If/Then Branch for workflow when email reply from contact

[kapilnandakumar]

Guys,

I have a workflow where i send 5 emails. So once the email 1 is sent, i added a delay for say 3 hours and then added if/then branch (activityt type is email reply from contact). and if no then send email 2. if yes break. 

But what happens is, even if there was a reply, the workflow says Contact did not meet branch criteria, continuing on the NO branch. And all the 5 emails are sent.

What might be the problem. and how can i fix this?

[RFrary]

In case anyone else finds themselves going down this rabbit hole on a workflow, here's the relevant info from the recent update (knowledgebase article here). 

TL;DR: filter type --> marketing email --> select template --> "Contact replied to email"

Using reply data in lists and workflows

You can use reply data when setting the criteria for a contact list or when setting enrollment triggers for a workflow, by using the First Marketing email reply date, Last Marketing email reply date, or Marketing emails replied contact properties.

You can also segment contacts based on whether they replied to a specific email:

• When configuring the criteria for your list or the enrollment triggers for your workflow, select Marketing email as the filter type.
• Select a specific marketing email.
• Select Contact replied to email.
• Click Apply filter.

[rachaelshaw7]

Hi Everyone,

Spencer has submitted this idea to Hubspot.

VOTE:

https://community.hubspot.com/t5/HubSpot-Ideas/Additional-workflow-capability-unenroll-upon-email-re...

Rachael

[MFrankJohnson]

Q: Workflow not recognizing YES branch (contact replies to email).

Short A: Could be one of a couple of things.

Longer A:

-1- You're 'testing' your Workflow and the delays aren't working.

This is intended behavior in HubSpot.

-2- You're using bad criteria for your If/Then Branch.

(need to see a screenshot of that branching criteria please)

Unrelated Issue
Also, you made a comment about sending all 5 emails. Do you have a delay after each email send in your NO branch?

Finally, a cleaner solution would be to build a Smart List of contacts who reply to your email, then use that smart list as the Workflow Enrollment Trigger. This has major advantages.

a) You can 'see' the contacts that meet your criteria as they meet it and BEFORE any email sending is involved. In other words, you can rigourously test your criteria before even turning on your workflow.

b) You don't need to fuss with your workflow again once it's in production. Workflows that use complex criteria to send multiple emails to large segments of your list are prime candidates for costly mistakes. Once tested and in production these automations should be modified with extreme discretion.

Just a thought.

[kapilnandakumar]

I tried enrolling manually with single contacts. and it was not a test, so that was not the problem.  The delays are working fine. each mail gets send only after the delay.

The delay is added before the if/then criteria.

The problem is in the if/then branch.  I have attached the screenshot. Please help me out.

[MFrankJohnson · Accepted solution]

Does this post help you? If so, then help others by accepting it as a solution.

Understood @kapilnandakumar. Yes. The problem is in the branching criteria. But it goes deeper than that.

The trigger criteria you've selected, Activity - 'Activity Type', appears to be an (undocumented) Sales activity trigger.
(see image)

Here's the HubSpot KB page on which it should be documented.
- see How to choose the workflow type and enrollment triggers best suited for your goal
 

You'll notice that vast majority of 'Activity Type' Activities support the Sales function:

• Note
• Task
• Call
• Meeting
• Email sent to contact
• Email reply from contact
• Forwarded email
• Incoming email
• Publishing Task
• Project task
• Feedback Submission
• Conversation Session

(see image)

Basically, this leads us to believe they are ineligible for use as criteria against Marketing email activity.
(pending confirmation with HubSpotters -- @roisinkirby, @edjusten)

UPDATE: Confirmed by HubSpot Support (26-Jun-2018)

This means, the most revealing criteria we can use for Marketing emails is still 'Contact clicked a link in email' which can be found under the 'Marketing email activity' trigger.
Note: This criteria is highly email-specific, so ... it's not as generic as your original solution.
(see image)

Hope that helps.

[nehakirpalani]

Hi,

thank you for your solution - where can I find the 'Marketing email activity' trigger?

[kapilnandakumar]

Just one more question. So where do you think we can use the activity criteria "reply from contact" ?

[MFrankJohnson]

>>"So where do you think we can use the activity criteria "reply from contact" ?"

Sure @kapilnandakumar ...

Based on our understanding of the trigger, it should fire whenever a contact replies to a Sales email -- sent via either the CRM or a HubSpot CRM-integrated mailbox.

Other than that, it's totally useless as a Marketing email criteria.

[NJenkinsLC]

So, if you can't use it in the marketing function... why is it available? Seems counterintuitive to have functions listed/insertable when you can't use them in both sales and marketing. What's the workaround?

[kapilnandakumar]

That means it won't work in the workflows? But what if we choose an email ID that is integrated with hubspot CRM to send the emails using the workflow? will it work?

[MFrankJohnson]

>>"That means it won't work in the workflows?"

It WILL work in Workflows as you described when triggering for SALES emails sent from the CRM (not Marketing emails).

>>"But what if we choose an email ID that is integrated with hubspot CRM to send the emails using the workflow? will it work?"

No. Emails sent within Workflows are considered 'marketing emails'. Notice the section heading above the 'Send email' action button.

(see image)

- see Can I send an email to a list of contacts in the CRM?

That being said, there is currently an issue with the new Activity trigger functionality. We tested SALES email sends with HubSpot support and they're currently investigating (ticket #1144101). Will report back here once resolved.

In the meantime, we recommend using an alternative trigger criteria.

[Nomicamille]

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