How to Create Workflows from Scratch in Hubspot

Building automated workflows in Hubspot is one of the most effective ways to scale your marketing, sales, and service processes. This guide walks you step by step through creating workflows from scratch so you can automate tasks, nurture leads, and keep your database clean and up to date.

The instructions below are based on HubSpot’s native workflow tools and cover contact, company, deal, ticket, and quote workflows, as well as more advanced options such as custom object and conversation-based workflows.

Before You Start in Hubspot

Before creating a new workflow in Hubspot, confirm that your user account has permission to access and edit workflows. You should also clarify the goal of your automation and which type of object (contacts, companies, deals, tickets, quotes, or custom objects) it will affect.

Common use cases include:

• Automated lead nurturing email sequences
• Lifecycle stage and owner assignment
• Deal and ticket routing
• Internal notifications and task creation
• Data hygiene and property management

If you need expert help planning your automation strategy, a specialist agency such as Consultevo can help you design workflows aligned with your revenue operations.

How to Create a New Workflow in Hubspot

Follow these steps to build a workflow from scratch using the workflow builder in your Hubspot account.

Step 1: Navigate to the Workflows Tool

1. Sign in to your Hubspot account.
2. In the main navigation bar, go to Automation > Workflows.
3. You will land on the workflows dashboard, where you can view existing workflows and create new ones.

Step 2: Choose to Create a Workflow from Scratch

1. In the upper right corner, click Create workflow.
2. If a panel with recommended templates appears, switch to the option to create a workflow from scratch so that you can fully control your configuration.

Step 3: Select a Workflow Type in Hubspot

Next, choose what your workflow will be based on. The available types depend on your subscription level, but typically include:

• Contact-based workflows – automate marketing and lead nurturing around contacts.
• Company-based workflows – manage account-level processes.
• Deal-based workflows – support sales pipeline management.
• Ticket-based workflows – automate service and support operations.
• Quote-based workflows – handle quote approvals and follow-up.
• Custom object-based workflows – automate around custom records you have created.
• Conversation-based workflows – trigger automation from conversations in the inbox.

Select the object that aligns with your process. For example, if you want to send onboarding emails to new leads, choose a contact-based workflow. If you want to automatically move deals between stages, choose a deal-based workflow.

Step 4: Choose a Workflow Template (Optional)

Hubspot provides starter templates for common use cases such as lead rotation, deal creation, or ticket follow-up. You can:

• Start from a blank workflow.
• Use a recommended template and then customize it.

If you select a template, review all included triggers and actions and adjust them to match your properties, pipelines, and communication strategy.

Configuring Enrollment Triggers in Hubspot

Enrollment triggers determine who or what enters your workflow and when. In Hubspot, you can start your workflow in multiple ways.

Common Enrollment Trigger Options

• Property-based criteria – for example, form submissions, lifecycle stage, deal stage, ticket status, or custom properties.
• List membership – when contacts join a specific active list.
• Associated records – for instance, a deal associated with a specific company type.
• Date-based triggers – on a specific date or a date property (such as a renewal date).
• Conversation events – such as when a conversation is created or closed in the inbox.

To configure enrollment:

1. Click Set enrollment triggers at the top of the workflow editor.
2. Use the filters to define the conditions that must be met for a record to enroll.
3. Save your triggers when finished.

You can leave the triggers empty if you intend to enroll records manually or from other tools within Hubspot, but most automated use cases rely on well-defined enrollment rules.

Managing Re-enrollment in Hubspot Workflows

Re-enrollment controls whether a record can enter the same workflow more than once. This is vital for recurring processes such as renewal reminders or periodic lifecycle campaigns.

To configure re-enrollment:

1. In the enrollment trigger panel, locate the re-enrollment options.
2. Enable re-enrollment if appropriate and specify which conditions allow it.
3. Save your settings to apply the changes.

Be careful: enabling broad re-enrollment can cause contacts or deals to re-enter a workflow more often than you intended. Always review how properties are updated over time.

Adding Actions to Your Hubspot Workflow

Actions define what your workflow does once a record is enrolled. The workflow editor in Hubspot uses a visual canvas where you add and arrange these steps.

Step 1: Add the First Action

1. In the workflow editor, click the + icon below the enrollment trigger.
2. Choose an action type from the panel that appears.

Common action types include:

• Send email – send automated marketing or internal emails.
• Create task – assign follow-up tasks to team members.
• Set property value – update contact, company, deal, ticket, or custom object properties.
• Rotate record owner – distribute leads or tickets among reps.
• Manage deals or tickets – create or move records in pipelines.
• Branch logic – if/then branches based on conditions.

Step 2: Configure Each Action

After selecting an action, configure its details carefully:

• For emails, choose an existing automated email or create a new one.
• For tasks, set the title, owner, due date, and priority.
• For property updates, pick the property and the new value.
• For branches, define the criteria for each branch path.

Repeat this process, adding additional actions and logic to build your full automation sequence.

Step 3: Add Delays in Hubspot Workflows

Delays pause records between actions, allowing you to control timing. For example, you might wait two days between emails in a nurturing series.

1. Click the + icon where you want the delay.
2. Select Delay from the list of actions.
3. Choose the delay type, such as a set number of days or until a specific day and time.
4. Save the delay action.

Using delays strategically ensures your automation feels timely and human rather than overwhelming.

Reviewing and Turning On Your Hubspot Workflow

Once your actions, branches, and delays are configured, review the workflow in the Hubspot editor to confirm that every path leads to a logical end and that no actions conflict with other automations.

Final Review Checklist

• Confirm the correct workflow type and object are selected.
• Verify enrollment and re-enrollment settings.
• Check that all emails are published and associated with the workflow.
• Review branches and delays for accuracy.
• Ensure property updates will not overwrite important data unintentionally.

Activating the Workflow

1. At the top right of the editor, click Review and publish or the toggle to turn the workflow on (label varies by interface version).
2. Decide whether to enroll existing records that meet the trigger criteria or only new records going forward.
3. Confirm and activate the workflow.

After activation, monitor performance metrics such as enrollments, email engagement, task completion rates, and any key properties the workflow updates.

Where to Learn More About Hubspot Workflows

For a deeper technical reference on everything covered here, including up-to-date interface changes and advanced options, consult the official documentation for creating workflows from scratch at HubSpot’s knowledge base.

With a clear strategy and careful configuration, this workflow builder enables you to automate complex processes across your entire revenue engine, maximizing the value you get from Hubspot while ensuring a consistent experience for your contacts, companies, and internal teams.

Need Help With Hubspot?

If you want expert help building, automating, or scaling your Hubspot , work with ConsultEvo, a team who has a decade of Hubspot experience.

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