If you’ve found yourself in charge of your company’s HubSpot instance and HubSpot isn’t in your core area of expertise, you may have sensed that you could be getting more from the platform but you’re not sure how or where exactly to start.
You have some ideas for what might help, but there’s a general sense of uncertainty because ultimately, you don’t know what you don’t know.
If that sounds familiar, know that this is VERY common. And the phenomenon is not isolated to HubSpot. According to research shared by tech.co, 43% of CRM users only use less than half the features of their CRM system, and 22% of sales professionals are still unsure about what a CRM even is.
Whether you were the person who lobbied to get marketing automation years back and now you’re the default HubSpot admin – or you’ve inherited a partially implemented instance and fixing it is one of a hundred initiatives on your plate, charting the path forward can feel like a daunting task.
In this post, we’ll look at how we work with clients who find themselves in this spot and provide some guidance on how to get over this hump.
The HubSpot Strategic Audit & Roadmap
When I say this situation is common, I mean it’s so common we developed a solution specifically designed to address it.
The HubSpot strategic audit and roadmap service is for those who need more than just the basic audit for data hygiene and general best practices. This is meant to answer the question, “How can HubSpot get us from where we are now to where we want to be?”
We’re sharing the approach we take in these engagements as the principles should be helpful for anyone trying to figure out how to navigate this question. That said, it should be noted that a) HubSpot IS our core area of expertise (we’ve been a solutions partner for over eight years) and b) as we tell clients, we’ve seen this movie before – so we have a good sense of what to consider, what questions to ask and what downstream effects to account for when going through this process.
With those caveats out of the way, here’s a high-level look at our process.
Defining the vision
To kick off the strategic audit, we begin by providing a questionnaire and planning a subsequent kickoff call. During this process, we engage with all key stakeholders to gain a deep understanding of the company, its vision, the specific questions the audit must address and how HubSpot can assist in realizing these objectives.
If you already have a good definition of the overall vision – great. I still recommend doing this exercise through the lens of how HubSpot can help achieve it so that you have a shared sense of what you’re hoping to do.
Completing the audit and building the roadmap
Along with the standard HubSpot audit of the portal, which covers data hygiene, organization, and best practices, the strategic audit goes a (big) step further by evaluating how effectively the instance is configured to support the shared objectives.
Once we have documented our findings, we create a process map that outlines the current state, the desired state and the plan for bridging the gap between the two. This comprehensive map also includes a project timeline, deliverables, expected outcomes and benchmarks for measuring success.
This is a key step in the process and one where HubSpot expertise is crucial. It’s one thing to be able to pull basics like how many duplicate contacts and hard bounces need to be cleaned up; it’s another to be able to take a business objective and architect the systems and processes that will most efficiently and accurately work for that objective (without accidentally triggering any unwanted ripple effects that create new headaches).
Executing the plan
When we have alignment on the findings, the ideal state and the plan for getting from A to B, it’s time to execute. Depending on how complex the setup and how much restructuring and implementation might be needed, this part of the process can range from a straightforward project that can be handled by a small team in a few weeks to an overhaul that requires multiple teams and months of coordinated work.
Remember, all the work up to this point is just an exercise if it doesn’t actually get implemented. If you’re wearing several hats and there are always fires to put out, know that it may be a challenge to avoid punting or delaying this work. This is another reason why it’s helpful to have a seasoned HubSpot solutions partner to ensure the work gets done.
Taking the next steps
If nothing else, I hope this has assured you that if you’re experiencing the “we don’t know what we don’t know” syndrome with HubSpot, you’re not alone. And hopefully, this sheds some light on the way forward.
By defining your vision, conducting a comprehensive audit, and building a roadmap, you can bridge the gap between where you are now and where you want to be with HubSpot. While this process may seem overwhelming, having HubSpot experts by your side can provide the guidance and expertise needed to navigate this successfully.
So, if you’re looking to maximize your HubSpot investment and achieve your objectives, consider the HubSpot strategic audit and roadmap approach to unlock the full potential of the platform.
