HubSpot Custom Workflow Guide: How to Auto-Search and Recommend Marketing Events

Purpose of the Action

The primary purpose of this action is to dynamically search your HubSpot Marketing Events during a contact workflow. The search is based on a specified "Base Category" (e.g., "sweets") and a "Date Preference" (e.g., "Far (more than 1 month)").

It finds events that match your criteria (e.g., Category contains "sweets" AND Start Date is more than 1 month away), limited to the "Count" you specify (e.g., 1 event).

The ultimate goal is to retrieve (output) detailed information about the recommended event(s)—such as Event ID, Start Date, Webinar URL, and Location—and use that data in subsequent workflow actions (like sending emails or updating properties).

Common Use Cases

This search and recommendation feature powerfully enhances the personalization of your event marketing.

• Personalized Event Invitation EmailsUse a contact's "Interest" property (e.g., "Sweets") as the "Base Event Category." The workflow finds a relevant upcoming event and retrieves its "Event Name," "Start Date," and "Webinar URL." These tokens are then used to automatically send a personalized invitation email.
• Proactive Event NurturingSet the "Date Preference" to "Near (within 1 week)" to find imminent events matching a contact's interest. Save the retrieved event info to a custom property (e.g., "Next Recommended Event") to use in nurture campaigns.
• Automated Sales TasksSearch for an offline event where the mapped "Event Location Property" matches the contact's "City." Retrieve the event's "Location" and "Start Date," and create a task for the sales rep: "Task: Invite [Contact Name] to [Event Name] at [Event Location]."

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Add the Action (0:04 - 0:12)In the workflow editor, click the "+" icon. Select the installed custom action (e.g., "Custom Workflow Professional v2") from the left sidebar, and choose "Marketing Event Recommend Action."

Step 2: Configure Event Search Criteria (0:13 - 0:49)In the action's setup panel on the left, you define the search parameters.

• Base Event Category:Enter the core category (keyword) for the recommendation (e.g., "sweets"). You can also use a personalization token from the contact (e.g., [Interest] property).
• Date Preference:Select the preferred event timing (e.g., "Far (more than 1 month)").
• Seminar Count:Specify the maximum number of events you want the action to return (e.g., "1").
• Event Property Mappings:This is crucial. You must tell the action which properties on your Marketing Event object store your key data, so it can search and retrieve correctly.
  • Event Category Property: Specify the property that the Base Event Category term ("sweets") will be searched against.
  • Event Start DateTime Property: Specify the property that the Date Preference will filter against.
  • Webinar URL Property, Event Location Property, etc.: Specify the properties containing the data you want the action to output as a result.

Step 3: Save Configuration (0:50 - 0:52)Click the "Save" button to complete the action setup.

Step 4: Run Workflow & Check History (0:53 - 1:00)Turn the workflow on and run it. Afterward, check the "History" tab to confirm the "Marketing Event Recommend Action" "Action succeeded."

Step 5: Review the Outputs (1:01 - 1:02)This is the most important part. The log details (right panel) show the "OUTPUTS" retrieved from the event(s) that matched your search.

• event1_recommendationCriteria: The value from the mapped category property of the found event (e.g., sweet's cookie, cake...).
• event1_recommendedEventName: The name of the 1st recommended event.
• event1_recommendedEventId: The ID of the 1st event.
• event1_recommendedStartDateTimestamp: The start date/time timestamp of the 1st event.
• event1_recommendedWebinarUrl: The webinar URL for the 1st event.
• (And all other data you mapped, like location, category, description...)
• (If Seminar Count was 2 or more, you would also see event2_... outputs).

[IMPORTANT] How to Use the Retrieved Event Information (Video Pt. 2)

This action only gets the event information. As shown in the second half of the video (1:03+), you must use these outputs in a subsequent action.

Example: Saving the Recommended Event Date to a Contact Property

1. Add a Follow-up ActionAfter the "Marketing Event Recommend Action," add a follow-up action (the video uses Batch Property Update Action from the same app).
2. Specify Property to UpdateChoose the contact property you want to update (e.g., "test_datetime").
3. Select the Data SourceIn the value field, click the "Choose data variable" icon, then go to "Action outputs" > "1. Marketing Event Recommend Action."
4. Choose the TokenYou will see the full list of outputs from Step 5. Select the token you want to use (e.g., Event 1_Recommended Start DateTime Timestamp).

You have now saved the found event's start time to the contact's record. This property can be used for personalization in event invitation emails or other nurture logic.

‍