When to DIY or Hire an Agency for HubSpot Implementation
Dave Meyer
President at BizzyWeb, a Growth Agency helping biz owners, marketers and sales teams generate leads, sales & buzz online, Speaker on Google and HubSpot topics
If you're considering?HubSpot?or if you've already signed up, now you have a challenge to face: actually setting the thing up.
HubSpot implementation is an incredibly daunting task, and many companies are hesitant to spend money to pull in an outsider. Why not just do it yourself? Let's break down what exactly goes into HubSpot implementation, and the pros and cons of DIY vs hiring an agency.
What is a HubSpot Agency?
Before I dig into implementation, I want to quickly cover what exactly a HubSpot agency is. Some marketing agencies call themselves HubSpot agencies, but what you want to look for as well is?a HubSpot partner.?A HubSpot Certified Partner is an agency that have met criteria from HubSpot that shows that the agency truly understands the system. Partnership is granted based on # of retained clients, portal engagement, and proven inbound marketing success. It's essentially a stamp of approval from HubSpot themselves that this agency is knowledgeable enough in the platform to successfully help companies with their own HubSpot accounts.
What is HubSpot Implementation?
While I'm covering the basics, let's make sure we both know what I mean by HubSpot implementation. This is the process of fully?setting up?your HubSpot. The specifics of implementation will depend on?which Hubs you've signed up for, but implementation for the free CRM includes the following:
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The Pros and Cons of HubSpot DIY
Pros:
You don't have to pay someone else?- This is usually the reason why most companies try to DIY implementation. Note that I didn't say it was cheaper - yes, you're not paying someone else extra money to do the implementation. However, doing it in-house doesn't necessarily save you money because your staff has to spend extra time learning how HubSpot works, gathering data, and the process of implementation - all of which take them away from their regular duties.?
Your team will become very knowledgeable in HubSpot?- If you have your team handle implementation, they will naturally become very knowledgeable in HubSpot. In order to complete implementation, they will have to do a lot of reading and likely will complete HubSpot academy training. The end result is that you?will?have team members who now are extremely familiar with how HubSpot works.
You have complete control?- When you work with an agency, there are always going to be parts of the process that they handle on your behalf, so you don't have complete control. If you DIY, you will directly have your hands in every pot, so to speak.?
Cons:
It takes a lot of time to understand HubSpot?- A big reason why HubSpot agencies exist in the first place is that it takes a?lot?of time, study, and practice to truly master HubSpot. It's an incredibly complex and dense system. If you're doing it yourself, no matter how much time your staff dedicates to the process they will never match the level of expertise a HubSpot agency will. And why would they? Your team are experts at?their?jobs, not someone else's.?
Having your team do implementation drags out the process?- I covered how long it takes to simply understand how HubSpot implementation works, but then you have to actually?do?the implementation. Unless you plan to pull team members from all current duties, they are simply not going to have the time to dedicate to implementation on top of their jobs. This means that the process will inevitably take longer and have to be spread out over months, if not years.
Incorrect implementation makes HubSpot ineffective?- Implementation is like the foundation of a house - so if it's not done exactly right, you're going to notice problems creep up in the future. The benefit of working with an agency is that they are already knowledgeable about every single moving piece and know the roadblocks that typically come up in implementation. If you're doing it yourself, you may not even realize something is "wrong" until later down the line when your reporting is wonky or you're not getting the results you thought you would.
When to Work with a HubSpot Agency
I want to go back to my earlier house metaphor:?implementing HubSpot is like renovating a house.?Can?you do it yourself? Potentially. But do you have the knowledge, time, labor, and resources to actually renovate a house yourself? Probably not, unless you have prior experience.
These are the signs you should work with a HubSpot agency for your implementation:
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While on the surface it may seem like you're spending?more?money to hire a partner, you're actually spending a lot less over DIY when you also consider labor, time, and salary.
BizzyWeb is a HubSpot Platinum Partner
HubSpot is a large investment. If not implemented and used properly, you're not getting the most out of this powerful tool. You?can go it alone, but working with a HubSpot partner agency means that you don't need to become an expert in HubSpot to get up and running.?
As a Platinum HubSpot partner, we can assist you with Onboarding, Inbound Marketing, Service and CRM.
Onboarding Programs for New HubSpot Users
Fix-It Programs for Current HubSpot Users
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