How to Convert Slack Messages to Asana Tasks with Make

Make Dashboard > Scenarios > Create a new scenario

Create a new scenario in Make

Log into Make at make.com and click the blue 'Create a new scenario' button in the top right of the Scenarios dashboard. You'll land on the visual canvas with a single empty circle in the center — that's your trigger slot. Click it to open the app search panel. Type 'Slack' and select it from the list.

1. 1Log in at make.com and go to the Scenarios section in the left sidebar
2. 2Click the blue 'Create a new scenario' button in the top right
3. 3Click the large empty circle on the canvas
4. 4Type 'Slack' in the app search box and select 'Slack'

Scenario Canvas > Slack > Watch Reactions

Configure the Slack 'Watch Reactions' trigger

Select 'Watch Reactions' as your trigger — this fires every time any user adds an emoji reaction to a message. In the trigger configuration panel, connect your Slack workspace by clicking 'Add' next to the Connection field and authorizing Make via OAuth. Set the Channel field to the specific Slack channel you want to monitor (e.g. #product-feedback). Leave 'Reaction Name' blank to catch all reactions, or type a specific emoji name like 'white_check_mark' to filter for only ✅ reactions.

1. 1Select 'Watch Reactions' from the Slack trigger list
2. 2Click 'Add' next to the Connection field and authorize Make with your Slack workspace
3. 3In the Channel field, click the dropdown and select your target channel (e.g. #product-feedback)
4. 4In the Reaction Name field, type 'white_check_mark' to filter for ✅ only
5. 5Click OK to save the trigger configuration

Scenario Canvas > + > Slack > Get a Message

Fetch the original Slack message content

The 'Watch Reactions' trigger gives you the reaction data and a reference to the message, but it does not include the full message text. Add a second Slack module to retrieve the message. Click the '+' icon after the trigger module. Search for Slack again and choose 'Get a Message'. This module calls the conversations.history API to pull the full text of the reacted-to message.

1. 1Click the '+' circle to the right of the Watch Reactions module
2. 2Search 'Slack' and select 'Get a Message'
3. 3In the Channel ID field, map the channel ID from the trigger output: click in the field and select 'Channel ID' from the trigger's data panel
4. 4In the Message TS field, map 'Message Timestamp' from the trigger output
5. 5Click OK to save

📬 New entry: {{1.name}}
Email: {{1.email}}
Details: {{1.description}}

Scenario Canvas > + > Slack > Get a User

Resolve the Slack user ID to a display name

The 'Get a Message' module returns a user ID like 'U04AB12CD', not a readable name. Add a 'Get a User' Slack module to resolve this to a display name you can pass to Asana as the task context. This keeps the Asana task readable without requiring the assignee to cross-reference Slack IDs.

1. 1Click '+' after the 'Get a Message' module
2. 2Search 'Slack' and select 'Get a User'
3. 3In the User ID field, map the 'User' (sender ID) from the 'Get a Message' output
4. 4Click OK to save

This formula goes in the Name field of Make's 'Create a Task' Asana module. It trims the message to 80 characters, capitalizes the first letter, and appends the sender and channel so every task name is scannable. Click the fx icon in the Name field and paste this — do not type it as plain text or Make will treat it as a literal string.

{{-- Paste in: Asana > Create a Task > Name field (via fx formula editor) --}}
concat(
  '[',

{{-- Paste in: Asana > Create a Task > Name field (via fx formula editor) --}}
concat(
  '[',
  {{3.channel.name}},
  '] ',
  if(
    greater(length({{2.text}}), 80),
    concat(
      substring(
        {{2.text}},
        0,
        80
      ),
      '...'
    ),
    {{2.text}}
  ),
  ' — via ',
  {{4.real_name}}
)

{{-- For the Due Date field, use this to set a 3-business-day deadline --}}
formatDate(
  addDays(now, 3),
  'YYYY-MM-DD'
)

Scenario Canvas > + > Flow Control > Router

Add a Router to handle edge cases

Not every reacted-to message will have actionable text — some might be images, bot messages, or thread replies you don't want as tasks. Add a Router module after 'Get a User' to branch logic. One path handles valid text messages. A second path can log or ignore everything else. Click the wrench icon on the Router to add filter conditions to each path.

