Can't Add or Subtract Dates in HubSpot? A Trick to Calculate Dates (e.g., 3 Business Days Later) & Update Properties in Workflows

First, let's organize what you "can do" and "cannot do" with HubSpot's standard workflow features.

What You Can Do (Standard Features)

• Use as Triggers: Settings like starting a workflow when it is "30 days before the contract end date" are possible.
• Delay Steps: Settings like "delay until the date property value" are also possible.

What You Cannot Do (Limits of Standard Features)

• Calculation and Saving of Dates: Standard actions cannot perform calculation processes and value updates, such as taking a property value like "Contract Start Date," adding "+365 days," and automatically inputting it into a "Contract End Date" property.
• Business Day-Based Calculation: Calculations like "3 business days later excluding weekends and holidays" are even more difficult and impossible with standard features.

For example, if you wanted to add "7 days" to the "Last Contact Date" and automatically input it into "Next Follow-up Scheduled Date," you standardly had no choice but to input it manually or write complex custom code (requiring Operations Hub Professional or higher).

2. Why Do Users Want to "Add/Subtract and Adjust Dates"?

Why is there such a high need to "calculate and save values to properties" rather than just using date triggers? There are three main reasons.

Reason ①: Complete Automation of Operations (Elimination of Input Errors)

Having humans look at a calendar and calculate "Um, 30 days from today is..." to input a date is a breeding ground for mistakes. For dates that are automatically determined once a starting date is fixed, such as subscription renewal dates or delivery scheduled dates, it is best for the system to calculate and input them automatically.

Reason ②: Utilization for Sorting and Filtering

Sometimes you want to hold specific date data like "Renewal Notice Scheduled Date" rather than just a trigger saying "notify 30 days before renewal."By doing so, creating lists or displaying reports like "List of customers to send renewal notices to this month" or "List of customers to follow up with next week" becomes easy, preventing omissions in sales activities.

Reason ③: Normalization of Data Linked with Other Tools

When you need to adjust the date format of data imported from external systems or generate and pass a "future date" to link and sync date data with external calendars like Google Calendar, a function that can process (calculate) data within HubSpot becomes indispensable.

3. Specific Use Cases

Here are three specific use cases on how utilizing the "Date Calculation Action" introduced here can improve your operations.This includes practical examples directly linked to actual work, such as automating workflows to automatically arrange "Meeting" schedules or send reminders based on "Contact" registration information managed in HubSpot CRM.

Case A: Automatic Setting of Next Action Date

The moment inside sales makes a call and inputs the result "Could not connect" (or the call status changes), the workflow activates.It adds "+3 days" to "Today's Date" and automatically sets the date in the "Next Call Scheduled Date" property. This eliminates the need for the representative to think about the next schedule every time.

Case B: Subscription & Contract Renewal Management

When "Contract Start Date" is input, it automatically calculates "+365 days" and inputs it into "Contract End Date." Furthermore, it calculates "-30 days (30 days before the end date)" and inputs it into "Renewal Notice Send Date."Since important milestones in contract management are all filled automatically, management costs are drastically reduced.

Case C: Delivery & Deadline Management (Business Day Calculation)

It calculates "5 business days later excluding weekends" from the "Order Date" and automatically sets it as the "Scheduled Shipment Date."Calculations that consider business days are essential features in logistics and service provision fields. Automating this improves the speed and accuracy of delivery date responses to customers.

Deal-Based Workflow Settings

To maximize the use of HubSpot's workflow features, automation settings based on the "Deal" object are essential. Using deal-based workflows significantly advances the efficiency of sales processes and deal management.

For example, it is possible to automatically execute various actions based on properties such as the deal's "Create Date" or "Close Date." Simply by selecting "Deal" on the HubSpot workflow settings screen and specifying the target property, you can realize automation according to deal progress and status.

As a specific setting method, first select "Deal-based" when creating a workflow, and set trigger conditions based on deal properties, such as "When Close Date is known" or "X days after Deal Create Date." Then, add necessary actions such as sending notifications, updating properties, or automatically creating tasks.

Using this function, you can easily realize automation such as "Automatically send a follow-up email 7 days after the Close Date" or "Send a reminder to the representative at regular intervals starting from the Deal Create Date." HubSpot's deal-based workflows contribute greatly to preventing omissions in sales activities and improving the quality of customer support.

Creating workflows and actions utilizing deal properties strengthens HubSpot's CRM functions and supports daily operational efficiency. If you aim to automate deal progress management or customer follow-ups, please try utilizing this function.

4. So, How Can You Achieve This?

To break through the walls of HubSpot's standard features, the third-party app "Date Add/Subtract Action" was developed.

