Start here
Before you start
Gather these first and the setup takes about 20 minutes. Most of the time goes into the one-time Google sign-in on self-hosted n8n.
#What you need
| You need | Why | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| n8n 2.x | Runs the workflows | n8n Cloud or self-hosted. Checked on 2.47.3. You need permission to import workflows and create credentials. |
| A Google account | Stores leads in Google Sheets and sends the thank-you email from Gmail | Google Workspace is better for email delivery (SPF/DKIM on your domain), but a normal Gmail account works. |
| An alert channel | Tells your team about each lead | Telegram (recommended, free), Slack, Discord, or any mix. You can switch each one on or off. |
| A website form, or none | Where leads come from | Any builder that can POST to a URL: WordPress, Webflow, Framer, Wix, plain HTML. No website? Use the hosted Demo Form. |
| The kit files | The workflows and sample Sheet | Three JSON files, the sample Sheet (or sample/leads-sample.csv) and the test payloads. |
#Values you'll collect
Keep a note open while you work. You'll paste these into the Config node in step 3.
| Value | Example | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Google Sheet ID | 1AbC…xyz |
The long part of the Sheet's address between /d/ and /edit |
| Your n8n address | https://n8n.yourdomain.com |
Your browser's address bar in n8n |
| Telegram bot token | 123456:ABC… |
@BotFather in Telegram (goes in an n8n credential, not in Config) |
| Telegram chat ID | -1001234567890 |
getUpdates after adding the bot to your group |
| Slack channel ID (optional) | C07ABCDEF12 |
Channel details in Slack |
| Discord webhook URL (optional) | https://discord.com/api/webhooks/… |
Channel settings → Integrations → Webhooks |
#The three workflows
| Workflow | Do you need it? | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Lead Capture → Sheet + Alerts | Yes | The main workflow: webhook, validation, dedupe, Sheet, email, alerts, JSON reply. |
| Lead Capture → Error Handler | Yes (recommended) | Runs when the main workflow fails, for example when Google Sheets is down after 3 retries. Logs the error and alerts you. |
| Lead Capture → Demo Form | Optional | A hosted n8n form at /form/lead-capture-demo for businesses without a website, or for a Facebook bio link or QR code. |
#Time and cost
- Time: about 20 minutes, plus 10 minutes for the Google Cloud client on self-hosted n8n.
- Cost: the workflows use only built-in n8n nodes. Google Sheets, Gmail, Telegram, Slack's free plan and Discord webhooks cost nothing at small-business volumes.
- Volume: hundreds of leads a day is comfortable. Each run reads the
Leadstab to find repeats, so archive old rows once you pass about 20,000.