This is the first entry in my new series aimed specifically at the software we at Roofing Business Partner recommend for taking your roofing company to the next level. Before you make the commitment to change up your software stack, you're going to want to do some due diligence around what software packages are available. The CRM is the heart of your software stack so we're starting with that. At Roofing Business Partner, we highly recommend HubSpot. And now you're probably wondering, what is HubSpot?
The HubSpot CRM Suite is a set of integrated software tools designed to help businesses manage their customer relationships, marketing efforts, sales processes, and customer service interactions all in one place. The suite is composed of four main products: HubSpot CRM, Marketing Hub, Sales Hub, and Service Hub.
The HubSpot CRM is the foundation for the entire suite, providing businesses with a centralized database for storing and managing their contacts, leads, and customer information. The CRM allows companies to track interactions with prospects and customers, store data on deals and transactions, and manage tasks and appointments. The CRM is free to use and integrates seamlessly with the other products in the suite.
Marketing Hub provides businesses with a range of tools for attracting, engaging, and delighting customers. The product includes lead capture forms, landing pages, email marketing, social media management, search engine optimization, and analytics.
Sales Hub provides businesses with tools to manage their sales pipelines and automate their sales processes. The product includes deal tracking, email templates and tracking, meeting scheduling, sales automation, and analytics.
Service Hub provides businesses with tools for delivering exceptional customer service and support. The product includes ticketing, a knowledge base, live chat, customer feedback, service automation, and analytics.
Businesses can use the entire HubSpot CRM Suite to manage their customer relationships from start to finish, from attracting and converting leads, to driving sales and delivering excellent customer service. The suite is designed to be user-friendly, customizable, and integrate seamlessly with other tools and software, making it a popular choice for businesses of all sizes.
Here are the main features and functionalities of HubSpot:
This is HubSpot's set of tools for managing marketing activities. It includes features like email marketing, social media management, landing pages and lead capture forms, and search engine optimization (SEO) tools.
This is HubSpot's set of tools for managing the sales process. It includes features like contact management, deal tracking, email templates, and meeting scheduling.
This is HubSpot's set of tools for managing customer service activities. It includes features like a help desk ticketing system, customer feedback surveys, and a knowledge base.
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system: This is the backbone of HubSpot's software platform. It provides a centralized database for storing customer data, including contact information, interactions, and other important details.
HubSpot provides a range of analytics tools to help businesses track and analyze the performance of their marketing, sales, and service activities.
HubSpot Marketing Hub is a set of integrated marketing tools designed to help companies use inbound marketing methodologies to attract, engage, and delight customers. It includes many features and functionalities to help businesses create and manage effective marketing campaigns, from generating leads and nurturing them through the sales funnel, to analyzing and optimizing campaign performance.
Here are some key features and benefits of HubSpot Marketing Hub:
Lead generation: HubSpot Marketing Hub includes a range of tools to help businesses generate leads, such as forms, landing pages, and lead capture pop-ups.
Email marketing: With HubSpot Marketing Hub, businesses can create and send email campaigns to their contacts and use personalization and segmentation to make their emails more targeted and effective.
Social media management: HubSpot Marketing Hub includes tools to help businesses manage their social media presence, including publishing and scheduling posts and monitoring and engaging with social media conversations.
SEO optimization: HubSpot Marketing Hub includes tools to help businesses optimize their website and content for search engines, including keyword research, on-page optimization, and tracking of search engine rankings.
Marketing automation: HubSpot Marketing Hub includes powerful marketing automation capabilities, allowing businesses to set up automated workflows that send targeted messages to leads and customers based on their behavior and interests.
Analytics: HubSpot Marketing Hub includes many tools to help businesses measure the performance of their marketing campaigns, including tracking website traffic, lead generation, and revenue attribution.
Integrations: HubSpot Marketing Hub integrates with many other marketing and sales tools, making it easy for businesses to connect their entire marketing and sales stack.
HubSpot Sales Hub is a set of sales tools designed to help businesses manage and automate their sales processes. It includes a range of features and functionalities to help sales teams manage their pipelines, track deals, and automate tedious tasks, allowing them to focus on building relationships with prospects and closing deals.
