The Top 20 Zapier Apps for Small Business Owners and Managers

Automation is everywhere these days. It underlies everyday processes and powers critical tasks. At its heart, it’s about freeing people from mundane but important tasks so that they can focus on what they do best. For small business owners and managers, it can simplify and streamline workflows, reduce the number of steps involved in processes, and more to save time, money, and sanity.

When it comes to business automation tools, Zapier ranks very highly. It’s a favorite here at Smith.ai — of all of our integrations, our virtual receptionists seem to like it more than most. It’s simple, effective, and makes automation something you don’t even have to think about, which is the whole point.

However, Zapier’s real value lies in its ability to integrate other apps, providing scalable functionality that grows with your business. The core features and functions are great, certainly, but it’s the ability to connect new apps and do more over time that makes this a must-have for businesses across all industries.

Small business owners and managers face some significant questions here, however. For instance, what apps should you integrate? Which ones are worth your time and patience? We’ve done the legwork for you and ranked the top 20 Zapier premium apps and solutions to help small businesses automate workflows and processes, from appointment setting to email marketing and everything in between.

Why does automation matter? 

Why should you care about automation? If you’re concerned that it’s just a buzzword, think again. Automation is game-changing, and it’s something that every business owner or manager can appreciate, regardless of the size of your business or your industry.

Here are just a few of the benefits you’ll discover when you automate tedious tasks:

• Improved efficiency

• Scalability in resource use and staffing needs

• Reduced human error and improved data accuracy

• Improved customer/client experience

• Increased employee satisfaction

• Real-time visibility into important business data

• Reduced operational costs

Automation is relatively simple to understand, too. You create an automated workflow that provides structure for apps, software, and other technologies, ensuring that it works exactly as you want it to without the need for a human being to initiate processes or handle tasks. It’s a way to “set it and forget it” so your team members can put their time and expertise to better use.

So, without further interruptions, let’s explore the Zapier apps that offer the most promise when it comes to growing a small business.

The roundup: 20 Zapier premium apps you have to try

Although we could easily spend days going over all of the thousands of apps and integrations that Zapier offers, some key players should be on everyone’s radar. After all the years of working with this automation platform and seeing what it has to offer, we’ve collected the top 20 that we think everyone can use. 

1. Weather by Zapier

Most of the tools we’ll cover in this roundup are based on digital scenarios. However, Weather is different. It’s powered by Dark Sky and allows you to trigger workflows and processes based on real-time, real-world weather conditions. For instance, snowfall might trigger a text to school administrators that opening is delayed, or wind speed might trigger a process that illuminates warning signs along dangerous stretches of road to alert truck drivers to the threat of tip-over.

2.Mailchimp

Mailchimp is one of the most popular email tools available today. This app makes email marketing easy and gives you the tools you need to stay in touch. It can also integrate with several of the other apps here, and you can generate Zaps to handle tasks like generating emails from landing page sign-ups, creating email newsletters, and launching drip campaigns based on certain actions. You can import subscribers from Typeform and Facebook Ads, export to Google Sheets, and more. 

3.Typeform 

Typeform is a great tool that allows you to create forms and then turn those forms into Google Docs, collect information from digital forms instead of paper, and improve participation by giving people a better way to communicate with your brand. Typeform can be connected to Google Docs and other tools with Zaps, too. 

4.Airtable

Airtable is an organizational database that makes it fast and easy to create tables to track sales, leads, inventory management, vacation schedules, and more. If you need a table for it, Airtable can help. It integrates with thousands of apps and has several Zaps available, including creating Google Calendar events from Airtable records, adding new Typeform entries, sending email notifications, and even importing new events from Google Calendar and other tools. 

5. GoogleForms 

Like Typeform, Google Forms is a great tool for collecting information and data. From surveys and customer satisfaction inquiries to general intake forms and more, this app is great to integrate with Zapier to automate collecting data, help save time, and reduce the risk of human error. You can set up Zaps to generate surveys after a transaction is complete, auto-send forms to new members, and so forth. 

6. Asana

Asana is an information management and collaboration tool that helps businesses organize tasks and people effectively. It can be used to change the way people work together, create better collaborations, and even integrate with Gmail, Google Sheets, Trello, Slack, and other tools to improve productivity with automation. You can generate Zaps to notify people via email when new tasks or cards are posted on Trello, for example, or engage any of the dozens of other Zaps. 

7.SurveyMonkey

If you’re looking to generate surveys, SurveyMonkey is a great app to have on your Zapier list. You can create a Zap to send surveys to users based on certain information that they input by request or even when they perform an action like emailing customer service or completing a purchase. Using Zaps, you can make all kinds of actions happen with this tool. 

8. Slack

Slack is a messaging and productivity tool that is designed for team collaboration. In addition to robust messaging features, there’s also the option to share files and docs, integrate with Gmail and other services, and even connect Slack to your marketing software like HubSpot and others for total automation of your collaborative efforts. You can even create a Zap to notify everyone of a new Slack message when you post, and more. 

