Getting Started with Microsoft Excel Automations
Certifier Automations is a simple 2-step “trigger → action” system that issues credentials the moment your data arrives. With Microsoft Excel automations, you have two main options:
Push Data From Any Source to Microsoft Excel (Automated Flow)
Use Microsoft Excel as a universal bridge – send data from your CRM, LMS, event form, or any other system into a sheet, and Certifier will issue credentials for each new row.
Work Directly in a Microsoft Excel (Manual Flow)
Use a spreadsheet to fill in records directly – whether you’re working solo or sharing it with your team. Once a row is fully completed, Certifier issues the credential instantly.
Before You Begin: Copy Our Sample Spreadsheet
To get started quickly, copy our sample file. It contains three tabs:
Instructions & Tips: Overview and reminders for each step.
Input Sheet: Draft area where you fill in names, emails, and any extra details.
Live Sheet: The tab that Certifier monitors for new, complete rows.
⚠️ Important: Regardless of your workflow, we recommend starting with our template or an empty spreadsheet. Only add rows with actual recipients' data after activating the Automation.
If you're using a spreadsheet that already contains rows, those records will be skipped, and credentials will not be issued for them after you activate the Automation.
How Microsoft Excel Automations Work
Trigger – The event that starts the automation. Here, it’s when a new row is added to the Live Sheet.
Action – What happens next. Certifier reads the new row’s data, then issues the credential.
Automated vs. Manual Flow
The main difference between Automated Flow and Manual Flow is the way new rows with data will be added to the connected Sheet (Live Sheet).
Here's how each Flow works in practice:
Automated Flow
Your external tool (CRM, LMS, form) adds a new row to the Live Sheet.
Certifier instantly issues the credential for that row – no manual work after setup.
Manual Flow
Draft in the Input Sheet. A working area where you and your team fill in records completely at your own pace.
Publish to the Live Sheet. Once a row is 100% complete, copy and paste it to the Live Sheet. Certifier sees the new row and issues the credential immediately.
💡 Why This Matters: Certifier checks your Microsoft Excel sheet every 15 minutes. There's a small chance that the automation may fire on incomplete data, causing skipped or erroneous entries.
By preparing rows in the Input Sheet and only moving finished rows into the Live Sheet, you ensure Certifier always receives complete, valid records.
Step-by-Step Setup
This guide walks you through setting up your first automation using Microsoft Excel. Let's get started!
Step 1. Create Your Automation
Go to Automations → + Create Automation.
Select the Microsoft Excel template.
Press Use Template.
Step 2. Configure the Trigger
Open the Trigger Configuration
To get started, click on the Trigger. The setup will be preconfigured for you – you'll just need to press Continue to move to Configuration.
Configure the New Row Added Trigger
Connect your Microsoft Excel account via OAuth: Press the Connect Microsoft Excel button, and complete login via secure OAuth – click on Continue and Allow.
Once you do that, your account will appear as selected. If you need to use a different account, just unfold the options and select or connect another one:
Select your Microsoft Excel Sheet and the Live Sheet tab:
Click on the field below Folder ID to select the correct folder in your OneDrive Cloud (if you haven't put the file in a specific folder, try "root"), and Sheet ID to choose our sample spreadsheet you copied earlier. Then, choose Live Sheet as the Worksheet.
Once you're ready, press Submit. And that's it! Your Trigger is set up 🤓
Step 3. Configure the Action
Open the Action Configuration
Click on the Action. The setup options are automatically selected, so just press Continue to move to Configuration.
Configure the Issue Credential Action
The final step involves mapping the data and configuring how you want to issue your credentials.
Group: Select the group to which you want to issue credentials. Click on the field to expand it, then choose the group's name from the list.
💡 Tip: To map a field to a column in your spreadsheet, type {{ into the input box and select the matching column name from the list.
For example:
Recipient Name →
{{Column A}}(if Column A contains names)Recipient Email →
{{Column B}}(if Column B contains emails)
Repeat this for any additional custom attributes you’ve set up.
Recipient Name: Map to the column that stores the recipients’ full names.
💡 Tip: If first and last names are in separate columns, combine them in the Recipient Name field by adding a space between the two columns.
Example: {{Column A}} {{Column B}} (if Column A contains the first name and Column B contains the last name)
Recipient Email: Map to the column that stores the recipients' emails.
