How to Sync Basecamp Client Messages to Slack with Make

Scenarios > Create New > Add Module

Create New Make Scenario

Log into Make and create a new scenario. Click the big plus icon to add your first module. Search for Basecamp and select 'Watch Messages' as your trigger. This polls Basecamp every 2 minutes for new messages.

1. 1Click 'Create a new scenario' on the Make dashboard
2. 2Click the center plus icon to add a module
3. 3Search 'Basecamp' in the module library
4. 4Select 'Watch Messages' from the Basecamp triggers

Basecamp Module > Connection > Add

Connect Basecamp Account

Click 'Add' next to Connection and authorize Make to access your Basecamp account. You'll need admin permissions to the Basecamp account. Make will redirect you to Basecamp's authorization page where you approve access to all projects and messages.

1. 1Click 'Add' next to the Connection field
2. 2Enter your Basecamp account URL
3. 3Click 'Continue' to open Basecamp authorization
4. 4Click 'Yes, I'll allow access' in Basecamp
5. 5Return to Make when redirected

Basecamp Module > Project Settings

Configure Message Watching

Select the specific Basecamp project to monitor from the Project dropdown. Choose 'All Message Boards' unless you want to limit to specific message boards. Set the limit to 10 to avoid processing old messages on first run.

1. 1Select target project from Project dropdown
2. 2Choose 'All Message Boards' from Message Board field
3. 3Set Limit to 10 for initial testing
4. 4Leave Created After blank for immediate setup

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

Basecamp Module > Add Module > Router

Add Router Module

Click the plus icon after Basecamp module and search for Router. This lets you filter messages and send different notifications based on who posted. Internal team messages can skip Slack notifications while client messages get routed through.

1. 1Click plus icon after Basecamp module
2. 2Search for 'Router' in module library
3. 3Select 'Router' from Flow Control section
4. 4Router appears with one default route

Router > Route 1 > Filter

Set Up Client Message Filter

Click on the first router path and add a filter. Set condition to check if the message author's email domain doesn't contain your company domain. This ensures only external client messages trigger Slack notifications, not internal team discussions.

1. 1Click the wrench icon on the first route path
2. 2Click 'Set up a filter' link
3. 3Set Condition to 'Email Address'
4. 4Choose 'Does not contain' operator
5. 5Enter your company domain (e.g., 'yourcompany.com')

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

Router Path > Add Module > Slack

Add Slack Module

Click the plus after your filtered router path and add Slack 'Create a Message' module. This posts notifications to your chosen Slack channel. You'll send message content, author name, and project context to the team.

1. 1Click plus icon after filtered router path
2. 2Search 'Slack' in module library
3. 3Select 'Create a Message' action
4. 4Choose or create Slack connection

Slack Module > Connection > Add

Connect Slack Account

Click Add next to Connection and authorize Make to post messages to your Slack workspace. Make needs permission to post in channels and read channel lists. The OAuth process opens Slack where you approve workspace access.

1. 1Click 'Add' next to Connection field
2. 2Click 'Continue' to start Slack OAuth
3. 3Select your Slack workspace
4. 4Click 'Allow' to grant Make permissions
5. 5Return to Make when authorization completes

Slack Module > Message Configuration

Configure Slack Message

Select your target Slack channel from the dropdown. Build your message text using Basecamp data fields. Include message content, author name, project name, and direct link back to Basecamp. Use Slack's markdown formatting for better readability.

1. 1Select destination channel from Channel dropdown
2. 2Click in Text field to open message builder
3. 3Map Author Name from Basecamp data
4. 4Add Message Content and Project Name fields
5. 5Include permalink URL for direct access

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

Scenario Controls > Run Once

Test the Scenario

Click Run Once to test your workflow with existing Basecamp data. Make will fetch recent messages and process them through your filter. Check that only client messages reach Slack and internal team messages get filtered out.

1. 1Click 'Run once' button at bottom of scenario
2. 2Wait for execution to complete
3. 3Check execution log for processed messages
4. 4Verify Slack received expected notifications
5. 5Confirm internal messages were filtered out

Scenario Settings > Scheduling > ON

Schedule and Activate

Turn on the scenario scheduling to run every 2 minutes. This balances response time with operation usage. Save your scenario with a clear name like 'Basecamp Client Messages to Slack'. The scenario will now monitor for new client messages automatically.

1. 1Click the Scheduling toggle to ON
2. 2Confirm 2-minute interval is selected
3. 3Click 'Save' to store scenario configuration
4. 4Name scenario 'Basecamp Client Messages to Slack'
5. 5Verify green 'Active' status appears

Add smart message formatting and duplicate prevention using Make's text functions and data store. Paste this in a Text Aggregator module before Slack to clean up message content and track processed messages.

// Clean and format message content
if(contains({{content}}; "<p>"); 
  replace(replace({{content}}; "<p>"; ""); "</p>"; "\n");

// Clean and format message content
if(contains({{content}}; "<p>"); 
  replace(replace({{content}}; "<p>"; ""); "</p>"; "\n");
  {{content}}
)

// Build formatted Slack message
if({{author_email}} != "";
  formatDate({{created_at}}; "MMM DD, h:mm A") + " - " +
  "📧 *" + {{author_name}} + "* in *" + {{project_name}} + "*\n" +
  "" + substring({{cleaned_content}}; 0; 500) + "\n" +
  "<" + {{permalink_url}} + "|View in Basecamp>";
  ""
)

// Generate unique message hash for deduplication
sha256({{project_id}} + "|" + {{message_id}} + "|" + {{created_at}})