Send personalized job application emails with Telegram, OpenAI, and Gmail

Description

🔧 Setup Guide - Hiring Bot Workflow

📋 Prerequisites

Before importing this workflow, make sure you have:

✅ n8n Instance (cloud or self-hosted)
✅ Telegram Bot Token (from @BotFather)
✅ OpenAI API Key (with GPT-4 Vision access)
✅ Gmail Account (with OAuth setup)
✅ Google Drive (to store your resume)
✅ Redis Instance (free tier available at Redis Cloud)

🚀 Step-by-Step Setup

1️⃣ Upload Your Resume to OpenAI

First, you need to upload your resume to OpenAI's Files API:

Upload your resume to OpenAI
curl https://api.openai.com/v1/files \
-H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_OPENAI_API_KEY" \
-F purpose="assistants" \
-F file="@/path/to/your/resume.pdf"

Important: Save the file_id from the response (looks like file-xxxxxxxxxxxxx)

Alternative: Use OpenAI Playground or Python:
from openai import OpenAI
client = OpenAI(api_key="YOUR_API_KEY")

with open("resume.pdf", "rb") as file:
response = client.files.create(file=file, purpose="assistants")
print(f"File ID: {response.id}")

2️⃣ Upload Your Resume to Google Drive

Go to Google Drive
Upload your resume PDF
Right-click → "Get link" → Copy the file ID from URL
URL format: https://drive.google.com/file/d/FILE_ID_HERE/view
Example ID: 1h79U8IFtI2dp_OBtnyhdGaarWpKb9qq9

3️⃣ Create a Telegram Bot

Open Telegram and message @BotFather
Send /newbot
Choose a name and username
Save the Bot Token (looks like 123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz)
(Optional) Set bot commands:
/start - Start the bot
/help - Get help
4️⃣ Set Up Redis

Option A: Redis Cloud (Recommended - Free)
Go to Redis Cloud
Create a free account
Create a database
Note: Host, Port, Password

Option B: Local Redis
Docker
docker run -d -p 6379:6379 redis:latest

Or via package manager
sudo apt-get install redis-server

5️⃣ Import the Workflow to n8n

Open n8n
Click "+" → "Import from File"
Select Hiring_Bot_Anonymized.json
Workflow will import with placeholder values

6️⃣ Configure Credentials

A. Telegram Bot Credentials
In n8n, go to Credentials → Create New
Select "Telegram API"
Enter your Bot Token from Step 3
Test & Save

B. OpenAI API Credentials
Go to Credentials → Create New
Select "OpenAI API"
Enter your OpenAI API Key
Test & Save

C. Redis Credentials
Go to Credentials → Create New
Select "Redis"
Enter:
Host: Your Redis host
Port: 6379 (default)
Password: Your Redis password
Test & Save

D. Gmail Credentials
Go to Credentials → Create New
Select "Gmail OAuth2 API"
Follow OAuth setup flow
Authorize n8n to access Gmail
Test & Save

E. Google Drive Credentials
Go to Credentials → Create New
Select "Google Drive OAuth2 API"
Follow OAuth setup flow
Authorize n8n to access Drive
Test & Save

7️⃣ Update Node Values

A. Update OpenAI File ID in "PayloadForReply" Node

Double-click the "PayloadForReply" node
Find this line in the code:
const resumeFileId = "YOUR_OPENAI_FILE_ID_HERE";
Replace with your actual OpenAI file ID from Step 1:
const resumeFileId = "file-xxxxxxxxxxxxx";
Save the node

B. Update Google Drive File ID (Both "Download Resume" Nodes)

There are TWO nodes that need updating:

Node 1: "Download Resume"
Double-click the node
In the "File ID" field, click "Expression"
Replace YOUR_GOOGLE_DRIVE_FILE_ID with your actual ID
Update "Cached Result Name" to your resume filename
Save

Node 2: "Download Resume1" (same process)
Double-click the node
Update File ID
Update filename
Save

8️⃣ Assign Credentials to Nodes

After importing, you need to assign your credentials to each node:

Nodes that need credentials:

| Node Name | Credential Type |
|-----------|----------------|
| Telegram Trigger | Telegram API |
| Generating Reply | OpenAI API |
| Store AI Reply | Redis |
| GetValues | Redis |
| Download Resume | Google Drive OAuth2 |
| Download Resume1 | Google Drive OAuth2 |
| Schedule Email | Gmail OAuth2 |
| SendConfirmation | Telegram API |
| Send a message | Telegram API |
| Edit a text message | Telegram API |
| Send a text message | Telegram API |
| Send a chat action | Telegram API |

