Automate Custom Presentation Creation from CSV Leads

What You Will Learn

In this guide, you will learn how to use an n8n workflow template to automatically turn new CSV or XLSX lead lists into personalized Google Slides presentations. By the end, you will understand how the workflow:

• Detects new lead files in Google Drive
• Reads and structures lead data in Google Sheets
• Creates a new presentation from a Google Slides template for each lead
• Replaces placeholders with real lead data
• Links each lead to its presentation inside a Google Sheet

This is ideal for sales teams that receive lead lists regularly and want to automate the creation of custom sales decks without manual copy-paste work.

Concept Overview: How the n8n Workflow Works

Before jumping into the step-by-step breakdown, it helps to understand the main building blocks of this n8n automation. The workflow connects three main Google services:

• Google Drive – to detect and manage incoming CSV or XLSX lead files
• Google Sheets – to store and organize lead data in a tabular format
• Google Slides – to generate and customize presentations automatically

At a high level, the workflow follows this sequence:

1. Watch a specific Google Drive folder for new lead files
2. Download the file and extract the data
3. Create a new Google Sheet and append the leads
4. Read each lead from the sheet
5. Copy a master presentation template for every lead
6. Replace placeholders in each presentation with lead-specific values
7. Store the generated presentation ID back in the sheet

Now let us walk through each part in detail so you can clearly see how the template operates inside n8n.

Step-by-Step: Inside the n8n Workflow Template

Step 1 – Detect New Lead Files in Google Drive

The workflow starts with a Google Drive Trigger node. This node is configured to:

• Watch a specific folder in your Google Drive where you or your team drop new lead files
• React whenever a new file is added

As soon as a file appears in that folder, the trigger passes information about the file into the workflow. The next logic checks the file type to ensure it is either a CSV or XLSX file, since those are the formats that contain the lead list.

Step 2 – Download and Parse Lead Data

Once a valid file is detected, the workflow uses its file ID to download the content from Google Drive. From here, the template usually splits into two branches that run in parallel:

• Create a new Google Sheet to host the lead data
• Extract the CSV data into structured rows

Create a New Google Sheet

One branch uses a Google Sheets node to create a fresh spreadsheet. The sheet:

• Is given a timestamped title so you can identify when the leads were imported
• Starts empty, ready to receive the parsed lead rows

Extract and Structure CSV Content

The other branch focuses on parsing the file data. For CSV files, the workflow:

• Reads the file content
• Splits it into rows
• Uses the first row as headers (for example, Company Name, Contact, Email, etc.)
• Builds a set of records where each row corresponds to one lead

This structured data is what will eventually be written into the Google Sheet and later used to personalize each presentation.

Step 3 – Merge Parsed Leads into the New Google Sheet

After the CSV data is parsed, the workflow brings the two branches back together. At this point, you have:

• A new, empty Google Sheet
• A collection of lead rows extracted from the CSV file

The workflow then uses a Google Sheets append operation to:

• Write the header row (if needed)
• Append all lead rows into the sheet

The result is a master list of leads stored in a dedicated Google Sheet that corresponds to the uploaded file.

Step 4 – Prepare Data and Organize Files

With the lead data safely stored, the workflow moves into the preparation phase. Here, it performs two main actions:

1. Read all lead entries from the newly created Google Sheet
2. Move the original CSV file for better organization

Read Lead Data from Google Sheets

A Google Sheets node is used to fetch all rows from the sheet. Each row includes the full set of fields for one lead, such as company name, contact name, and other details that will be inserted into the presentation.

Move the Source File to a “Lead List” Folder

To keep your Google Drive organized, the workflow then moves the original CSV (or XLSX) file into a specific folder, often named something like “Lead List”. This helps you:

• Avoid clutter in the incoming folder
• Maintain a clear archive of processed lead files

Step 5 – Duplicate the Master Presentation Template

Now that the workflow has a list of leads, it can start generating presentations. For each lead row read from the sheet, the workflow:

• Takes a master Google Slides presentation template
• Creates a copy of that template
• Renames the copy based on the lead’s data

Typically, the file name includes the company name and the current date, for example:

Acme Corp - Sales Deck - 2025-06-01

This ensures every lead gets an individual presentation file that can be easily identified and shared.

