Steps & Best Practices for How to Change Marketing Contact Status in HubSpot

Your contact database is the heart of your marketing strategy, but not all contacts are created equal. Some are prime candidates for your next campaign, while others may be disqualified leads or inactive customers.  

Knowing how to change marketing contact status in HubSpot is key to keeping your campaigns targeted, your costs manageable, and your team focused on the right audience. 

HubSpot provides intuitive ways to manage marketing and non-marketing contacts, ensuring you can stay within your contact tier limits without missing opportunities to connect with the right people. Whether manually updating statuses or leveraging automated workflows, this guide will show you how to streamline the process and maximize your database’s potential.  

Why Set Contacts as Marketing or Non-Marketing? 

Before diving into the tactical steps, let’s briefly recap the reasons to choose either marketing or non-marketing status for your contacts: 

• Marketing Contacts: These individuals actively engage with your content and campaigns. They’re part of your billable contact tier and have opted in to receive your marketing emails, ads, and other outreach. 

• Non-Marketing Contacts: These are contacts you no longer actively market to—such as customers who’ve completed their journey, leads who’ve opted out or are disqualified, or emails that hard bounce. By marking these contacts as non-marketing, you can avoid unnecessary costs while keeping your database clean and focused. 

Now, let’s explore the two ways to update these statuses. 

1. Manual Update: Set Marketing Status in the Contacts Index

For quick, individual updates to a contact’s status, follow these steps: 

1. Navigate to Contacts: Log into your HubSpot account and go to CRM > Contacts. 
2. Select Contacts: Check the boxes next to the contacts whose status you want to change. 
3. Choose More Options: At the top of the table, click the More dropdown menu. 
4. Update Status: Select Set as Marketing or Set as Non-Marketing, depending on your needs. 
5. Confirm: In the dialog box, confirm the update. For current marketing contacts, the change will take effect on the next update date. 

Pro Tip: Use saved views to filter specific groups of contacts, such as those who have unsubscribed or hard-bounced emails, for easier selection. 

2. Automatic Update: Use Workflows to Maintain Contact Limits

Manual updates work well for minor adjustments, but automation is your best friend for ongoing contact management. Workflows can automatically mark contacts as non-marketing based on defined criteria, ensuring your contact list stays optimized. 

Here’s how to set it up: 

1. Create a Workflow: Navigate to Automations > Workflows in your HubSpot account. 
2. Define Enrollment Triggers: Select triggers like Lifecycle stage is Disqualified or Lead status for leads you no longer pursue. Alternatively, use criteria like Email hard bounce reason equals Known. 
3. Add an Action: In the workflow editor, click the + icon to add an action. Choose Set marketing contact status and set the value to Set as Non-Marketing. 
4. Activate the Workflow: Once the workflow is active, any contacts meeting the criteria will automatically be set as non-marketing on the next update date. 

Examples of Workflow Use Cases 

• Disqualified Leads: Automatically mark leads with a disqualified lifecycle stage as non-marketing. 

• Bounced Emails: Set contacts with hard-bounced emails as non-marketing to prevent sending emails that won’t be delivered. 

Best Practices for Managing Marketing Contact Status 

To get the most out of HubSpot’s contact management features, keep these tips in mind: 

1. Review Your Database Regularly: Schedule periodic audits to identify disengaged contacts, unsubscribers, or hard-bounced emails. 
2. Customize Default Settings: Adjust the default marketing status for forms, non-HubSpot forms that are synced, chatflows, and other tools to align with your strategy and avoid accidental overages. 
3. Use Filters and Lists: Leverage HubSpot’s filters and lists to group contacts with similar characteristics, making batch updates easier. 
4. Optimize Automation: Regularly review your workflows to ensure they reflect your current marketing and sales processes. 
5. Monitor Usage and Limits: Keep an eye on your billable contact tiers to avoid unexpected costs and maintain a clear picture of your contact database. 

Take Control of Your HubSpot Contact Management: The Conclusion 

Effective contact management is about more than just staying within your limits—it’s about ensuring every message, campaign, and touchpoint is directed to the right people. By mastering how to change marketing contact status in HubSpot, you can enhance your targeting, streamline your processes, and maximize the value of your marketing efforts. 

If you’re ready to take your HubSpot strategy to the next level, ProperExpression is here to help. As a full-stack HubSpot marketing agency, we specialize in helping businesses optimize their CRM, create impactful workflows, and drive growth.  

Get in touch today and let us help you turn your database into a powerhouse of targeted, effective marketing!