DocuSign is a popular, powerful way to get legally binding eSignatures on documents. Instead of sending paper documents back and forth via email, FAX or Fed-X, it simplifies and speeds up the process of getting contracts and the like signed. It’s also complex.

A Zingtree decision tree can be used to qualify whether an agreement needs to be signed, or direct the signee to the proper contract. This layer on top of DocuSign makes the process even more convenient and time-saving.

This article will show you how to link a Zingtree decision tree to a DocuSign document, and pre-fill fields within the document to make the whole process more convenient. For our example, we will show how to attach an NDA (Nondisclosure Agreement) to a decision tree. A question will be asked to determine whether the agreement needs to be signed, and if so, the decision tree collects the data to insert into the agreement.

Try the Decision Tree

Requirements

You will need:

• A Zingtree account (paying or trial)
• A DocuSign Business Pro account (needs PowerForms enabled)

Setting Up DocuSign

We started by creating a Word Document as our contract, uploading it into a DocuSign Template, and creating a PowerForm. PowerForms can be launched via URL, with parameters to pre-fill certain fields.

This video shows how to create a PowerForm in DocuSign, and link it to Zingtree:

The DocuSign document has these fields:

• name
• organization
• date (today’s date)
• signature (where the eSign takes place)
• email (required for sending verifications, but not a part of the document)

The signee is called a “Placeholder” in DocuSign lingo. Our placeholder will be called Partner.

Setting up Zingtree

Our Zingtree decision tree collects information to pre-fill into the document via these Data Entry Fields:

• name
• email
• organization

Once you set up the PowerForm in DocuSign, you will get a URL to launch the form. You’ll launch this URL from Zingtree using a Link Node, and add to the URL parameters for the fields you want to pre-fill.

Example: Here’s a URL from our of our PowerForms:

https://www.docusign.net/Member/PowerFormSigning.aspx?PowerFormId=c3f2e255-9b95-4009-a0b7-0220d71fd50e&env=na1&acct=f64a9149-f23e-450d-ac42-cfab0149de68&v=2

When inserting this into a Link Node, you’ll add parameters for all of the fields you want to pre-fill in the contract. Our example adds this to the end of the URL:

&Partner_UserName=Joe%20Schmoe&Organization=ACME&Partner_Email=joe2@acme.com&activateonly=1

The DocuSign template has a placeholder called Partner, so the UserName and Emailvariables need to be prefixed with Partner_ . Organization is a custom field, so it doesn’t need a prefix.

Here’s the entire URL we use:

https://www.docusign.net/Member/PowerFormSigning.aspx?PowerFormId=07f0a98d-af2b-4434-81b5-88df314ae76d&env=na1&acct=f64a9149-f23e-450d-ac42-cfab0149de68&v=2&Partner_UserName=Joe%20Schmoe&Organization=ACME&Partner_Email=joe2@acme.com&activateonly=1

To add a Link Node:

1. Click New Node.
2. Select Link Node.
3. Enter your full URL into the Link Node, like this:

   

4. We recommend selecting Direct Link to URL.

At Zingtree, we use this system to expedite getting contracts and agreements signed.

• PDF Forms