Life Just Got a Whole Lot Better for CPA Firm Business Developers and Rainmakers

An Accounting Marketer’s Look at HubSpot’s New Sales Tools

Everyone in accounting or professional services marketing knows by now about the power and benefits of HubSpot software for getting more visibility, leads, marketing automation, and incredible metrics.

Well, get a load of this: HubSpot just upped its game by adding CRM capabilities into its mix of integrated tools and capabilities. Now, coordination between marketing and sales just got a whole lot better, and the process of turning a prospect into a new client just got a whole lot easier.

Yes, I know... CRM and CPA aren’t exactly on buddy/buddy terms (to put it mildly).

But with this new HubSpot CRM, gone are the days when partners and business developers had to spend eons of time logging emails, recording calls, and managing data. Where most CRM systems that CPA and other professional services tried to use are made up of dozens of tools and complicated features to learn and customize, the HubSpot CRM is designed to get your business developers and partners started quickly.

The new CRM will keep them focused on selling by automatically tracking and organizing every interaction a prospect has with your firm, from e-mails sent and opened to web pages visited to whitepapers downloaded. There’s even a one click jump from the CRM to the prospect’s website or social media accounts so that your partners and business developers can see exactly who the prospect is, what they do, and what types of issues or challenges they’re facing.

You can launch (and track) emails from inside the CRM or even initiate and record phone calls!

Key Features of the HubSpot CRM

Here’s a quick overview of what makes the new CRM so easy and powerful:

Database - Collect & store data on contacts, companies, deals, and tasks with a reliable, easy to use database that is built for the scale of today’s data. Automatically creates company records, associates contacts, de-duplicates leads, and takes care of all the little details your team shouldn’t be distracted by.

Timeline - Today’s sales process happens across thousands of touch points and dozens of channels. Timeline organizes every email, call, note, even website visits into one simple, intuitive view. Partners and business developers can make calls, send emails, set reminders, and organize their day in one place.

Email - HubSpot CRM connects to Gmail, Google Apps, Outlook, and Apple Mail, logging emails with your partners’ contacts easily and automatically. Send emails right from any contact’s record in HubSpot CRM.

Phone Integration (additional cost) - Make calls with one click in your CRM system. Partners and business developers can easily and automatically log notes and recordings of their calls. (Recording optional.)

Google Calendar Integration - Connect Google Calendar to HubSpot CRM to See scheduled meetings and create new meetings in seconds without ever leaving your CRM.

Data Enrichment - Instantly see new, useful information about any contact or company. Background information, details on key employees, social data, related companies, and more.

But Wait, There’s More: Introducing Sidekick

There’s more good news for CPA firm marketing, business developers and partners. In parallel with the CRM, HubSpot is announcing a major upgrade to their current Signals product called Sidekick. With Sidekick, your firm’s partners can take back their inbox with tools that connect to their inbox and your new CRM system.

Sidekick lives in a browser and follows your partners and business developers throughout their day, giving them valuable details about the contacts and companies they find and interact with in their inbox and on the web.

Sidekick will give them real-time notifications telling them when, where, and how prospects are engaging with the firm or their niche whenever a prospect opens or clicks their emails, visits your website, and more. They’ll even be able to tee up messages from Gmail in Google Chrome to send on any day, at any time, when they are most likely to be opened & clicked.

I Know You’ll Want More Information, So...

We’re excited about this product enhancement – it’s just one more way that HubSpot is separating from the pack of other marketing technology vendors. Why would any CPA or professional services firm want a one dimensional product?

Talk to Brain Halligan and he’ll tell you that HubSpot's CRM and Sidekick are perfect for companies that want to transform how they attract, engage, and delight prospects, customers and leads and want sales technology that matches today's buying process.

So, CRM and CPA can be buddy/buddy with these new features and enhancements to the HubSpot software tool. Start making nice here...