HighLevel Workflow Scheduler: How to Automate Workflows Without Dummy Contacts Meta Description: Learn how to use the new HighLevel Workflow Scheduler to run contactless workflows on any schedule without dummy contacts or complex loops. ## Introduction If you've been using HighLevel for any length of time, you've probably run into this frustrating scenario: you need to send a daily report, schedule a weekly reminder, or run some kind of recurring automation, but the only way to do it was to create a dummy contact and send them through increasingly complex workflow loops. Those days are officially over. At the HighLevel Summit 2025, they announced the new Workflow Scheduler feature that completely eliminates the need for dummy contacts. This is contactless workflow execution, and it's exactly what the HighLevel community has been asking for. In this guide, I'll show you exactly how the old method worked, why it was problematic, and how to set up the new Workflow Scheduler to automate your processes cleanly and efficiently. Plus, if you prefer video tutorials, I've embedded my full walkthrough below. [EMBED YOUTUBE VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch/bnEZ0EXQLNY] ## The Old Way: Dummy Contacts and Loop Hacks Before the HighLevel Workflow Scheduler, automating recurring tasks required some creative workarounds that, frankly, were never meant to be permanent solutions. ### The Dummy Contact Method The most common approach was to create a dummy contact and run them through a workflow that would: - Set an event start time (hardcoded, which was a pain) - Wait until a specific time (like 11:00 PM) - Execute the desired action (send a report, trigger an email, update values) - Loop back to the beginning using a go-to action For example, if you wanted to send a daily report at 9:00 PM showing total trigger link clicks, you'd have to set up a workflow that counted up trigger links throughout the day, waited until the right time, sent the email, then reset everything and started over. ### The Single Contact Loop Another hack was putting one real contact through a workflow and letting them sit in an endless loop. The workflow would have no actual trigger because you manually added the contact once, and they'd just cycle through the same actions repeatedly. This method had serious problems. Workflows could get stuck in loop locks, contacts could fall out of the automation unexpectedly, and debugging these setups was a nightmare. ### Why These Methods Were Problematic Both approaches shared the same fundamental issues: - They required an actual contact to function, even when no contact was needed - Hardcoded times meant you couldn't easily adjust schedules - Complex loop structures were difficult to maintain and troubleshoot - Workflows could fail unexpectedly, and you wouldn't know until the action didn't happen - They violated the basic principle that a contact should only be in a workflow when they need to be The HighLevel development team clearly heard the community feedback, because the Workflow Scheduler solves all of these problems. ## Introducing the HighLevel Workflow Scheduler The Workflow Scheduler brings the concept of "cron jobs" to HighLevel workflows. If you're not familiar with cron jobs, they're simply scheduled tasks that run automatically at specified intervals without requiring any user or contact to trigger them. This is contactless workflow execution, and it opens up entirely new possibilities for automation in HighLevel. ### What You Can Do With the Workflow Scheduler The Scheduler trigger allows you to run workflows: - Every hour - Daily at a specific time - Weekly on specific days - Monthly on specific dates - Or using custom cron expressions for advanced scheduling This means you can now automate tasks like: - Sending daily or weekly reports - Cleaning up old data at regular intervals - Triggering reminders for your team - Running maintenance tasks on your HighLevel account - Executing any recurring action that doesn't require a specific contact ## How to Set Up Your First Scheduled Workflow Let me walk you through the exact process of creating a scheduled workflow in HighLevel. ### Step 1: Create a New Workflow Navigate to your workflows section in HighLevel and create a new workflow as you normally would. ### Step 2: Add the Scheduler Trigger Instead of using a contact-based trigger, search for "Scheduler" in the trigger options. Note that this feature is still in beta as of October 2024, so you might encounter occasional issues. If you do, make sure to report them through a support ticket. When you click on the Scheduler trigger, you'll see several interval options. ### Step 3: Choose Your Interval Select the frequency that matches your needs: - Hourly: Runs every hour on the hour - Daily: Runs once per day at a specified time - Weekly: Runs on specific days of the week - Monthly: Runs on specific dates each month - Cron: For developers who want to use custom cron expressions For this example, let's say you want to send a weekly report every Friday evening. ### Step 4: Configure the Schedule Select "Weekly" as your interval. The interface will expand to show checkboxes for each day of the week. Check "Friday" to