How to Automate MSP Sales Workflows in Autotask, With Three Workflow Templates
Most Autotask MSPs still re-key the same deal three times: once in the quote, once in the opportunity and once in the contract. Here is how to automate that path, which settings to get right first, and three workflow templates for the deals you quote most.
The short answer: connect Autotask to an MSP quoting tool that writes back to it. Then let the accepted quote do the admin: update the opportunity and quote, create or extend the recurring contract, open the delivery ticket and raise purchase orders. Your team only touches the deal where judgement is needed: the scope, the price and the approval.
What You Can Automate Between Salesbuildr and Autotask
| Step | What happens | When |
|---|---|---|
| Opportunity to quote | Pick up an Autotask opportunity with Import from Autotask and quote against it. | Opportunities are pulled every 10 minutes; allow up to about 15 |
| Companies and contacts | Kept in step both ways, so the quote goes to the right person. | By webhook, usually within 1–2 minutes |
| Approval | Approval rules hold quotes that cross your value, discount, markup or ARR thresholds. | Before the quote goes out |
| Acceptance | The Autotask opportunity and quote are updated, with every line item visible. | On acceptance |
| Recurring services | A new recurring service contract, or services added to an existing one. | On acceptance |
| Delivery | A ticket with queue, priority, issue type, estimated hours, due date and billing code, plus purchase orders. | On acceptance, when switched on |
Before You Automate: Five Settings to Get Right
- Billing codes on every category. Every product category needs an Autotask billing code, or the lines can’t land cleanly in Autotask.
- Webhooks switched on. Without them, company and contact changes made in Autotask won’t arrive within minutes.
- A stage and status map. List every opportunity stage and quote status you use, and what each should become in Autotask.
- What acceptance should trigger. Decide per deal type: opportunity and quote only, or also a contract, a ticket and purchase orders.
- Approval rules. Set thresholds on value, discount, markup or ARR, with category filters if you need them, under Settings → Quotes → Approval Rules. Chains can be ordered or unordered.
If you’re still deciding whether a product is a service, labour or a product, sort that first: service, labour or product explains why it matters in Autotask.
Workflow Template 1: New Managed Services Client
- The opportunity is created in Autotask, or in Salesbuildr if that is where your team starts.
- Start the quote from your managed services template, with your per-user or per-device bundles and the onboarding project as one-off lines.
- Any discount above your threshold goes to the approver before the proposal is sent.
- The client accepts online. The Autotask opportunity and quote are updated with every line.
- Recurring services go into a new recurring service contract. A ticket for onboarding goes to your projects queue with estimated hours and a due date.
Workflow Template 2: Hardware Refresh
- Quote hardware from your distributor catalog, with current distributor pricing and your margin on every line.
- Add installation labour and any change to the managed services.
- The client accepts. The opportunity and quote are updated, and purchase orders are created if you’ve switched them on.
- An installation ticket goes to the right queue, with the billing code and estimated hours already set.
Workflow Template 3: Add Services to an Existing Client
- Spot the gap. Whitespace (Advanced plan and up) compares each client’s Autotask contracts with your portfolio and shows which services they don’t buy from you yet.
- Quote the missing service from a short add-on template.
- On acceptance, the services are added to the client’s existing recurring contract instead of a new one.
For the contract side of this, see how to keep track of managed services and contract profitability in Autotask.
What Still Needs a Person
- Autotask Service Bundles don’t sync. Rebuild them as Salesbuildr bundles.
- User-defined fields sync one way, and multi-select UDFs aren’t supported.
- Product edits or inactivations made in Autotask need a manual sync from Salesbuildr.
- When a record fails to sync, it shows up under Settings → Tools → Issues, with a Retry button. Check it weekly.
The full record-by-record picture is in what syncs between MSP quoting and your PSA.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I automate quotes in Autotask?
Yes. With Salesbuildr connected to Autotask, you build the quote from your Autotask catalog and distributor prices, and when the client accepts, Salesbuildr updates the Autotask opportunity and quote with every line. It can also create a recurring service contract or add to an existing one, open a ticket for delivery and create purchase orders, if you switch those on.
How fast do changes sync between Salesbuildr and Autotask?
Company and contact changes made in Autotask arrive by webhook, usually within 1–2 minutes. Opportunities are pulled every 10 minutes, so allow up to about 15 minutes for an opportunity change made in Autotask to show in Salesbuildr. Changes made in Salesbuildr are pushed straight away.
What doesn’t sync with Autotask?
Autotask Service Bundles don’t sync, so rebuild them as Salesbuildr bundles. User-defined fields sync one way and multi-select UDFs aren’t supported. Product edits or inactivations made in Autotask need a manual sync from Salesbuildr.