Create Postcard with Lob API on New Contact from Twilio SendGrid API

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Trigger workflow on

New Contact from the Twilio SendGrid API

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Create Postcard with the Lob API

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Getting Started#

This integration creates a workflow with a Twilio SendGrid trigger and Lob action. When you configure and deploy the workflow, it will run on Pipedream's servers 24x7 for free.

Select this integration
Configure the New Contact trigger
1. Connect your Twilio SendGrid account
2. Configure timer
Configure the Create Postcard action
1. Connect your Lob account
2. Configure Description
3. Select a To
4. Configure Front
5. Configure Back
6. Select a Size
7. Select a Mail Type
8. Optional- Configure Merge Variables
9. Optional- Configure Send Date
10. Optional- Select a From
Deploy the workflow
Send a test event to validate your setup
Turn on the trigger

Details#

This integration uses pre-built, source-available components from Pipedream's GitHub repo. These components are developed by Pipedream and the community, and verified and maintained by Pipedream.

To contribute an update to an existing component or create a new component, create a PR on GitHub. If you're new to Pipedream component development, you can start with quickstarts for trigger span and action development, and then review the component API reference.

Trigger#

New Contact on Twilio SendGrid

Description:Emit new event when a new contact is created

Version:0.0.8

Key:sendgrid-new-contact

View on GitHub

Twilio SendGrid Overview#

The Twilio SendGrid API opens up a world of possibilities for email automation, enabling you to send emails efficiently and track their performance. With this API, you can programmatically create and send personalized email campaigns, manage contacts, and parse inbound emails for data extraction. When you harness the power of Pipedream, you can connect SendGrid to hundreds of other apps to automate workflows, such as triggering email notifications based on specific actions, syncing email stats with your analytics, or handling incoming emails to create tasks or tickets.

Trigger Code#

import orderBy from "lodash/orderBy.js";
import common from "../common/timer-based.mjs";

export default {
  ...common,
  key: "sendgrid-new-contact",
  name: "New Contact",
  description: "Emit new event when a new contact is created",
  version: "0.0.8",
  type: "source",
  dedupe: "unique",
  hooks: {
    async activate() {
      const currentTimestamp = Date.now();
      const state = {
        processedItems: [],
        lowerTimestamp: currentTimestamp,
        upperTimestamp: currentTimestamp,
      };
      this.db.set("state", state);
    },
  },
  methods: {
    ...common.methods,
    _maxDelayTime() {
      // There is no report from SendGrid as to how much time it takes
      // for a contact to be created and appear in search results, so
      // we're using a rough estimate of 30 minutes here.
      return 30 * 60 * 1000;  // 30 minutes, in milliseconds
    },
    _addDelayOffset(timestamp) {
      return timestamp - this._maxDelayTime();
    },
    _cleanupOldProcessedItems(processedItems, currentTimestamp) {
      return processedItems
        .map((item) => ({
          // We just need to keep track of the record ID and
          // its creation date.
          id: item.id,
          created_at: item.created_at,
        }))
        .filter((item) => {
          const { created_at: createdAt } = item;
          const createdAtTimestamp = Date.parse(createdAt);
          const cutoffTimestamp = this._addDelayOffset(currentTimestamp);
          return createdAtTimestamp > cutoffTimestamp;
        });
    },
    _makeSearchQuery(processedItems, lowerTimestamp, upperTimestamp) {
      const idList = processedItems
        .map((item) => item.id)
        .map((id) => `'${id}'`)
        .join(", ")
      || "''";
      const startTimestamp = this._addDelayOffset(lowerTimestamp);
      const startDate = this.toISOString(startTimestamp);
      const endDate = this.toISOString(upperTimestamp);
      return `
        contact_id NOT IN (${idList}) AND
        created_at BETWEEN
          TIMESTAMP '${startDate}' AND
          TIMESTAMP '${endDate}'
      `;
    },
    generateMeta(data) {
      const {
        item,
        eventTimestamp: ts,
      } = data;
      const {
        id,
        email,
      } = item;
      const slugifiedEmail = this.slugifyEmail(email);
      const summary = `New contact: ${slugifiedEmail}`;
      return {
        id,
        summary,
        ts,
      };
    },
    async processEvent(event) {
      // Transform the timer timestamp to milliseconds
      // to be consistent with how Javascript handles timestamps.
      const eventTimestamp = event.timestamp * 1000;

