Send Events to External Services

Outgoing webhooks automatically notify external systems when important events happen in your SkunkCRM. Perfect for triggering automations, updating analytics, or syncing with other tools.

Quick Setup

1. Create a Webhook Subscription

Go to SkunkCRM → Webhooks in your WordPress admin
Click "Add Webhook"
Configure:
- Name: "n8n Lead Processing"
- URL: Your webhook URL from n8n/Zapier/etc
- Events: Select which CRM events to send
- Authentication: Configure if needed

2. Choose Your Events

Select which SkunkCRM events should trigger the webhook:

Available Events

Contact Events

contact_created - New contact added to CRM
contact_updated - Contact information changed
contact_status_changed - Status changed (lead → customer, etc.)

Deal Events

deal_created - New deal created
deal_stage_changed - Deal moved between pipeline stages
deal_won - Deal marked as won
deal_lost - Deal marked as lost

Activity Events

email_sent - Email sent from CRM
email_opened - Email opened by recipient
email_clicked - Link clicked in email

Automation Events

automation_triggered - Automation workflow started
automation_completed - Automation workflow finished

Task Events

task_created - New task created
task_completed - Task marked complete

Webhook Payload Format

All outgoing webhooks send JSON in this standardized format:

{
  "event": "contact_created",
  "timestamp": "2025-01-09 14:30:00",
  "data": {
    "contact": {
      "id": 123,
      "name": "John Doe",
      "email": "john@example.com",
      "company": "Acme Corp",
      "status": "lead",
      "created_at": "2025-01-09 14:30:00"
    },
    "source": "api"
  },
  "context": {
    "request_source": "api",
    "user_id": 1
  },
  "source": {
    "system": "SkunkCRM",
    "version": "1.0",
    "url": "https://yoursite.com"
  }
}

Deal Won Example

{
  "event": "deal_won",
  "timestamp": "2025-01-09 15:45:00",
  "data": {
    "deal": {
      "id": 67,
      "title": "Website Redesign Project",
      "value": "15000.00",
      "status": "won",
      "contact_id": 123
    },
    "contact": {
      "id": 123,
      "name": "John Doe",
      "email": "john@example.com",
      "company": "Acme Corp"
    }
  },
  "source": {
    "system": "SkunkCRM",
    "version": "1.0",
    "url": "https://yoursite.com"
  }
}

Authentication Options

No Authentication

Simple webhooks without authentication headers.

Bearer Token

Header: Authorization: Bearer your-secret-token

API Key Header

Header: X-API-Key: your-api-key

Basic Authentication

Header: Authorization: Basic base64(username:password)

Popular Integration Examples

n8n Automation Platform

Create Webhook Node in n8n:
- Add "Webhook" trigger node
- Copy the webhook URL
Configure in SkunkCRM:
- Name: "n8n Workflow"
- URL: https://your-n8n.com/webhook/abc123
- Events: contact_created, deal_won

Process in n8n:

// n8n JavaScript node example
const webhookData = $input.json;

if (webhookData.event === 'contact_created') {
  // Send welcome email
  // Add to mailing list
  // Notify sales team
}

if (webhookData.event === 'deal_won') {
  // Send to accounting system
  // Update customer success platform
}

Zapier Integration

Create Zap with "Webhooks by Zapier" trigger
Copy webhook URL from Zapier
Add to SkunkCRM webhooks with desired events
Test and activate the integration

Make.com (formerly Integromat)

Create Scenario with webhook trigger
Configure webhook endpoint in Make.com
Add webhook URL to SkunkCRM
Map SkunkCRM events to Make.com actions

Custom Applications

For your own applications, simply create an endpoint that accepts POST requests:

// PHP example
$payload = json_decode(file_get_contents('php://input'), true);

if ($payload['event'] === 'contact_created') {
    $contact = $payload['data']['contact'];
    // Process new contact data
    syncToOtherSystem($contact);
}

// Node.js example
app.post('/skunkcrm-webhook', (req, res) => {
    const { event, data } = req.body;
    
    switch(event) {
        case 'contact_created':
            handleNewContact(data.contact);
            break;
        case 'deal_won':
            handleDealWon(data.deal, data.contact);
            break;
    }
    
    res.json({ received: true });
});

Testing Webhooks

Built-in Test Feature

Go to your webhook in SkunkCRM admin
Click "Test Webhook"
SkunkCRM sends a test payload to verify connectivity

Sample test payload:

{
  "event": "webhook_test",
  "timestamp": "2025-01-09 14:30:00",
  "data": {
    "test": true,
    "webhook_id": 123,
    "webhook_name": "n8n Integration",
    "message": "This is a test webhook from SkunkCRM"
  },
  "source": {
    "system": "SkunkCRM",
    "version": "1.0",
    "url": "https://yoursite.com"
  }
}

Manual Testing with cURL

# Test your endpoint manually
curl -X POST "https://your-webhook-endpoint.com" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer your-token" \
  -d '{
    "event": "contact_created",
    "data": {
      "contact": {
        "name": "Test Contact",
        "email": "test@example.com"
      }
    }
  }'

Delivery & Reliability

Retry Logic

Failed deliveries are automatically retried
3 retry attempts with exponential backoff
Permanent failure after 3 failed attempts

Delivery Logs

View delivery history in SkunkCRM admin
See success/failure status for each webhook
Debug failed deliveries with error messages

Monitoring

Webhook health dashboard shows delivery statistics
Alerts for consistently failing webhooks
Performance metrics for response times

Security Best Practices

Webhook Security

Use HTTPS - Always use secure webhook URLs
Validate signatures - Implement webhook signature validation if available
IP allowlisting - Restrict to known IP addresses where possible
Monitor logs - Watch for suspicious activity

Rate Limiting

Built-in rate limiting prevents spam
Webhooks are queued during high-traffic periods
Contact support for enterprise rate limits

Troubleshooting

Webhook Not Firing?

Check webhook status - Ensure it's active in admin
Verify events - Make sure selected events match actual CRM activity
Review logs - Check WordPress error logs for issues
Test manually - Use the built-in test feature

Authentication Failing?

Double-check credentials - Verify tokens/passwords are correct
Header format - Ensure authentication headers match expected format
Test with curl - Manually test your endpoint

Timeout Issues?

Optimize endpoint - Ensure your webhook endpoint responds quickly
Increase timeout - Contact support for longer timeout limits
Async processing - Process webhook data asynchronously in your application

Next Steps

Set up monitoring - Watch webhook delivery logs regularly
Implement error handling - Build robust error handling in your receiving systems
Scale your integrations - Connect multiple external systems as your business grows

::rest-api-banner::

Ready to get technical? For complete technical reference and advanced configuration options, consult the REST API section of your SkunkCRM WordPress plugin.