How to Use Webhooks in AIWU Workflows

Introduction

Webhooks enable real-time communication between your WordPress site and external services. With AIWU, you can send data from WordPress to third-party applications and receive data from external sources to trigger automated workflows.

What you’ll learn:

• How to send data from WordPress using Send Webhook
• How to receive data from external services using Webhook Trigger
• How to configure webhooks with proper authentication and data formats

What problems do webhooks solve?

• Automatically sync data between WordPress and external tools (Google Sheets, CRMs)
• Trigger WordPress workflows from external events (form submissions, notifications)
• Create real-time integrations without complex API development

Part 1: Send Webhook – Sync Products to Google Sheets

Use Case

Scenario: When you create a new product in WordPress, automatically add it to a Google Sheets spreadsheet for inventory tracking.

Workflow steps:

1. Create a new product in WordPress
2. Send product data to Google Sheets via webhook

Step 1: Create Your Workflow

1. Go to AIWU → Workflows in your WordPress admin
2. Click “Add New Workflow”
3. Add your desired trigger (e.g., scheduled trigger, manual trigger)

Step 2: Add Create Product Action

1. Click the “+” button to add an action node
2. Select “Create Product” from WordPress Actions
3. Configure your product:
   • Product title
   • Description
   • Price
   • Categories
   • Status

This action creates variables you’ll use in the webhook:

• {{node#2.prod_id}} – Product ID
• {{node#2.prod_name}} – Product name
• {{node#2.prod_price}} – Product price
• {{node#2.prod_status}} – Product status
• {{node#2.prod_desc}} – Product description
• {{node#2.prod_categories}} – Product categories

Step 3: Add Send Webhook Action

1. Click the “+” button after Create Product
2. Select “Send Webhook” from WordPress Actions
3. Configure the webhook settings

Step 4: Configure Send Webhook

URL

Enter your Google Sheets webhook URL (from Google Apps Script):

https://script.google.com/macros/s/YOUR_SCRIPT_ID/exec

Tip: You can use variables in URLs for dynamic endpoints.

Method

Select the HTTP method:

• POST – Recommended for sending data
• GET – For simple requests
• PUT – For updates
• PATCH – For partial updates
• DELETE – For deletions

For Google Sheets: Select POST

Headers (Optional)

Add authentication or custom headers. Each header on a new line:

Header-Name: Header-Value

Examples:

x-api-key: your-api-key-here
Authorization: Bearer your-token
Content-Type: application/json

For Google Sheets: Usually not required.

Data Format

Select how to structure your data:

• JSON – Most common, works with most APIs
• XML – For legacy systems
• x-www-form-urlencoded – Standard form encoding
• form-data – For file uploads
• TEXT – Plain text
• HTML – HTML content

For Google Sheets: Select JSON

Fields

Define what data to send. Each field on a new line in format key: value.

For nested data, use forward slashes (/):

Simple example:

{{node#2.prod_id}}
{{node#2.prod_name}}
{{node#2.prod_price}}
{{node#2.prod_status}}
{{node#2.prod_desc}}
{{node#2.prod_categories}}

With nested structure:

product/id: {{node#2.prod_id}}
product/name: {{node#2.prod_name}}
product/price: {{node#2.prod_price}}
product/status: {{node#2.prod_status}}
product/description: {{node#2.prod_desc}}
product/categories: {{node#2.prod_categories}}

This creates JSON:

{
  "product": {
    "id": "123",
    "name": "Wireless Headphones",
    "price": "99.99",
    "status": "publish",
    "description": "High-quality wireless headphones",
    "categories": "Electronics, Audio"
  }
}

Step 5: Using Variables

Click the “Variables” button to browse and insert variables from previous nodes.

Available response variables (for use in next nodes):

• {{node#3.webhook_code}} – HTTP response code (200 = success)
• {{node#3.webhook_error}} – Error message if failed
• {{node#3.webhook_field[key]}} – Field values sent
• {{node#3.webhook_result[key]}} – Response data from service

Step 6: Save and Run

1. Click “Save” to save your workflow
2. Click “Run” to activate
3. Check Google Sheets to verify data was received

Part 2: Webhook Trigger – Process Customer Surveys with AI

Use Case

Scenario: When a customer submits a survey form on your website, automatically process the response with AI and send a summary to your team’s Telegram channel.

Workflow steps:

1. Webhook Trigger – Receives survey data
2. Open AI Generate Text – Analyzes the response
3. Send Message (Telegram) – Notifies your team

Step 1: Create Workflow with Webhook Trigger

1. Go to AIWU → Workflows
2. Click “Add New Workflow”
3. Name it (e.g., “Customer Survey Processor”)
4. Click “Add Trigger”
5. Select “Webhook” from Core Triggers

Step 2: Get Your Webhook URL

Important: Save the workflow first to generate the URL.

