The Best Workflows for Small Businesses Using HubSpot Marketing and Sales Hub

For small businesses, automation is a powerful tool that can streamline marketing and sales efforts, freeing up time and resources for more strategic activities. HubSpot’s Marketing Hub and Sales Hub offer robust workflow automation capabilities that allow you to automate repetitive tasks, improve lead management, and enhance the customer journey.

In this blog, we’ll explore the best workflows for small businesses using both HubSpot Marketing Hub and Sales Hub. These workflows are designed to help you make the most of the platform, optimise your processes, and drive growth.

1. Lead Nurturing Workflow for New Contacts

When new leads enter your database, it’s important to nurture them by providing valuable information and guiding them toward a purchase. An automated lead nurturing workflow can help you keep potential customers engaged while moving them through the sales funnel.

How to set up a lead nurturing workflow:

• Trigger: The workflow starts when a new contact fills out a form on your website, such as downloading an ebook or signing up for a newsletter.
• Step 1: Send a welcome email thanking the lead for their interest and providing the requested content.
• Step 2: Wait 3-5 days and then send a follow-up email with additional resources, such as blog posts or case studies relevant to their interests.
• Step 3: If the lead hasn’t engaged with the content, set a reminder for a sales rep to reach out with a personalised email.
• Step 4: If the lead continues to engage with the content, move them to a "marketing-qualified lead" (MQL) status and notify the sales team for further follow-up.

Why it matters: Automating lead nurturing ensures that new leads receive timely and relevant content, helping you build relationships and increase the likelihood of converting them into customers.

2. Automated Lead Assignment Workflow

Assigning leads to the right sales reps in a timely manner can significantly improve your chances of closing deals. With HubSpot, you can automate the lead assignment process based on specific criteria such as location, company size, or industry.

How to set up an automated lead assignment workflow:

• Trigger: The workflow is triggered when a contact is marked as an MQL or when they reach a certain score based on their activity.
• Step 1: Set criteria for lead assignment, such as location, product interest, or deal size.
• Step 2: Automatically assign the lead to the appropriate sales rep based on the defined criteria.
• Step 3: Send a notification to the assigned sales rep, providing details about the lead and any relevant notes.
• Step 4: Update the lead status to "Assigned" and move them to the appropriate deal stage in the pipeline.

Why it matters: Automating lead assignment reduces the manual workload for your team and ensures that leads are quickly routed to the right sales reps, improving response times and increasing the chances of closing deals.

3. Sales Follow-Up Workflow for Warm Leads

When a lead expresses interest in your product or service, a timely follow-up is crucial. This workflow helps ensure that no opportunity slips through the cracks by automating follow-up tasks based on a lead's engagement.

How to set up a sales follow-up workflow:

• Trigger: The workflow starts when a lead completes a key action, such as booking a meeting, requesting a demo, or engaging with a sales email.
• Step 1: Automatically create a task for the assigned sales rep to follow up with the lead within a set timeframe (e.g., 24 hours).
• Step 2: Send a confirmation email to the lead, acknowledging their action (e.g., confirming the demo booking) and providing any additional information they might need.
• Step 3: If the lead doesn’t respond within a certain period (e.g., 3 days), send a follow-up email with an additional resource, such as a case study or testimonial.
• Step 4: If there is still no response, create a final follow-up task for the sales rep and consider downgrading the lead's status if no engagement occurs.

Why it matters: Following up promptly with warm leads keeps the sales momentum going and increases the likelihood of conversion. Automating the process ensures consistency and reduces the chances of missing valuable opportunities.

4. Re-Engagement Workflow for Stale Leads

Not all leads are ready to buy immediately. For leads that haven’t engaged with your content or sales team for a while, a re-engagement workflow can help rekindle their interest and bring them back into the sales funnel.

How to set up a re-engagement workflow:

• Trigger: The workflow is triggered when a lead hasn’t engaged with your emails or website for a set period, such as 60 or 90 days.
• Step 1: Send an email with a personalised message, offering a new piece of content or a special promotion to re-capture their interest.
• Step 2: If the lead opens the email but doesn’t take further action, send a follow-up email with a different offer, such as a free consultation or exclusive discount.
• Step 3: If the lead re-engages, move them back to an active status and notify the assigned sales rep.
• Step 4: If there is still no response, consider downgrading the lead to a lower priority status and continue to nurture them through general email newsletters.

Why it matters: Re-engaging stale leads can help you get more value from your existing database. It gives you another chance to convert leads that may not have been ready to buy initially but could be open to reconsidering your offer.

5. Customer Onboarding Workflow

A smooth onboarding experience can set the tone for a long-term relationship with your customers. Automating the onboarding process ensures that new customers receive the information they need to get started and helps you build strong customer relationships from day one.

How to set up a customer onboarding workflow:

• Trigger: The workflow starts when a new customer makes a purchase or signs a contract.
• Step 1: Send a welcome email with information on what to expect next, including links to resources such as product guides, FAQs, or a customer portal.
• Step 2: Schedule a follow-up email 7 days later to check in and offer additional help or support.
• Step 3: Create a task for the account manager or customer success representative to reach out personally, ensuring that the customer is satisfied with the initial setup.
• Step 4: Set up periodic emails over the next 30, 60, or 90 days to provide additional resources, tips, or training opportunities.

Why it matters: A well-structured onboarding workflow helps new customers feel valued and supported, increasing satisfaction and reducing the risk of churn. It also allows you to deliver a consistent experience to all new customers.

6. Upsell and Cross-Sell Workflow for Existing Customers

Existing customers are often the best candidates for additional sales, as they are already familiar with your brand and products. An upsell and cross-sell workflow helps you identify opportunities to offer related products or services that complement their current purchases.

How to set up an upsell and cross-sell workflow:

• Trigger: The workflow is triggered when a customer makes a purchase or reaches a certain stage in their customer journey (e.g., 6 months of using the service).
• Step 1: Segment customers based on their purchase history and usage patterns to identify relevant upsell or cross-sell opportunities.
• Step 2: Send a personalised email highlighting products or services that complement their previous purchase, including customer testimonials or case studies.
• Step 3: If the customer shows interest (e.g., clicks a link or requests more information), create a task for a sales rep to follow up with a personalised offer.
• Step 4: If there is no engagement, add the customer to a nurturing sequence to keep them informed about future offers.

Why it matters: Automating upsell and cross-sell efforts ensures you don’t miss out on opportunities to increase revenue from existing customers. It also helps maintain a steady flow of sales without overwhelming your customers.

Streamline Your Business with HubSpot Workflows

For small businesses, HubSpot’s Marketing Hub and Sales Hub workflows can automate repetitive tasks, improve lead management, and ensure that no opportunity goes unnoticed. By implementing these workflows, you can free up valuable time for your team to focus on more strategic activities, optimise the customer journey, and ultimately drive growth.

Start using these workflows today to maximise the potential of HubSpot for your small business and see the impact of automation on your sales and marketing efforts!