How to Create Copper Tasks from Slack with n8n

api.slack.com/apps > Your App > Slash Commands > Create New Command

Create a Slack Slash Command

Go to api.slack.com/apps, open your app (or create one), and navigate to Slash Commands in the left sidebar. Click 'Create New Command'. Set the command to /copper-task, the Request URL to a placeholder for now — you'll replace it after n8n gives you a webhook URL. Set the short description to 'Create a Copper follow-up task'.

1. 1Go to api.slack.com/apps and open or create your Slack app
2. 2Click 'Slash Commands' in the left sidebar
3. 3Click the green 'Create New Command' button
4. 4Enter '/copper-task' in the Command field
5. 5Paste a placeholder URL in the Request URL field — you'll update it in Step 3
6. 6Click Save

api.slack.com/apps > Your App > OAuth & Permissions

Install the Slack App to Your Workspace

Navigate to 'OAuth & Permissions' in your Slack app settings. Under Bot Token Scopes, add commands and users:read. Scroll up and click 'Install to Workspace', then authorize it. Copy the Bot User OAuth Token — it starts with xoxb-. You'll need this in n8n.

1. 1Click 'OAuth & Permissions' in the left sidebar
2. 2Scroll to 'Bot Token Scopes' and click 'Add an OAuth Scope'
3. 3Add 'commands' and 'users:read' scopes
4. 4Click 'Install to Workspace' at the top of the page
5. 5Click Allow on the authorization screen
6. 6Copy the Bot User OAuth Token (starts with xoxb-)

n8n > New Workflow > + Add Node > Webhook

Create the n8n Workflow and Add a Webhook Trigger

Open your n8n instance and click 'New Workflow'. Add a Webhook node as the trigger. Set the HTTP Method to POST and Authentication to None (Slack signs requests with a header — you'll validate that separately). Click 'Listen for Test Event' to get the webhook URL, then copy it.

1. 1Click 'New Workflow' in the top-left of n8n
2. 2Click the + button to add a node and search for 'Webhook'
3. 3Set HTTP Method to POST
4. 4Set Path to something readable like 'copper-task'
5. 5Click 'Listen for Test Event' — n8n will display the webhook URL
6. 6Copy the webhook URL

api.slack.com/apps > Your App > Slash Commands > /copper-task > Edit

Connect the Webhook URL to Slack

Go back to api.slack.com/apps, open your Slash Command settings, and replace the placeholder Request URL with the n8n webhook URL you just copied. Save the command. Now trigger the slash command from Slack by typing '/copper-task Test follow-up with Acme' in any channel. n8n should receive the payload immediately.

1. 1Open your Slack app settings and click 'Slash Commands'
2. 2Click 'Edit' next to /copper-task
3. 3Paste the n8n webhook URL into the Request URL field
4. 4Click Save
5. 5Open Slack and type '/copper-task Test follow-up with Acme' in any channel
6. 6Press Enter to send

n8n Workflow Editor > + Add Node > Code

Parse the Slash Command Text

Add a Code node after the Webhook trigger. The slash command payload puts everything the user typed after /copper-task into the text field. You need to extract the task name, due date (if included), and any contact reference. Use a JavaScript regex to pull out an optional 'due:YYYY-MM-DD' pattern from the text, and treat the remainder as the task name.

1. 1Click the + button after the Webhook node and search for 'Code'
2. 2Set Mode to 'Run Once for All Items'
3. 3Paste the parsing logic from the Pro Tip section below
4. 4Click 'Execute Node' to test with the sample Slack payload

n8n Workflow Editor > + Add Node > HTTP Request

Look Up the Copper Contact or Lead

Add an HTTP Request node to search Copper for the contact mentioned in the Slack message. Copper's API endpoint for searching people is POST https://api.copper.com/developer_api/v1/people/search. Send the contact name (or email if your team includes it in the command) as the query. Set the headers to include X-PW-AccessToken, X-PW-Application (developer_api), and X-PW-UserEmail — all required by Copper.

1. 1Add an HTTP Request node after the Code node
2. 2Set Method to POST
3. 3Set URL to 'https://api.copper.com/developer_api/v1/people/search'
4. 4Add headers: X-PW-AccessToken (your Copper API key), X-PW-Application (developer_api), X-PW-UserEmail (your Copper account email), Content-Type (application/json)
5. 5Set Body to JSON: { "name": "{{ $json.contactName }}" }
6. 6Click Execute Node to test the search

n8n Workflow Editor > + Add Node > IF

Handle No-Match Results with an IF Node

Add an IF node to check whether the Copper search returned at least one result. Set the condition to check if the array length of the HTTP Request output is greater than 0. Wire the False branch to a Slack node that sends a direct message back to the user telling them no contact was found. Wire the True branch to continue to task creation.

