HubSpot workflow notificaties die sales echt leest

Sales heeft notification fatigue en negeert je alerts.

Elke lead trigger = email. Elke deal update = email. Elke form submit = email.

Resultaat: Sales mist de belangrijke updates tussen de noise.

Zo fix je het.

Het probleem

Typical notification setup:

✉️ Lead created → Email naar sales
✉️ Lead score changed → Email naar sales
✉️ Lead visited pricing → Email naar sales
✉️ Lead opened email → Email naar sales
✉️ Lead clicked link → Email naar sales
✉️ Deal stage changed → Email naar manager
✉️ Deal amount changed → Email naar manager

Sales krijgt 50+ emails per dag van HubSpot en leest er 0.

Wat wel werkt: Notification hierarchy

Niet alle events zijn gelijk belangrijk.

Tier 1: Urgent → Instant notification (Slack + Email)
Tier 2: Important → Daily digest email
Tier 3: Nice to know → No notification, alleen log in timeline

De HubSpot setup

Stap 1: Definieer je notification tiers

Tier	Event	Notification Type	Response Time
Tier 1	Hot lead assigned Demo no-show Deal >$50k created	Slack instant +Email	<1 hour
Tier 2	Warm lead assigned Email reply Pricing page visit	Daily digest	Same day
Tier 3	Lead opened email Lead clicked link Lead score changed	Timeline only	No action needed

Principe: Als het urgent action vereist → instant. Anders: batch.

Stap 2: Workflow - Tier 1 notificaties (Urgent)

Settings → Workflows → Create workflow

Name: “Notifications - Tier 1 - Hot Leads”

Trigger: Contact property changed

Enrollment criteria:

IF Lead temperature changed to "Hot"
AND Owner is known
AND Lifecycle stage is one of: Lead, MQL, SQL
THEN Continue

Actions:

Action 1: Send Slack message (als je Slack integratie hebt)

Channel: #sales-urgent
Message:
🔥 HOT LEAD assigned to @{{contact.owner}}

{{contact.firstname}} {{contact.lastname}}
{{contact.company}} ({{contact.numberofemployees}} FTE)
{{contact.jobtitle}}

Why hot?
✓ Fit: {{contact.scoring_fit}}
✓ Intent: {{contact.scoring_intent}}  
✓ Budget: {{contact.scoring_budget}}

Last activity: {{contact.recent_conversion_event_name}}

[View in HubSpot] {{contact.record_url}}

⏰ Response SLA: 4 hours

Action 2: Send email notification

To: {{contact.owner.email}}
CC: sales-manager@bedrijf.nl (alleen voor VIP leads)
Subject: 🔥 Hot lead: {{contact.firstname}} at {{contact.company}}

Template:
Hi {{contact.owner.firstname}},

You have a new HOT lead assigned.

Contact: {{contact.firstname}} {{contact.lastname}}
Company: {{contact.company}}
Title: {{contact.jobtitle}}
Email: {{contact.email}}
Phone: {{contact.phone}}

Why this is hot:
{{contact.assignment_reason}}

Last action: {{contact.recent_conversion_event_name}}
Time: {{contact.recent_conversion_date}}

NEXT STEPS:
1. Call within 4 hours (research shows 5x higher conversion)
2. Reference their recent activity in your call
3. Book discovery call if qualified

View full profile: {{contact.record_url}}

---
This is an automated alert for hot leads only.

Action 3: Create task

Title: "URGENT: Call hot lead - {{contact.company}}"
Assigned to: {{contact.owner}}
Due date: Today + 4 hours
Priority: High
Type: Call

Description:
Hot lead needs immediate follow-up.

Talking points:
- They {{contact.recent_conversion_event_name}}
- Company size: {{contact.numberofemployees}}
- Potential: {{contact.annual_revenue}}

Stap 3: Workflow - Tier 2 notificaties (Daily digest)

Problem: Warm leads zijn belangrijk, maar niet urgent.

Solution: Daily digest om 9 AM.

Settings → Workflows → Create workflow

Name: “Notifications - Daily Digest - Warm Leads”

Trigger: Contact property changed

Enrollment criteria:

IF Lead temperature changed to "Warm"
AND Owner is known
THEN Add to list: "Warm Leads - Pending Digest"

Don’t send email yet. Just add to list.

