CALL
Quick answer
- 01What is it?
- Log sales activities, calls, notes, meetings, tasks, against contacts and deals, with the mandatory create-then-associate step that makes them visible in the CRM. The value is a focused slice of go-to-market work judgment, useful when several similar skills cover the same ground.
- 02Inputs
- Context for go-to-market work: your goals, audience, constraints, and any source material the skill asks for.
- 03Output
- A ready-to-use result for go-to-market work: the analysis, copy, or recommendations the agent produces.
Add this skill
Install as a package
Installs this one skill package for your coding agent, including any supporting files that skill ships with — not every skill in the repository. Read the tutorial.
$ npx skills add hubspot/agent-cli-skills --skill sales-executionSkill instructions
The instruction file for this skill. The skill also includes other files you need to install to use it.
Resources
| File | When to use |
|---|---|
resources/activity-properties-reference.md | Property names and enum values for calls/notes/meetings/tasks. Keep open while writing objects create — enum values are not discoverable via hubspot properties get today. |
Read bulk-operations/SKILL.md first — this skill assumes its batching, pipe, and dry-run patterns.
The two non-obvious rules
1. Activities are invisible until associated. hubspot objects create --type calls ... alone produces a record nobody can see in the CRM UI. Always follow with hubspot associations create --from calls:<id> --to contacts:<id> (and the deal, if relevant) before stopping.
2. Timestamps differ between write and read.
| Path | Field | Format |
|---|---|---|
objects create --property hs_timestamp=... | hs_timestamp | Unix ms (13 digits) |
objects get --type calls <id> returns | properties.hs_timestamp | Unix ms (string) |
activities list --contact <id> returns | timestamp (flat, top-level) | ISO 8601 (e.g. 2024-01-15T10:00:00Z) |
Current Unix ms: $(date +%s)000 (macOS) or $(date +%s%3N) (Linux). activities list rows are {"id","type","timestamp","title","body","status","owner_id"} — the cross-type timeline read shape, no raw property names.
Create + associate, by type
# CALL
call_id=$(hubspot objects create --type calls \
--property hs_call_title="Discovery call" \
--property hs_call_body="Confirmed $50K budget, Q2 timeline." \
--property hs_call_direction=OUTBOUND \
--property hs_call_status=COMPLETED \
--property hs_call_duration=1800000 \
--property hs_timestamp=$(date +%s)000 \
--format json | jq -r '.id')
hubspot associations create --from calls:$call_id --to contacts:149
hubspot associations create --from calls:$call_id --to deals:456
# NOTE
note_id=$(hubspot objects create --type notes \
--property hs_note_body="Sent proposal. Follow-up Friday." \
--property hs_timestamp=$(date +%s)000 \
--format json | jq -r '.id')
hubspot associations create --from notes:$note_id --to deals:456
# MEETING — start/end in Unix ms; reuse start as hs_timestamp
start=$(date +%s)000; end=$(( ${start%000} + 3600 ))000
meeting_id=$(hubspot objects create --type meetings \
--property hs_meeting_title="Demo — Acme" --property hs_meeting_outcome=COMPLETED \
--property hs_meeting_start_time=$start --property hs_meeting_end_time=$end \
--property hs_timestamp=$start --format json | jq -r '.id')
hubspot associations create --from meetings:$meeting_id --to contacts:149
# TASK — hs_timestamp is the DUE DATE, not creation time
due=$(( $(date -v+7d +%s) * 1000 )) # macOS; Linux: date -d '7 days' +%s
task_id=$(hubspot objects create --type tasks \
--property hs_task_subject="Confirm proposal received" \
--property hs_task_priority=HIGH \
--property hs_task_status=NOT_STARTED \
--property hs_task_type=CALL \
--property hs_timestamp=$due \
--format json | jq -r '.id')
hubspot associations create --from tasks:$task_id --to deals:456
Open tasks for a contact — two CLI calls, no xargs
associations list emits {"id","type"} per row; objects get reads from stdin in one batch call (see bulk-operations/SKILL.md "Read in batch").