Here are some key features and benefits of HubSpot Sales Hub:
Contact management: HubSpot Sales Hub provides businesses with a centralized database for storing and managing their contacts, including lead and customer information, activity history, and more.
Deal tracking: With HubSpot Sales Hub, sales teams can track the progress of deals and sales and including deal stage, probability of closing, and deal value.
Email templates and tracking: HubSpot Sales Hub provides businesses with customizable email templates and allows them to track email opens and clicks and schedule follow-up tasks.
Meeting scheduling: HubSpot Sales Hub includes meeting scheduling tools that allow sales reps to easily schedule meetings with prospects and customers, without the back-and-forth of email.
Sales automation: HubSpot Sales Hub includes a range of automation tools to help sales teams automate tedious tasks, such as lead assignment, deal creation, and data entry.
Analytics: HubSpot Sales Hub provides businesses with detailed analytics and insights into their sales performance, including data on deal activity, sales pipelines, and revenue attribution.
Integrations: HubSpot Sales Hub integrates with a wide range of other sales and marketing while g it easy for businesses to connect their entire sales stack.
HubSpot Service Hub is a set of customer service and support tools designed to help businesses provide excellent customer experiences. It includes a range of features and functionalities to help companies to manage customer inquiries, track customer satisfaction, and automate repetitive tasks, allowing them to focus on delivering exceptional customer service.
Here are some key features and benefits of HubSpot Service Hub:
Ticketing: HubSpot Service Hub provides businesses with a centralized everyday system for managing customer inquiries and support requests.
Knowledge base: With HubSpot Service Hub, businesses can create a knowledge base that contains articles and resources to help customers solve everyday problems on their own.
Live chat: HubSpot Service Hub includes a live chat tool that allows businesses to provide real-time support to customers.
Customer feedback: HubSpot Service Hub allows businesses to gather customer feedback, track customer satisfaction scores, and monitor and respond to customer reviews.
Service automation: HubSpot Service Hub includes a range of automation tools to help businesses automate tedious tasks, such as routing tickets to the right team member and sending follow-up emails after a support interaction.
Analytics: HubSpot Service Hub provides businesses with detailed analytics and insights into their customer service performance, including data on ticket volume, resolution time, and customer satisfaction.
Integrations: HubSpot Service Hub integrates with many other customer service and support tools, making it easy for businesses to connect their entire service stack.
HubSpot CMS (Content Management System) is a fully integrated content management platform designed to work seamlessly with HubSpot's marketing, sales, and customer service tools. It allows businesses to create, manage, and optimize their website content without needing technical expertise or a separate CMS.
Here are some key features and benefits of HubSpot CMS:
Drag-and-drop editing: With HubSpot CMS, you can easily create and edit web pages using a simple drag-and-drop interface. This makes it easy for non-technical users to create and modify content.
Customization: HubSpot CMS allows for complete customization of website designs and templates, allowing businesses to create a unique online presence that reflects their brand.
SEO optimization: HubSpot CMS includes built-in SEO tools to help businesses optimize their website content for search engines.
Mobile responsiveness: HubSpot CMS templates are all designed to be mobile responsive, ensuring that websites look great on any device.
Integration with HubSpot's marketing tools: HubSpot CMS is fully integrated with HubSpot's marketing tools, allowing businesses to track visitor behavior and personalize content based on their interests and actions.
Security: HubSpot CMS includes enterprise-grade security features to protect websites from attacks and data breaches.
Analytics: HubSpot CMS includes built-in analytics tools that allow businesses to track website performance and optimize content to improve content without needing
HubSpot Operations Hub is a set of tools designed to help businesses automate and streamline their operations. It includes a range of features and functionalities to help companies to manage their data, automate workflows, and connect their different tools and systems, allowing them to focus on growth and scaling their operations.
Here are some key features and benefits of HubSpot Operations Hub:
Data management: HubSpot Operations Hub provides businesses with a centralized database for storing and managing their data, including customer, lead, and deal information.
Custom objects: With HubSpot Operations Hub, businesses can create custom objects to store additional data and information beyond what is provided in the standard database.
Workflows: HubSpot Operations Hub includes a powerful workflow automation tool that allows businesses to automate repetitive tasks and streamline their processes.
