Best Practices: The HubSpot Onboarding Process

Make HubSpot work hard for your business from the get-go with a smooth and efficient onboarding process. There’s a lot to consider when transitioning to a new tech platform, but the sooner you can properly implement your new suite of HubSpot tools, the sooner you’ll start reaping the benefits. These onboarding best practices are designed to keep you on track and empower you to make informed decisions for the best possible outcome. 

What is HubSpot onboarding?

HubSpot onboarding is the process of getting new users set up and familiar with the platform and its technical components. As a HubSpot customer, you can onboard with HubSpot directly or work with a HubSpot Partner. However, be aware that all new Professional and Enterprise tier users are required to complete one of these onboarding options. The onboarding experience, timeline and results will vary depending on your chosen option.

Get your onboarding right, and you’ll streamline your tech stack, improve the quality of your data and leverage automation for cohesive inter-team workflows. On the other hand, underestimating the importance of the onboarding process might leave you feeling like there’s always more to do, and nobody wants that. 

Best practices for HubSpot onboarding

Set timelines, expectations and requirements

First, align your organisation internally on all matters related to the HubSpot transition. This will help manage everyone’s expectations and enable your onboarding partner to deliver the best possible service for your business needs.

Some points for discussion:

• What are your upcoming campaigns, key events, holidays, product launches, etc., and how might these impact your team’s capacity and tech stack requirements?
• When would you like to be fully transitioned to HubSpot, and are there key dates that inform this timeline?
• Will there be an internal HubSpot product owner, and what is their level of knowledge and capacity to manage the platform?
• What problems are you looking for HubSpot to solve?  
• How will this transition impact your full tech stack? Do you have access to data and information you plan to migrate from, or will you be looking to integrate third-party platforms with HubSpot?
• Do you have any onboarding priorities? For example, website migration over sales or service.
• What are your existing tech stack pain points? 
• Are there any specific HubSpot features or functionalities that excite you, that you need more information about, or that you have hesitations about?

Communicating these needs with your HubSpot partner will allow them to develop a prioritised onboarding plan that will result in faster time to value for your business.

Select the best onboarding fit

You can choose to onboard directly with the HubSpot team or through an accredited HubSpot Partner, but there are some key differences to be aware of. There is no objective better or worse option; instead, you should determine the best fit for your needs to set you up for HubSpot success.

Working with HubSpot directly: 

This option will allow you to work with a HubSpot employee over a 90-day onboarding period. The onboarding cost depends on your HubSpot plan and will include some basic set-up, demos of the features available to you and some advice on implementation. This onboarding process can be a good fit for companies with dedicated internal team members with existing HubSpot knowledge to take ownership of the implementation and change management.

Working with a HubSpot Partner: 

With this option, you can select an agency from HubSpot’s list of accredited onboarding providers. However, each agency does things differently and will offer multiple service tiers. It’s crucial to choose the appropriate level of service your team requires and align with your agency on workflow and communication expectations. 

Basic onboarding will be the lowest price point option an agency offers and often aligns closely with the onboarding process that HubSpot offers. This could be a good fit if you have dedicated internal resources available to carry out the hands-on implementation tasks.

More-than-basic onboarding will be a comprehensive package that varies from agency to agency. This larger-scope, more customised approach offers expedited time to value and a white-glove customer service experience. Not to mention, most of the actual hands-on set-up is done for you, resulting in faster ROI.

Get the right agency partner 

If you’ve determined that the flexibility of a HubSpot Partner is ideal for your organisation’s onboarding journey, finding the right agency is crucial. As with any service provider, be sceptical, pose the tough questions and ask around your network for recommendations.

Here are a few red flags to watch out for:

• The agency touts the number of clients onboarded without testimonials, case studies or transparent service information. Even if they’ve onboarded hundreds of customers, this could be basic delivery without much depth or understanding of how it works for your business.
• They’re hard to get ahold of, which may indicate their lack of capacity to stay on track to hit your timelines. 
• You don’t feel like you have a clear roadmap for your onboarding process. Before getting started, you should know what to expect and when to expect it.
• They say yes to everything or don’t offer alternate solutions based on their expertise. You’re paying for a HubSpot expert, which is the value the agency is providing.

Some green flags we love to see:

• The agency starts by asking questions—a lot of them—to understand your business needs.
• You’ve heard good things from other industry professionals. A referral is the highest compliment for a job well done.
• They aim to make HubSpot work for your business (rather than suggesting your business processes change to fit the platform).
• You have clear and consistent communication between the agency and your team.
• The agency is honest and upfront about potential challenges you may encounter.

Be prepared

Eliminate potential onboarding roadblocks before they even come up because who doesn’t love a bit of added efficiency? 

Technical access: Ensure your team has access to and passwords for all components of your tech stack. This includes social media channels, cloud drives, and data storage locations.

Tool inventory: Take inventory of your current martech stack, how these systems integrate (i.e., anticipating any potential domino effects), and your subscription or payment status for each. You don’t want to pay for a redundant tool, so the longer the lead time to HubSpot onboarding, the better your team can plan for annual renewals and licensing plans.

Data migration: Because HubSpot is so successful in streamlining fragmented tech stacks into one centralised location, it’s essential to review the platforms you use before you begin onboarding. Assess where the most up-to-date data is housed and what information you want to migrate. Many businesses want to migrate all historical data, but often, this may no longer be relevant or necessary. Consider what customer information needs to be retained and migrated.

Internal capacity: Be realistic about your onboarding timelines, communicate with your HubSpot partner, and plan accordingly. Consider the internal person or people spearheading this transition, the multiple teams using it, and other factors that could complicate things (such as a major upcoming product launch, for example).

Consider the change management plan

Change can be challenging, and introducing a new technology platform to a business requires teams to learn and adapt how they’ve worked previously. Getting all the team leaders and stakeholders clear from the start on how this change will be supported is essential. 

An experienced partner agency will include a change order roll-out plan in their premium onboarding options, which can lift a massive weight from your shoulders, knowing that this pivotal component will run smoothly.

Regardless of whether you’re managing this internally or working with a HubSpot partner, you’ll need to answer the following:

• Will there be an internal HubSpot product owner?
• What other stakeholders should be involved throughout the onboarding?
• Learning a new platform requires time to upskill and become familiar with it. How much training and development time will be allocated for this?
• Will there be a gradual migration (i.e., team by team) or a hard switchover?
• How might processes be put in place for sales and service teams to streamline the recording of customer activity? (A focus on consistency will make this systems transition smoother.)

If you’ve made it this far, you’re already starting your onboarding journey on the right foot. We’d love to chat further about your business and how we can get HubSpot working for you—get in touch with the Aamplify team here.