Backstory automatically creates activities and populates fields on Salesforce Task and Event objects, capturing your team's emails and meetings without manual data entry. By default, Backstory populates the TaskSubtype and EventSubtype fields, which use standard, non-editable Salesforce picklist values. If your organization also needs to populate the editable Task.Type and Event.Type fields, Backstory provides two options: enabling a dedicated setting through your Customer Success Manager, or setting up Workflow Rules directly in Salesforce.

What This Article Covers

Requesting Type field population through Backstory support
Creating a Workflow Rule in Salesforce
Updating historical activities created by Backstory
Frequently asked questions

Request Field Population Through Backstory

Backstory can be configured to automatically populate Task.Type and Event.Type fields when syncing activities to Salesforce. This option provides consistent Type field population without requiring you to manage Workflow Rules.

Email support@backstory.ai or contact your Customer Success Manager to request the Type field population feature.
Once your support team confirms the setting is enabled, Backstory will automatically populate Task.Type and Event.Type fields for all new synced activities.

Create a Workflow Rule in Salesforce

If your organization prefers to manage Type field population directly in Salesforce, you can use Workflow Rules to automatically set Task.Type and Event.Type whenever Backstory creates an activity. You will need to create a separate Workflow Rule for the Task object and the Event object.

Prerequisites: You must have Salesforce Administrator permissions or equivalent access in Salesforce to complete these steps.

Log into Salesforce.
Go to Setup > Build > Create > Workflow & Approvals > Workflow Rules.
Click New Rule.
Select Task or Event as the Object and click Next.
Enter a name in the Rule Name field and optionally add a description.
Set Evaluation Criteria to Evaluate the rule when a record is created, and any time it's edited to subsequently meet criteria.
Set Rule Criteria to Run this rule if the following criteria are met.
Set the Rule Criteria fields based on the object you selected:
- For Task: Set Created By Backstory to True and Task Subtype to Email.
- For Event: Set Created By Backstory to True and Event Subtype to Event.
Click Save & Next.
Click New Field Update under Workflow Action.
Enter a name, set Field to Update to Type, and select the appropriate picklist value. The default value is Email for Task and Meeting for Event, unless your administrator has defined custom picklist values.
Click Save.
Click Activate to activate the Workflow Rule.

To confirm the rules are working correctly, create a Salesforce Activity Report filtered by "Created By Backstory equals True" and include the Subject, Activity Type, Task Subtype, and Event Subtype fields.

Update Historical Activities

Workflow Rules only apply to activities created or edited after the rule is activated. To update activities that Backstory synced before the rule was in place, use API Workbench or a mass update tool available on Salesforce AppExchange.

Open API Workbench or your preferred mass update tool.
Run the following SOQL query to find Tasks that need updating: SELECT count() FROM Task WHERE peopleai__Created_by_PeopleAI__c = TRUE AND TaskSubtype = 'Email' AND Type != 'Email'
Run the following SOQL query to find Events that need updating: SELECT count() FROM Event WHERE peopleai__Created_by_PeopleAI__c = TRUE AND EventSubtype = 'Event' AND Type != 'Meeting'
Use the query results to update the Type field in bulk using your chosen tool.

Note: Replace "Email" and "Meeting" with the correct picklist values if your organization uses custom values for Task.Type and Event.Type.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between TaskSubtype and Task.Type fields?

TaskSubtype and EventSubtype are standard, non-editable Salesforce picklist fields that Backstory populates by default. Task.Type and Event.Type are editable picklist fields that your Salesforce administrator can customize with values specific to your organization.

Will my Workflow Rules apply to activities that Backstory already synced?

No. Workflow Rules only apply to new or edited activities created after the rule is activated. To update historical activities, use API Workbench or a mass update tool and run the SOQL queries provided in this article.

What Salesforce configurations might be affected when switching from SubType to Type fields?

Changing the field used for activity type can affect validation rules, triggers, and reports or dashboards that reference the SubType fields. Review and update those configurations before making the switch.

Can I use both Workflow Rules and the Backstory Type field setting at the same time?

This is not recommended, as using both methods simultaneously may result in duplicate or conflicting field values. Contact your Customer Success Manager to determine the best approach for your organization.

How do I verify that my Workflow Rule is working correctly?

Create a Salesforce Activity Report filtered by "Created By Backstory equals True" and include the Subject, Activity Type, Task Subtype, and Event Subtype fields. Review the results to confirm that the Type field is populated as expected.