Frequently Asked Questions for Cadence Automations
This article answers common questions about how Cadence automations work for both standard users and Salesforce administrators.
For a high-level introduction, see Cadence Automations Feature Overview. Administrators preparing to configure the feature should also review Getting Started with Cadence Automations.
General Questions
What are Cadence automations?
Cadence automations allow Left Main to automatically manage Cadence Library enrollment based on record activity.
Depending on how your administrator configures the feature, Left Main can:
Enroll a record into a Cadence Library
Move a record from one Cadence Library to another
Stop an active cadence
Begin a new cadence after the current one finishes
Replace immediate after-hours messages with a single acknowledgement
This helps teams maintain consistent follow-up without relying on users to manually manage every cadence.
Who uses Cadence automations?
Cadence automations affect both administrators and standard users.
Administrators configure the automation rules and select which Cadence Libraries should be used.
Standard users may see cadences start, stop, or change automatically as they work with Leads, Opportunities, Contacts, Transactions, and Interested Buyers.
Do standard users need to turn anything on?
No.
Cadence automations are configured by an administrator. Once enabled, they run automatically when a record meets the configured conditions.
Standard users should continue updating records as part of their normal workflow.
Which objects support Cadence automations?
Cadence automations are available for:
Leads
Opportunities
Contacts
Transactions
Interested Buyers
The available automation options vary by object.
Are Cadence automations enabled automatically?
No.
All Cadence automations are disabled by default. An administrator chooses which automations to enable.
Why did a cadence start automatically?
A cadence may start automatically because the record met a rule configured by your administrator.
Examples include:
A new Lead was created.
A new Opportunity was created.
A Lead or Opportunity moved to Follow Up.
An appointment was scheduled.
A Contact, Transaction, or Interested Buyer record was created.
A previous Cadence Library completed and was chained to another library.
Why did my current cadence stop?
An active cadence may stop when a record reaches a status, stage, or event configured by your administrator.
Examples include:
A Lead was converted.
A Lead was marked Unqualified.
A Lead or Opportunity moved to a selected status or stage.
An appointment was scheduled and an appointment cadence replaced the current cadence.
An inbound call or message was received.
A Follow-Up automation replaced the current cadence.
Can I still add a cadence manually?
Yes, provided you have the appropriate permissions.
However, before manually adding a cadence, check whether an automation has already enrolled the record. This helps avoid duplicate or unnecessary communication.
Can I stop a cadence manually?
Yes, if your permissions allow it.
Keep in mind that another automation may enroll a new cadence later if the record meets a configured condition.
What should I do if the wrong cadence starts?
Confirm that the record contains the correct information, including fields such as:
Status
Stage
Lead Source
Reason for Selling
Appointment Date/Time
If the record information is correct but the wrong cadence was applied, contact your Salesforce administrator or Left Main Support.
System Administrators
Where do I configure Cadence automations?
Cadence automations are configured in two locations:
Cadence Setup — Organization-wide settings for supported objects
Cadence Library → Automations — Settings specific to an individual Cadence Library, including Cadence Chaining
Do I have to enable all automations?
No.
Each automation can be enabled independently. You can begin with one object or one workflow and expand over time.
What is the Cadence Automation Readiness Check?
The Cadence Automation Readiness Check scans for active Salesforce Flows that may overlap with the automation you are enabling.
The results may include:
Flow label
Flow API name
Short description
Direct link to the Flow in Salesforce Setup
You can also download or email the full report.
The check does not change or deactivate anything automatically.
Can I continue using my existing Salesforce Flows?
Yes, but avoid using a Flow and a Cadence automation for the same process.
For an overlapping process, choose one option:
Keep the Flow and leave the Cadence automation disabled, or
Deactivate the Flow and use the Cadence automation
Running both may cause duplicate enrollment, duplicate messages, or inconsistent cadence behavior.
Should I delete a Flow when replacing it?
No.
Deactivate the Flow rather than deleting it. This preserves a rollback option if you need to restore the previous configuration.
Lead Routing
How are new Leads routed into Cadence Libraries?
Administrators can create up to three routing rules based on:
Status
Lead Source
Reason for Selling
Each rule can point to a different Cadence Library.
What happens if multiple routing rules match?
Routing rules are evaluated in order.
The first matching rule is used. The remaining rules are not evaluated for enrollment.
What happens if no routing rule matches?
The default Cadence Library is applied.
Administrators should select a default library when they want unmatched Leads to receive a cadence.
Can routing rules use custom values?
Status and Lead Source options are based on the values available in the organization.
Reason for Selling uses text matching based on the configured operator and text value.
Follow-Up and Appointment Automations
What happens when a record moves to Follow Up?