indicate when you want the workflow to run. Next, set the time. The scheduler uses military time (24-hour format), so if you want the workflow to run at 7:00 PM, you'd enter 1900. ### Step 5: Name Your Trigger Give your trigger a descriptive name that helps you remember what it does. Something like "Weekly Report - Fridays at 1900 hours" makes it crystal clear what this workflow does and when it runs. ### Step 6: Verify the Schedule This is one of my favorite features of the Scheduler. Click the "Check" button to see the next five times your workflow will execute. This gives you a gut check to make sure everything is configured correctly. For example, if you're setting this up on a Thursday evening and you want it to run the next day (Friday), you might need to adjust the time to be later in the day than your current time. The schedule checker will show you exactly when it will first run. ### Step 7: Save Your Trigger Once you're satisfied with the schedule, click "Save Trigger." Your workflow is now set to run automatically according to your specified schedule. ## Sending Emails Without Contacts Here's where things get a bit tricky with contactless workflows. Because there's no contact in the workflow, you can't use the standard "Send Email" action that requires a contact to send to. ### The Solution: Internal Notifications Instead, use the "Send Internal Notification" action with these settings: - Change the notification type to "Email" - For the user type, you have several options: - Assigned user - Custom user (select a specific team member) - Custom email (enter any email address) The "Custom email" option is particularly powerful because you can: - Enter any email address to receive the notification - Add yourself in CC or BCC - Send to external email addresses outside your HighLevel account This workaround lets you send emails from scheduled workflows without needing a contact in the system. ## Key Advantages of the Workflow Scheduler Now that you understand how to use it, let's talk about why this is such a significant improvement for HighLevel users. ### No More Loop Complexity You don't need go-to actions or complex loop structures. The Scheduler automatically repeats on your specified interval. Set it once, and it runs forever until you turn it off. ### No Contact Management Overhead You're not creating dummy contacts that clutter your contact list, and you're not putting real contacts into workflows where they don't belong. This keeps your HighLevel account cleaner and more organized. ### Flexible Scheduling You can easily adjust schedules without rebuilding entire workflows. Need to change from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM? Just edit the trigger. Want to add Saturday to your weekly schedule? Check another box. ### Better Workflow Organization Your workflows are now more logical and easier to understand. When someone looks at a workflow with a Scheduler trigger, they immediately know it's a recurring automation that runs on a set schedule. ### Reduced Failure Points Without contacts moving through loops and waiting periods, there are fewer places where things can break. The workflow either runs or it doesn't, making troubleshooting much simpler. ## Use Cases for Scheduled Workflows Let me share some practical applications for the Workflow Scheduler that can help you run your business more efficiently. ### Daily Reporting Send yourself a daily summary of important metrics: - Total leads generated - Appointments booked - Revenue collected - Tasks completed - Open support tickets Schedule this to arrive at the start or end of your workday for a quick overview of business performance. ### Weekly Team Updates Compile and send weekly performance reports to your team every Friday afternoon, giving everyone visibility into progress before the weekend. ### Monthly Cleanup Tasks Schedule monthly maintenance: - Archive old conversations - Clean up test data - Reset monthly counters - Generate monthly financial reports ### Reminder Workflows Set up recurring reminders for your team: - Weekly content planning sessions - Monthly strategy meetings - Quarterly goal reviews ### Automated Follow-Ups While individual contact follow-ups should use contact-based workflows, you can use the Scheduler for team-wide follow-up reminders or to trigger batch processes. ## Important Considerations and Limitations While the Workflow Scheduler is powerful, there are a few things to keep in mind. ### Beta Status As of this writing, the feature is still in beta. This means you might encounter occasional bugs or unexpected behavior. Always test your scheduled workflows thoroughly before relying on them for critical business processes. ### Contact-Based Actions Many workflow actions in HighLevel require a contact to function. If your workflow needs to send SMS, update contact fields, or perform other contact-specific actions, you'll need to think creatively about how to structure your automation. ### Timezone Considerations Pay attention to what timezone your HighLevel account uses for scheduling. The time you set is based on your account's timezone settings, not the timezone of individual contacts or users. ### Monitoring and Debugging