How to Use HubSpot for Marketing Success

Tired of B2B marketing campaigns that deliver disappointing results – with no clear indication as to why?  

HubSpot offers a range of powerful tools that help B2B marketers improve campaign performance, understand what drives performance, and ultimately prove how that performance impacts bottom-line revenue. 

This article explains exactly how it does that, with a clear guide to help you introduce and use each of the platform’s key marketing features. 

Expect to learn: 

• The 3 core HubSpot tools that improve marketing performance 
• The best ways to onboard and scale your use of HubSpot for marketing 
• The 6 best use cases for HubSpot that deliver marketing results 

Why Is HubSpot Important for Marketers? 

HubSpot offers B2B marketers several vital advantages over their competitors, including: 

1. Centralized Marketing Tools

Many marketers struggle with managing multiple disconnected tools for email, social media, analytics, sales communications, and CRM - leading to inefficiencies and data silos.  

HubSpot provides an all-in-one marketing platform that centralizes these functions. Marketers can seamlessly integrate workflows, ensuring all their tools work together, saving time and improving accuracy. 

2. Increased Insight into Campaign Performance

B2B marketing can feel like a constant guessing game, with no way of knowing exactly which elements of a campaign are driving results. 

HubSpot’s robust analytics and reporting tools allow marketers to track campaign performance across all channels in real time, offering actionable insights to optimize campaigns. This not only unlocks performance improvements but also helps prove the impact marketing has on revenue.

Source: Hubspot

3. Scalable Lead Nurture 

Marketers often struggle to nurture leads effectively, resulting in lost opportunities and reduced ROI. This is often due to a lack of resources, as scaling nurture campaigns manually requires a lot of time and effort. 

With HubSpot’s marketing automation tools, marketers can create personalized email sequences, automated workflows, and targeted content to engage leads at every stage of the buyer’s journey. 

Given these benefits, most B2B marketers will immediately see the value of migrating to HubSpot. However, the platform is large and complex, raising the question of which part of HubSpot marketers should focus on. 

Source: Hubspot

An Overview of HubSpot for Marketing 

HubSpot features three primary platforms that benefit B2B marketing teams: 

1. Marketing Hub

The platform offers specialized features for: 

• Email Marketing: Create and send beautifully designed, targeted email campaigns. Use A/B testing to determine what resonates most with your audience. 
• Marketing Automation: Automate repetitive tasks like lead nurturing, social media posting, and follow-ups to focus on strategic initiatives. 
• SEO Recommendations: HubSpot’s built-in SEO tools help optimize your website and content for search engines, increasing visibility and driving traffic. 
  

Source: Hubspot

• Social Media Management: Schedule and manage social media posts, track performance, and engage with audiences directly from the platform. 
• Campaign Analytics: Track every aspect of your marketing campaigns, from email open rates to website conversions, and make data-driven decisions. 

2. Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

HubSpot's free CRM system allows marketers to track and manage customer interactions, providing valuable insights into customer behavior and facilitating personalized marketing strategies. It creates a centralized store of data that is shared between marketing, sales and customer service to save time, increase collaboration and provide all parties with a more accurate and detailed view of the audience. 

3. Content Hub 

Designed for content marketers, HubSpot Content Hub offers AI-powered tools for content creation, personalization, and distribution across multiple channels, including blogs, podcasts, and social media. It integrates with HubSpot's CRM to deliver personalized content experiences based on customer data.  

How to Set Up HubSpot Marketing Hub 

Introducing Marketing Hub can be overwhelming: the marketing team is suddenly faced with a wide range of powerful tools and may not immediately understand how they fit within existing systems and workflows. However, with the right onboarding process, marketers can ensure the platform fits existing workflows and delivers immediate value. 

How Does the Onboarding Process Work? 

There are three basic steps to the onboarding process for the Marketing Hub: 

Create an account and integrate or migrate data from your existing tools, such as your CRM, email platform, and social media accounts. This integration ensures seamless data flow between your systems, eliminating the need for manual data entry and reducing errors. Take the time to review your current tools and decide which ones are essential to integrate to avoid unnecessary clutter.  

