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Auto-pause a sequence when the contact sets an out-of-office auto-reply

One of 565 written HubSpot workflow specs, by a collective of independent HubSpot consultants.

Enterprise

Seat pricing: Enterprise edition. To build it, a GTM Seat or an Ops Seat (an Ops Seat cannot create marketing emails or sequences). Per-hub plans: Sales Hub Enterprise.

Contact8 stepsUpdated for HubSpot seat pricing
OutcomeA contact who is away does not keep receiving sequence steps timed to a normal reply window, and the rep sees a return date instead of guessing when to try again.
Workflow mapsales-ops-016
Reply date changes while actively enrolled leads to Custom code: check for out-of-office language. Custom code: check for out-of-office language leads to Out of office detected?. Out of office detected? leads to Yes: Unenroll from sequence; No: End, let reply-handling workflow run. Unenroll from sequence leads to Set exit reason = Out of office, set return date. Set exit reason = Out of office, set return date leads to Create re-check task for owner. Yes No Reply date changes while actively enrolled Custom code: check for out-of-office language Out of office detected? Unenroll from sequence End, let reply-handling workflow run Set exit reason = Out of office, set return date Create re-check task for owner
Reply date changes while actively enrolled leads to Custom code: check for out-of-office language. Custom code: check for out-of-office language leads to Out of office detected?. Out of office detected? leads to Yes: Unenroll from sequence; No: End, let reply-handling workflow run. Unenroll from sequence leads to Set exit reason = Out of office, set return date. Set exit reason = Out of office, set return date leads to Create re-check task for owner. Yes No Reply date changes while actively enrolled Custom code: check for out-of-office language Out of office detected? Unenroll from sequence End, let reply-handling workflow run Set exit reason = Out of office, set return date Create re-check task for owner

When to use it, when not to

Use it

  • Use it when reps complain that sequences unenroll or keep firing against contacts who are simply out of office, not disengaged.
  • Use it when your sequence volume is high enough that manually checking every auto-reply is not realistic.
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Skip it

  • Do not build this if your team already tolerates the occasional auto-reply as a normal sequence step; the custom code action below adds real maintenance cost (a private app token, a coded action to keep working across HubSpot API changes).
  • Do not expect true detection accuracy. Out-of-office phrasing is inconsistent across mail clients and languages; treat this as a best-effort filter, not a guarantee.
Read more on when to skip itShow less

The rest of this spec

Prerequisites · 6 items

Every property with its label, internal name, type and options, plus the assets the workflow needs.

Enrollment · 4 parts

The trigger, the criteria as ticked in the UI, the re-enrollment rule and the suppression list.

Steps · 8 numbered actions

Each action in order with its parameters, branches and delays.

Known pitfalls · 5

Traps seen in production, each with what breaks and what to do instead.

Test plan and UAT script · 4 cases, 3 variants

How to prove it works in a test portal, one case per branch, and a sign-off sheet.

Files · PDF, Markdown, JSON, CSV, code

The properties JSON creates the fields in one call. The workflow JSON documents the build. The custom coded action ships as a ready-to-paste .js file.

Install · 1 click, switched off

The installer creates the properties and the workflow, switched off, then opens a task for what it cannot create. Nothing is deleted, enabled or enrolled.

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