In March of 2011, Google Ventures, Salesforce, and Sequoia Capital collectively invested $32M in HubSpot. By partnering with the Cambridge firm, these investments set HubSpot up to become the leader in marketing platform systems. On Tuesday, September 16, 2014 HubSpot introduced some new tools, including a CRM, which rocked the world of marketing and completely altered the landscape of sales and marketing. Significantly, since the CRM allows HubSpot partners to manage sales within their pipeline, it is fair to assume that HubSpot's relationship with Salesforce (currently the market leading CRM) is probably not going to be the same.
Salesforce, as far as HubSpot co-founder Dharmesh Shah is concerned, is still a HubSpot partner. In an interview with BetaBoston.com, Shah said that HubSpot's CRM would appeal to smaller and mid-market companies who aren't currently using customer relationship management systems. For CommonPlaces, however, this new CRM and other tools gives us seemingly everything that we need without having the additional overhead of Salesforce. We love it!
Brian Halligan, co-founder of HubSpot
'HubSpot's new Sales Platform,' said co-founder Brian Halligan, 'is designed to arm sales teams with the context they need to improve how they engage with companies, prospects, and leads to drive sales.' Halligan takes the philosophy that, 'If the way we buy has radically changed, then the way we sell needs to radically change.' This, then, is likely to be the model for the future of sales and marketing. Tracking vast amounts of information about your sales prospects and leads is extremely beneficial. The proof is in the User Experience, which has been superb from Salesforce. I expect nothing less from HubSpot, based on their track record. Everything you need to know about the new HubSpot CRM is here.
What's the future of HubSpot's COS?
HubSpot offers a Content Optimization System, distinguished from a Customer Management System by being part content system, part personalization engine. HubSpot's COS is the first integrated website, blog, and landing page system to be optimized for mobile right out-of-the-box. Fully integrated with every marketing channel, it adapts to each viewer's unique context. With a COS, visitors to your website receive different experiences each time they visit. It would be cool if it was customizable.
We are a PHP shop, with a particularly successful presence in Drupal. Our ability to design and build custom websites would be improved, and I believe that all parties would benefit, if we could provide an end-to-end solution using HubSpot's COS. In the future, merging that technology with existing and emerging open source solutions would be very exciting.
The Google Play of inbound marketing?
If you are an inbound marketer, and you are encountering HubSpot for the first time, you probably feel that you've entered a toy store. There's an app for that! There are so many ways that you can use it and so many different tools at your disposal, you can be forgiven for asking, 'What would I ever need this for?'
Once you start working with it, finding what works for your business, or what is optimally suited for one of your clients, is an art. You may not need all the reports that you can get, and the phone app might not matter to your business, but somebody out there will be grateful to have it. Having these tools and all the available data sets you up for the best chance for success. What is there to complain about?
I have a friend in the manufacturing sector who honestly is of the mindset that he has all the work that he needs. It's a midsize company that is currently slammed with business. Personally, I would rather be forced to turn away business, or scramble to employ new help to satisfy my customers, rather than allow status quo. Give me a reason to increase my overhead!
HubSpot is becoming less about inbound marketing, and more about providing you with the tools to succeed. Clearly, though, they want your business to grow. Managing your website, your marketing, and your sales '- all that capability in one package is amazing.