Zapier is an online automation tool that connects different apps and services to automate workflows. Zapier supports connections between thousands of apps from a single hub.

Check your plan

Access to Kartra’s API is required to use Zapier. API access is included with Kartra Growth, Professional, and Enterprise plans. Review or change your subscription in your account Billing.

Request Zapier activation

Before using Zapier with Kartra, it must be approved for your account. Activation requests are typically completed within 1-2 business days.

In your Kartra account:

  1. Go to Integrations and locate Zapier

    Zapier integration tile
  2. Click the three dots to open the menu and select Request activation
    • Complete the questionnaire to submit your request. You will receive a response within 1-2 business days.

Create a Zap automation

Go to Zapier’s website to view the complete catalog of apps available for integration.

In Zapier’s system, an automation between two apps is called a Zap. Zaps work just like the IF/THEN automations you’re familiar with in Kartra, except that instead of starting and ending in the same app, they start and end in two different ones.

For each Zap, you will add a trigger (an event to start the automation) and an action (an event that is performed in response).

To create a new Zap, log in to Zapier

  1. Go to My Zaps and click Create > Zaps
  2. In the Zap canvas, two steps are automatically populated:
    • A trigger is an event that starts your Zap. The event can occur in any app available in Zapier’s catalog.
    • An action is an event a Zap performs after it starts. The action can occur in any app available in Zapier’s catalog.
  3. Configure the trigger and action steps to set up your Zap

Important: Many of the Kartra actions available in Zapier work by modifying a lead (for example, a Zap configured to assign tag to a lead when something happens outside Kartra).

To complete this type of action, the lead must already exist in your Kartra account. Otherwise, nothing will happen when your Zap attempts to run.

If you are collecting new leads outside of Kartra and using Zapier to send them to your Kartra account, the action for your Zap must begin with the command Create New Lead in Kartra.

Pro tip

Kartra can be used for either the triggering event or a follow-up action in a Zap. Select the app you want to use for each end of the automation when you modify either the Trigger or Action step.

Example: When someone registers for an event in Eventbrite (the trigger) create a new lead in Kartra (the action). Add another step to the Zap to perform another action, like assigning a tag to the new leads in Kartra.

Connect Kartra

After selecting Kartra for a trigger or action event in Zapier, you will be prompted to sign in and connect your account.

  1. Click Sign in in the Zap configuration

    Click Sign in to connect Kartra to the Zap
  2. Enter your Kartra API key and password (see next section for step-by-step directions)

    Use your Kartra API credentials to authorize the Zapier connection
  3. Click Yes, continue to save the API credentials and go back to your Zap. Your Kartra username will display as the connected account.

After connecting Kartra with your Zapier account, you will not need to do it again in future Zaps.

Get your Kartra API key

In your Kartra account:

  1. Go to Integrations > API > My API
  2. Locate the API key and API password in the Inbound API module
  3. Copy and paste the API credentials when prompted by Zapier to login and authorize a connection with Kartra

Zapier and data privacy compliance

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires organizations to obtain explicit, informed, and freely given consent before processing personal data. It is your responsibility to ensure that all leads added to Kartra from an external source were obtained with proper consent.

Kartra helps you follow GDPR and other data privacy rules. It provides tools to enable GDPR & CCPA terms, communication consent checkboxes, and cookie acceptance banners, shown based on a visitor's location determined by their IP address.

To ensure a lead is GDPR-compliant in Kartra, you need to collect their contact information through a Kartra form, such as forms, surveys, calendars, webinar registration, or checkout forms. GDPR consent is gathered when they opt-in, and leads who agree to the terms and consent to communication can be emailed.

When using Zapier to send lead data back to Kartra, the information is sent through an API call. Since Kartra’s database and security protocols are separate from any third-party software connected through Zapier, it’s impossible to confirm a lead’s GDPR consent status along with their private data.

Leads added to Kartra via Zapier are assumed to be under GDPR until they complete a Kartra-based form to show they live elsewhere. If a lead’s IP address isn't verified by a Kartra form, they will be marked as "unknown" and subject to GDPR rules.

For example, if a US resident’s information is imported into Kartra via Zapier from another system, Kartra will assume they are under GDPR until their location is confirmed by an IP address. This means you can’t email them from Kartra until they complete a Kartra form.

The true location of a lead brought into Kartra through Zapier will be confirmed the first time they fill out a form hosted in the same Kartra account. If they are in a region with data privacy regulations, they will be asked to confirm their consent to your GDPR & CCPA terms when they submit the form, updating their lead status.