Before you start
You need:
A HubSpot workspace already connected to Octopods.
A Telegram account (any personal account can create bots).
The bot token you’ll get from BotFather.
Admin access to the HubSpot portal with permission to grant additional HubSpot permissions.
At least one inbox already configured inside HubSpot.
Step 1: Create a Telegram bot
Open Telegram and start a chat with @BotFather.
Send
/newbot.Provide a display name (for example, “Acme Support”).
Provide a username ending in
bot(for example,acmesupport_bot).Copy the HTTP API token BotFather sends back — a string like
123456789:ABCdefGhIJKlmnOPQrstuvWXYz.
Warning: Treat the bot token like a password. Anyone with it can send messages as your bot.
Step 2: Open the Telegram setup
Sign in to Octopods and open the HubSpot workspace.
Click the option to add a new channel.
In the Add a Channel modal, select Telegram under Popular Channels.
Step 3: Re-authorize HubSpot (if prompted)
If this is the first channel on the workspace needing HubSpot’s Custom Channels permissions:
Click the re-authorize button.
Sign in to HubSpot and approve the added permissions — the ones that let Octopods create and manage custom channels in your HubSpot inbox.
HubSpot redirects back to Octopods.
Step 4: Paste the bot token
A Telegram setup panel opens with a Telegram Bot Token field and an optional Friendly Name field.
Paste the token from BotFather into the Telegram Bot Token field.
Give the channel a Friendly Name if you want an easy label in the channel list.
Click Activate Telegram Channel.
Octopods validates the token against Telegram’s API, captures the bot’s username and display name automatically, and registers the webhook so Telegram forwards messages to Octopods.
Step 5: Pick a HubSpot inbox and activate
Octopods opens the channel detail page with a Select HubSpot Inbox dropdown and an Activate button that is disabled until you pick an inbox.
Pick the inbox that should receive Telegram conversations.
Click Activate.
Octopods registers the channel as a custom channel inside HubSpot.
The channel status changes to Connected, and it appears in the workspace’s channel list.
Step 6: Send a test message
Open Telegram on your phone or desktop.
Search for your bot by its username and start a chat.
Send a short message.
Open HubSpot and go to the inbox assigned to the Telegram channel. A new conversation appears with your message.
Reply from HubSpot.
The reply arrives in Telegram from your bot.
What’s different from Intercom
Compared to Setting Up Telegram on an Intercom workspace:
The first channel on a HubSpot workspace that uses custom channels triggers a Re-authorize HubSpot prompt.
You have to select a HubSpot inbox and click Activate after the token is validated.
The bot creation with BotFather, the token validation, and the webhook registration are identical.
Managing the channel
Change the inbox — open the channel detail page and pick a different inbox from the dropdown.
Rotate the token — if you revoke the token in BotFather, the old one stops working. Get a new token from BotFather and re-enter it on the channel detail page.
Common issues
“HubSpot re-authorization required” — HubSpot hasn’t granted the Custom Channels permissions. Follow the prompt.
Inbox dropdown is empty — create an inbox in HubSpot first.
“Invalid token” — copy the full token from BotFather, including the portion after the colon.
Messages don’t appear in HubSpot — open the channel detail page and use the reconnect or re-register action. Telegram webhooks can get overwritten if the same bot token is used in another tool.
What’s next