Google Alerts + RSS Feed Setup for n8n

You need a system that tells you when a dormant prospect gets acquired, raises funding, hires a new CFO, or announces expansion. Manual checking doesn't scale. Google Alerts and RSS feeds, piped into n8n, give you automated intelligence on 50+ companies without lifting a finger.

This guide shows you exactly how to configure Google Alerts for RSS output, find RSS feeds that actually matter, and wire both into n8n workflows that notify your team or update your CRM

automatically.

A prospect who ghosted you six months ago just announced Series B funding. Another hired a new operations director. A third one posted a job listing for "Director of Finance Transformation."

These are reactivation triggers. You need to know about them within hours, not weeks.

Google Alerts monitors web mentions. RSS feeds track blog posts, press releases, and news sites. n8n turns both into actionable workflows. Combined, they create a monitoring system that costs $0 and runs 24/7.

Google Alerts can deliver via email or RSS. You want RSS because n8n can poll RSS feeds directly without parsing email.

Step 1: Access Google Alerts

Navigate to https://www.google.com/alerts. Sign in with any Google account.

Step 2: Build Your Alert Query

In the search box, enter your monitoring query. Use these patterns:

Company-specific alerts:

• "Acme Consulting" OR "Acme Consulting Group" (catches variations)
• "Acme Consulting" AND (funding OR acquisition OR merger)
• "Acme Consulting" AND (hired OR appointed OR joins)

Industry trigger alerts:

• "law firm" AND "new managing partner" AND Chicago
• "accounting firm" AND (expansion OR "new office") AND Texas
• site:bizjournals.com "professional services" AND acquisition

Job posting alerts (signal of growth):

• site:linkedin.com/jobs "Director of Finance" "law firm" Chicago

Step 3: Configure Alert Settings

Click "Show options" below the search box. Set these parameters:

• How often: "As-it-happens" for high-priority prospects. "At most once a day" for broader industry monitoring.
• Sources: "News" for press coverage. "Automatic" includes blogs and forums (noisier but catches more).
• Language: English (or your target market language).
• Region: "United States" or your specific geography.
• How many: "Only the best results" reduces noise. "All results" for comprehensive monitoring.
• Deliver to: Select "RSS feed" from the dropdown (not email).

Step 4: Create and Capture the RSS URL

Click "Create Alert." Google generates the alert but doesn't show the RSS URL directly.

To get the RSS feed URL:

1. Go to https://www.google.com/alerts
2. Click the gear icon next to your alert
3. Change "Deliver to" to "RSS feed" if not already set
4. Click the RSS icon next to the alert
5. Copy the URL from your browser's address bar

The URL format looks like: https://www.google.com/alerts/feeds/12345678901234567890/1234567890123456789

Save this URL. You'll paste it into n8n.

Step 5: Repeat for Each Monitoring Target

Create separate alerts for:

• Each high-value dormant prospect (10-20 companies)
• Each competitor (5-10 companies)
• Industry trend keywords (3-5 broad alerts)
• Geographic market terms (2-3 location-based alerts)

You'll end up with 20-40 alerts. That's normal for comprehensive monitoring.

Many companies publish RSS feeds for their blog, press releases, or news sections. You need to find them and verify they're active.

Step 1: Locate RSS Feeds on Target Websites

Check these common locations on a prospect's website:

• /feed or /rss or /feed.xml
• /blog/feed or /news/feed
• /press-releases/rss
• Look for an orange RSS icon in the footer or sidebar

Manual method: Visit the company blog. View page source (Ctrl+U or Cmd+U). Search for "rss" or "feed". Copy any URLs you find.

Automated method: Use a browser extension like "RSS Feed Reader" (Chrome) or "Awesome RSS" (Firefox). It detects feeds automatically when you visit a page.

Step 2: Test Feed Validity

Paste the RSS URL into https://validator.w3.org/feed/. This checks if the feed is properly formatted.

Also paste it into https://feedburner.google.com or any RSS reader (Feedly, Inoreader) to see if it returns recent items.

Dead feeds (no updates in 6+ months) aren't worth monitoring.

Step 3: Industry and News Source Feeds

Add these high-signal sources:

Legal industry:

• American Lawyer: https://www.law.com/americanlawyer/rss/
• Legal Dive: https://www.legaldive.com/feeds/news/
• State/local legal journals (search "[city] legal news RSS")

Accounting industry:

• Accounting Today: https://www.accountingtoday.com/feed
• Journal of Accountancy: https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/news.rss
• CPA Practice Advisor: https://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/rss

Business news (local markets):

• American City Business Journals: https://www.bizjournals.com/[city]/feed
• Crain's (Chicago, New York, Detroit): Check individual city sites for /feed

Press release wires:

• PR Newswire by keyword: https://www.prnewswire.com/rss/news-releases-list.rss
• Business Wire: https://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/rss/

Now wire your Google Alerts and RSS feeds into n8n workflows.

Step 1: Create a New Workflow in n8n

Log into your n8n instance (cloud or self-hosted). Click "New Workflow."