1. 1Click '+' after the 'Get a User' module
2. 2Search 'Flow Control' and select 'Router'
3. 3Click the first route line coming out of the Router and click 'Set up a filter'
4. 4Set the condition: 'Text' (from Get a Message) 'exists' — this ensures only messages with actual text proceed
5. 5Label this route 'Has Text' and click OK

Scenario Canvas > Asana Module > Name Field > Formulas

Build the Asana task name with a text formula

Before adding the Asana module, use Make's built-in tools to construct a clean task name. You'll do this directly inside the Asana module's Name field using Make's formula syntax. A good format is: '[Channel] Message from [Real Name]: [first 80 chars of text]'. This gives Asana task names enough context without being overwhelming. Make formulas run inline — no separate module needed.

1. 1Click '+' on the first Router branch (the 'Has Text' path)
2. 2Search 'Asana' and select 'Create a Task'
3. 3In the Name field, click the formula icon (looks like 'fx')
4. 4Enter the formula: concat('[', {{3.channel.name}}, '] ', substring({{2.text}}, 0, 80), ' — via ', {{4.real_name}})
5. 5Verify the preview shows a readable task name in the formula editor

Scenario Canvas > Asana > Create a Task

Configure the Asana 'Create a Task' module

With the Asana module open, connect your Asana account via OAuth by clicking 'Add' next to the Connection field. Select the Workspace and the target Project from the dropdowns — Make will load these from your Asana account. Fill in the remaining fields: set Notes to the full message text, set the Due Date if your team uses one (you can leave it blank), and paste the Slack message permalink into the External URL field so anyone viewing the task can jump back to the original Slack thread.

1. 1Click 'Add' next to Connection and authorize Asana via OAuth
2. 2Select your Workspace from the dropdown (e.g. 'Acme Corp')
3. 3Select the target Project (e.g. 'Product Requests')
4. 4In the Name field, confirm the formula from Step 6 is populated
5. 5In the Notes field, map the full 'Text' output from the 'Get a Message' module
6. 6In the External URL field, map the 'Permalink' from the 'Get a Message' module

Scenario Canvas > + > Asana > Add a Comment to a Task

Add a comment to the Asana task with full Slack context

After the task is created, add an 'Add a Comment to a Task' Asana module to attach structured context. This is where you include the channel name, the reactor's name (the person who added the emoji), and the original message timestamp. Linking back to the exact Slack message saves the assignee from hunting through channel history later.

1. 1Click '+' after the 'Create a Task' module
2. 2Search 'Asana' and select 'Add a Comment to a Task'
3. 3In the Task ID field, map the 'ID' from the 'Create a Task' output (this is the newly created task's GID)
4. 4In the Text field, type your comment template — e.g. 'Flagged in #{{3.channel.name}} by {{triggerUser}} on {{formatDate(1.event_ts, 'MMMM D, YYYY')}}. Original message: {{permalink}}'
5. 5Click OK to save

Scenario Canvas > Clock Icon > Scheduling > Immediately

Set the scenario schedule to 'Immediately'

Make scenarios using instant triggers (like Slack's Watch Reactions) must be set to run immediately — not on a schedule. Click the clock icon at the bottom left of the scenario canvas and confirm the scheduling is set to 'Immediately'. If it defaults to a polling interval (like every 15 minutes), your scenario will not fire in real time. Save the scenario using the disk icon before activating.

1. 1Click the clock icon at the bottom left of the canvas
2. 2In the scheduling modal, select 'Immediately'
3. 3Click Save
4. 4Click the disk icon (Save scenario) in the top right

Scenario Canvas > Run Once > Test in Slack

Run a live test with a real Slack reaction

Click 'Run once' at the bottom of the canvas — this puts Make in listening mode for one scenario run. Go to your Slack workspace, find a message in the configured channel, and react to it with your configured emoji (✅). Watch the Make canvas — each module will show a bubble with the number of records processed. Green bubbles mean success. Click any bubble to inspect the exact data passed through that module.

1. 1Click 'Run once' at the bottom of the Make canvas
2. 2Switch to your Slack workspace
3. 3Find a text message in your configured channel (e.g. #product-feedback)
4. 4React to it with the ✅ emoji
5. 5Switch back to Make and watch the module bubbles light up

Scenario Canvas > Toggle > ON

Activate the scenario

Once the test passes, flip the toggle in the bottom left of the canvas from OFF to ON. The scenario is now live and will fire automatically every time someone reacts with ✅ in your configured channel. Make will show you the scenario's run history in the Activity tab — check it after your first real-world trigger to confirm everything is working without manual intervention.

1. 1Click the OFF/ON toggle in the bottom left of the canvas
2. 2Confirm the toggle turns blue and reads 'ON'
3. 3Click the 'Activity' tab in the top menu to see run history
4. 4After your first real reaction in Slack, check Activity to confirm a successful run