The steps in the article below will guide you on how to generate personalized videos using an existing video template with Google Sheets and Zapier.
⚠️ Important: Be sure to complete Step One—creating a template—before proceeding. Missed Step One? Check out the article here: Personalized Video: Step One - Creating a Template
We’ll guide you through setting up a Google Sheet to manage your contact data and integrate it seamlessly with HeyGen and Zapier.
You’ll start by preparing your sheet, ensuring it’s ready to trigger video generation automatically. Then, we’ll walk you through creating the first Zap, which generates a personalized video whenever a new contact is added to your sheet.
Using HubSpot as your CRM? Check out our article HeyGen x HubSpot: Personalized Video Tutorial if you prefer your HubSpot over Google Sheets.
Setting Up Your Google Sheet
The first step is to set up a Google Sheet, which will serve two key purposes:
Importing contacts to trigger video generation.
Storing video data once the videos have been generated.
Color Guide:
🟩 GREEN columns are for your input. You can add additional variables/columns as needed.
🟨 YELLOW columns will be automatically updated by HeyGen and Zapier.
You can get started with this Sample Google Sheet, which shows some already successful generations. Simply make a copy of the sheet to edit it.
🛎️ Note: It’s a good idea to test the setup before using actual contacts. As a best practice, start by entering your own email address in the email field to ensure everything works smoothly.
👋 Prefer to follow along? For a tutorial on setting up your Google Sheet, watch this video.
Set Up Zap #1: Generate Video When a Contact is Added
When a contact is added to your Google Sheet, this Zap will automatically trigger a request to HeyGen to generate a personalized video for that contact.
👋 Prefer to follow along? For a tutorial on setting up your Zap, watch this video.
Step 1:
Log in to Zapier, click Create [+], and select Zaps.
Step 2:
Click the first trigger button to open the menu and select Google Sheets.
In the Setup tab, connect to Google Sheets in the App section.
Set the Trigger Event to New Spreadsheet Row.
Select the Google account attached to your Sheet above and click Continue.
Step 3:
In the Configure tab, select your spreadsheet and worksheet from the dropdowns.
Click Continue to test the trigger.
Choose a row with an email you want to test, then click Continue with Selected Record.
Step 4:
Back in the Setup tab, select HeyGen as the app to connect.
Set the Action Event to Create a Video from Template.
Select your HeyGen account and click Continue.
Step 5:
In the Configure tab, choose the template you created in HeyGen.
For the Title, use something like Video For and add the user's first name.
Map template variables using this format:
text.variable_name.content.
Examples:
{{first_name}}→text.first_name.content{{company_name}}→text.company_name.contentClick Add Value Set to add more variables if needed.
⚠️ Important: Double-check your video template to ensure the variable names match exactly between your template and Zapier. This ensures seamless data transfer and proper video generation.
Set additional options:
Dimensions: Use the preset for simplicity.
Captions: Enable if needed.
Test Mode: Turn this on to preview the video (it will have a watermark and won’t use credits).
Callback ID: Set to the Email field associated with the video.
Choose whether to include a GIF preview and enable sharing options.
If you’ve added videos to a folder as suggested in Article One, input the folder ID (found at the end of the URL for that folder’s homepage).
Step 6:
Test your Zap!
If successful, you’ll see a message that says: "A video was sent to HeyGen about in 0 seconds" in the Zapier test tab.
Check your HeyGen homepage to see the video generating.
Hooray! 🎉 Step Two complete. Next we will create a second Zap to update your Google Sheet with the generated video links once the process is complete, then test the flow.