Anyone that has ever used HubSpot has met with the workflows tool. This amazing tool allows users to automate sales and marketing efforts, as well as automate internal processes. Depending on the HubSpot package you have installed, there are different options available within the workflows tool.
But for the purpose of this article, I’m going to be explaining only the basic options of workflows and address the most common workflows tool questions that arise. Keep reading and I’m sure you will learn something new that you can incorporate in your work.
Workflow as a marketing term
Depending on the type of organization, the term workflow can have different definitions, but no matter the application, it has almost the same meaning. There are many types of workflows that are in use today, the type of workflow you use depends on the goals you are trying to achieve and the data you are working with.
In terms of marketing, the workflow is used to depict any automated process where information, tasks, contacts, and emails are set in motion via a preset set of rules. If you find this explanation confusing, maybe this will help: a workflow is a tool that helps you send emails to your leads over and over again without having to do it manually.
Seeing as HubSpot is by far the most abundant inbound marketing software today, the possibilities it offers with tools like workflows and other innovative and improved tools and service are almost unmatched. In HubSpot, workflows it is the tool that allows you to enroll and update contacts, companies, manage deals, follow quotes and emails and nurture leads.
That being said, all is not that simple. Well, it actually is, if you know what you are doing, but if you don’t that is where we come in, as we are equipped with all the necessary knowledge and experience to make this process easier for you.
Why use workflows in HubSpot?
Instead of wasting valuable time inputting stuff manually, checking emails and sending personalized emails to all your possible leads, you can have the workflows tool do this for you. This is going to save you a lot of work hours that can be used doing far better work in improving the customer experience.
Workflows will keep track on the enrolled leads and send a personalized email to all of them, keeping track on progress, did they open the email, what link they clicked, is the email correct and stuff like that. It is not just this, because the workflows tool has plenty of other options and settings.
The standard contact-based workflows are activated when the contact in the CRM meets the base conditions of the workflow; a contact can also be added and the workflow activated manually. Workflows can be linked with a fixed date, which is useful when promoting an event and these can also be set annually, so that conference you are organizing every year will get an adequate promotion.
The workflows tool in HubSpot allows you to have all your marketing eggs on one basket, which, in this case, is a good thing. You can write a single email, set it for automation, and the workflows tool will send that email to all the contacts in your list and will keep track of the actions. A great way of sending a discount coupon to your contacts on their birthday.
There are plenty of other workflows possibilities and custom properties, but there are also some common issues that many users have noted. Below I’ll address some of these, but in case you have any more questions, feel free to drop us a line.
Common workflows FAQ’s
The workflows tool in HubSpot is a great way of automating processes, getting valuable exposure and nurturing leads. Here are answers to the most common workflows tool questions that users have asked. Keep in mind that this is an abbreviated version, as if I go into details or explain all the possible issues, this article will become a lecture and it will surely bore you.
What happens to objects in a workflow when it is turned off?
If you turn off the workflow, the objects that meet the enrollment triggers will not be enrolled in the workflow. The active objects will continue to go through the workflow, but the only action that will be executed is the delay.
Infinite loop and workflow action skipping issue?
Anyone that has ever reviewed a workflow history has met the infinite loop error. This means that there is an action that is set to create a record that will meet the enrollment criteria of the same workflow. If this happens, the record will be enrolled and lead to the creation of a new record and so on, creating an infinite loop of the same records.
This is solved by HubSpot by forbidding the creation of new records in the workflow that will meet the same enrollment criteria. Instead, the new records that the workflow will create will not meet the enrollment criteria of the current workflow, effectively preventing the infinite loop problem.
Why are the workflow actions not executing at the expected time?
To prevent smothering of the workflow, the actions that need to be executed will be done in a queue, as the objects are processed, as this action that will not overwhelm the workflow. Depending on the type of workflow, in the case of Center on date or Center on date property workflow, some contacts can miss the first action. To fix this, you can enroll contacts in advance or schedule the first action with respect to the date.
Why some marketing emails are not available to be sent in workflows?
The only marketing emails that have been saved for automation can be sent in workflows. If a certain marketing email is in a draft form or has been previously sent to a list of recipients, it will not appear in the send email action selection.
As I said above, these are only a few of the more common questions that users have regarding the HubSpot workflow tool. I will not explain all of these, so you can check out the HubSpot site if any of you require more explanations.
What we learned from this
The HubSpot workflow tool is a great way to automate tedious, time-consuming tasks like sending emails or nurturing leads. But there is much more to the workflow tool, as it allows repetitive actions and the set up of differently based workflows.
Still, there will always be some issues or questions that people will ask regarding the setup, planning or executing the workflows. I’ve only addressed some of these above, but if you run into some troubles, or find problems with the workflows, you can ask our team of professionals and we’ll be happy to answer any inquiry you may have.
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