Whether you're looking for 101 ways to use Zapier or you're just trying to find the best productivity apps and integrations for your remote teams, this list will get you started on a journey to total automation with a host of apps and solutions. There are over 3,000, in fact, and Zapier keeps adding more with each passing day.

Basically, Zapier has the mentality that "if you can dream it, you can automate it" when it comes to apps and workflows. However, some apps are definitely more fruitful than others, and there are certain integrations that will focus on increasing productivity for remote teams better than others. In this guide, we'll take a look at those and help you decide which ones are going to be best for your own needs, as well as give you a better idea of what Zapier is all about and why you should be using it (if you're not already).

Zapier integrates with tools for messaging, email, blog posting, collaboration, file sharing, scheduling, and more. It can even offer workflows that integrate with your CRM. There's so much to do with this tool that it's a wonder everyone doesn't know about it. Fortunately, we're here to help. In the list below, you'll find apps for remote teams that are all focused on increasing productivity and that offer hundreds of pre-built workflows to help you get more out of your tech stack.

Speaking of more, ask how the virtual receptionists at Smith.ai can deliver more of your mission-critical services so that you have more time for your customers and clients. We work 24/7, so you don't have to, and we integrate with tools like Zapier to handle it all for you seamlessly.

1. Slack

Slack is a great platform that's used for team communication. You'll find everything in one place, be able to search it all, and access it from any device. Slack is available as an app for iOS and Android, as well as for Windows and other operating systems. When you connect it with Zapier, you'll be able to send notifications via Slack when things get done or when they need to, schedule meetings and connect teams, and even use the tool to notify you when your Facebook Lead Ads campaign generates a new lead, for one example.

2. Dropbox

Dropbox makes file sharing secure and simple, with cloud-based access and unlimited storage available. Remote teams love Dropbox because it's easy to use and it makes syncing and file sharing a breeze. Add in the actions of Zapier, and you'll have a dynamic way to share files, such as notifying you via Slack or Microsoft Teams when files are dropped, automatically sending Gmail attachments to Dropbox, and even exporting Dropbox files to your local storage at specific intervals.

3. Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams is another joining the ranks of the notification family of tools. Of course, you can use Zapier to automate a lot of different aspects of Teams, too, so it's not just for notifications. This collaborative communication tool is Office 365's powerhouse solution to keeping remote teams connected and it does well to deliver in several ways. It's able to be combined with the power of Zapier and thousands of other apps to trigger notifications, share information, and more.

4. Gmail

Most small businesses these days are using some version of Gmail. Hopefully, by this point, you've upgraded to a business version so that you get the full potential of Google Workspace and Gmail for your business, but that's not always the case. Either way, you can integrate Gmail and the thousands of other apps through Zapier to notify you of new messages, automatically forward messages to a certain person, download attachments upon receipt, and even export email form data to Google sheets. There are endless ways to connect and automate here.

5. Google Drive

Google Drive is one of the most popular file management tools out there. People use Drive on a daily basis for various business files and sharing needs. It's a great resource that has pretty impressive features for its offering of being free for most users. You may pay for a business-level Google account, but it will be minimal if you do. You can create Zaps to download or upload from Drive to various apps and tools, to notify you on Teams or Slack if Drive files are accessed, and more. You can even trigger downloads of your contacts on specific occasions. If you can do it with Google Drive, you can probably automate it with Zapier.

6. Trello

Trello makes collaboration easy, offering a board where users can create and share cards for project management and simple team communication. It offers an organized way to keep projects in line and track everything that's going on. You can create Zaps to generate Trello cards when new Typeform entries come in or when you have a new WordPress blog posted (so that your marketing team knows it's time to promote the new blog). You can also automate how Trello interacts with other apps, allowing it to turn Trello cards into Google Sheets entries, for example, or to generate email reminders based on specific project cards.

7. Calendly

You can integrate your Calendly app with dozens of apps in your tech stack and even add it to your website so people can book appointments directly with ease. Of course, you can also use Zapier to generate a lot of different Zaps to help you remember appointments, set dates for your own meetings and events, and more. Calendly is a great tool on its own, but when you add Zapier, the productivity is unstoppable.

8. Salesforce

Salesforce is one of the most popular CRM and sales tools out there today. It offers several iterations of its platform for different devices, industries, and business sizes. It also has plenty of integrations with the thousands of Zapier apps available, such as importing new Mailchimp subscribers to your Salesforce user database or notifying you via Slack when your Salesforce reports have been generated.

9. Acuity Scheduling

With Acuity Scheduling, the name of the game is usually notifications for Zapier. However, you can create Zaps for just about any function of the scheduling app, too. You can also integrate Zapier with other tools to create workflows that take things to the scheduler rather than starting from it in the first place. It makes scheduling and getting things done easier and more efficient by keeping everyone on the same page. Plus, it can sync with your other calendar apps and tools to ensure that all of your information is the same so you never miss a thing.

