How a HubSpot Marketing Consultant Guides you through your Marketing Automation Journey

Some companies feel marketing is a checkbox. A task completed before moving on to the next, only rearing its head when enough people complain.

But, anyone that uses marketing automation software has a much different opinion. Companies investing in marketing platforms see a different vision. It’s an ongoing and ever changing process.

Not a checkbox. 

When you invest in a platform like HubSpot, choosing the software is the starting point. What happens next is a series of phases. These phases determine how much value and return on investment (ROI) you get.

Feel you need to tackle these phases all at once? Don’t worry, there’s a better way.

And, the right HubSpot marketing consultant can make a huge difference.

Here’s how an effective consultant guides you and your team. There are two major categories a consultant should have experience in. This includes both marketing strategies and practical expertise in HubSpot functionality.

Knowing marketing strategies, it helps prevent costly missteps with your CRM. This includes offering recommendations based on real world experience.

When you need to validate ideas from the team, this skill can really save time.

Think of a consultant as a sounding board for ideas. Knowing HubSpot’s functionality can translate ideas into actual processes and stages.

This is where you see more value from your initial CRM investment. A true consultant should also inject their own ideas based on what’s worked in the past with other clients.

HubSpot is an amazing tool with limitless options. Knowing what options work best for your marketing strategy make the implementation smoother.

Let’s dive into the three phases a HubSpot implementation typically goes through.

Phase 1: Onboarding Is A Critical Consulting First Stage

Some organizations are completely new to a CRM like HubSpot. Others are migrating from another platform.

While others know marketing automation like the back of their hand. No matter where you’re at, the onboarding phase is key.

It’s where you establish core aspects of your new solution.

Like setting up unique data properties for your sales and marketing operations. HubSpot has many existing data fields. But your specific processes demand custom fields to work best.

This can include stages, status options, and even product names. Onboarding is also when forms and dashboards are set up.

Setting up users and training them on the system happen during this first phase as well. It’s important to have these in place from the very beginning.

It ensures your team gets the most from their new solution. And, helps avoid lost data or inaccurate reporting. This phase involves strategy and training. It makes sense to use a consultant with training experience.

This helps deliver a positive experience from the very start.

Phase 2: Adapting Based On Your Actual HubSpot Business Needs

Congratulations, your solution is in place and the team’s trained! Don’t break out the champagne bottle just yet.

Now that your CRM is ready, the next phase is actually brainstorming how to use it effectively. This adaptation stage takes a wide range of processing into consideration.

From the marketing automation side, mapping out how new leads are routed and reported.

Considering what type of emails these new leads will receive, and how often. When it comes to your sales operations, you may need to collaborate on the ideal stages each sale goes through.

Plus, enabling your sales team with messaging and automation that saves time on each deal.These are the types of activities that must be mapped out.

It’s a brainstorming session that should be discussed and collaborated on before even making a change in HubSpot. Remember, HubSpot is a great tool. But a tool is most effective when a plan is in place.

The right marketing consultant can take your plan and make it a reality.

Phase 3: Recurring Marketing Strategies And Beyond

Now that HubSpot has been set up for your specific use case, this last phase is the fuel to help you grow faster.

It’s the constant work needed to continue driving results. By results, that means more visitors, more leads, and more email marketing automation.

And, more sales!

There’s an ongoing effort because no matter what marketing strategies are in place, you need to adapt. Search engine optimization needs more blogs and content created. Not once, but ongoing.

Ad campaigns require landing pages adapted to the audience and the specific offer. Plus, staying in contact with prospects and existing clients is essential. Developing a monthly newsletter in HubSpot requires ongoing creativity and scheduling. All of this should come naturally when working with a HubSpot marketing consultant.

This phase is all about growth. And, you can’t grow unless you constantly improve.

Having a marketing consultant on your team will help streamline these processes.

Summary

As you’ve seen, there are different phases to your CRM and marketing automation.

That means, each phase demands a slightly different skill set.

Using a marketing consultant with a wide range of skills can help along the entire journey. The end goal is to drive better results with the tools you’ve invested in.

It makes sense to partner with a digital marketing “mechanic” that can show you how to use those tools the right way.