it “Auto Insurance Requests.” Instead of “Path B,” call it “Home Insurance Requests.” This makes troubleshooting and updates much easier.
2. Overcomplicating Path Conditions
It’s easy to go overboard with complex conditions, but too many rules can lead to logic conflicts, causing the Zap to fail or route incorrectly.
✅ Fix: Keep conditions simple. For example, instead of stacking multiple rules with “AND” and “OR” conditions, break them into separate paths when possible. Test each condition with different sample data to make sure it works as expected.
3. Forgetting to Test Every Path
Just because one path works doesn’t mean they all do. If you don’t test each path individually, you might miss errors that prevent leads from being routed properly.
✅ Fix: After setting up your zapier paths, submit test data that fits every possible condition.
- Test an “Auto Insurance Only” request.
- Test a “Home Insurance Only” request.
- Test a request for both.
- Make sure each one flows to the correct path before going live.
4. Ignoring Zapier’s 100-Step Limit
Zapier has a limit of 100 steps per Zap. While that sounds like a lot, each path counts as a step, and things can add up quickly if you’re not careful.
✅ Fix: If your automation is getting close to 100 steps, consider breaking it into smaller Zaps. You can also use webhooks or multi-step Zaps to reduce unnecessary steps.
5. Not Thinking About Future Scalability
Your zapier paths might work perfectly today, but what happens when your business expands? If you add new services or need additional routing options, a poorly planned setup can become difficult to manage.
✅ Fix: Plan for growth. Use flexible conditions that allow for easy expansion. For example, if you might add “Renters Insurance” in the future, set up your paths in a way that lets you add new options without redoing everything.
By avoiding these common mistakes, you’ll make sure your zapier paths run efficiently and reliably. In the next section, we’ll go over how to automate responses based on paths, so every lead gets the right follow-up without any manual effort.
Automating Responses Based on Zapier Paths
Now that your zapier paths are set up correctly, it’s time to put them to work. The real power of automation comes when you use paths to trigger the right follow-up actions—whether that’s sending emails, updating your CRM, or notifying your team.
Let’s walk through how to make sure every lead gets the right response instantly.
1. Updating Your CRM for Better Lead Management
If you’re using a CRM like AgencyZoom, Better Agency, or InsuredMine, you can automatically add new leads and tag them correctly based on their request.
✅ How to do it:
- Add a “Create Lead” step in your CRM.
- Map the customer’s name, email, and phone number to the correct fields.
- Use zapier paths to assign the right category:
- Auto requests go into the “Auto Insurance” pipeline.
- Home requests go into the “Home Insurance” pipeline.
- Both requests get tagged for cross-selling opportunities.
This makes sure that your team always knows what type of lead they’re dealing with before they even pick up the phone.
2. Sending the Right Email Response
A quick follow-up email reassures potential clients that their request was received. With zapier paths, you can personalize these responses based on the type of quote they requested.
✅ How to do it:
- Choose the path you’re working on (Auto, Home, or Both).
- Customize the email content:
- Auto Path: “Thanks for requesting an auto quote! A team member will reach out shortly.”
- Home Path: “Thanks for requesting a home insurance quote! We’ll be in touch soon.”
- Both Path: “We received your request for auto and home quotes. Expect a call from us soon!”
- Test each email to make sure the right message is sent for every path.
This ensures that leads get an instant confirmation without you having to send emails manually.
3. Notifying Your Team Instantly
If you want to take things a step further, you can set up automatic notifications so your team knows when a new lead comes in.
✅ How to do it:
- Add a Slack or SMS notification step.
- Customize the message:
- “New auto quote request from [Name]. Call ASAP!”
- “New home insurance lead. Follow up now!”
- “High-value lead! Auto & Home requested by [Name].”
With this setup, your team can respond faster, increasing the chances of closing the sale.
Why This Matters
The entire point of zapier paths is to create a seamless workflow that saves time and improves customer experience. By automating follow-ups, updating your CRM, and alerting your team, you make sure that no lead slips through the cracks.
Setting up zapier paths might seem overwhelming at first, but once you break it down, it’s a game changer for automation. Instead of manually sorting quote requests or juggling multiple Zaps, you can let paths handle everything—automatically sending the right emails, updating your CRM, and notifying your team in real time.
The key is to start simple. Get comfortable with basic paths before adding more complexity. And if something isn’t working, test each path step by step to make sure leads are going exactly where they need to go.
Want to take your automation even further? The right content strategy can help you stay top-of-mind with leads long after they fill out a form. Check out Create a Year’s Worth of Content in 30 Days! for a proven system to keep your marketing running on autopilot—just like your Zapier workflows.
Got questions or stuck on a step? Book a discovery call and see if you’re ready to get started with Automated Agency