Send email notification when Google Form is filled out

[Ariel Ramos]

Hi team,

Hope you're having a good day!

I need your expertise with a setup issue. I have two team-managed Jira projects, each linked to a different Google Form. Both are set up with an automation rule to create a Jira issue when the form is submitted, and that part works great.

The problem is that Project #1 sends a beautifully formatted email notification to a distribution list every time a new issue is created (see the first screenshot).



I've dug into Jira's automation rules, notifications, and even the Google Apps Script code, but I can't find where this email is coming from. My guess is that an ex employee might have set it up with something like Zapier.

I need Project #2 to send an email with the exact same format, but when I try to configure it, the email comes out as plain text instead (see the second screenshot).

Do you know how I can set up Project #2 to send a formatted email like Project #1 does?

Thanks a lot for your help.

Best,
Ariel.

[Jerrold - Empyra]

Hi @Ariel Ramos 

The email that you received for the Project 2 request is different because the automation is configured using plain text formatting instead of HTML i think. That’s why it doesn’t mirror the table layout from the other project.

I’ve provided an HTML template (based on your Project 2 email screenshot) that you can use. To adapt it, just replace the placeholder ({{issue.customfield_XXXX}}) custom field IDs with your actual smart values or custom field ids between the <td></td> tags for each field. Then, paste the updated HTML into the “Send email” action content.

<p>Hi team,</p>

<p>A new request has been submitted on <strong>{{now.jiraDate}}</strong>. Please see below for details:</p>

<table border="1" cellpadding="6" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 700px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; border: 1px solid #ddd;">
<tr style="background-color:#f9f9f9;">
<td style="font-weight:bold; width: 220px;">Additional Information</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Business Impact</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr style="background-color:#f9f9f9;">
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Email Address</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Project Category</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr style="background-color:#f9f9f9;">
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Project Objective</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Project Title</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr style="background-color:#f9f9f9;">
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Requested Project Deadline</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Requestor</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr style="background-color:#f9f9f9;">
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Timestamp</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Workfront Link</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr style="background-color:#f9f9f9;">
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Form Responses</td>
<td>{{issue.customfield_XXXX}}</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight:bold;">Submitted At</td>
<td>{{issue.created}}</td>
</tr>
</table>

A couple of key points to check in the Send email action:

• Expand the More options at the bottom and select “Send as HTML.”

• Uncheck “Convert line breaks to HTML line breaks.”

Once this is done, the email should closely mirror the format of the first one.

If you run into difficulties, feel free to share the exact email content you’re currently using for the project 2 email — I can help refine the HTML with the correct custom field IDs for you. 

Thank you.

[Olha Yevdokymova_SaaSJet]

 Hi @Ariel Ramos 

By default, the “Send email” action in Jira Automation is pretty limited (plain text or very simple formatting). If your first project is sending a polished HTML email, it’s likely powered by a legacy Zapier setup, Apps Script, or an old integration someone built before.

Quick Fix: Improve Your Jira Automation Email

Your current automation is probably sending plain text emails. You can make them look much better by adding some simple HTML formatting:

1. Go to Project Settings → Automation in Project #2
2. Find your existing rule for form submissions
3. Edit the "Send email" action and use this template:

<h3>🎯 New Request Submitted</h3>
<p><strong>From:</strong> {{issue.reporter.displayName}}</p>
<p><strong>Subject:</strong> {{issue.summary}}</p>
<p><strong>Details:</strong><br>{{issue.description}}</p>
<p><strong>Priority:</strong> {{issue.priority.name}}</p>
<hr>
<p><a href="{{issue.url}}" style="color: #0052CC;">👉 View Ticket in Jira</a></p>

This will give you formatted emails with headers, bold text, and clickable links - much closer to what Project #1 is sending.

Better Long-term Solution: Smart Forms for Jira

Since you're dealing with external form submissions, let me suggest Smart Forms for Jira (developed by my team). This would replace your Google Forms setup entirely and give you better control:

What makes it better than Google Forms:

• Direct Jira Integration: No broken automation or missing connections
• Perfect Email Control: Create exactly the email format you want using Jira's automation
• Email notification feature for team members sens email for each new response without automation.
• Structured Data: Form responses map directly to Jira fields (no messy descriptions)
• External Sharing: Works just like Google Forms - send a link to anyone
• Attachments: Users can upload files directly to the form
• Conditional Logic: Show/hide form sections based on user responses
• Auto-save Drafts: Users won't lose their progress if they need to step away

Super Easy Setup Option:

Here's the simplest way to get started - you can map all form fields to the Description field in a clean "Field: Response" format. This means:

• Setup: Just one field mapping instead of creating multiple custom fields
• Email notifications: Use {{issue.description}} in your automation to show all form data nicely formatted
• Consistency: Same setup works across all your projects

For example, your issue description would automatically look like:

Customer Name: John Smith
Request Type: Hardware Issue
Department: Engineering
Priority: High
Details: My laptop won't start after the latest update

How the email setup would work:

1. Create your form in Smart Forms with the Description mapping
2. Set up one automation rule that works for both projects:
   • When: Issue created
   • If: Reporter equals Smart Forms for Jira
   • Then: Send your beautifully formatted email using {{issue.description}}

Example confirmation email template:

html

<h3>✅ Request Received - Ticket #{{issue.key}}</h3>
<p>Hi there,</p>
<p>Thanks for contacting us! We've received your submission with these details:</p>
<div style="background-color: #f4f5f7; padding: 15px; border-left: 4px solid #0052CC;">
{{issue.description}}
</div>
<p><strong>📋 Ticket number:</strong> {{issue.key}}<br>
<strong>⏱ Expected response:</strong> Within 24 hours</p>
<p><a href="{{issue.url}}" style="color: #0052CC;">View your ticket in Jira</a></p>

[Ariel Ramos]

Hi @Olha Yevdokymova_SaaSJet hope you're doing well!
Thanks in advance for your reply, it helped me a lot and this was sorted out :)

You are a genius!!