hubspot associations list --from contacts:149 --to tasks \
| hubspot objects get --type tasks \
--properties hs_task_subject,hs_task_status,hs_task_priority,hs_timestamp \
| jq -c 'select(.properties.hs_task_status != "COMPLETED")'
Bulk: follow-up task per deal in a stage
The deal ID and the task ID must travel together. Persist the deal payload to a file, create tasks (output order matches input order — see bulk-operations), then zip the two ID lists line-by-line and stream association pairs in one call.
due=$(( $(date -v+7d +%s) * 1000 ))
# 1. Per-deal payload, deal_id retained alongside the create payload.
hubspot objects search --type deals --filter "dealstage=appointmentscheduled" \
--properties dealname \
| jq -c --argjson due "$due" '{deal_id: .id, payload: {properties: {
hs_task_subject: ("Follow up: " + .properties.dealname),
hs_task_priority: "HIGH", hs_task_status: "NOT_STARTED", hs_task_type: "CALL",
hs_timestamp: ($due|tostring)
}}}' > /tmp/deal_tasks.jsonl
# 2. Create tasks; one CLI call for the whole batch.
jq -c '.payload' /tmp/deal_tasks.jsonl \
| hubspot objects create --type tasks > /tmp/created_tasks.jsonl
# 3. Zip and stream association pairs through stdin.
paste \
<(jq -r '.deal_id' /tmp/deal_tasks.jsonl) \
<(jq -r '.id' /tmp/created_tasks.jsonl) \
| jq -Rc 'split("\t") | {from:("tasks:"+.[1]), to:("deals:"+.[0])}' \
| hubspot associations create
For >100 rows, apply the dry-run / digest / confirm pattern from bulk-operations/SKILL.md.
Known constraints
Activities must be associated immediately or they're invisible in the CRM UI. properties get doesn't return enum option values for activity types — use the reference. No sequences/cadences in the CLI.
Supporting file: resources/activity-properties-reference.md
Activity Properties — Quick Reference
Property names and enum values for hubspot objects create --type {calls|notes|meetings|tasks}. Kept here because hubspot properties list --type calls is noisy (~80 props) and hubspot properties get does not expose enum option values today — so the values below are not otherwise discoverable from the CLI. Verify against the portal if a value is rejected.
calls
| Property | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
hs_call_title | string | |
hs_call_body | string (HTML ok) | |
hs_call_direction | enum | INBOUND OUTBOUND |
hs_call_status | enum | BUSY CALLING_CRM_USER CANCELED COMPLETED CONNECTING FAILED IN_PROGRESS MISSED NO_ANSWER QUEUED RINGING |
hs_call_duration | number | Milliseconds (60000 = 1 min) |
hs_call_disposition | string | Portal-defined outcome code |
hs_timestamp | number | Required. Unix ms — when the call happened |
notes
| Property | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
hs_note_body | string (HTML ok) | Required. |
hs_timestamp | number | Required. Unix ms |
meetings
| Property | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
hs_meeting_title | string | |
hs_meeting_body | string (HTML ok) | |
hs_meeting_outcome | enum | SCHEDULED COMPLETED RESCHEDULED NO_SHOW CANCELLED |
hs_meeting_start_time | number | Unix ms |
hs_meeting_end_time | number | Unix ms |
hs_meeting_location | string | Address or video URL |
hs_timestamp | number | Required. Unix ms — primary timeline timestamp |
tasks
| Property | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
hs_task_subject | string | Required. Title in the task queue |
hs_task_body | string | |
hs_task_status | enum | NOT_STARTED IN_PROGRESS COMPLETED DEFERRED WAITING |
hs_task_priority | enum | LOW MEDIUM HIGH |
hs_task_type | enum | TODO CALL EMAIL |
hs_timestamp | number | Required. Unix ms — due date for tasks |
Association targets
| Activity | Valid --to types |
|---|---|
| calls | contacts, deals, companies, tickets |
| notes | contacts, deals, companies, tickets |
| meetings | contacts, deals, companies |
| tasks | contacts, deals, companies |
Supporting file: bulk-operations/SKILL.md
Resources
| File | When to use |
|---|---|
resources/json-patterns.md | Reshape patterns for turning a read into an update payload, a search into a delete list, a CSV into an upsert stream. |
Source of truth
This is the hubspot agent CLI; the hs developer CLI (@hubspot/cli) is a different tool and does not manage CRM data or workflows. hubspot <command> --help is authoritative. If anything in this file contradicts --help, trust --help and tell the user. Run hubspot objects types once at the start of a session to see what object types exist in this portal (standard + custom).