Installing this app adds a dedicated action to "Add/Subtract Dates" to your workflow action selection screen.

Setup is Surprisingly Simple

There is no need to write complex code. Setup is complete with the following steps.

1. Add Action: Place the "Date Add/Subtract Action" at the timing you want to calculate within the workflow.
2. Set Base Date and Formula:
   • Base Date Property: Choose the date to be the basis of the calculation (e.g., Contract Start Date, Today's Date, etc.).
   • Calculation: Choose either "Add" or "Subtract."
   • Value and Unit: Specify how many Days, Weeks, Months, etc.
   • Business Day Option: Check options like "Exclude weekends (Business Days)" if necessary.
3. Specify Save Destination: Specify which property to save the calculated date result to (e.g., Next Scheduled Date).

Just with this, accurately calculated dates will be automatically input into properties every time the workflow runs.

5. Filling the Last One Mile of Automation

"If only I could calculate dates here, it would be fully automated..."

For HubSpot administrators who have felt this frustration, this "Date Add/Subtract Action" is exactly the tool to fill that last one mile.Let's eliminate the hassle of manual calculation and human error to realize proactive customer follow-ups utilizing date data.

We Give Shape to "Can't You Calculate This?"

Beyond the features introduced here, do you have unique needs like "I want to calculate dates with more complex conditions" or "I want to account for specific holidays"?

At Tech-Father, we not only provide existing apps but also actively accept requests for custom feature development tailored to your business flow.

• "I want to make it compatible with the Japanese holiday calendar"
• "I want to change the calculation formula only under specific conditions"
• "I want to perform calculations in units of hours"

If you have such niche challenges that HubSpot's standard features cannot reach, please feel free to consult us. We will propose a dedicated automation solution that fits your business.

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‍▼ Details & Installation Here How to Bulk Unassociate Related Records in HubSpot Workflows

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We'll Build What You "Wanted to Do" — The Potential of a Development Request

The "Contact Search Action" we introduced is a powerful tool for expanding HubSpot's potential. However, every company's business process is unique. This action alone might not satisfy 100% of your specific needs.

"I don't want to search Contacts; I need to search Custom Objects.""I need to search data from our external database, not just HubSpot.""I need to not only search, but also process and aggregate the results with a specific logic and write them to another object."

You may be feeling the "limits of a packaged solution."

The "If It Doesn't Exist, Build It" Mindset

If the bottleneck in your marketing or operations is a specific "missing feature" in HubSpot, you have the option to fill that gap with custom development. This is where HubSpot's extensibility and flexible API truly shine.

Your daily manual tasks, your exports and imports to spreadsheets, your visual data checks... all of that inefficient work might be completely automatable by developing just one "Custom Workflow Action" built specifically for your company.

Please Consult With Us

• "I want to build this workflow, but I can't with standard features."
• "If only I could get that piece of data into my workflow, I could automate this whole process."
• "I want to automate this manual task, but the functions I need are missing."

If you're hitting a wall with your HubSpot operations, it's too early to give up.At Tech-Father, we specialize in developing the exact custom workflow actions that solve these "pain points." From general-purpose actions like the "Contact Search Action" to fully custom logic optimized for your unique business processes, we can provide a wide range of solutions.

Why not start by telling us what you've "always wanted to do"?We can propose the optimal solution to solve your challenge, whether it's a workaround with standard functions, utilizing an existing add-on, or building a completely custom solution from scratch.

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The Power of Custom Development: Turning "Can't" into "Can" in HubSpot

The "Marketing Event Recommend Action" featured here is just one example of how HubSpot's capabilities can be extended.

The key takeaway is this: you don't have to give up just because a standard HubSpot feature is missing. The option to "achieve it with custom development" exists.

• "I want to create a bi-directional data sync between my internal system and HubSpot."
• "I need to run complex, proprietary calculations (like a custom lead score) inside a workflow."
• "I must integrate with our niche industry SaaS via API and write data back to contact properties."

HubSpot has an open API and is extremely flexible for customization. However, unlocking its full potential requires specialized development skills and a deep understanding of both the HubSpot platform and its API.

If you are using HubSpot and find yourself thinking, "If only I had this one feature, my operations would improve dramatically," or "If only I could connect this system, our data utilization would be next-level," you don't have to give up on "if only."

Why not discuss your development request with a specialist who can turn that "can't" into "can"?

The action introduced today was developed by Tech-Father Inc., a company specializing in exactly this kind of HubSpot customization.

They provide solutions that address those specific "pain points" in HubSpot, from custom workflow action development to external system API integrations.

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