How SMBs Can Leverage HubSpot for Their B2B Business: Key Questions to Ask Yourself

HubSpot is a powerful tool. Tips from On-Target on what to consider before you leap forward.

HubSpot has become one of the leading CRM platforms for B2B businesses, offering a robust suite of tools that can streamline operations, improve customer relationships, and enhance marketing efforts.

However, to get the most out of HubSpot, it's critical for business owners to carefully consider how they plan to use the platform, who will be responsible for different aspects of its implementation, and what customizations will be needed to suit their specific business needs. 

To help SMB owners think through how they might implement HubSpot for their B2B operations, here are detailed questions that On-Target will need to address to help you maximize the benefits of the core aspects of the CRM, ranging from user roles to customizations.

1. Identifying Key Users and Their Roles

Understanding who will use HubSpot and their roles within the business is essential for setting up the platform efficiently. Here are questions that can help clarify roles and responsibilities:

• Who will be the primary users of HubSpot in your business?
  • (e.g., Sales team, Marketing team, Customer Service team, or Senior Management)
• What specific roles will each team or individual have within HubSpot?
  • For example:
    • Sales Team: Will they primarily use the CRM to manage leads, track communications, and close deals?
    • Marketing Team: Will they use HubSpot for email marketing, social media, or content creation?
    • Customer Service Team: Will they rely on HubSpot’s ticketing system or feedback tools to manage customer support?
• Who will oversee the setup and ongoing management of HubSpot?
  • Will you assign an internal employee, or will you rely on On-Target to manage the initial setup and training?
• Who will have administrative privileges and be responsible for managing user roles, permissions, and access?
  • HubSpot allows for tiered access. Some users might need full control, while others only need access to specific modules like the CRM or email marketing tools.
• Will different departments require customized dashboards or reports?
  • For instance, will the sales team need real-time reports on pipeline activity, while marketing needs insights into lead generation?
    
    

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2. Sales and Lead Management Customization

A key area for any B2B business is how you manage leads, track sales activities, and move prospects through the funnel. Customizing the sales pipeline in HubSpot is crucial for success.

• How do you currently manage leads and sales?
  • Is your process manual, or spreadsheet-based, or are you using another CRM system?
• What key stages do you want to define in your sales pipeline?
  • Are there specific stages you want to add or modify to match your current sales process (e.g., Prospecting, Qualification, Proposal Sent, Deal Closed)?
• What criteria do you use to qualify a lead?
  • Will you use HubSpot's lead scoring system, and what attributes should influence that score (e.g., company size, engagement, budget)?
• How do you assign leads to your sales reps?
  • Do you use round-robin lead assignments, or are leads assigned based on territory, industry, or another factor?
• Do you need to set up automated workflows to manage follow-ups with leads and prospects?
  • Should HubSpot trigger follow-up emails, tasks, or calls when certain conditions are met (e.g., after a demo, when a lead opens a proposal)?
• Will you use HubSpot’s integration with calling or email tools for sales?
  • Would you like to track all communications (email, phone, chat) directly in the CRM?

3. Marketing and Content Customization

HubSpot’s marketing hub provides tools for email campaigns, content marketing, and social media. Customizing these elements is crucial for ensuring alignment with your business goals.

• What are your key marketing goals?
  • Are you focused on generating leads, nurturing prospects, or strengthening your brand presence?
• What types of marketing campaigns do you plan to run with HubSpot?
  • Do you foresee running email marketing campaigns, social media campaigns, or paid advertising?
• Who in your company will be responsible for content creation?
  • Do you have a dedicated marketing person or team, or do you plan to outsource this function?
• Do you plan to customize landing pages and email templates?
  • Will you need custom landing page designs for specific campaigns, or will you use HubSpot's out-of-the-box templates?
• Will you use HubSpot’s social media tools to schedule posts and monitor engagement?
  • How will you measure the effectiveness of your social campaigns through HubSpot’s reporting tools?
• What key metrics will you use to track the success of your marketing efforts?
  • For example, will you track conversion rates, lead generation, or social media engagement?

4. Customer Support and Service Hub Customization

For B2B companies, excellent customer service is critical. HubSpot’s Service Hub allows you to manage tickets, track customer inquiries, and improve response times.

• How do you currently manage customer service or support tickets?
  • Is there a current ticketing system, or is support handled via email or phone?
• Who will manage customer service requests in HubSpot?
  • Will there be a dedicated team for customer service, or will it be integrated with your sales or account management team?
• Will you need to create custom ticket pipelines?
  • What stages should be in your support ticket pipeline (e.g., Open, In Progress, Waiting on Customer, Closed)?
• Do you plan to implement a knowledge base for customers to access self-service resources?
  • How will you customize the knowledge base with relevant guides, FAQs, and resources?
• Will you use HubSpot’s feedback tools to gather customer satisfaction or Net Promoter Score (NPS) data?
  • How will you track and analyze customer feedback to improve your services?

5. Integration and Automation

To fully unlock HubSpot’s potential, integrating it with other tools and setting up automations can streamline workflows and save time.

• What other tools does your business currently use that should integrate with HubSpot?
  • For example, do you use accounting software like QuickBooks, email platforms like Gmail or Office 365, or project management tools like Trello or Asana?
• How will you use automation in your business processes?
  • Will you automate lead nurturing workflows, customer follow-ups, or sales activities?
• Which business processes would benefit the most from automation?
  • Are there routine tasks (e.g., sending follow-up emails, assigning tasks, updating deal statuses) that HubSpot should handle automatically?
• Will you use HubSpot’s integrations for e-commerce, payments, or invoicing?
  • If you sell directly to other businesses online, will HubSpot integrate with your e-commerce system or invoicing tools?

6. Reporting and Analytics Customization

HubSpot offers a wide range of reporting capabilities, but tailoring reports to your business needs is essential.

• What key performance indicators (KPIs) are most important for your business?
  • Do you want to track lead conversion rates, deal size, customer acquisition cost, or another metric?
• Will different teams require custom reports?
  • Will your marketing team need detailed insights into campaign performance, while the sales team focuses on pipeline activity?
• Who will be responsible for setting up and analyzing reports?
  • Will you have a dedicated team member to handle reporting, or will this be shared across departments?
• How frequently will you need to generate reports (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly)?
  • Will you set up automated reports to be sent to team members, or will reports be generated on demand?

7. Scalability and Growth Considerations

Finally, it’s crucial to think about how HubSpot will evolve with your business as you grow and scale.

• How do you see your business growing over the next 1-3 years?
  • Do you expect to expand your sales and marketing teams, increase your lead volume, or add new services?
• Will your current HubSpot setup scale with your business growth?
  • Do you anticipate needing additional users, workflows, or integrations as your business expands?
• What new challenges do you foresee that HubSpot can help address?
  • As your business grows, will you need more sophisticated marketing campaigns, sales tracking, or customer support solutions?

Conclusion

Customizing HubSpot for a B2B business requires thoughtful planning, particularly around user roles, sales pipelines, marketing efforts, and customer service needs. By addressing these key questions, SMB owners can ensure they’re maximizing HubSpot’s capabilities to meet their unique business needs and drive growth.

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