As a B2B marketer, you probably brainstorm new ideas to boost sales. Nurturing prospects will be an important part of your marketing efforts. But manually tracking each prospect's movements and offering them deals accordingly is time-consuming.
This is where the HubSpot automation workflow comes into play. This email automation tool helps you automate multiple internal marketing tasks. Its workflows utilize marketing emails saved for automation. HubSpot sends these emails, which you can customize from the address in the email editor.
These workflows execute via specific pre-defined triggers created for different user categories. The tool performs actions based on those triggers. HubSpot offers you to build a workflow from scratch. However, you can use its existing templates.
So, let's learn about these workflows and how to use them.
Let’s check out the differences between Hubspot automation workflows vs. Hubspot automation sequences
Features | Workflows | Sequences |
Subscription level | Accessible through professional subscriptions | Accessible through Sales/service Hub professional or Enterprise user subscription |
Types of emails | Sends marketing emails to top-of-the-funnel contacts | Sends sales emails to bottom-of-the-funnel contacts |
Available actions | Action range includes sending SMSs, marketing emails, record creation, notifications, data updates, task creation etc. | Actions range includes task creation, sending sales emails, and LinkedIn InMail. |
Enrollment | Allows contact list enrollment both automatically and manually. Ex: Form submission, contact property update, deal creation. | Enrols contact list manually only in bulk or individually. Automated enrollment is available for HubSpot Sales Enterprise Customers only. |
Conditions | Allow flexibility to define functions by allowing If/Then conditions. | No such flexibility is provided. |
Un-enrollment | Automated contact un-enrolment using impression list or goal criteria. | Un-enrolls contact only once they reply to an email, book a meeting, or manually remove. |
Performance and reporting | Different goal types are accessible to use to measure performance. | Reply rate and booking rate are accessible to use to measure performance. |
Limitations on enrollment | No maximum limit on the number of actions. | Allows up to 5 email actions. |
Limitations on actions | No major limitations. | Contact enrollment is limited depending on the HubSpot subscription level. |
There are 8 types of workflows in HubSpot:
HubSpot workflows based on contact give you a unified platform to automate emails, leverage created lists, and track them. HubSpot offers three sub-types of workflows in this category:
1. Standard or Blank workflow: A contact's certain actions trigger the workflow, such as:The workflow automates follow-up actions, such as sending a personalized email or updating the contact's profile.
2. Specific/fixed date workflow: Fulfilling starting conditions triggers the contacts in this workflow. All actions happen simultaneously following a pre-defined date and time. You can use this workflow for fixed-date events such as:
3. Contact date property workflow: Workflows focus on a contact date property. A contact stays in the workflow till the execution is scheduled for the first action related to the contact date property.
Some use cases of this workflow type are:
You can use a ticket-based workflow to perform the following actions:
The workflow auto-unenrolls the quote once it's signed to prevent sending additional emails. It looks like this:
This type of workflow is triggered when a conversation starts, such as when a customer starts a chat with a sales or support rep. The workflow can automate follow-up actions, such as sending a personalized email or assigning the conversation to a specific rep.
You can create custom feedback submission properties ideal for your business. However, HubSpot offers a few predefined feedback submission properties. Such as:
Once you reach a specific goal, this workflow triggers.
For example, when any of your leads become your customer or when you win a deal.
This type of workflow typically tracks and optimizes conversion rates and overall business performance.
Here's how this workflow works:
You can use automated HubSpot workflow functions across your four prime business departments. Let’s check them out here:
For example, when a contact fills out a form or downloads a resource, it triggers actions like sending customized emails. These emails are curated based on the contact's unique interest and interaction with your business.
HubSpot can help automate many of the repetitive tasks that sales reps perform on a daily basis. It includes lead qualification, lead routing, lead scoring, and follow-up emails. The automation helps in the following sales processes:
For example, when a prospect views a pricing page, it's clear that they are considering purchasing your product. The automation will send the prospect’s information to suitable sales reps who can encourage them to purchase. It will also start sending follow-up emails consisting of product’s exclusive details, and discount offers, etc.
You can set up your workflow based on your objectives. You just have to choose your objective like this:
Below are the top 4 HubSpot workflow examples you must check:
Collecting email addresses is equal to generating leads. Once you get the leads, you can strategically nurture them. It may eventually turn into a sale. Therefore, you need more visitors to fill in the contact form to make it happen.
Thus, you'll need to set up a welcome lead workflow to perform the following:
Then, set the workflow that does the following actions:
For example, if the life cycle score becomes SQL, assign the contact to a sales team member.
The workflows take the contacts to the marketing funnel. They enter your contacts into a nurturing program when they download your content.
For example, If a contact downloads your eBook, whitepaper, or report, the workflow will select a preset nurturing program for them. It includes sending them a relevant email series to encourage the desired action.
You can set different action series depending on the email types that your contact interacts with. You can use the following parameters while defining actions:Now, set a nurturing HubSpot automation workflow that does the following actions:
You can turn dead leads into hot ones using this workflow. Create the workflow that does the following:
When your contact fulfills a set goal, they unenroll themselves automatically from the workflow. But, sometimes, you might not be sure why an object suddenly unenrolls. Here, you should use the History tab to scan and know the reason. The practice ensures a smooth performance of workflow goals.
Often, you may encounter two or more workflows working against one another.
For example, on the one hand, one workflow may set a certain property. On the other hand, another workflow may try clearing it. The scenario will produce confusing results.
It usually happens during new contact enrollments. These contacts enroll in various workflows right after creation. You must monitor your workflow inventory regularly to see which properties work under them. Follow these steps:Build content for each customer journey stage: Awareness, Consideration, and Decision. Here's how to do it:
Awareness Stage- Attract customers through:Use HubSpot's workflow parameters to set appropriate timing for the task.
For example, you can set the workflow to send emails within a preset period defined by you. It can be under specific business days.
Planning HubSpot workflows is a crucial step in automating your business processes. Here are some important steps to follow:
Before creating a workflow, it's essential to define the purpose of the automation. It will help you determine what specific tasks you want to automate and how they will benefit your business.
For example, the purpose of a marketing automation workflow could be to nurture leads and increase conversions.
Identify your target audience. It will help you tailor your workflow to specific contacts' needs and behaviors.
For example, if you're creating a lead nurturing workflow, you'll want to segment your contacts based on their interests and pain points.
You can start mapping out the workflow steps and decision points. It involves:
For example, if a lead downloads a whitepaper, you can trigger an email workflow that sends them related content and eventually invites them to a demo.
Measuring workflow automation's success is important. It shows if the workflow is achieving its intended purpose and if it needs any adjustments.
For example, if the goal of your workflow is to increase conversions, you'll want to track conversion rates and other metrics to see if the workflow has the desired effect.
There are many business automation solutions that you can leverage. But HubSpot stands out from others with its powerful automated solutions. You get pre-built and customizable HubSpot automation workflows.
However, we understand that leveraging HubSpot tools and solutions can be overwhelming. Especially when you aren't used to it. Thus, you must connect with a business partner with in-depth HubSpot expertise. We at Revnew will help leverage HubSpot solutions to their full potential. You'll be able to build, oversee and analyze a customer-centric marketing strategy.