With everybody flocking online and events on hold due to COVID-19, the Manchester HubSpot User Group (HUG) had no choice but to go digital. At our very first live-streamed event, our native HubSpot extraordinaire and Lead Inbound Strategist Samuel Banks took to the stage, well, Zoom screen.
He delivered a fantastic talk on how to get the figures your boss needs, going into just enough detail to maximise your reporting and take advantage of HubSpot's readily available options for you to roll out today. For more insight, check out Sam’s full talk to start reporting like a pro.
You can watch to the video at your leisure or have it on in the background while you work.
Sam’s job at Digital 22 involves many wonderful client-facing things and, of course, strategy. But a big part of his role is reporting. With directors demanding to know if they’re profitable and marketing managers needing to pinpoint where traffic is coming from, reports are essential for responding to these queries.
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach, especially with the dynamic nature of our client arsenal. So how did he overcome the challenge and how can you leverage these learnings in your own reports?
Enter: HubSpot reporting.
Manual reporting is tedious - there are no two ways about it. Not only does it take your time away from other important business matters but it’s also just a big headache you can avoid. Enter HubSpot.
What makes HubSpot a great platform is it constantly evolves to better suit those who use it. As of the 19th May 2020, their reporting functionality got a whole lot better. With increases in dashboards, custom reporting and widgets across the plans, it unlocked another world of data you can harness and track.
With that update came immense flexibility, something so important if you want it to adapt to your unique business needs. Innovation on the platform, updates and upcoming changes are just some of the things we discuss at the HUG. If this sounds like something you’d benefit from, you can join our next one. We’d love to see you there!
Myth-busting and overcoming objections.
As mentioned before, Sam’s role requires a lot of reporting. Sam highlighted there’s a common misconception that the only part of a business that HubSpot serves is marketing. He also touched on some of the common objections he hears from customers and his approach, helping you to break down and overcome any of them:
- “I don’t have the time to set-up reports and learn HubSpot.”
- “HubSpot is a marketing tool. It won’t show me what I need to see.”
- “We don’t use all of HubSpot. These reports will be meaningless.”
- “The reports are too simple and templated. We need to customise the data.”
If you’ve heard of these before from your boss, or you’re guilty of dismissing HubSpot’s vast functionality, you should make some notes from Sam’s talk so you can better tackle these adversities. He also highlights the helpful templates you can just start using within seconds to make it that much easier to begin and better align sales and marketing teams.
Benchmarking your success.
I know it can be tempting to dive right in, especially with this newfound knowledge under your belt. However, Sam advises you to define what every layer of your business wants from reporting first. Here are four important questions you should ask your boss before you get ahead of yourself.
- What metrics (KPIs) mean the most to you?
- How often do you require a report?
- What does success look like to you?
- What do you not need to see?
He also goes on to reiterate the importance of automation. HubSpot has built-in features that mean you’ll never forget to send that 9am Monday morning report again.
Finally, he concludes by saying data is only as good as what you put in. If you’re not asking for the right information to prospects, it’s pretty difficult to qualify a lead or enrol them into the workflow. Meaning you miss out on all that lovely, tangible data for your reports.
So, we've just spoken about HubSpot reporting and shared some expert knowledge that should have you on your way to better insights. However, there's much more to know. If you’re looking to further develop your knowledge of inbound marketing and the HubSpot platform, we’ve got just the resource for you.
Impress your boss with figures and a mind full of marketing knowledge.
Our all-inclusive guide is full of helpful advice that explores the latest ideas and trends in inbound marketing. From reporting to reaching a more targeted audience, if you’re new to the methodology or simply want to improve on your knowledge, this is the guide for you.
You’ll discover new information on inbound statistics, buyer journeys, the all-important flywheel and how to set yourself up for inbound success. If you’d like to learn all this and more, click the link below to download your free