Create a Custom Property for Continent

1. Why Track Continent?

• Convenient Time Zone Scheduling: If you’re hosting a virtual meeting, you can segment contacts by continent (e.g., Asia) to ensure the meeting time works well for them.
• Travel Planning: When traveling to Europe, you can quickly filter your HubSpot contacts by “Europe” to see who might be worth visiting or meeting in that region.
• Regional Marketing: Segment email or event invitations by continent to tailor content or timing to regional norms.

2. Creating the “Continent” Custom Property

Step 1: Access HubSpot Settings

• Log into HubSpot.
• Click the Settings gear icon (top-right).
• In the left-hand sidebar, select Properties.

Step 2: Configure the Property

• Create Property: Click Create property.
• Object Type: Choose Contact.
• Group: Typically “Contact Information,” or create a new group like “Geographic Info.”
• Label: “Continent.”
• Field Type: Dropdown select.
• Add Options: Include your continents of interest, such as:
  -Africa
  -Asia
  -Europe
  -North America
  -South America
  -Australia (or Oceania)
  -Antarctica (if you need it!)
• Save: Click Create to finalize the new property.

3. Updating the Continent Field

Manual Updates

• Open a Contact Record: Navigate to Contacts > Contacts, select the contact whose continent you’d like to set.
• View All Properties: Find the “Continent” property or search for it under “View all properties.”
• Select the Appropriate Continent: In the dropdown, pick “Asia,” “Europe,” etc.
• Save: HubSpot will store that value. When building lists or sending emails, you can filter by Continent = Asia or another region.

When to Use Manual Updates

• If you only have a few contacts to maintain or you prefer to fill it in at the moment you add a new contact.
• Useful for one-off or small-batch data entry.

Automating Continent with Workflows

For larger contact databases or ongoing data management, you can automatically assign continents based on a contact’s Country property. While HubSpot doesn’t have direct conditional logic in calculated fields, you can achieve the same effect through workflows:

1. Create a “Continent” Custom Property
   • Already done (as described above).
2. Build a Workflow to Assign Continent
   • Navigate to Automation > Workflows > Create workflow.
   • Choose Contact-based workflow > Start from scratch.
3. Set the Enrollment Trigger
   • Click Set enrollment triggers.
   • Select Country > “is known” or whichever condition best fits. (You could also specify “if a certain country is selected.”)
4. Add If/Then Branches
   • For each continent, create a branch.
   • Example:
     -If Country is any of [“China,” “Japan,” “India,” …] then Continent = “Asia.”
     -If Country is any of [“France,” “Germany,” …] then Continent = “Europe.”
   • Continue branching for Africa, North America, etc.

5. Set Property Value
   • In each branch, add an action: Set property value.
   • Select the custom “Continent” property.
   • Assign it to the correct continent.
6. Review & Turn On the Workflow
   • Name the workflow logically (e.g., “Auto-Assign Continent from Country”).
   • Toggle the workflow to on.
   • Now, whenever the Country field changes or is set, the workflow will assign the correct Continent.

When to Use Automation

• You have many contacts or frequently import new ones with a Country specified.
• You want to minimize manual data entry and keep your CRM consistent.

4. Best Practices & Considerations

• Maintain a Clean Country List: If you’re automating via country detection, ensure your Country field is consistent (e.g., “USA” vs. “United States” vs. “U.S.”). Standardize country names or codes in your data to ensure the workflow branches work properly.
• Review Edge Cases: Some territories may not neatly fit your region definitions (e.g., “French Polynesia” or “Hong Kong”). Decide in advance which continent to assign them to.
• Periodic Updates: Contacts might move, so plan to periodically revisit or re-enroll them in the workflow if Country changes.
• Combining with Time Zone Data: Continent alone might not be enough for scheduling. Consider also tracking time zone, or at least country/city, if scheduling calls is critical to your work.
• Be Mindful of Tier Limits: If you’re on a free plan with limited custom properties, confirm that “Continent” is worth one of your limited fields. For paid plans, you likely have ample room.