Submit Feedback
Use the hubspot feedback command to send a message to the owners of this CLI tool. Pass --source agent so it's attributed to agent traffic (it defaults to user):
hubspot feedback "batch upsert timed out on 5k rows" --source agent
This can be anything from:
- Specific bugs and hiccups you encountered
- Things you wish you knew before using the CLI
- Anything your user got confused, frustrated, or upset about
- Anything the user asked for that you couldn't do
- Any tools, capabilities, or skills you wish existed that would make future tasks easier
It takes one short line, attaches to the active HubSpot account, and doesn't block the task — send it and keep going.
Output shape
Every read command (list, search, get) emits JSONL — one JSON object per line:
{"id":"123","properties":{"email":"jane@example.com","firstname":"Jane"},"createdAt":"...","updatedAt":"...","archived":false,"url":"..."}
--properties email,firstname limits which fields the server returns under .properties. Downstream jq should use .properties.email, not .prop_email.
Write commands (create, update, upsert, delete, merge, associations create) accept JSONL on stdin and emit JSONL — one result per input line: {"id":"123","ok":true,"data":{...}} or {"id":"123","ok":false,"error":{"status":...,"message":"..."}}. Order of results matches input order.
Read in batch — never one-by-one
The CLI accepts multiple IDs natively. Never pipe IDs into xargs -I{} hubspot objects get ... — that spawns one CLI process per record.
# Positional args (small, known list)
hubspot objects get --type contacts 12345 67890 23456 --properties email,firstname
# Stdin from another command — one CLI call total
hubspot associations list --from companies:67890 --to contacts \
| jq -c '{id}' \
| hubspot objects get --type contacts --properties email,firstname,jobtitle
# Bare IDs on stdin also work
printf '12345\n67890\n23456\n' | hubspot objects get --type contacts --properties email
A single hubspot objects get reads up to ~100 IDs per call via the batch endpoint. For more, page in chunks of 100.
Bulk flow: paginate first, then reshape, then write
When operating on all records of a type (or all matches of a filter), always start with pagination-loop.sh — never run a bare list or search to "check how many there are." A bare call returns at most 100 records and you will have to re-fetch them anyway.
The canonical bulk pattern is:
- Paginate all records to a JSONL file
- Reshape with
jqinto the write payload - Pipe to the write command (
update,delete, etc.) with--dry-runfirst
Pagination
list and search return at most 100 records per call. Use resources/pagination-loop.sh to collect all pages into a single JSONL file:
bash resources/pagination-loop.sh <object_type> <output_file> [properties] [extra_flags...]
Examples:
# All contacts with specific properties
bash resources/pagination-loop.sh contacts /tmp/contacts.jsonl email,firstname,lastname
# Search with a filter (passes extra flags through to the CLI)
bash resources/pagination-loop.sh contacts /tmp/leads.jsonl email,firstname '--filter' 'lifecyclestage=lead'
# All deals, default properties
bash resources/pagination-loop.sh deals /tmp/deals.jsonl
The script pages through --after cursors automatically, prints progress to stderr, and writes JSONL to the output file. Run it as a single foreground command — do not background it or reconstruct the loop inline.
Write in batch — always pipe
Write commands accept JSONL on stdin. The transformation between a read shape and a write shape is a jq reshape:
| Write command | Required per-line shape |
|---|---|
objects create | {"properties":{"field":"value"}} |
objects update | {"id":"123","properties":{"field":"value"}} |
objects upsert | {"idProperty":"email","id":"jane@example.com","properties":{...}} (or use --id-property email once) |
objects delete | {"id":"123"} |
objects merge | {"primary":"123","secondary":"456"} |
associations create | {"from":"contacts:123","to":"companies:456"} |
Use plural object names in from/to (contacts:, not contact:).