      // Retrieve the current state of the component.
      const {
        processedItems,
        lowerTimestamp,
        upperTimestamp,
      } = this.db.get("state");

      // Search for contacts within a specific timeframe, excluding
      // items that have already been processed.
      const query = this._makeSearchQuery(processedItems, lowerTimestamp, upperTimestamp);
      const {
        result: items,
        contact_count: contactCount,
      } = await this.sendgrid.searchContacts(query);

      // If no contacts have been retrieved via the API,
      // move the time window forward to possibly capture newer contacts.
      if (contactCount === 0) {
        const newState = {
          processedItems: this._cleanupOldProcessedItems(processedItems, lowerTimestamp),
          lowerTimestamp: upperTimestamp,
          upperTimestamp: eventTimestamp,
        };
        this.db.set("state", newState);
        return;
      }

      // We process the searched records from oldest to newest.
      const itemsToProcess = orderBy(items, "created_at");
      itemsToProcess
        .forEach((item) => {
          const meta = this.generateMeta({
            item,
            eventTimestamp,
          });
          this.$emit(item, meta);
        });

      // Use the timestamp of the last processed record as a lower bound for
      // following searches. This bound will be subjected to an offset so in
      // case older records appear in future search results, but have not
      // appeared until now, can be processed. We only adjust it if it means
      // moving forward, not backwards. Otherwise, we might start retrieving
      // older and older records indefinitely (and we're all about *new*
      // records!)
      const newLowerTimestamp = Math.max(
        lowerTimestamp,
        Date.parse(itemsToProcess[0].created_at),
      );

      // If the total contact count is less than 100, it means that during the
      // next iteration the search results count will most likely be less than
      // 50. In that case, if we extend the upper bound of the search time range
      // we might be able to retrieve more records.
      const newUpperTimestamp = contactCount < 100
        ? eventTimestamp
        : upperTimestamp;

      // The list of processed items can grow indefinitely.
      // Since we don't want to keep track of every processed record
      // ever, we need to clean up this list, removing any records
      // that are no longer relevant.
      const newProcessedItems = this._cleanupOldProcessedItems(
        [
          ...processedItems,
          ...itemsToProcess,
        ],
        newLowerTimestamp,
      );

      // Update the state of the component to reflect the computations
      // made above.
      const newState = {
        processedItems: newProcessedItems,
        lowerTimestamp: newLowerTimestamp,
        upperTimestamp: newUpperTimestamp,
      };
      this.db.set("state", newState);
    },
  },
};

Trigger Configuration#

This component may be configured based on the props defined in the component code. Pipedream automatically prompts for input values in the UI and CLI.

Label	Prop	Type	Description
N/A	`db`	`$.service.db`	This component uses `$.service.db` to maintain state between executions.
Twilio SendGrid	`sendgrid`	`app`	This component uses the Twilio SendGrid app.
	`timer`	`$.interface.timer`

Trigger Authentication#

Twilio SendGrid uses API keys for authentication. When you connect your Twilio SendGrid account, Pipedream securely stores the keys so you can easily authenticate to Twilio SendGrid APIs in both code and no-code steps.

About Twilio SendGrid#

Send marketing and transactional email through the Twilio SendGrid platform with the Email API, proprietary mail transfer agent, and infrastructure for scalable delivery.

Action#

Create Postcard on Lob

Description:Creates a new postcard given information. [See docs here](https://docs.lob.com/#tag/Postcards/operation/postcard_create).

Version:0.0.3

Key:lob-create-postcard

View on GitHub

Lob Overview#

The Lob API provides a suite of automation capabilities focused on direct mail, address verification, and print management. With Lob, you can automate the sending of physical mail programmatically, verify addresses to ensure deliverability, and manage printing logistics for marketing campaigns or operational needs. It's a powerful tool for bridging the digital and physical mailing worlds, particularly useful for marketing, billing, and compliance communications.