Name it: "Dead Lead Monitoring - [Company Name]" or "Industry News Monitor."

Step 2: Add and Configure the RSS Feed Trigger Node

1. Click the "+" button to add a node
2. Search for "RSS Feed Trigger"
3. Select "RSS Feed Trigger"

Configure the node:

• Feed URL: Paste your Google Alert RSS URL or company RSS feed URL
• Poll Times: Set to "Every Hour" for active monitoring or "Every 6 Hours" for less critical feeds
• Max Items: Set to 10 (prevents overload if a feed suddenly publishes 50 items)

Click "Execute Node" to test. You should see recent feed items appear.

Step 3: Add a Filter Node to Reduce Noise

Not every RSS item matters. Filter for relevance.

1. Add an "IF" node after the RSS trigger
2. Configure conditions:

Example filter for funding announcements:

• Condition: {{ $json.title.toLowerCase() }} contains "funding" OR "raised" OR "series"

Example filter for leadership changes:

• Condition: {{ $json.title.toLowerCase() }} contains "hired" OR "appointed" OR "joins" OR "cfo" OR "coo"

Example filter excluding irrelevant terms:

• Condition: {{ $json.title.toLowerCase() }} does NOT contain "webinar" OR "podcast" OR "whitepaper"

Route the "true" output to your next action node. The "false" output goes nowhere (filtered out).

Step 4: Add Action Nodes

Connect action nodes to the filter's "true" output:

Option A: Send Slack notification

1. Add "Slack" node
2. Select "Send Message"
3. Configure:

   • Channel: #dead-leads or #sales-intel
   • Message:

   New trigger for `{{ $json.title }}`
   Link: `{{ $json.link }}`
   Summary: `{{ $json.contentSnippet }}`
   

Option B: Create HubSpot task

1. Add "HubSpot" node
2. Select "Task" > "Create"
3. Configure:

   • Subject: Follow up: {{ $json.title }}
   • Notes: {{ $json.link }}
   • Assign to: [Sales rep owner of this account]
   • Due date: {{ $now.plus(1, 'days') }}

Option C: Update CRM

record

1. Add your CRM

   CRM

   Click to read the full definition in our AI & Automation Glossary.

   node (HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive)
2. Select "Contact" or "Company" > "Update"
3. Add to a custom field like "Recent News" or "Last Activity Date"

Option D: Send email digest

1. Add "Schedule Trigger" node (separate workflow)
2. Add "HTTP Request" node to fetch stored items
3. Add "Send Email" node with formatted digest
4. Schedule for daily 8am delivery

Step 5: Handle Multiple Feeds in One Workflow

You can monitor 10+ feeds in a single workflow:

1. Add multiple "RSS Feed Trigger" nodes (one per feed)
2. Connect all to a single "Merge" node
3. Add your filter and action nodes after the merge

This creates one monitoring workflow instead of 40 separate workflows.

Step 6: Activate the Workflow

Click the toggle switch in the top right to activate. The workflow now runs automatically on your defined schedule.

Add intelligence to your monitoring with scoring logic.

Add a Function Node for Scoring

After your RSS trigger and before your filter, add a "Function" node:

// Score the RSS item based on keywords
const title = $input.item.json.title.toLowerCase();
const content = $input.item.json.contentSnippet.toLowerCase();
const text = title + ' ' + content;

let score = 0;

// High-value triggers
if (text.includes('funding') || text.includes('raised')) score += 10;
if (text.includes('acquisition') || text.includes('acquired')) score += 10;
if (text.includes('hired') || text.includes('appointed')) score += 8;
if (text.includes('expansion') || text.includes('new office')) score += 7;
if (text.includes('cfo') || text.includes('coo') || text.includes('managing partner')) score += 6;

// Medium-value triggers
if (text.includes('growth') || text.includes('revenue')) score += 4;
if (text.includes('award') || text.includes('recognition')) score += 3;

// Negative signals
if (text.includes('layoff') || text.includes('restructuring')) score -= 5;

return { json: { ...($input.item.json), relevanceScore: score } };

Then update your IF node to filter by score:

• Condition: {{ $json.relevanceScore }} >= 7

Only high-scoring items trigger notifications.

Check your workflows monthly:

• Review false positives. Adjust filter keywords.
• Check for dead RSS feeds (no updates in 30+ days). Remove them.
• Add new prospects as they enter your pipeline.
• Monitor Slack channel engagement. If your team ignores notifications, your filters are too loose.

Set a calendar reminder for the first Monday of each month: "Review n8n monitoring workflows."

Google Alerts and RSS feeds cost nothing. n8n turns them into a monitoring system that would cost $200+/month with a commercial tool like Mention or Talkwalker.

Set up 20-40 alerts covering your top dormant prospects, competitors, and industry terms. Wire them into n8n with filters and Slack notifications. Your team gets real-time reactivation triggers without manual research.

Budget 2-3 hours for initial setup. Maintenance takes 30 minutes per month. The first reactivated deal pays for the time investment 50x over.