10. Typeform

Form filling tools aren't hard to find these days, but if you've used them, you know that there is something to be said for quality and ease of use. Typeform offers both and it's also seamlessly capable of integrating with tons of other software and apps that you already use, especially thanks to Zapier. You can automate turning Typeform responses into WordPress posts or emails for your records, or even take the contact information from the Typeform submissions and add it to your Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign subscriber list, for example.

11. Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Excel is a powerful business tool and it's an essential ingredient for Office 365 power users. The spreadsheet software makes it easy for businesses to create all kinds of tracking sheets and reports, from inventory spreadsheets to marketing worksheets. You can even create an Excel spreadsheet of your blog posts for the month and fill them in, complete with the text of the post itself. Then, create a Zap that will do the work of posting to WordPress for you.

12. Constant Contact

You can use Zapier to automate uploading and syncing contacts in your Constant Contact account, among other things. This contact management tool is one of the best available and it already has several useful features of its own. Then, being able to integrate it with Zapier and thousands of other apps allows it to become a total powerhouse when it comes to keeping your contacts updated and organized.

13. Xero

With Xero, you can streamline all of your accounting, including invoicing and payments, billing, bookkeeping, and more. Plus, you can automate so many different workflows through Zapier, such as automatically adding invoices to your ledger when they're generated or marking accounts as paid when the payments are processed online. You can even have Xero copy the invoice to your Gmail and notify you via Slack when a new invoice is ready so that you're aware of what should be coming and going.

14. Square

Square is among the most popular online tools for small businesses and solopreneurs. It offers everything from a payment processing gateway to an appointment scheduling tool and more. You can create Zaps to send invoices from Square to your Gmail, for example, or even notify you on Slack when customers complete a transaction on Square using your online payment gateway.

15. OneDrive

Another popular file management solution, OneDrive, is the Office 365 file solution. It's got a lot of cool features of its own, but when you add the power of Zapier, you'll have no trouble making it even more productive. You can create a Zap to export DocuSign PDFs to OneDrive, for example, or set up a Zap to sync these files with your other cloud storage on a schedule of your choosing. There are hundreds of pre-built workflows and you can create your own, too.

16. DocuSign

Electronic document signing is changing the game for any business that deals with a lot of documents and signatures. This type of work usually requires a physical presence, or at least it used to. Today, people have closed on homes entirely online and from the comfort of their home, using tools like DocuSign along the way. With Zapier, you can automate notifications about documents that are signed, send signature pages to people once they reach a certain point on your website, and so much more.

17. Leadpages

Lead generation and intake is such a valuable part of business, and yet it's something that people don't want to spend a lot of time on. Every lead generates a reason to continue, but when you can automate, you should. It's like fishing with a net instead of a single hook—you'll generate more and better leads when you are using better tools. Leadpages is a lead generation and landing page tool and you can automate it with Zapier to inform you when new leads come in, automatically share new leads to your Mailchimp list, and more. Keeping up with your leads has never been easier.

18. Discord

When it comes to productivity, communication is key. Remote teams can't collaborate effectively without the best communication tools. You might not use Discord for regular chats. However, you can use it as a way to connect with your teams in a more informal setting, a team-building activity, or anything else that you have in mind. Perhaps you want to create an event that people can join. Zapier could send a notification to the Discord group when the event is created or if the date has to be rescheduled.

19. Todoist

Todoist is the tool for productivity. If you're trying to improve your time management and business operations and you don't have a dedicated to-do list app, you're not doing yourself a proper service. Todoist is easy to use and can help you track daily operations, meetings, and anything else you have to take care of. Plus, the Zapier integration allows you to send reminders via Gmail or Slack, for example, as well as to automate things like creating a task in Todoist when a new Typeform submission comes in. When your to-do list is writing itself, you're left with even less to do.

20. .ActiveCampaign

This marketing automation tool is designed to give you dozens of different ways to automate your marketing and help streamline the related tasks and campaigns. It's one of the most popular platforms out there, and of course, it has a Zapier integration available with plenty of pre-built workflows that can improve your marketing in several ways. Export ActiveCampaign user details to Mailchimp (or vice versa). Upload new users to your contact database from Google Sheets or Gravity Forms. Take the work out of keeping your tech stack connected.

Connect with the team at Smith.ai for even more efficiency and integrations

At Smith.ai, we have the skills and experience to deliver a full-service virtual receptionist solution or create a custom fit specifically for your business. Take the time to think about what our services can offer, whether you want as much assistance as you can get or you just need someone to take one or two things off your hands. Our virtual receptionists can handle everything from 24/7 call answering and live website chat to sales development, appointment scheduling, and more.

When you're spending less time on these tasks, you can spend more time with your customers or on taking care of your business. Schedule a live chat consultation to learn how we can help, or reach us at hello@smith.ai or (650) 727-6484.