HubSpot also allows for custom API integrations if you’re using specialized software, providing the flexibility to maintain a connected ecosystem tailored to your unique needs. Setting up these integrations early lays the foundation for efficient workflows and centralized reporting. 

Import contacts, email lists, and other marketing assets into HubSpot to begin building a unified database. This step involves more than simply uploading data—it’s also an opportunity to clean and segment your lists for more effective targeting. Ensure that your data is properly formatted and free from duplicates to maximize the accuracy of your campaigns.  

HubSpot’s import wizard provides an intuitive way to map data fields, ensuring your contacts, properties, and other assets align with the platform's structure. If you have historical email performance data, consider importing it as well to establish benchmarks for future campaigns. 

Source: Hubspot

Configure the platform to match your marketing workflows, goals, and branding. This includes setting up workflows, templates, and custom properties that reflect your specific business processes. Customize email templates, landing pages, and forms to ensure they align with your brand guidelines and provide a consistent customer experience.  

Additionally, take advantage of HubSpot’s segmentation capabilities to create targeted audiences based on behaviors, demographics, or lifecycle stages. By tailoring the platform to your business needs, you can ensure that every tool works cohesively to support your marketing strategy and deliver measurable results. 

3 Steps for a Smooth Onboarding Process 

1. Leverage a HubSpot Agency Partner 

Work with a HubSpot partner agency that has expertise in marketing. This will accelerate setup and ensure the platform is tailored to your business needs. HubSpot agencies provide expert guidance on integrating your tools, setting up key features, and optimizing workflows for your specific goals. They can also help identify gaps in your current processes and recommend best practices to streamline your marketing efforts.  

By leveraging this support, you’ll not only save time but also ensure that your team is using the platform to its full potential from day one. For businesses with complex requirements, onboarding services can be customized to include advanced configurations, such as multi-hub integrations or custom reporting setups. 

2. Start with Templates

Starting with templates can significantly reduce the learning curve for new users, making it easier to launch campaigns faster. As you grow more comfortable with the platform, you can create and save your own templates to streamline future projects and maintain consistency across all marketing efforts. 

3. Train Your Team 

Take advantage of HubSpot Academy and Knowledgebase to get your team up to speed on using the platform effectively. HubSpot Academy offers a wide range of courses, certifications, and tutorials tailored to different roles and skill levels, from beginners to advanced users. By completing these resources, your team will gain the knowledge and confidence to use HubSpot’s features effectively, improving productivity and campaign results.  

Encourage your team to explore industry-specific modules that provide insights into how others in your field use the platform successfully. Continuous training ensures your team stays updated on new features and best practices, maximizing the return on your HubSpot investment over time. 

6 Ways to Drive Marketing Performance with Marketing Hub 

HubSpot Marketing Hub offers diverse use cases to drive performance across various marketing activities, including: 

1. Lead Generation

How it Works: 
B2B marketers can create high-converting landing pages with forms and CTAs to capture leads. HubSpot’s drag-and-drop editor allows users to design visually appealing, mobile-friendly landing pages while integrated forms capture lead information and automatically sync it with the CRM. Customizable CTAs ensure that every campaign aligns with specific goals, such as downloading an eBook or signing up for a webinar. 

Expert Tips: 

1. Use Smart CTAs: HubSpot’s Marketing Hub allows you to create dynamic CTAs tailored to the visitor’s lifecycle stage or persona. For example, a first-time visitor might see a CTA for an introductory webinar, while a returning lead could see a case study download. 
2. A/B Test Landing Pages: Use HubSpot’s A/B testing feature to experiment with headlines, images, and CTAs to determine what resonates most with your audience. Small tweaks can result in significant conversion rate improvements. 
3. Leverage Lead Flows: Use HubSpot’s pop-up forms and lead flows to capture attention at key moments, such as exit intent or during a high-value blog post. These micro-conversions can nurture leads who aren’t ready to fill out longer forms. 

2. Content Marketing

How it Works: 
Plan, create, and distribute blog content that aligns with your audience’s interests. HubSpot’s content tools enable users to brainstorm ideas using keyword suggestions, write optimized articles, and distribute them across channels like email and social media. The platform tracks engagement metrics to refine future content strategies. 