Separate workflow for digest:

Name: “Send Daily Digest - Warm Leads”

Trigger: Scheduled (every weekday at 9:00 AM)

Actions:

Get list: "Warm Leads - Pending Digest" (created in last 24 hours)

FOR EACH owner:
  Send email with their assigned warm leads from yesterday
  
Clear list after sending

Email template:

Subject: Daily digest: {{count}} warm leads assigned

Hi {{owner.firstname}},

You have {{count}} warm leads assigned yesterday:

{{#each warm_leads}}
• {{firstname}} {{lastname}} at {{company}}
  Role: {{jobtitle}}
  Why warm: {{assignment_reason}}
  [View] {{record_url}}
{{/each}}

Recommended action:
- Review leads this morning
- Prioritize based on company size/fit
- Reach out by end of day

View all your leads: [Link to filtered view]

---
Daily digest | Manage preferences

Stap 4: Workflow - Deal alerts (Manager notifications)

Settings → Workflows → Create workflow

Name: “Notifications - Deal Milestones”

Trigger: Deal property changed

Enrollment criteria:

IF Deal stage changed to "Closed Won"
OR Deal stage changed to "Closed Lost"  
OR Deal amount changed AND new amount > $50,000
THEN Continue

IF/THEN branches:

Branch 1: Deal won

IF Deal stage = "Closed Won"
THEN
  - Send Slack to #sales-wins
  - Send email to all-sales@bedrijf.nl
  - Create celebration task for manager
  
Message:
🎉 DEAL WON!

Rep: {{deal.owner.name}}
Company: {{deal.dealname}}
Amount: ${{deal.amount}}
Close date: {{deal.closedate}}

[View deal] {{deal.record_url}}

Branch 2: Deal lost

IF Deal stage = "Closed Lost"
AND Deal amount > $25,000
THEN
  - Send email to sales manager only
  - Create task for post-mortem
  
Message:
Deal lost - Post-mortem needed

Rep: {{deal.owner.name}}
Company: {{deal.dealname}}
Amount: ${{deal.amount}}
Lost reason: {{deal.closed_lost_reason}}
Competitor: {{deal.competitor}}

Action: Schedule 15-min debrief with {{deal.owner.name}}

Branch 3: Large deal created

IF Deal amount > $50,000
AND Deal create date = today
THEN
  - Send Slack to #sales-leadership
  - CC VP Sales on notification
  
Message:
💰 Large deal created

Rep: {{deal.owner.name}}
Company: {{deal.dealname}}
Amount: ${{deal.amount}}
Stage: {{deal.dealstage}}

This requires VP approval before proposal.

Stap 5: Slack vs Email rules

Use Slack for:

• Urgent/time-sensitive (hot leads, demo no-shows)
• Team-wide celebrations (deal wins)
• Quick updates that don’t need reply

Use Email for:

• Requires action/response
• Needs to be tracked/archived
• External stakeholders (no Slack access)
• Detailed context needed

Use Both for:

• Critical alerts (hot lead + large deal)
• Escalations (SLA breach)

Use Neither for:

• Low priority updates
• Frequent events (email opens, page views)
• Internal CRM changes

Stap 6: Smart notification rules

Rule 1: Time-based suppression

IF Current time is between 6 PM - 8 AM
OR Day is Saturday OR Sunday
THEN
  - Don't send notification
  - Queue for next business day 9 AM
  
EXCEPT IF event is "Demo no-show" (always send)

Rule 2: Duplicate suppression

IF Same contact triggered notification in last 4 hours
THEN
  - Don't send new notification
  - Append to previous notification
  
Example:
Instead of:
  - Email 1: "Lead opened email"
  - Email 2: "Lead clicked link"
  - Email 3: "Lead visited pricing"
  
Send:
  - Email 1: "Lead is active: opened email, clicked link, visited pricing"

Rule 3: Owner availability check

IF Contact owner is "Out of Office"
OR Owner "Is_Available__c" = False
THEN
  - Don't notify owner
  - Notify backup owner or manager instead
  
Message: "{{owner.name}} is OOO. You're backup for this lead."

Stap 7: Notification preferences (User control)

Problem: Elke rep heeft andere preferences.

Solution: Custom user properties.