9. HubSpot

HubSpot is a marketing automation and CRM platform that gives you all of the tools that your business needs. It’s a standalone tool that works wonders on its own, but integrating it with Zapier will allow you to connect new subscribers to your email campaigns via Mailchimp and others, export data to Google Sheets, link new marketing communications to the team in Slack, and perform other tasks to keep your marketing running smoothly. There are thousands of guided workflows available. 

10.Facebook Pages

Facebook Pages makes it easy to connect with followers and customers, share content, create events, and run targeted Facebook ad campaigns. When combined with Zapier and the other tools and apps available today, you can share new Instagram posts directly to Facebook, post new RSS items, generate new WordPress posts, have them automatically posted to Facebook, and more. You can also share pages on Slack, LinkedIn, and more.

11.Schedule by Zapier

Schedule by Zapier is a native app that can be used for recurring tasks and events. You can create Zaps to trigger certain events or tasks, sync your calendars, and even send daily emails, create Trello cards based on schedules, generate daily reminders, and other task-related streamlining and automation. There is a lot to love in this compact scheduling app, which can integrate with tons of tools and software. 

12.Discord

Designed as an all-in-one voice and text chat service for gamers, Discord has become a popular chat tool for several companies, organizations, and groups that need a better way. You can link Discord to YouTube to send new videos in the messaging feature or combine the RSS by Zapier to create RSS feeds in the Discord app and more. Discord might have been designed for gamers, but today, it’s one of the hottest chat servers around for business and others.

13.Calendly

Calendly is one of our favorite scheduling tools that helps eliminate the back-and-forth that scheduling hassles are known for. It saves time and ensures that everything is streamlined. You can even integrate Calendly with your website and set up Zaps to connect new appointments to your Google or Outlook calendar or other tools that you use. Calendly can also integrate with Typeform and other tools to generate forms for appointments, intake, and other needs. 

14.Salesforce

Salesforce is, by and large, one of the best marketing and customer relationship management platforms available today. It has several iterations for industries of all kinds, and it integrates seamlessly with thousands of different apps and tools. Using Zapier, you can create Zaps to manage Salesforce for things like creating Slack messages for new leads, adding new Typeform entries directly to Salesforce, and even adding Facebook and other leads to the platform with Gravity Forms and other tools. 

15. Trello

Trello is a project management tool that offers collaborative capabilities and much more. You can manage files, communicate with team members, schedule tasks, track progress toward task and progress completion, set due dates, and make labels. It’s also configurable in several ways, including a card-based system and a list-based system so that everyone can access it the way they prefer.

16.WordPress

Most people are familiar with WordPress, the blogging and website platform that allows people to create open-source websites and includes several extensions, integrations, and tools for total customization. WordPress can be integrated with productivity Zaps, or you can even create Zaps to post content to your blog and more. 

17.ActiveCampaign

ActiveCampaign is a marketing and campaign management tool that makes it easy for you to streamline your marketing campaigns and manage everything in one place. You can use Zaps to sync contacts, add and update information, export details to GoogleSheets, connect with customers via Mailchimp when certain actions occur, and more. This tool includes several of its own features for marketing automation, too.

18.YouTube

YouTube is a great app to use with Zapier, and it can be incorporated in several ways. You can set up links to publish to social media when new YouTube videos go live so that the Zap does all the work, or even collect traffic data from YouTube, follow links, send videos via email, and more. Create Zaps that integrate with WordPress, Salesforce, Discord, and more.

19.ClickFunnels

ClickFunnels is a marketing funnel tool that allows you to create landing pages that are sure to convert. This tool can be integrated with Zapier to create Zaps to send Gmail messages or update subscribers on Mailchimp when they sign up at the site. You can even add new contacts and purchases from ClickFunnels to GoogleSheets, ActiveCampaign, and other platforms with just a few clicks when you set up the Zap. 

20. Filter by Zapier

Filter is a surprisingly simple yet important app. It allows you to set actions that only occur when specific criteria are met. For instance, when a lead signs up for a newsletter, their name might be added to your marketing campaign, and a welcome email might be sent, but only after they opt into receiving email communications. It’s also configurable with an almost limitless number of conditions and actions, ensuring that you can create if/then workflows that fit any need you might have.

Count on Smith.ai for all the integrations you need

While Zapier can automate many of your business processes, don’t overlook the amount of time your team spends answering phone calls. Between wrong numbers, spam calls, customers asking questions, and leads contacting you to see if you can solve their needs, most businesses spend an immense amount of time on the phone.

Our 24/7 live virtual receptionists can put your phone system on autopilot without the disconnect that comes from automated phone systems and confusing menu trees. And, like Zapier, we integrate with the technology that you already use to streamline operations and make every day easier. Of course, we can do so much more than answer phones and direct calls. From appointment booking to SMS text answering and everything in between, we help your business thrive.

Ready to experience the difference our live virtual receptionists can make in your day-to-day operations? Schedule a consultation today. You can reach us at hello@smith.ai or (650) 709-2975.