Integrations: HubSpot Operations Hub integrates with many other tools and systems, including CRMs, marketing automation platforms, and sales enablement tools.
APIs: HubSpot Operations Hub provides businesses with APIs to allow developers to build custom integrations and solutions.
Reporting and analytics: HubSpot Operations Hub provides businesses with detailed analytics and insights into their operations, including data on customer and lead behavior, workflow performance, and system integrations.
Security and compliance: HubSpot Operations Hub includes robust security features, such as two-factor authentication and access controls, and compliance features, such as GDPR and CCPA compliance.
HubSpot offers a range of email marketing tools and features as part of its Marketing Hub product. These tools help businesses create and send engaging email campaigns, track their performance, and personalize their messaging to their contacts.
Here are some key features and benefits of HubSpot's email marketing tools:
Email builder: HubSpot's email builder is a drag-and-drop tool that makes it easy to create professional-looking emails. It includes customizable templates, pre-built modules, and a rich text editor.
Personalization: HubSpot's email marketing tools allow businesses to personalize their emails using dynamic content, smart sending, and personalization tokens. This helps increase engagement and relevance for the recipient.
Segmentation: With HubSpot's email marketing tools, businesses can segment their email lists based on a wide range of criteria, such as contact properties, engagement history, and behavior.
Automation: HubSpot's email marketing tools include automation features, allowing businesses to set up workflows and sequences that send emails based on triggers or events.
A/B testing: HubSpot's email marketing tools include A/B testing features that allow businesses to test different versions of their emails to see which performs better.
Reporting and analytics: HubSpot's email marketing tools provide detailed analytics and reporting on email performance, including open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates.
Integrations: HubSpot's email marketing tools integrate with many other tools and platforms, including CRMs, landing page builders, and social media management tools.
HubSpot and Salesforce are both customer relationship management (CRM) platforms, but they have some critical differences in their features, functionality, and pricing models.
Here are some ways that HubSpot differs from Salesforce and other CRMs:
Pricing model: HubSpot uses a freemium model, which means businesses can use some of the platform's basic features for free, with the option to upgrade to paid plans as their needs grow. On the other hand, Salesforce offers a range of pricing tiers with different features and capabilities depending on the plan.
Marketing automation: HubSpot includes marketing automation features as part of its Marketing Hub product, which allows businesses to create and automate marketing campaigns, track leads, and analyze marketing performance. Salesforce's marketing automation features are available through its Pardot product, which is a separate platform with its own pricing model.
Sales automation: HubSpot's Sales Hub includes sales automation features, such as email templates, sales automation workflows, and deal tracking. Salesforce's sales automation features are included in its Sales Cloud product, which is also a separate platform.
All-in-one platform: HubSpot is an all-in-one platform, meaning that it includes a range of tools and features for marketing, sales, and customer service, all in one place. Salesforce, on the other hand, offers separate products for each of these areas.
Ease of use: HubSpot is designed to be user-friendly, with a drag-and-drop interface, pre-built templates, and an intuitive user experience. Salesforce, however, can be more complex and challenging to use, especially for businesses that are new to CRM software.
Integrations: HubSpot integrates with a wide range of third-party tools and platforms, including social media, email marketing, and content management systems. Salesforce also offers a wide range of integrations, but they may require more technical expertise to set up and use.
Overall, HubSpot and Salesforce are both powerful CRM platforms, but they have some key differences in their pricing models, features, and ease of use. Businesses should evaluate their specific needs and budget when choosing between these platforms, as well as consider other options in the crowded CRM market.
The most prominent feature unique to HubSpot is its use of the freemium model. HubSpot's CRM is available for free, with no time limit or user limit, making it an accessible option for small businesses and startups. This allows businesses to manage their customer relationships, track deals, and view contact and company data in one central location without needing to pay for a CRM.
Suppose you need a highly functional CRM that will allow your marketing and sales teams to use advanced automation to help move deals, robust customer service software to help you keep track of callbacks, marketing software to craft and run campaigns and nurture leads, and communication software to keep track of your customer communications, then yes. In that case, HubSpot will definitely work for your company.