Step 6 – Personalize the Presentation Content

Once the template is copied for a specific lead, the workflow updates the content inside the slides. It does this by:

• Scanning the presentation for text placeholders
• Replacing those placeholders with values from the lead’s row

For example, if your template uses a placeholder like {COMPANYNAME}, the workflow replaces it with the actual company name from the sheet, such as Acme Corp. You can use similar placeholders for other fields, such as:

• {CONTACTNAME}
• {INDUSTRY}
• {LOCATION}

This step is what turns a generic template into a fully personalized sales presentation tailored to each lead.

Step 7 – Store the Presentation ID Back in the Lead List

To complete the loop, the workflow records information about the generated presentations back into the Google Sheet. For each lead, it:

• Takes the Google Slides file ID of the newly created presentation
• Writes that ID into the corresponding row in the sheet

This creates a direct link between each lead and its custom presentation. You or your team can later use that ID to:

• Open the presentation directly
• Share it with colleagues or prospects
• Use it in further automations or reporting

Why Use This n8n Workflow Template?

This n8n template is designed to remove repetitive manual work from your sales process. When set up with Google Drive, Sheets, and Slides, it provides several key benefits.

Time and Effort Savings

• Automated data entry from CSV or XLSX into Google Sheets
• No manual copying of lead information into presentations
• Automatic file handling and organization in Google Drive

Personalized Sales Materials at Scale

• Create tailored presentations for each lead using placeholders
• Ensure every deck reflects the lead’s company name and other key details
• Improve lead engagement with customized content

Clean and Organized Lead Management

• All lead lists are stored in structured Google Sheets
• Original CSV files are moved into a dedicated “Lead List” folder
• Each lead row contains a direct reference to its presentation

How to Start Using This Template

To implement this automated solution, you will need:

• An n8n instance (self-hosted or cloud)
• Access to Google Drive, Google Sheets, and Google Slides
• A Slides presentation template with placeholders like {COMPANYNAME}
• A dedicated folder in Google Drive where new lead files will be uploaded

Once your accounts and folders are ready, you can import the template into n8n and connect your Google credentials. Then customize:

• The Drive folder to watch
• The target “Lead List” folder
• The ID of your master Slides template
• The placeholder names that match your lead fields

Quick FAQ

Can this workflow handle both CSV and XLSX files?

Yes. The workflow checks the file type when a new file is added to the folder and only proceeds if it is a CSV or XLSX file.

Do I need to change my Google Slides template?

You need to make sure your template contains text placeholders that match the fields in your lead data, such as {COMPANYNAME}. The workflow then replaces these with real values.

Where are the generated presentations stored?

Each personalized presentation is created in Google Drive. The exact location depends on how the template is configured, and the presentation ID is saved back into the corresponding row in the Google Sheet.

What happens to the original CSV file?

After the data is processed, the workflow moves the original file to a designated “Lead List” folder in Google Drive. This keeps your incoming folder clean and maintains an archive of processed files.

Recap

This n8n workflow template gives you a complete, automated pipeline:

1. Detect new CSV or XLSX lead files in Google Drive
2. Download and parse the lead data
3. Create a new Google Sheet and append all leads
4. Organize the original file into a “Lead List” folder
5. Copy a master Google Slides template for each lead
6. Replace text placeholders with actual lead information
7. Record each presentation ID back into the lead sheet

With this setup, your sales team can go from raw lead lists to ready-to-use custom presentations in a fully automated way.

Try the n8n Template

If you are ready to streamline your sales workflow and generate customized presentations automatically, start by exploring this n8n workflow template and connecting it to your Google Drive, Sheets, and Slides.

You can review and install the template here: