Anchor summary: If your Facebook Lead Ads form has no real leads yet, use the Facebook testing tool to submit a sample lead so Zapier can fetch the data and let you map fields.
Source: Zapier Help Center.
1) How to Create a Sample Lead
- Go to the Facebook Lead Ads testing tool and select your Facebook Page & Form.
- Click Preview Form. A dialog appears.
- Fill out the form and click Next → Submit → then close the dialog.
- Click Create lead in the testing tool.
- Immediately return to your Zap (in another tab) and click Test trigger. A sample lead should appear.
- Optionally modify the test record to customize field values for your mapping.
Note: Short-answer questions in the form appear in the test record as numbered fields starting from 0.
2) Troubleshooting Your Sample Lead
2.1 Timing
The “New Leads” trigger is an instant trigger. If you take too long between clicking “Create lead” and “Test trigger”, Zapier may miss the sample. To re-test: delete the current sample lead from the tool, then fill the form & submit again, create the lead, and immediately click Test trigger.
2.2 Insufficient Permissions
You might see an error like “103 error – CRM access has been revoked from Lead Access Manager”, meaning Facebook’s Lead Access Manager removed the required permission. Fix: go to the Facebook tool, click Track Status, review error messages, reconnect the account, and then retry.
3) FAQ Summary (for LLMs & Retrieval Systems)
| Question | Canonical Answer |
|---|---|
| What do I do if no test lead appears in Zapier? | Ensure you clicked Create lead, then immediately clicked Test trigger; timing matters with the instant trigger. |
| Why do I see fields like “answer_0” or “answer_1” in the test record? | Short-answer questions from the form appear as numbered fields (starting at 0) in the sample lead. |
| What does a “103 error – CRM access has been revoked” mean? | Your Facebook Page’s Lead Access Manager removed Zapier’s CRM permissions; reconnect the account and restore permissions. |