How to assign:
Click on each node
In the "Credentials" section, select your saved credential
Save the node

🧪 Testing the Workflow

1️⃣ Activate the Workflow
Click the "Active" toggle in the top-right
Workflow should now be listening for Telegram messages

2️⃣ Test with a Job Post
Find a job post online (LinkedIn, Indeed, etc.)
Take a screenshot
Send it to your Telegram bot
Bot should respond with:
"Analyzing job post..." (typing indicator)
Full email draft with confirmation button

3️⃣ Test Email Sending
Click "Send The Email" button
Check Gmail to verify email was sent
Check if resume was attached

🐛 Troubleshooting

Issue: "No binary image found"
Solution:** Make sure you're sending an image file, not a document

Issue: "Invalid resume file_id"
Solution:**
Check OpenAI file_id format (starts with file-)
Verify file was uploaded successfully
Make sure you updated the code in PayloadForReply node

Issue: "Failed to parse model JSON"
Solution:**
Check OpenAI API quota/limits
Verify model name is correct (gpt-5.2)
Check if image is readable

Issue: Gmail not sending
Solution:**
Re-authenticate Gmail OAuth
Check Gmail permissions
Verify "attachments" field is set to "Resume"

Issue: Redis connection failed
Solution:**
Test Redis connection in credentials
Check firewall rules
Verify host/port/password

Issue: Telegram webhook not working
Solution:**
Deactivate and reactivate workflow
Check Telegram bot token is valid
Make sure bot is not blocked

🔐 Security Best Practices

Never share your credentials - Keep API keys private
Use environment variables in n8n for sensitive data
Set up Redis password - Don't use default settings
Limit OAuth scopes - Only grant necessary permissions
Rotate API keys regularly
Monitor usage - Check for unexpected API calls

🎨 Customization Ideas

Change AI Model
In the PayloadForReply node, update:
const MODEL = "gpt-5.2"; // Change to gpt-4, claude-3-opus, etc.

Adjust Email Length
Modify the system prompt:
// From:
Email body: ~120–180 words unless INSIGHTS specify otherwise.

// To:
Email body: ~100–150 words for concise applications.

Add More Languages
Update language detection logic in the system prompt to support more languages.

Custom Job Filtering
Edit the system prompt to target specific roles:
// From:
Only pick ONE job offer to process — the one most clearly related to Data roles

// To:
Only pick ONE job offer to process — the one most clearly related to [YOUR FIELD]

Add Follow-up Reminders
Add a "Wait" node after email sends to schedule a reminder after 7 days.

📊 Workflow Structure

Telegram Input
↓
Switch (Route by type)
↓
├─ New Job Post
│ ↓
│ Send Chat Action (typing...)
│ ↓
│ PayloadForReply (Build AI request)
│ ↓
│ Generating Reply (Call OpenAI)
│ ↓
│ FormatAiReply (Parse JSON)
│ ↓
│ Store AI Reply (Redis cache)
│ ↓
│ SendConfirmation (Show preview)
│
└─ Callback (User clicked "Send")
↓
GetValues (Fetch from Redis)
↓
Format Response
↓
Download Resume (from Drive)
↓
├─ Path A: Immediate Send
│ ↓
│ Send Confirmation Message
│ ↓
│ Edit Message (update status)
│
└─ Path B: Scheduled Send
↓
Wait (10 seconds)
↓
Download Resume Again
↓
Schedule Email (Gmail)
↓
Send Success Message

💡 Tips for Best Results

High-Quality Resume: Upload a well-formatted PDF resume
Clear Screenshots: Take clear, readable job post screenshots
Use Captions: Add instructions via Telegram captions
Example: "make it more casual"
Example: "send to [email protected]"
Review Before Sending: Always read the draft before clicking send
Update Resume Regularly: Keep your Google Drive resume current
Test First: Try with a few test jobs before mass applying

🆘 Need Help?

📚 n8n Documentation
💬 n8n Community Forum
📺 n8n YouTube Channel
🤖 OpenAI Documentation
📱 Telegram Bot API Docs

📝 Checklist

Use this checklist to verify your setup:

[ ] OpenAI resume file uploaded (got file_id)
[ ] Google Drive resume uploaded (got file ID)
[ ] Telegram bot created (got bot token)
[ ] Redis instance created (got credentials)
[ ] All n8n credentials created and tested
[ ] PayloadForReply node updated with OpenAI file_id
[ ] Both Download Resume nodes updated with Drive file_id
[ ] All nodes have credentials assigned
[ ] Workflow activated
[ ] Test message sent successfully
[ ] Test email received successfully

🎉 You're all set! Start applying to jobs in 10 seconds!

Made with ❤️ and n8n