Since these workflows run automatically without contact records to review, make sure to build in logging or notification mechanisms so you know when they execute and whether they succeed. ## Conclusion The HighLevel Workflow Scheduler is exactly the kind of feature that makes the platform more powerful and professional. By eliminating the need for dummy contacts and complex loop structures, it makes automation cleaner, more reliable, and easier to maintain. Whether you're sending daily reports, scheduling weekly tasks, or running monthly maintenance processes, the Scheduler gives you a proper solution instead of forcing you to use creative hacks. If you're ready to start using the Workflow Scheduler in your HighLevel account, I recommend starting with something simple like a weekly reminder or daily report. Once you see how straightforward it is, you'll start finding more and more applications for scheduled workflows. Ready to try HighLevel for yourself? Sign up through my affiliate link at HighLevel and get complimentary access to our private Skool community where we dive deeper into advanced HighLevel strategies. Got questions about the Workflow Scheduler or other HighLevel features? Join our free Facebook community at https://facebook.com/groups/marketingshow where thousands of marketers share tips and help each other succeed. \--- ## 5. INTERNAL LINKING OPPORTUNITIES **High Priority Links:** \- "HighLevel workflow basics" → Link to foundational workflow tutorial \- "setting up your first automation" → Link to beginner workflow setup guide \- "advanced workflow strategies" → Link to complex automation patterns **Medium Priority Links:** \- "sending automated reports" → Link to reporting automation tutorial \- "workflow triggers explained" → Link to comprehensive trigger types guide \- "internal notifications setup" → Link to notification configuration tutorial **Supporting Links:** \- "HighLevel account setup" → Link to getting started guide \- "workflow troubleshooting" → Link to debugging workflows tutorial \- "contact management best practices" → Link to contact organization guide **New Content Opportunities:** \- "10 Real-World Use Cases for the HighLevel Workflow Scheduler" - practical applications blog post \- "Complete Guide to Cron Expressions in HighLevel" - advanced scheduling tutorial \- "Migrating Your Dummy Contact Workflows to the New Scheduler" - migration guide \--- ## 6. MOST QUOTABLE QUOTE "You don't have to use the go-to loop anymore. This thing's just going to fire every day at Friday at 6:00 PM." \--- ## 7. BLOG SEO RECOMMENDATIONS Primary keyword: HighLevel Workflow Scheduler Secondary keywords: contactless workflows, HighLevel automation, schedule workflows HighLevel, HighLevel recurring tasks, workflow scheduler tutorial Meta title: HighLevel Workflow Scheduler: Automate Without Dummy Contacts Meta description: Learn how to use the new HighLevel Workflow Scheduler to run contactless workflows on any schedule without dummy contacts or complex loops. Suggested URL slug: highlevel-workflow-scheduler-tutorial \--- ## 8. EMAIL SUBJECT LINES (5 Options) 1\. No More Dummy Contacts in HighLevel (Finally!) 2\. This HighLevel Feature Changes Everything About Workflows 3\. Schedule Workflows in HighLevel Without the Hacks 4\. New HighLevel Scheduler = Goodbye Dummy Contacts 5\. I just tested the new HighLevel Workflow Scheduler... \--- ## 9. EMAIL PREVIEW TEXT (5 Options) 1\. Stop using dummy contacts to run scheduled workflows - the new Scheduler does it right 2\. From complex loops to simple schedules in HighLevel. This changes everything for automation! 3\. Finally! A way to schedule recurring workflows without contacts. Watch me set it up in 3 min... 4\. I used to hate dummy contact workflows. Then HighLevel released the Scheduler feature. 5\. Automate reports, reminders, and tasks without a single contact - here's how to set it up \--- ## 10. EMAIL CONTENT Subject: No More Dummy Contacts in HighLevel (Finally!) Hey {{contact.first_name}}, Just dropped a new tutorial that I think you'll love! If you've been using dummy contacts to schedule recurring workflows in HighLevel, those days are officially over. The new Workflow Scheduler lets you run contactless workflows on any schedule you need. [INSERT BLOG POST LINK HERE] In this guide, I show you exactly how to: - Set up the new Scheduler trigger in your workflows - Schedule workflows to run hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly - Send emails and notifications without contacts - Replace your old dummy contact loops with clean automation Read the full guide here: [INSERT BLOG POST LINK HERE] This is exactly the kind of feature that makes HighLevel more professional and powerful. No more creative hacks - just proper scheduling that works. Got questions? Drop them here: https://themarketingshow.com/questions/ Talk soon, James P.S. Don't forget to join our Facebook group for more tips and to connect with other marketers: https://facebook.com/groups/marketingshow P.P.S. Want more personalized help? Check out our small group community at https://themarketingshow.com/skool - and if you sign up through my HighLevel affiliate link, you get complimentary access!