Safe destructive workflow
Every destructive op (delete, merge, bulk update) supports --dry-run. The gating depends on row count:
≤100 rows — dry-run emits one preview line per record:
{"ok":true,"dry_run":true,"executed":false,"mutation_kind":"RecordMutation","command":"objects delete contacts","target":{"kind":"contacts_record","id":"123","name":"123"}}
Re-run without --dry-run to execute.
>100 rows — dry-run emits a single BulkData line with a digest and an apply_command_hint:
{"ok":true,"dry_run":true,"executed":false,"mutation_kind":"BulkData","portal":"123456","target":{"name":"202 records"},"impact":{"records_affected":202,"reversible":false},"digest":"blast-29cfdd48b583","expires_in_seconds":300,"apply_command_hint":"hubspot objects delete contacts --digest blast-29cfdd48b583 --confirm '202'"}
You must re-run with --digest <hash> --confirm <value> within 5 minutes. The confirm value is the record count (deletes) or the secondary ID (merge). Read it off apply_command_hint.
Three-step pattern:
# 1. Preview
hubspot objects search --type contacts --filter "lifecyclestage=subscriber" \
| jq -c '{id}' \
| hubspot objects delete --type contacts --dry-run \
| tee /tmp/preview.jsonl
# 2. Lift the digest + confirm value (only present for >100 rows)
digest=$(jq -r 'select(.mutation_kind=="BulkData") | .digest' /tmp/preview.jsonl)
confirm=$(jq -r 'select(.mutation_kind=="BulkData") | .impact.records_affected' /tmp/preview.jsonl)
# 3. Execute — re-pipe the SAME inputs
hubspot objects search --type contacts --filter "lifecyclestage=subscriber" \
| jq -c '{id}' \
| hubspot objects delete --type contacts --digest "$digest" --confirm "$confirm"
Recovery via hubspot history
Every destructive op (and its dry-run) is logged locally. Check what happened in the last hour and what's reversible:
hubspot history --since 1h --format table
hubspot history --since 24h --kind BulkData # only bulk ops
hubspot history --since 7d --kind MetadataDestroy # schema deletes
history does not currently restore records — it's an audit log. If you deleted something by mistake, capture the history line and tell the user to restore via the UI.
Upsert beats search-then-create
For "create if missing, update if present" (the enrichment pattern), use upsert — one CLI call per record, no race condition:
cat external.jsonl \
| jq -c '{idProperty:"email", id:.email, properties:{firstname:.first, lastname:.last, company:.company}}' \
| hubspot objects upsert --type contacts --dry-run
# Or set idProperty once:
cat external.jsonl \
| jq -c '{id:.email, properties:{firstname:.first}}' \
| hubspot objects upsert --type contacts --id-property email
Rate-limit hygiene
There is no true batch endpoint behind update/delete/upsert — the CLI issues one API call per stdin line. Test with head -n 50 before piping a 50k-row file. If the API starts 429ing, the per-line output will show {"ok":false,"error":{"status":429,...}} — split your input file and retry the failed lines.
Common reshapes
See resources/json-patterns.md for the full set. The two you need 90% of the time:
# Read → update payload
hubspot objects search --type contacts --filter "industry=Tech" \
| jq -c '{id, properties:{lifecyclestage:"marketingqualifiedlead"}}' \
| hubspot objects update --type contacts
# Search → delete list
hubspot objects search --type contacts --filter "!email" \
| jq -c '{id}' \
| hubspot objects delete --type contacts --dry-run
Known constraints
- Some destructive operations may be blocked under user-OAuth (browser login); set
HUBSPOT_ACCESS_TOKEN(private app token) when running deletes if the CLI returns a permission error. hubspot owners listreturns CRM users; there is noteamsobject. For team-level operations, group byhubspot_owner_idclient-side.- No Lists API, no sequences/cadences API in the current CLI surface.
Common questions
How do I install CALL in Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex?
Run npx skills add hubspot/agent-cli-skills --skill sales-execution in the project where you want it, then ask your agent for the skill by name. The --skill flag installs only CALL, not every skill in the repository.
Where does CALL come from and what license is it under?
CALL comes from the hubspot/agent-cli-skills repository on GitHub. That repository has 21 GitHub stars. The skill is published under the Apache-2.0 license.
Prefer plain text? Read the CALL guide as markdown.