Architecture | Entry 8 of 11
Yes. HubSpot workflows can use information from associated records in supported enrollment criteria, filters, branches, notifications, record updates, and other workflow actions. An automation based on one contact does not always have to rely only on information stored directly on that contact.
Every HubSpot workflow has an enrolled record: the primary record moving through the automation. A workflow may be based on a contact, company, deal, ticket, custom object, subscription, payment, or another supported record type.
Nonprofit decisions, however, often depend on information stored elsewhere in the CRM. Depending on the workflow and account configuration, HubSpot may also use data from associated records such as:
Supported workflow tools can use that connected information to enroll or exclude a record, create an if/then branch, personalize an internal notification, provide a data variable, copy information, update an enrolled or associated record, or determine which communication or task should be created.
Nonprofit relationships are connected. A communication sent to one person may need to account for what has already happened across their household, employer, donations, volunteering, membership, events, or program involvement.
Without associated-record data, staff may need to:
Using associated information allows the workflow to respond to the constituent's wider relationship with the nonprofit instead of treating every record as isolated.
A nonprofit is promoting its annual fundraising event. It creates a contact-based workflow for people who have shown interest, but the standard registration reminder should not go to everyone.
The workflow checks associated event registrations, households, sponsorships, and volunteer assignments, then routes each person appropriately.
One workflow can respond differently based on the person's wider relationship with the organization.
A contact might enter a workflow when an associated donation reaches a threshold, a membership approaches renewal, a volunteer assignment is completed, or an event registration reaches a specific status.
Related information can determine which path the enrolled record follows. A workflow could create a major-gift task for a qualifying donation, send the member version of an email, suppress an appeal when the household already donated, or stop an event sequence after a cancellation.
Supported actions can use information from additional record sources. An internal notification might include the contact's name, household giving total, most relevant donation, membership renewal date, volunteer assignment, event, company, or program status.
Workflows can update supported properties on enrolled and associated records and may copy compatible values between records. The association must exist before the workflow attempts to edit the associated record.
Associated information gives staff the context behind an alert or assignment.
Maya's household has reached the major-gift threshold. Their most recent associated donation was $2,500, and their household giving total is now $12,000. Please review the household and donation records before contacting them.
One contact may have several donations, event registrations, volunteer assignments, household or company relationships, memberships, or program enrollments. Asking for “the associated donation” is not enough when several donations qualify.
The team may need to identify the most recent or largest donation, an active membership, a registration for a specific event, a volunteer assignment with a particular status, or a household with a specific association label.
Before building the workflow, decide:
Associated-record data is not automatically available in every workflow action. Availability depends on the HubSpot subscription, workflow type, enrolled and associated objects, selected action, association setup, permissions, property values, and account configuration.
Before implementation, confirm:
HubSpot currently allows up to 50 data sources in a workflow. Some sources are automatically available in certain workflows, while others must be added and filtered through the workflow's data panel. Exact options should be confirmed for the nonprofit's account.