Planning

In the previous article, we learned about components in Monkedo. Now, we will plan our automation. When creating an automation, the first step should always be to clarify its goal and outline the steps involved—unless you are creating a very simple automation with few components.

Start by asking: What do I want this automation to achieve? For instance, are you trying to create records in an app, generate a file, analyze data, or perform another task? Based on the automation's purpose, consider where your data will come from, what actions will be performed on that data, any rules or exceptions that need to be accounted for, and so on.

- What is the goal of our automation?
The goal is to create automated tweets based on a set time schedule. Once setup, this automation will check for new scheduled tweets every day and tweet them without any further intervention.

- Where is the data (the time schedule and tweet content)?
We will use a Google Sheets file to create our schedule so that our team can contribute and we can add new rows later for new content. Here is the content:

- Are there any details to consider?
We may have multiple tweets on some days and none on others. Each tweet’s scheduled date will be stored in the sheet.

Depending on the complexity of your automation, you may need to answer additional questions to fully clarify your process. Some details, especially special cases or exceptions, may become apparent during the design phase or after the automation is in use. For now, it’s sufficient to outline the main details. Remember, you can always modify your automation later as needed.

Once you've clarified your automation's goal, the next step is to outline the specific actions the automation needs to take to achieve that goal. At this stage, it helps to forget about Monkedo for a moment and think about how you would explain the task to someone else, like an assistant. Imagine you’re assigning this task to them. Here are the steps for our example automation:

1. Check the Google Sheets file every day.

2. See if there’s any new content scheduled to be tweeted that day.

3. If there is, tweet each item accordingly.

You can also add additional steps, such as:

• "Notify me of how many tweets were posted."

• "Alert me if there are no tweets scheduled for the day."

Important Tip:
When performing tasks manually, you might look for shortcuts to save time. However, Monkedo operates differently—it’s fast, efficient, and doesn’t get tired or bored. So, aim for the most straightforward and clear approach when designing your automation, even if it involves many steps or repetitions. A simple, well-structured automation is quicker to design, easier to maintain, and less prone to errors.

What’s Next?

We’ve covered how to plan an automation. We are ready to place the first component of the automation.