1. Click “Save” button
2. Reopen the Webhook trigger node
3. Copy the generated URL:https://yoursite.com/wp-json/aiwu/v1/webhook/{task_id}_{node_id}/

How to use:

• Give this URL to the external service that will send data
• Each workflow has a unique webhook URL
• The URL is secure and tied to this specific workflow

Step 3: Configure Webhook Settings

Method

Select which HTTP method to accept:

• POST – Recommended for receiving data
• GET – For simple requests
• PUT – For updates

For forms: Select POST

Headers (Optional – Recommended for Security)

Add authentication headers. Each on a new line:

Header-Name: Expected-Value

Example:

x-api-key: your-secret-key-123456
Authorization: Bearer your-token

How it works:

• External service must send these exact headers
• If headers don’t match, webhook is rejected
• Leave empty if no authentication needed (not recommended)

Data Format

Specify the incoming data format:

• AUTO – Automatic detection (recommended)
• JSON – Most common for APIs
• XML – Legacy systems
• x-www-form-urlencoded – HTML forms
• form-data – Multipart forms

For web forms: Select JSON or AUTO

Step 4: Understanding Webhook Variables

When webhook receives data, AIWU creates variables for use in your workflow.

Standard variables:

• {{node#1.date}} – Date received (YYYY-MM-DD)
• {{node#1.time}} – Time received (HH:MM:SS)
• {{node#1.webhook_field[key]}} – Data fields

Example: If webhook receives:

{
  "name": "John Doe",
  "email": "[email protected]",
  "feedback": "Great service!",
  "rating": 5
}

Available variables:

• {{node#1.webhook_field[name]}} = John Doe
• {{node#1.webhook_field[email]}} = [email protected]
• {{node#1.webhook_field[feedback]}} = Great service!
• {{node#1.webhook_field[rating]}} = 5

Working with Nested Data

For nested JSON:

{
  "customer": {
    "name": "John Doe",
    "address": {
      "city": "New York"
    }
  }
}

Access with:

• {{node#1.webhook_field[customer/name]}} = John Doe
• {{node#1.webhook_field[customer/address/city]}} = New York

Pattern: Use forward slashes (/) to access nested keys.

Step 5: Add AI Processing

1. Click “+” after Webhook trigger
2. Select “Open AI Generate Text”
3. Configure AI prompt with webhook variables:

Analyze this customer survey and provide insights:

Customer: {{node#1.webhook_field[name]}}
Email: {{node#1.webhook_field[email]}}
Rating: {{node#1.webhook_field[rating]}}/5
Feedback: {{node#1.webhook_field[feedback]}}

Provide:
1. Sentiment (Positive/Neutral/Negative)
2. Key themes
3. Suggested actions

This creates: {{node#2.ai_result}} – AI analysis

Step 6: Add Telegram Notification

1. Click “+” after AI action
2. Select “Send Message” from Telegram Actions
3. Configure message with variables:

New Customer Survey

Customer: {{node#1.webhook_field[name]}}
Email: {{node#1.webhook_field[email]}}
Rating: {{node#1.webhook_field[rating]}}/5

Feedback:
{{node#1.webhook_field[feedback]}}

AI Analysis:
{{node#2.ai_result}}

Received: {{node#1.date}} at {{node#1.time}}

Step 7: Activate Workflow

1. Click “Save”
2. Toggle workflow to “Active” status
3. Your webhook is now live and listening!

Security Best Practices

1. Use Header Authentication

Always configure headers in Webhook Trigger:

x-api-key: generate-a-long-random-key-here

Generate secure keys:

• Minimum 32 characters
• Mix letters, numbers, symbols
• Use a password generator

2. Use HTTPS Only

• Ensure your WordPress site uses HTTPS
• Never send sensitive data over HTTP
• Webhook URLs should start with https://

3. Validate Incoming Data

Add Condition nodes to check required fields:

If {{node#1.webhook_field[email]}} is empty
Then: Stop workflow

4. Store Credentials Securely

Never hardcode sensitive data:

Bad:

Headers: api-key: sk_live_1234567890

✓ Good:

Store in WordPress settings
Use variables: {{api_key_setting}}

Common Use Cases

Send Webhook

• Sync data to Google Sheets, Airtable
• Send notifications to Slack, Discord
• Update CRM records (HubSpot, Salesforce)
• Trigger external automations (Zapier, Make.com)
• Log events to analytics platforms

Webhook Trigger

• Process form submissions
• Receive payment notifications
• Handle survey responses
• Get updates from external systems
• Connect with third-party services

Summary

Send Webhook:

• Sends data from WordPress to external services
• Supports POST, GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE methods
• Multiple formats: JSON, XML, form-data, TEXT, HTML
• Use variables to send dynamic data

Webhook Trigger:

• Receives data from external services
• Each workflow gets unique URL (save workflow first!)
• Supports authentication via headers
• Automatically creates variables from incoming data

Key Points:

• Always use HTTPS
• Authenticate webhooks with headers
• Use JSON format when possible
• Test thoroughly before production
• Monitor workflow execution logs