How to set up trigger based alerts in Clay for new prospect activities

If you're in sales or growth and tired of missing out on hot leads because you didn't spot a new activity in time, this one's for you. Setting up trigger-based alerts in Clay lets you know when prospects make a move—so you're not always playing catch-up. This guide skips the fluff and walks you through making alerts that actually help, not just add to your inbox noise.

Why bother with trigger-based alerts?

Let's be real: most “activity alerts” are either too noisy or not helpful. You get pinged for stuff you don't care about, and you end up ignoring everything—including the important things. Done right, trigger-based alerts mean you only hear about what matters: new prospect activities that could turn into pipeline. The trick is keeping it focused and actionable.

Before you start: What you actually need

  • A Clay account (any paid plan supports automations; free plans are limited)
  • At least one table of prospects
  • A clear idea of which activities you care about (e.g., new row added, field updated, custom webhook hit)
  • Somewhere to send alerts—email, Slack, etc.

If you’re hoping to build something that integrates with every system on earth, temper your expectations. Clay isn't a full-blown workflow engine, but it does cover a lot of basics, especially for outbound and data-gathering teams.

Step 1: Decide which prospect activities matter

Before you touch a button, nail down what actually matters. Some ideas:

  • New prospect added: Someone just landed in your table.
  • Status changed: A prospect moved from “cold” to “interested.”
  • Custom field updated: Maybe you enrich data or add a LinkedIn URL.

Pro tip: Start simple. You can always add more triggers later. If you make everything a fire drill, you’ll start ignoring the alarms.

Step 2: Set up your Clay table

Chances are, you’ve already got a table with prospects. If not:

  1. Go to Clay and create a new table.
  2. Add columns for whatever you track—name, email, LinkedIn, status, last contacted, etc.
  3. Load in your prospects (CSV, integrations, or manual).

Skip this if your table’s already humming.

Step 3: Open Automations & Triggers

  1. In your Clay workspace, open the table you want to monitor.
  2. Look for the “Automations” tab at the top (sometimes called “Triggers” or "Workflows" depending on recent updates).
  3. Click “+ New Automation” or “Add Trigger.”

You should now see options for setting up a new automation.

Step 4: Choose your trigger

Here’s where most people go overboard. Stick to what’s actually useful:

  • When a row is added: Good for new leads.
  • When a field changes: For updates like “status” or “last contact.”
  • On a schedule: If you want summary alerts (less noisy, but less real-time).
  • Webhook/API: For more advanced setups (skip this unless you know you need it).

Pick your trigger. For most, “row added” or “field changed” covers 90% of needs.

Example:
You want an alert every time a prospect’s “Status” changes to “Interested”.

  • Trigger: When “Status” column changes
  • Condition: If “Status” equals “Interested”

Step 5: Set conditions (so you don’t get spammed)

Here’s where you add filters, so you only get pinged for what matters.

  • Only trigger for certain statuses (e.g., “Interested,” not “Unqualified”)
  • Only trigger if the email column isn’t blank
  • Only trigger for specific owners

How to set conditions:

  1. After picking your trigger, look for “Add condition” or “Filter.”
  2. Set the rules—e.g., “Status” is “Interested”, and “Owner” is you.
  3. Test your condition with a couple of dummy records.

Pro tip:
If you get too many alerts at first, tighten your filters. “Test before you trust” is a good motto here.

Step 6: Choose your action (how you want to get notified)

Clay can send alerts in a few ways:

  • Email: Simple, but easy to lose in the inbox.
  • Slack: Good for teams. Need to connect your Slack first.
  • Webhook: For sending data to another tool (e.g., Zapier, Make, or your own endpoint).

Setting up an email alert:

  1. Choose “Send Email” as the action.
  2. Enter who should get it (your email, or a team address).
  3. Customize the message—include relevant fields, like prospect name, status, and a link to the row.

Setting up a Slack alert:

  1. Choose “Send to Slack.”
  2. Connect your Slack account if you haven’t already.
  3. Pick the channel or DM where you want alerts.
  4. Customize the message (again: keep it short and actionable).

Pro tip:
Don’t try to send alerts to everyone. Pick one or two people to start. Most teams drown in notifications and miss the important ones.

Step 7: Test it (seriously, don’t skip this)

Before you trust your automation, run a few tests:

  • Add a fake prospect or change a field that should trigger your alert.
  • Wait a minute. Did you get the alert? Was it clear and useful?
  • If not, tweak your trigger or message.

Things that trip people up:

  • Alerts firing too often (loosen your trigger or add conditions)
  • Alerts not firing (double-check your conditions and make sure the table is saving changes)
  • Emails going to spam (add Clay to your contacts, or use Slack instead)

Step 8: Maintain, prune, and improve

Even the best alert setups get noisy over time. Here’s how to keep them useful:

  • Review alerts every few weeks. Are you still paying attention?
  • Prune triggers that aren’t actionable.
  • Add conditions as your workflow evolves.

What not to do:

  • Don’t set up an alert for every minor change. You’ll tune it all out.
  • Don’t ignore feedback from your team—if they say alerts are noise, adjust.

What works, what doesn’t, and what to skip

What works well:

  • Simple, focused triggers tied to real prospect movement
  • Slack or direct email alerts (not a daily digest you’ll ignore)
  • Quick testing and regular pruning

What doesn’t work:

  • Trying to use Clay as a full-on CRM or marketing automation tool. It’s great for prospecting and enrichment, not your one source of truth.
  • Setting up so many alerts you can’t keep up
  • Relying on alerts for things you could automate away (e.g., syncing to your CRM automatically)

Ignore this for now:

  • Webhooks and advanced API stuff—unless you’re technical and have a real use case, start with built-in actions.
  • Multi-step automations with lots of dependencies. Get the basics working, then layer in complexity if you need it.

Wrapping up: Keep it simple, iterate fast

Trigger-based alerts in Clay are powerful—if you use them with restraint. Start with one or two alerts for the activities that actually move the needle, make sure you’re not flooding yourself or your team, and adjust as you go. The best setup is the one you’ll actually pay attention to.

Don’t overthink it: set up, test, and tweak. You’ll be catching new prospect activity without the noise, and your future self (and your team) will thank you.