Getting Started with GoHighLevel

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Getting Started with Automatic Email and SMS Follow-Up in GoHighLevel

If you are moving from a task manager like ClickUp to a full marketing automation platform, understanding how GoHighLevel handles automatic email and SMS follow-up is essential. This guide explains, step by step, how to use follow-up campaigns so every new lead receives timely and consistent messages after filling out a form on your website or landing page.

The process is based on the official GoHighLevel help documentation and shows you how to turn simple form submissions into fully automated follow-up sequences.

What Automatic Follow-Up Does in GoHighLevel

Automatic follow-up in GoHighLevel connects your web forms to campaigns so that every new contact is added to a predefined sequence of emails and text messages.

Once configured, the system can:

  • Capture leads who submit any connected form.
  • Automatically start a campaign without manual work.
  • Send scheduled email and SMS messages to nurture those leads.
  • Ensure no inquiry is missed, even outside business hours.

This is especially powerful for agencies and businesses that need rapid response times and consistent communication.

Prerequisites Before You Start in GoHighLevel

Before setting up automatic follow-up, confirm that the following items are ready inside your GoHighLevel account:

  • A location (sub-account) where you will run the automation.
  • At least one form built and embedded on your website or funnel.
  • Working email settings (SMTP or Mailgun, etc.).
  • Working SMS settings (Twilio or another connected provider).
  • Permissions to create or edit campaigns.

Once these basics are in place, you can start connecting form submissions to campaigns.

Step 1: Create or Prepare Your Campaign in GoHighLevel

The campaign is where your automatic email and SMS follow-up lives. You need to either create a new campaign or open an existing one that will be triggered by a form submission.

  1. Log in to your GoHighLevel account and select the correct location.

  2. Navigate to the section where campaigns are managed.

  3. Create a new campaign or open one that you want to use for form-based follow-up.

  4. Give the campaign a clear name that reflects the form or funnel it is tied to, such as “Website Contact Form Follow-Up”.

Inside the campaign, you will define all the follow-up steps, including emails, SMS messages, and any delays between them.

Step 2: Add Email and SMS Steps to Your GoHighLevel Campaign

After creating the campaign, you need to add actual follow-up actions. These actions will be sent when the form is submitted.

  1. Within the campaign editor, add your first step.

  2. Choose an email action and write the message that will go out immediately or after a delay.

  3. Add an SMS action if you want text messages to go out as part of the sequence.

  4. Set delays between steps to create a multi-day or multi-touch follow-up flow.

  5. Arrange the order of steps to match your preferred lead nurturing strategy.

Make sure every message is clear, includes a call to action, and reflects the information the user provided on the form.

Step 3: Connect Your Form Submission to the GoHighLevel Campaign

The key to automatic follow-up is linking a form to your campaign so that each submission triggers the sequence.

  1. Locate the form you have created in GoHighLevel (for a website, funnel, or landing page).

  2. Open the form settings or configuration area.

  3. Find the option related to Submit Action or On Submit behavior, depending on the interface.

  4. Select the action that adds the contact to a campaign.

  5. Choose the specific campaign you created for automatic follow-up.

  6. Save your changes.

Once configured, every new form submission will create or update a contact and automatically enroll that contact in your chosen campaign.

Step 4: Test the Automatic Email and SMS Follow-Up in GoHighLevel

Before using this in a live environment, you should test the automation thoroughly.

  1. Open the page or funnel where your form is embedded.

  2. Fill out the form using a test email address and a mobile number you can access.

  3. Submit the form and confirm that you see a success message or redirect.

  4. Check the contacts section in GoHighLevel to verify that a new contact was created with the correct details.

  5. Open the campaign reporting or activity log to confirm that the contact was added to the campaign.

  6. Monitor your email inbox and SMS device to see that the follow-up messages are delivered on schedule.

If anything is missing, review the campaign steps and form settings, then run another test.

Tips for Optimizing GoHighLevel Automatic Follow-Up

To get better results from your GoHighLevel automatic email and SMS workflows, consider the following best practices:

  • Personalize messages: Use merge fields (like first name) to make emails and texts feel more human.
  • Set realistic timing: Send the first message quickly, then space out subsequent follow-ups over days.
  • Use clear calls to action: Always tell the lead what to do next (book a call, reply, confirm, etc.).
  • Monitor performance: Review open rates, click rates, and reply rates to refine your sequences.
  • Keep compliance in mind: Ensure you have proper consent for SMS and email marketing in your region.

Troubleshooting Automatic Follow-Up in GoHighLevel

If your automatic follow-up is not working as expected, check these common issues:

  • Form not connected: Confirm the form’s submit action is set to add contacts to the correct campaign.
  • Incorrect campaign: Verify that you selected the right campaign in the form settings.
  • Email/SMS provider: Ensure that your email and SMS providers are integrated and active in GoHighLevel.
  • Message schedule: Check that delays are not set too long if you expect immediate messages.
  • Contact details: Make sure the test contact has a valid email and phone number.

For a deeper walkthrough and screenshots, you can refer to the official documentation at this GoHighLevel help page.

Using GoHighLevel with Other Marketing Systems

Many companies use GoHighLevel as the central automation hub while managing strategy or project tasks in other tools. For example, agencies may plan campaigns in a workspace tool and then implement all the lead follow-up logic inside GoHighLevel.

To learn more about broader digital strategies and automation setups, you can explore the resources and services offered by Consultevo, which focuses on marketing systems and implementation.

Next Steps with GoHighLevel Automatic Follow-Up

Once your first automatic email and SMS follow-up sequence is working, you can expand your GoHighLevel setup by:

  • Adding different campaigns for specific forms or funnels.
  • Creating separate follow-up paths for new leads, existing customers, and reactivation lists.
  • Incorporating additional actions, such as task creation or internal notifications.
  • Refining your messages based on lead behavior and engagement.

By connecting every form to a well-structured campaign, you turn GoHighLevel into a reliable system that responds instantly to new leads and maintains consistent communication without manual effort.

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