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'Date added' field not triggering time based automation

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GN_FMP
4 - Data Explorer
4 - Data Explorer

Hello.
I’ve built an automation that is supposed to automatically send an email to people in a base (called ‘Tester panel’) once they’ve been in it for 365 days or more. The date they were added to the base is recorded in the ‘Date added’ field, which is automatically filled in by Airtable:

Screenshot 2021-10-06 at 14.22.11

To set the automation, I picked the ‘When record matches conditions’ trigger, and build it around the ‘Date added’ field in my base:

Screenshot 2021-10-06 at 14.19.14

I tested the automation with mock up records and it works fine. The problem is that when I actually switch it on, it doesn’t send the emails to the database. After a few experiments, I realised that it gets triggered when a new record is added to the base and matches the criteria, but it doesn’t get triggered by the existing records in the base that match the criteria. It seems like either the automation doesn’t work retroactively, or that there’s a problem with the old data in the Date Added field, but I’m not sure what that can be?

I know I could create a view and use the ‘When record enter view’ trigger, but the point of building this automation is to have it do the work for me, and not having to remember to check the base regularly to push records to a view that then triggers the automation…

Any ideas why Date Added is not triggering it?

2 Replies 2

This is the issue. The automation will not run for records that met the condition before the automation was turned on. In order to trigger the automation, the record must not meet the condition when the automation is turned on, and then switch to meeting the conditions while the automation is on.

The workaround is to temporarily have a different condition that you can manually trigger, such as a checkbox. Set the temporary condition. Manually trigger the records. Then switch the trigger back to the proper conditions.

Ha! That’s true, I didn’t think about creating just a temporary manual workaround for the old records. Thank you