Issue Credential: Choose whether you want your credentials to be automatically issued when your automation is triggered (True) or if you prefer to save credentials as a draft and publish them manually from the Certifier dashboard (False).
💡 Tip: If you want to test an automation before making it live, set Send Credential to False. This will create credentials as drafts only – nothing will be sent to recipients. Once you’ve confirmed the workflow works as expected, recreate the automation with Send Credential set to True to send them out.
Send Credential: Choose whether you want your credentials to be automatically emailed to the recipient once issued (True) or not (False).
Custom attributes (optional): If you see additional fields, these are custom attributes available on your account (for example, course name, speaker name, etc.).
To use them in the automation, map each one to the corresponding column in Microsoft Excel – just like you did with Recipient Name and Recipient Email.
⚠️ Important: Certifier tracks the column position you mapped (e.g., {{Column A}}, {{Column B}}), not the header name you gave it (e.g., Recipient Name, Recipient Email).
After activating your automation, do not reorder columns or insert new ones in between – this will break the mapping and cause the automation to fail.
Once you're happy with everything, press Submit.
Step 4. Finalize & Activate
Now, there's just one more step – you'll need to:
Click Save & Activate.
Give your automation a clear name (e.g., “Conference Invites via Excel”) and press Next.
💡 Tip: Give your automation a clear name (e.g., include your group name) so you can easily spot it – especially if you're planning to connect multiple spreadsheets. Don’t worry, you can rename it anytime after activation.
You’ll see a confirmation warning saying that Certifier will issue credentials for all future records in your connected spreadsheet. Check the box and click Confirm & Automate to proceed.
And that's it! Once you choose to activate it, your new automation will be live. 🥳
⚠️ Important: Once your automation is active, it can’t be edited.
If you need to change anything – such as re-mapping columns, adding new custom attributes, or updating your credential settings – you’ll need to delete the automation and create a new one from scratch.
What It Looks Like in Practice
A new row appears in the Live Sheet – either pushed from some source (Automated Flow) or copied from the Input Sheet (Manual Flow).
Within 15 minutes, Certifier issues the credential and marks the row as “Processed.”
Your recipient receives their credential.
Critical Rules After Activation
Once your automation is active, these rules are essential to prevent errors, duplicates, and broken setups. Read each one carefully.
Rule 1: Existing Rows Will Not Be Processed
When you connect a Microsoft Excel Sheet with pre-filled rows, Certifier will ignore them after you activate the automation.
Start adding recipients' data below the header only after you activate the automation.
💡 Tip: Keep the header row for guidance. Just start adding your real data below it.
Rule 2: Don’t Rename the File or Tabs
Renaming the file or any tab will break the automation – Certifier looks for the exact names you selected during setup.
Rule 3: Don’t Reorder Sheet Tabs
Moving sheets into a different order will cause Certifier to lose its connection to the correct tab.
Rule 4: Don’t Move or Insert Columns
Certifier tracks columns by letter (A, B, C…). Moving them or inserting new ones will break your mapping and cause errors.
Rule 5: Be Careful with Processed Rows
Certifier always starts from the next unprocessed row. This leads to several pitfalls:
Inserting above processed rows → duplicates: If you’ve already processed rows 1–5 and then insert a new row anywhere above row 6, your original row 5 shifts into row 6. Certifier sees row 6 as “next” and issues a duplicate for that person, while your new entry stays unprocessed.
Deleting and re-adding in the same positions → skipped: If you delete rows 1–5 (all processed) and paste new entries into positions 1–5, nothing happens. Certifier is still waiting for row 6, so your new rows won’t trigger.
Rule 6: Always Include Name & Email
Each row needs a valid Recipient Name and Recipient Email. Rows missing either – or with improperly formatted emails – will be skipped.
Rule 7: Allow Processing Time
Allow 15 minutes for each row to process. Re-adding or moving rows while processing is underway can cause conflicts or duplicates.
Rule 8: Don’t Edit Processed Rows
Any edits to already-processed rows will be ignored. To correct data, update credentials in the Certifier dashboard.
Keep that in mind and enjoy the automated workflow! 👑
Need more help?
If you still have some questions, do not hesitate to contact us via the chat icon or email us directly: [email protected].