Action Code#

import { defineAction } from "@pipedream/types";
import lob from "../../app/lob.app.mjs";
import constants from "../../app/common/constants.mjs";
export default defineAction({
    key: "lob-create-postcard",
    name: "Create Postcard",
    description: "Creates a new postcard given information. [See docs here](https://docs.lob.com/#tag/Postcards/operation/postcard_create).",
    version: "0.0.3",
    annotations: {
        destructiveHint: false,
        openWorldHint: true,
        readOnlyHint: false,
    },
    type: "action",
    props: {
        lob,
        description: {
            type: "string",
            label: "Description",
            description: "An internal description that identifies this resource",
        },
        to: {
            propDefinition: [
                lob,
                "addressId",
            ],
            label: "To",
            description: "Must either be an `addressId` or an inline object with correct address parameters",
        },
        front: {
            type: "string",
            label: "Front",
            description: "The artwork to use as the front of your postcard. May be a `templateId` or a HTML string. [HTML Examples](https://docs.lob.com/#section/HTML-Examples)",
        },
        back: {
            type: "string",
            label: "Back",
            description: "The artwork to use as the back of your postcard. May be a `templateId` or a HTML string. Be sure to leave room for address and postage information as in this [example template](https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/public.lob.com/assets/templates/postcards/4x6_postcard.pdf).",
        },
        size: {
            type: "string",
            label: "Size",
            description: "Specifies the size of the postcard. Only **4x6** postcards can be sent to international destinations",
            options: constants.POSTCARD_SIZES,
            default: "4x6",
        },
        mailType: {
            type: "string",
            label: "Mail Type",
            description: "The mail postage type: `usps_first_class` (default) or `usps_standard` - a cheaper option which is less predictable and takes longer to deliver",
            options: constants.MAIL_TYPES,
            default: "usps_first_class",
        },
        mergeVariables: {
            type: "object",
            label: "Merge Variables",
            description: "An object for substituting variables to render dynamic content in your template. [Merge Variables Guide](https://help.lob.com/en_US/print_mail/dynamic-personalization#using-html-and-merge-variables)",
            optional: true,
        },
        sendDate: {
            type: "string",
            label: "Send Date",
            description: "A timestamp in **ISO 8601** format which specifies a date after the current time and up to 180 days in the future to send the letter off for production. Until the `send_date` has passed, the mailpiece can be canceled",
            optional: true,
        },
        from: {
            propDefinition: [
                lob,
                "addressId",
            ],
            label: "From",
            description: "Required if `to` address is international. Must either be an `addressId` or an inline object with correct address parameters",
            optional: true,
        },
    },
    async run({ $ }) {
        const response = await this.lob.createPostcard({
            description: this.description,
            to: this.to,
            front: this.front,
            back: this.back,
            size: this.size,
            mailType: this.mailType,
            merge_variables: this.mergeVariables,
            send_date: this.sendDate,
            from: this.from,
        });
        $.export("$summary", "Successfully created postcard");
        return response;
    },
});

Action Configuration#

This component may be configured based on the props defined in the component code. Pipedream automatically prompts for input values in the UI.

Label	Prop	Type	Description
Lob	`lob`	`app`	This component uses the Lob app.
Description	`description`	`string`	An internal description that identifies this resource
To	`to`	`string`	Select a value from the drop down menu.
Front	`front`	`string`	The artwork to use as the front of your postcard. May be a `templateId` or a HTML string. HTML Examples
Back	`back`	`string`	The artwork to use as the back of your postcard. May be a `templateId` or a HTML string. Be sure to leave room for address and postage information as in this example template
Size	`size`	`string`	Select a value from the drop down menu:`4x66x96x11`
Mail Type	`mailType`	`string`	Select a value from the drop down menu:`usps_first_classusps_standard`
Merge Variables	`mergeVariables`	`object`	An object for substituting variables to render dynamic content in your template. Merge Variables Guide
Send Date	`sendDate`	`string`	A timestamp in ISO 8601 format which specifies a date after the current time and up to 180 days in the future to send the letter off for production. Until the `send_date` has passed, the mailpiece can be canceled
From	`from`	`string`	Select a value from the drop down menu.

Action Authentication#

Lob uses API keys for authentication. When you connect your Lob account, Pipedream securely stores the keys so you can easily authenticate to Lob APIs in both code and no-code steps.

Enter your Live Lob secret API key below.

You can find this key under your account settings in the Lob dashboard

Alternatively, you can use your Test Secret API Key, but you'll need to create a new Lob Connected Account in Pipedream in order to make Live requests.