If you’ve ever researched business software solutions, read about inbound marketing, or studied business models like the flywheel, you’ve likely heard of HubSpot.
There’s a lot more than meets the eye when you start recognizing that trademark orange and the memorable sprocket.
Let’s explore the world of HubSpot.
One of the most commonly asked questions we see in the business world revolves around HubSpot. There are many misconceptions and assumptions about the software.
It’s easy to lump HubSpot in with all the alternatives in the massive world of business software platforms. That doesn’t give the full picture.
HubSpot is built around the inbound methodology. It’s a software that encourages companies to apply inbound tactics to their marketing, sales, and customer service efforts.
But it’s also not a silver bullet. You can’t just sign up for a HubSpot account and magically fill your sales pipeline and grow your business.
The success stories from HubSpotters around the world have one thing in common – they know how to properly implement their tools and make the most out of the features they have access to.
To get to this point, users need to commit to learning. Fortunately, HubSpot is known for their amazing educational resources.
HubSpot Academy is the leading free resource in online training for inbound marketing, inbound sales, and customer service professionals. The curriculum varies in length and depth, ranging from quick practical courses to comprehensive certification learning paths that dive deep into common business topics.
They offer hundreds of individual courses and over a dozen certifications. Not only do these help people looking for professional development, but they also help users maximize their investment in using their HubSpot account.
With proper implementation and a commitment to ongoing education, your HubSpot account will be your most valuable business tool.
There are more than 73,000 companies around the world growing their business using HubSpot tools. And success stories are the norm for users – 57 percent of HubSpot customers saw a boost in their sales revenue in 2018.
Every team within organizations has something they love about using the platform.
Leaders in the C-suite have a lot to enjoy as a HubSpot customer. Most notably, HubSpot is known for incredible reporting features.
Every hub comes with amazing reporting capabilities, including the following:
The HubSpot portal makes it easy for teams to provide reports to the C-suite and identify growth opportunities for their ongoing strategies. This makes it easier for leadership to make the best strategy decisions for the growth of the organization.
In 2018, a staggering 94 percent of marketers in North America using the HubSpot Growth Stack said the platform has helped them hit their growth goals. The HubSpot Growth Suite tier of products includes access to all the marketing, sales, and customer service software your growing business needs at a discounted rate.
Most notably for marketing professionals on all levels of the team, the Marketing Hub is their best asset, thanks to the following amazing features:
This all-in-one inbound marketing software is truly comprehensive, helping marketing teams accomplish all their goals, from attracting the right target audience to converting them into high quality leads that can be handed off to sales.
Most HubSpot users see an improvement in the quality of the leads they’re getting with HubSpot. This is a common experience thanks to the robust suite of tools users get with each tier of the Sales Hub.
Sales leaders and salespeople alike are better equipped to hit quota and drive business success because of these notable Sales Hub features:
As sales closes more deals, businesses have more happy customers on their hands. But as the flywheel model indicates, the customer is the heart of your business. They’re not just an afterthought. They’re foundational to growing your business even more.
Many HubSpot users tend to see their levels of customer satisfaction increase over time. That’s not surprising when you consider how well equipped customer services teams are to continually delight customers and build more meaningful relationships with them.
Service Hub tools worth noting include the following:
Customer centricity is the new normal. The more companies prioritize customer experience, the faster they can grow. And HubSpot is the perfect solution for creating a frictionless customer experience.
The CMS Hub is a favorite among designers and developers for a simple reason – it makes it easier for marketers to make changes without a lot of back and forth. Developers can build flexible pages to enable others to make updates as needed.
Some of the most notable CMS Hub features that make designers and developers happy include:
With all the awesome CMS Hub tools, developers can focus on what matters most to them while enabling the marketing team to do what they need to do to continue hitting their goals.
There are plenty of reasons why HubSpot may not fit your company at this time.
The HubSpot pricing model can sometimes throw people off. When weighed against the amount of resources many organizations spend on third-party applications, the price tag of HubSpot products is a little deceiving.
Another consideration often overlooked is the fact that fragmented platforms can be a heavy drain on your internal teams. More time spent on finding information. Data not properly being transferred between apps. Integration headaches.
The HubSpot pricing tiers are designed to mitigate this frustration and save companies money, especially as they grow. The best part is that you don't have to throw out all your tools. You can integrate the ones you love seamlessly with your HubSpot portal.
The inbound methodology has been around for years, but many professionals are comfortable with the ways they've done things for years. And that's understandable.
But as the business world shifts power to the customer, there's a point where outdated tactics stop working. That's why it's crucial for organizations to evolve now and think ahead for the future of their business growth strategy. Inbound will play a big part in that.
We all have familiar tools we know inside and out. This is why so many sales teams still use spreadsheets to manage their pipelines. And while spreadsheets still have a place in an organization, using them for managing contact lists is a massive drain of resources.
There comes a point when you need to reflect on current systems and identify how much money is being spent working harder, not smarter.
There's a reason automation is becoming the norm: These tools are affordable when you see the amount of time they save and how much they boost productivity for each team.
Business software platforms like HubSpot are excellent for attributing revenue to specific initiatives and tasks. But if proving ROI for each team is not an obstacle for your business, then HubSpot might not be a need at the moment.
However, another thing to consider in terms of automated reporting is how well you're able to forecast revenue on the sales side of things. This helps predict future growth projections, something that HubSpotters gain key insights on thanks to pipeline management tools.
A main focus for most companies is simply driving sales, which is crucial for business growth. And if that's your sole intention for the time being, that's a great strategy.
But you run the risk of missing out on driving more revenue at a lower cost, thanks to a customer referral program. Earning referral business is way more efficient because your customers are advocating for your brand. And with HubSpot tools, like NPS surveys, you can make it easy for customers to spread their love for you.
Adopting new business software is one of the biggest undertakings a company can experience. It calls for a lot of time to migrate and integrate existing processes and data into your new software and to train your teams on using it.
This is why HubSpot onboarding is a vital first step in getting started with HubSpot. But if you're unable to commit to properly setting your hubs up, you're not going to see results for a while, slowing down your time to see true ROI of HubSpot.
Through an onboarding program, you gain peace of mind in knowing your technical setups are done right the first time. Plus, your teams learn together throughout onboarding, making them experts in no time.
Now that you know what HubSpot is used for, you're ready to decide what your best course of action is. Your team might be spending too much time and energy doing tasks you can automate and processes you can streamline with some easy-to-use HubSpot tools.
The best way you can determine if it's a good fit for you is to see it in action. Sign up for a free HubSpot demo today.