Expert Tips: 

1. Topic Clusters and Pillar Pages: Use HubSpot’s SEO tools to create topic clusters that interlink related content. This approach boosts organic search rankings and keeps users engaged by offering them a clear content journey. 
2. Editorial Calendar: Plan your content strategy using HubSpot’s calendar tool to visualize blog posts, social shares, and email campaigns. This ensures consistency and helps align content with broader marketing goals. 
3. Content Analytics: Analyze post-performance using HubSpot’s analytics dashboard to see which topics and formats drive the most traffic and engagement. Use this data to double down on what works. 

3. Email Campaigns

How it Works: 
Design and send personalized email campaigns tailored to segmented lists. HubSpot’s email marketing tools enable marketers to create visually appealing emails, segment audiences based on behaviors or attributes, and schedule automated drip campaigns to nurture leads over time. 

Expert Tips: 

1. Behavior-Based Segmentation: Use HubSpot’s CRM to segment your audience based on engagement, such as previous email clicks or website visits. For instance, send product demos to leads who’ve visited the pricing page. 
2. Email A/B Testing: Experiment with subject lines, images, and CTAs to optimize open and click-through rates. HubSpot’s detailed analytics allow you to pinpoint what resonates best with your audience. 
3. Smart Send Times: Leverage HubSpot’s smart scheduling feature to send emails when recipients are most likely to engage, increasing the chances of your message being opened. 

4. Social Media Engagement

How it Works: 
Schedule posts, monitor performance, and engage with followers. HubSpot’s Social Media Management tools let you plan content calendars, track engagement metrics, and respond to messages across platforms—all from a single dashboard. 

Expert Tips: 

1. Audience Targeting for Posts: Use HubSpot to tailor social posts to specific audience segments based on platform or region. For example, industry insights can be posted on LinkedIn, while promotional content is shared on Instagram. 
2. Monitor Mentions and Keywords: Set up monitoring streams to track mentions of your brand or relevant keywords. This allows you to engage in real-time conversations and manage your online reputation. 
3. Social Analytics: Dive into detailed reports to understand which platforms and types of content drive the most engagement. Use these insights to refine your social strategy and allocate resources effectively.

5. Customer Journey Automation

How it Works: 
Create workflows to guide leads through the buyer’s journey. HubSpot’s Marketing Automation tools enable you to build personalized, trigger-based workflows that nurture leads from initial awareness to purchase and beyond. 

Expert Tips: 

1. Lifecycle Stage-Based Workflows: Develop workflows for each stage of the buyer’s journey. For example, a lead in the awareness stage might receive educational blog posts, while someone in the decision stage could get a demo request email. 
2. Lead Scoring: Use HubSpot’s lead scoring system to prioritize high-value leads and trigger targeted workflows. For example, leads with high engagement scores can be sent directly to the sales team. 
3. Event-Driven Automation: Create workflows triggered by specific actions, such as downloading an eBook or abandoning a cart. This ensures timely and relevant follow-ups that move leads closer to conversion. 

Source: Hubspot

6. Reporting and Analytics

How it Works: 
Gain insights into campaign performance to refine strategies. HubSpot’s analytics tools provide detailed dashboards tracking metrics across email, social media, website traffic, and more. Custom reports allow marketers to focus on KPIs that matter most to their business. 

Expert Tips: 

1. Attribution Reporting: Use HubSpot’s multi-touch attribution models to identify which channels and campaigns contribute most to conversions. This helps allocate your marketing budget effectively. 
2. Custom Dashboards: Build dashboards that consolidate data from multiple sources, such as email, social, and web traffic. Share these dashboards with your team for better alignment and decision-making. 
3. Real-Time Campaign Adjustments: Monitor live data to identify underperforming campaigns and make adjustments mid-flight. For example, reallocate ad spend or tweak CTAs to improve ROI.

Enhance Your Marketing with a HubSpot Platinum Partner 

ProperExpression is a full-stack B2B marketing agency and HubSpot Platinum Partner. Our expert team has helped over 50 B2B companies introduce and drive maximum value with HubSpot – helping one client increase inbound generated revenue by 466%. 

Want to explore how we could help you improve marketing performance using HubSpot?