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Troubleshoot the HubSpot Sales Outlook desktop add-in

Last updated: February 27, 2024

Available with any of the following subscriptions, except where noted:

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The information below covers issues with the Outlook desktop add-in pertaining to installing, updating, tracking and notifications, and obtaining debug logs.

If you're using the Office 365 add-in, check out this article instead.

Please note: due to the significant changes introduced by Microsoft as part of the new Outlook for Windows, HubSpot will no longer develop new functionality for the HubSpot Sales Outlook desktop add-in. The desktop add-in will remain supported, but it's highly recommended that you instead activate the HubSpot Sales web add-in. Learn more in this HubSpot Community post.

Troubleshoot installation for the Outlook desktop add-in

If you've encountered an issue when installing or operating the Outlook desktop add-in, locate the error message below for additional troubleshooting steps: 

If you're not seeing the add-in in Outlook, learn more about how to enable HubSpot Sales in Outlook in your inbox.

Update Outlook

Ensure that your Outlook is updated and is the Click-to-run version. The Click-to-run version of Outlook is compatible with the add-in, while the Outlook installed from the Microsoft Store is not. Learn how to check the version of Outlook you are using and update your Outlook.

Configure firewall settings

Firewalls will need to allow communication with *.hubspot.com via HTTPS. Any updates will require communication with dl.getsidekick.com.


Tracking & notifications issues

Emails are not tracking

After sending a test email to hello@getsidekick.com, you may receive a response that your email was not tracked:

  • Ensure that HubSpot Sales for Windows is installed
  • Once the tray app is installed, if the app is not enabled, the HubSpot icon will be grayed out:
    • In the tray menu in the bottom right corner of your device, right-click the HubSpot sprocket icon sprocket. 
    • Select Enable Notifications

  • Before sending your email, ensure that the Track email box is selected.
    • If the box was not selected, the tracking pixel used to track email opens will not be inserted in the email.
    • To check if the tracking pixel was inserted in a sent email, access the source content of the email and look for code similar to the following:
<img src=3D"http://t.sidekickopen69.com/e1t/o/5/f18dQhb0S7ks8dDMPbW2n0x6l2B=9gXrN7sKj6v5 dlMTVfn3cs3M2y_-W2B89RP1pctGFW8mdf1T1k1H6H0?si=3D56803726671216=64&amp;pi=3D01cd79e8 c6c3-455d-d1aa-5175f2b770de&amp;ti=3Dundefined" style=3D"display:none!important" height=3D"1" width=3D"1">
  • Emails sent in Plain Text mode cannot be tracked. If you see that emails are sent in plain text, switch to HTML mode:
    • Compose a new email in Outlook.
    • Under the Message Options tab in the Format group, click HTML or Rich Text.
  • If Outlook attaches the HubSpot tracking pixel via CID, the email will not be tracked. CIDs attach the pixel image to the email that you're sending. Then it uses standard HTML image tags that reference the image to embed it in the email when the contact opens it. The tracking pixel therefore isn't actually inserted into the email body, and the email is not tracked. 
  • Try uninstalling, then re-installing the add-in.

After taking these steps, send another test tracked email to hello@getsidekick.com to receive a notification.

Common tracking error messages

You may encounter the following error message if you're not logged in to your account:

Your email can’t be tracked because you’re not logged in. Do you want to send your email without tracking?

HubSpot-Sales-login-error

The resolve this error:

  • Log out of the Outlook desktop add-in by clicking HubSpot Sales in the inbox ribbon, then click Sign out.
  • Log back in to the Outlook desktop add-in. 
  • If you're still getting an error, follow these troubleshooting steps

You may also encounter a general error that reads:

There was an issue tracking this email. Check to make sure you’re connected to the internet and logged in to HubSpot. 

outlook-issue-tracking-email-general-error

To resolve this error: 

  • Log out of the Outlook desktop add-in by clicking HubSpot Sales in the inbox ribbon, then click Sign out.
  • Log back in to the Outlook desktop add-in. 
  • Follow these troubleshooting steps
  • Disconnect your device from your network, then reconnect. 
  • Check to see if there are any security programs installed on your device that are blocking the desktop add-in. 

Notifications are not appearing

  • Real-time notifications are sent through the HubSpot Sales Chrome extension or the HubSpot Sales for Windows tray app. If you are sending tracked emails using the Outlook desktop add-in and are not receiving real-time HubSpot Sales notifications, make sure your Chrome browser is running in the background or that you have the HubSpot Sales for Windows tray app enabled.
  • If you have the Windows tray app installed as well as the Chrome extension, the tray app will not display notifications. HubSpot Sales will rely on the Chrome extension to do this instead.

Please note: real-time notifications are not available if you are using the HubSpot Sales Office 365 add-in. Instead, you'll only see activity in your HubSpot activity feed under Contacts > Activity Feed.

 

Login or loading issues

When you are unable to log into the add-in, or the add-in does not load correctly, uninstall then reinstall the add-in. 

Debug logs

When you're working with HubSpot Support to troubleshoot the desktop add-in, you may be asked to provide debug logs. When you have the extension installed in Outlook, it will store information in report logs on your computer. These logs are saved each day the extension is used, and your file names refer to the usage date. If your extension isn't functioning as expected, these logs help the support team take a deeper look into what's happening with the add-in on your computer. 

There are two ways to gather debug logs: from your PC's Start menu and from your Outlook account. 

Access my debug logs from your PC's Start menu

  • Copy and paste %appdata%\Sidekick\Logs into your Start menu in Windows, then press Enter.
  • A window will open with your debug logs. Add these logs as attachments to your support ticket.

Access debug logs from your Outlook account

  • In Outlook, click HubSpot Sales in the inbox ribbon and select Settings

  • In the dialog box, navigate to Help Send Logs.

  • This will open an email composition window with a HubSpot Outlook distribution email in the To field. Replace this with the email address of the Support specialist you're working with and click Send.
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