Setup → Users → Custom Properties

Property 1: notification_preference_hot_leads

• Type: Dropdown
• Values: Slack only, Email only, Both, None
• Default: Both

Property 2: notification_preference_warm_leads

• Type: Dropdown
• Values: Instant, Daily digest, Weekly digest, None
• Default: Daily digest

Property 3: notification_hours

• Type: Text
• Format: “9:00-18:00”
• Default: “9:00-17:00”

In workflows:

IF Contact owner notification_preference_hot_leads = "Slack only"
THEN Send Slack, skip email

IF Contact owner notification_preference_hot_leads = "Email only"
THEN Send email, skip Slack

IF Contact owner notification_preference_hot_leads = "None"
THEN Skip all notifications (except manager overrides)

Stap 8: Notification templates

Create library van templates:

Settings → Email → Templates → Internal Notifications folder

Template 1: Hot Lead Alert Template 2: Warm Lead Digest Template 3: Deal Won Celebration Template 4: Deal Lost Analysis Template 5: SLA Breach Warning Template 6: Demo No-Show Alert

Standardization benefits:

• Consistent formatting
• Easy to update (one place)
• Proper branding
• Mobile-friendly layout

Template best practices:

Subject: [PRIORITY] Clear action | Context

Body:
[Emoji for quick scan] HEADLINE

Key info (3-5 bullet points max)
• Bullet 1
• Bullet 2
• Bullet 3

NEXT STEP (clear action)
→ Do X within Y timeframe

[Big CTA button] "View in HubSpot"

---
Footer: Why you got this | Manage preferences

Stap 9: Monitoring notification effectiveness

Create report: “Notification Response Time”

Report type: Custom
Data source: Tasks created from workflows

Metrics:
- Time from notification sent to task completed
- % of notifications that resulted in action
- Average response time by rep

Goal: <4 hours for Tier 1, <24 hours for Tier 2

If response times are slow:

• Too many notifications (reduce Tier 1 criteria)
• Unclear actions (improve notification copy)
• Wrong channel (Slack vs email preference)

Create dashboard widget: “Notification Health”

Widget 1: Daily notification volume
- Tier 1: <10 per day (if more → criteria too broad)
- Tier 2: <50 per day
- Total: <60 per day per rep

Widget 2: Notification → Action conversion
- % of hot lead notifications that resulted in call/email
- Goal: >80%

Widget 3: Notification opt-out rate
- % of reps who disabled notifications
- If >20% → notifications are spam

Common mistakes

#1: Notifying op elke kleine change

Fout:

Workflow triggers:
- Any contact property changed → Notify owner
- Any deal property changed → Notify owner

Sales krijgt notifications voor: Email openen, link clicks, score updates die niet belangrijk zijn.

Fix: Alleen notificaties voor actionable events (hot lead, demo booked, deal won/lost).

#2: Geen context in notification

Fout:

Subject: New lead assigned
Body: You have a new lead. View in HubSpot.

Sales moet inloggen om context te zien. Te veel friction.

Fix: Include key context in notification zelf (name, company, why assigned, next action).

#3: Te lange notifications

Fout: Email met 500+ woorden over lead history, alle properties, alle activities.

TL;DR → wordt niet gelezen.

Fix:

• Max 5 bullet points
• Clear action
• Link voor details

#4: Generic subject lines

Fout: “HubSpot Notification” of “New activity in HubSpot”

Niet scannable. Wordt genegeerd.

Fix: ”🔥 Hot lead: Salesforce (500 FTE) - Call within 4h”

Specifiek, urgent, actionable.

#5: Notifications zonder SLA

Fout: “You have a hot lead” → maar geen deadline.

Sales denkt: “I’ll do it later.”

Fix: “Call within 4 hours” → clear deadline, measurable.

Advanced: Escalation workflows

Problem: Notification sent, maar sales doet niks.

Solution: Escalation logic.

Workflow: “Escalate if no response”

Trigger: Hot lead assigned (from Tier 1 notification workflow)

Wait: 4 hours

Check: Has contact been contacted?

IF Last activity date is unknown OR more than 4 hours ago
THEN
  - Send escalation to sales manager
  - Create task for manager: "Rep didn't follow up on hot lead"
  - Add note to contact: "Escalated due to no response"
  
Manager notification:
⚠️ SLA BREACH - Hot lead not contacted

Rep: {{contact.owner.name}}
Lead: {{contact.firstname}} at {{contact.company}}
Assigned: {{contact.last_assignment_date}}
Time elapsed: 4+ hours

Action: Ping {{contact.owner.name}} or reassign lead

Klaar

Je hebt nu:

• 3-tier notification hierarchy (urgent, important, FYI)
• Smart suppression rules (tijd, duplicates, availability)
• User preferences voor personalisatie
• Escalation voor missed SLAs
• Monitoring dashboard

Sales notification fatigue is weg, en response rates zijn 3x hoger.

Notifications worden gelezen en actie wordt genomen.

Volgende stap: Audit huidige notifications → categorize in tiers → disable Tier 3 → monitor response rates.