1. 1Add an IF node after the HTTP Request node
2. 2Set Condition to: {{ $json.length }} > 0
3. 3On the False branch, add a Slack node set to 'Send a Direct Message'
4. 4Configure the Slack DM to message the original user_id with: 'No Copper contact found for that name. Try again with a full name or email.'
5. 5On the True branch, continue to the next step

n8n Workflow Editor > + Add Node > HTTP Request

Create the Task in Copper

Add another HTTP Request node on the True branch. This one hits Copper's task creation endpoint: POST https://api.copper.com/developer_api/v1/tasks. The body needs name, due_date (Unix timestamp in milliseconds), assignee_id, and a related resource object pointing to the Copper contact ID. Map these fields from the parsed Slack payload and the contact lookup result.

1. 1Add an HTTP Request node on the True branch of the IF node
2. 2Set Method to POST
3. 3Set URL to 'https://api.copper.com/developer_api/v1/tasks'
4. 4Use the same Copper API headers from Step 6
5. 5Set Body to JSON using the field mapping from the Field Mapping section below
6. 6Click Execute Node to create a test task

n8n Workflow Editor > + Add Node > Slack

Confirm Success Back to Slack

Add a Slack node at the end of the True branch to send a confirmation message. Post to the original channel_id with a message that includes the task name, due date, and a direct link to the Copper contact. This closes the loop so the rep knows the task was created without leaving Slack.

1. 1Add a Slack node after the Copper task creation node
2. 2Set Operation to 'Send a Message'
3. 3Set Channel to {{ $('Webhook').item.json.body.channel_id }}
4. 4Set Message to: '✅ Task created in Copper: *{{ $json.taskName }}* — due {{ $json.dueDate }}. View contact: https://app.copper.com/companies/people/{{ $json.copperContactId }}'
5. 5Add your Slack Bot Token in the credentials dropdown
6. 6Click Execute Node

n8n Workflow Editor > Active Toggle (top right)

Activate the Workflow

Click the toggle in the top-right of the n8n editor to switch the workflow from inactive to active. The webhook URL is now live and will process every /copper-task command your team sends. Test end-to-end from Slack with a real contact name and check that the task appears in Copper within 5 seconds.

1. 1Click the gray toggle in the top-right corner of the n8n workflow editor
2. 2Confirm the toggle turns green and shows 'Active'
3. 3Open Slack and type '/copper-task Follow up with Sarah Chen on proposal — due:2024-03-20'
4. 4Check Copper for the new task on Sarah Chen's contact record
5. 5Verify the Slack confirmation message appears in the channel

This Code node runs after the Webhook trigger and before the Copper API calls. It parses the raw Slack slash command text to extract the task name, optional due date, and optional contact name — then outputs clean fields for downstream nodes. Paste this into a Code node set to 'Run Once for All Items' mode.

// Paste into n8n Code node (Run Once for All Items mode)
// Parses Slack slash command text into structured Copper task fields
const items = $input.all();

// Paste into n8n Code node (Run Once for All Items mode)
// Parses Slack slash command text into structured Copper task fields

const items = $input.all();
const payload = items[0].json.body;

const rawText = payload.text || '';
const userId = payload.user_id || '';
const userName = payload.user_name || '';
const channelId = payload.channel_id || '';
const channelName = payload.channel_name || '';

// Extract optional due date in format due:YYYY-MM-DD
const dueDateMatch = rawText.match(/due:(\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2})/);
const dueDateStr = dueDateMatch ? dueDateMatch[1] : null;

// Convert due date string to Unix timestamp in SECONDS (Copper requires seconds)
let dueDateUnix = null;
if (dueDateStr) {
  const dateObj = new Date(dueDateStr + 'T00:00:00Z');
  dueDateUnix = Math.floor(dateObj.getTime() / 1000);
}

// Strip the due:YYYY-MM-DD pattern from task name and clean up whitespace
const taskName = rawText
  .replace(/due:\d{4}-\d{2}-\d{2}/gi, '')
  .replace(/--/g, '-')
  .trim()
  .replace(/\s{2,}/g, ' ');

// Normalize contact name: assume contact name appears before the first dash or 'on'
// Reps type: "Follow up with Sarah Chen on proposal" — extract "Sarah Chen"
const contactMatch = taskName.match(/with ([A-Z][a-z]+ [A-Z][a-z]+)/i);
const contactName = contactMatch
  ? contactMatch[1]
      .split(' ')
      .map(w => w.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + w.slice(1).toLowerCase())
      .join(' ')
  : null;

// Build details string for Copper task notes field
const details = `Created from #${channelName} by ${userName} via Slack slash command`;

return [
  {
    json: {
      taskName,
      dueDateUnix,
      dueDateStr,
      contactName,
      slackUserId: userId,
      slackUserName: userName,
      channelId,
      channelName,
      details,
    },
  },
];