How to use Send SMS in HubSpot workflows
Brave Tools provides three workflow extensions for sending SMS from HubSpot workflows. Each one targets a different use case and has its own safeguards and latency profile. Pick the one that matches what you need to do. All three work in both contact-based and deal-based workflows (in a deal workflow they resolve the deal's primary associated contact for opt-out checks and logging).
Choose the right action
Send SMS (queued) is the recommended default. Use it for marketing, reminders, and confirmations. The message is enqueued and delivered via the shared SMS processor within 5 to 15 seconds. All safeguards are on by default: platform opt-out, HubSpot opt-out property, dedup, and quiet hours.
Read the full Send SMS (queued) guide
Send SMS (instant) is for time-critical messages: OTP, two-factor codes, password reset links, and critical security alerts. The action sends synchronously via 46elks with sub-2-second latency. You can bypass opt-out for transactional messages, but only with an explicit two-key confirmation.
Read the full Send SMS (instant) guide
Send alert SMS to fixed number is for ops and monitoring. The recipient is a fixed phone number you configure on the action itself, not a contact property. A rate limit is required (no unlimited mode). Use this when a workflow needs to page a human about a system condition.
Read the full Send alert SMS guide
Safeguards that apply to every action
Two protections apply across the board and cannot be turned off:
- Hard duplicate protection: the exact same message (same sender, same text, same number) is never sent twice from your portal, ever. It is a permanent, database-level guarantee that holds even when a softer dedup policy is set to None and even for transactional messages. To intentionally message the same person again, change the message text (for example add a date). Fixed-number alerts are the one exception, since repeat alerts to an ops phone are the point.
- Unsubscribe footer: on plans that include the Brave Tools opt-out service (Professional and Enterprise), the off.nu unsubscribe footer is always added unless the message is explicitly marked transactional with a two-key confirmation. The old per-action "Skip unsubscribe footer" checkbox has been removed.
Where to see the results
Every workflow SMS, whether delivered, failed, or skipped by a safeguard, is logged in Brave Tools under SMS Campaigns > Workflow SMS. You can filter by workflow, status, and time range, and drill into a single message to see the full error or skip reason.
What happened to the old Send SMS action?
The original single Send SMS action has been replaced by the three actions above. If you are building a new workflow, use one of the new actions. Existing workflows that still reference the old action will show a missing-action warning in HubSpot and should be migrated.
Prerequisites
- An active Brave Tools account with SMS credits (Standard plan or higher).
- At least one sender configured under SMS Campaigns > Settings.
- The Brave Tools app installed on the portal with the Automation scope granted (required for workflow name lookup in the Workflow SMS dashboard).
Expected latencies
- Instant: under 2 seconds (direct 46elks call).
- Queued: 5 to 15 seconds typical (pg_cron polls every 5 seconds, processor sends in batches of 200).
- Queued with quiet hours delay: whatever you configure, plus 5 to 15 seconds for processor pickup.