When the configured Follow-Up automation runs:
The active cadence is stopped.
The selected Follow-Up Cadence Library is enrolled.
This behavior is available for Leads and Opportunities.
What happens when an Opportunity appointment is scheduled?
When the Appointment Date/Time field is populated or changed:
The active cadence is stopped.
The selected appointment Cadence Library is enrolled.
This is commonly used for appointment confirmations and reminders.
Will changing the appointment date run the automation again?
Based on the current feature behavior, the automation can run when the Appointment Date/Time field is changed, including when an appointment is rescheduled.
Administrators should make sure the selected Cadence Library supports the intended rescheduling process.
Stop Rules
What happens when a stop rule is triggered?
The active cadence is stopped when the record meets a configured condition.
Examples include:
Lead conversion
Lead Status changes
Opportunity Stage changes
Contact Status changes
Transaction Status changes
An inbound call or message is logged
Does a stop rule delete cadence history?
No.
Stopping a cadence ends the active cadence process. It does not remove the record’s previous cadence history.
How does the inbound call or message stop rule work?
For Leads, the automation watches for the Salesforce Task created by the supported CTI when an inbound call or message is received.
When the expected Task is created, the active cadence is stopped.
If this is not working, the administrator should confirm that the CTI is creating the expected Salesforce Task.
After-Hours Override
What is the After-Hours Override?
The After-Hours Override is a Lead automation that replaces cadence steps scheduled to send immediately with one selected email or SMS message when a Lead is enrolled outside configured business hours.
For example, if three cadence steps are scheduled to send immediately, the Lead receives one override message instead.
What will users see on the cadence timeline?
The replaced immediate steps appear as:
Completed with override
Does the After-Hours Override delay the entire cadence?
No.
It only replaces the steps scheduled to send immediately.
The remaining cadence steps continue according to their normal schedule.
Do the override business hours change all cadence sending hours?
No.
The After-Hours Override business days and hours apply only to the override automation.
The separate cadence batch job window continues to control other scheduled messages.
Can another after-hours Flow run at the same time?
It can, but this is not recommended.
If an existing Flow also sends an after-hours reply, the Lead may receive both messages. Administrators should keep only one after-hours communication method.
Cadence Chaining
What is Cadence Chaining?
Cadence Chaining automatically enrolls a record into another Cadence Library after every step in the current library is complete.
Common examples include:
Initial outreach followed by long-term nurture
Appointment follow-up followed by ongoing communication
Short introductory messaging followed by a longer cadence
Can the next Cadence Library be Draft or Archived?
No.
The destination Cadence Library must remain Active.
If it is Draft, Archived, or deleted, the chain is skipped.
Will I see an error if a chained library is unavailable?
No.
The chain is skipped without an error message. If the next cadence does not start, check the destination library’s status first.
Can Cadence Chaining create a loop?
It is possible to create unintended repeated enrollment if native chaining and custom Salesforce automation send records back and forth between libraries.
Administrators should review the full automation path and avoid circular handoffs.
Troubleshooting
A record was not enrolled automatically. What should I check?
Confirm that:
The automation is enabled.
The record met the trigger condition.
Required fields contain the expected values.
The selected Cadence Library is Active.
The record was not already handled by another automation.
The automation was tested using the intended record type and process.
Why was the wrong Cadence Library selected?
Check:
The order of the routing rules
Which rule matched first
The record’s Status
The record’s Lead Source
The Reason for Selling value
Whether another Flow changed one of those fields
Why is a record receiving duplicate communication?
Common causes include:
A Salesforce flow and Cadence automation performing the same action
A direct email or SMS flow running alongside a Cadence Library
An existing appointment reminder flow
An existing after-hours auto-response
Manual enrollment in addition to automatic enrollment
Why did the next chained cadence not start?
Check whether the destination Cadence Library is:
Active
Not archived
Not in Draft
Not deleted
Also confirm that every step in the previous Cadence Library completed.
Why did a cadence stop after an inbound response?
Your administrator may have enabled the inbound call or message stop rule. This is intended to prevent continued automated outreach after the Lead responds.
Best Practices
What are the recommended best practices?
Keep record information accurate so automations use the correct Status, Stage, source, and dates.
Review the active cadence before manually enrolling a record.
Enable automations gradually.
Test each automation before broad use.
Review the Cadence Automation Readiness Check.
Use one automation method for each business process.
Keep chained Cadence Libraries Active.
Deactivate overlapping Salesforce Flows rather than deleting them.
Report unexpected cadence activity to your Salesforce administrator.
Resources
Contact Customer Success: success@leftmainrei.com
Cadence Automations Feature Overview
Getting Started with Cadence Automations
Release Notes v1.615: Cadence Automations