🚀 Automating Email Image Requests with Asana + Zapier + BannerBear

#automation #nocode #api #productivity

Some companies operate multiple sub-brands under one marketing department.

Each brand has:

Its own identity
Its own templates
Its own dedicated graphic designers

But most email campaigns follow repeatable patterns — flash sales, limited-time offers, announcements.

Instead of having designers rebuild the same promo layouts every time, this system automates the repetitive production work while preserving brand control.

Built with:

Asana → request form intake
Zapier → routing + logic
BannerBear → image rendering

🧠 The Goal

This wasn’t about replacing designers.

It was about removing repetitive promo production so designers can focus on:

Campaign concepts
Brand evolution
High-impact creative
Strategic visual storytelling

Designers build the master templates once.

Automation handles recurring production.

That shift alone makes a huge difference.

🏗 How It Works

Here’s the full workflow from request to finished asset:

1️⃣ Marketing Submits a Form

The marketing team fills out a structured form inside Asana.

That form automatically creates a task in the Email Image Requests project with:

Division
Template type
Promo details
Copy
Any needed assets

Everything starts from one intake system.

2️⃣ Designer Reviews the Request

Each brand has a dedicated designer.

The assigned designer reviews the task and ensures:

Copy is correct
Template selection makes sense
Assets are attached
Everything is ready

When it’s approved, the designer moves the task to:

“Ready to Render”

3️⃣ Moving to “Ready to Render” Triggers the Zap

That section change triggers the automation.

Zapier then:

Pulls all task data
Checks the Division
Checks the Template type
Maps the task data to the correct BannerBear template

4️⃣ BannerBear Generates the Image

Zapier sends the mapped data to BannerBear.

BannerBear renders the image based on the correct brand template.

No manual design work required.

{
  "template": "V32jY9bBM6l0DBGWrl",
  "modifications": [
    {
      "name": "BG_COLOR",
      "color": null
    },
    {
      "name": "TXT_HEADLINE",
      "text": "You can change this text",
      "color": null,
      "background": null
    },
    {
      "name": "CTA_COLOR",
      "color": null
    },
    {
      "name": "TXT_CTA",
      "text": "You can change this text",
      "color": null,
      "background": null
    },
    {
      "name": "TXT_BODY",
      "text": "You can change this text",
      "color": null,
      "background": null
    },
    {
      "name": "IMG_FEATURED",
      "image_url": "https://cdn.bannerbear.com/sample_images/welcome_bear_photo.jpg"
    },
    {
      "name": "TXT_SUBHEAD",
      "text": "You can change this text",
      "color": null,
      "background": null
    },
    {
      "name": "TXT_LEGAL",
      "text": "You can change this text",
      "color": null,
      "background": null
    }
  ],
  "webhook_url": null,
  "transparent": false,
  "metadata": null
}