Hey Team!
This Playbook is designed to help you use some of the basic HubSpot tools well. You can navigate the Playbook quickly using the Headings on the left.
If you find that you want more resources, we'd highly encourage you to check out HubSpot Academy for more video trainings and the HubSpot Knowledge Base (just click on the help button in the bottom right corner of your screen) for helpful articles.
Logging activities manually
-
Open Contact Record:
From the HubSpot dashboard, locate and click on the "Contacts" tab in the main navigation menu.
Search for the specific contact record by typing the contact's name, email, or other identifying information in the search bar and press "Enter."
Select the correct contact from the search results to open the contact record.
-
Reordering Buttons:
Within the contact record, scroll down to the "Communications" section.
To reorder the buttons, click on the "Actions" dropdown menu, represented by three vertical dots, located at the top right corner of the "Communications" section.
Select "Reorder" from the dropdown menu. d. Drag and drop the buttons to arrange them in the desired order. e. Click "Save" to save the new button order.
-
Logging an Email:
Within the contact record, scroll down to the "Communications" section.
Click on the "Log an email" button, represented by an orange envelope icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the recipient's email address in the "To" field. d. Add a relevant subject line for the email in the "Subject" field. e. Compose the email content in the provided text box.
Optionally, you can use the formatting options to customize the email.
Click the "Log" button to save the email in the contact's communication history.
-
Logging a Text:
In the contact record, navigate to the "Communications" section.
Click on the "Log a text" button, represented by an orange speech bubble icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the recipient's phone number in the "To" field.
Compose the text message content in the provided text box.
Optionally, you can use the formatting options to customize the text.
Click the "Log" button to save the text message in the contact's communication history.
-
Logging a LinkedIn Interaction:
Scroll down to the "Communications" section of the contact record.
Click on the "Log a LinkedIn message" button, represented by an orange LinkedIn icon.
In the pop-up window, provide a brief summary of the LinkedIn interaction in the "Summary" field. d. Optionally, you can copy and paste the conversation content into the "Message" field.
Click the "Log" button to save the LinkedIn interaction in the contact's communication history.
-
Logging a Call:
Within the contact record, navigate to the "Communications" section.
Click on the "Log a call" button, represented by an orange phone icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the details of the call, such as the date, duration, and call outcome.
Optionally, you can add notes or additional information about the call in the "Notes" field.
Click the "Log" button to save the call details in the contact's communication history.
-
Logging a Whatsapp Message:
Scroll down to the "Communications" section of the contact record.
Click on the "Log a Whatsapp message" button, represented by an orange Whatsapp icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the recipient's phone number in the "To Logging a Whatsapp Message:
Scroll down to the "Communications" section of the contact record.
Click on the "Log a Whatsapp message" button, represented by an orange Whatsapp icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the recipient's phone number in the "To" field.
Compose the Whatsapp message content in the provided text box. e. Optionally, you can use the formatting options to customize the message.
Click the "Log" button to save the Whatsapp message in the contact's communication history.
-
Logging Postal Mail:
In the contact record, navigate to the "Communications" section.
Click on the "Log postal mail" button, represented by an orange envelope icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the details of the postal mail, such as the date sent and a brief description.
Optionally, you can attach relevant files or documents related to the postal mail.
Click the "Log" button to save the postal mail details in the contact's communication history.
-
Logging Notes, Tasks, and Meetings:
Within the contact record, scroll down to the "Activity" section.
To log a note, click on the "Log a note" button, represented by an orange notepad icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the details of the note, providing relevant information or updates.
Click the "Log" button to save the note in the contact's activity history.
To log a task, click on the "Log a task" button, represented by an orange checkbox icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the task details, including due date, priority, and description.
Click the "Log" button to save the task in the contact's activity history.
To log a meeting, click on the "Log a meeting" button, represented by an orange calendar icon.
In the pop-up window, enter the meeting details, such as date, time, duration, location, and attendees.
Click the "Log" button to save the meeting in the contact's activity history.
Connecting your phone, email, and calendar
Let's set you up do track (and DO!) all of your communications in one place.
-
Open Settings
-
Click on the Settings wheel in the top right corner of any page in HubSpot.
-
On the left-hand side, click on "General" under "Your Preferences."
-
We'll be working through the tabs above the word "Global."
-
-
Connect Email
-
Click on the "Email" tab.
-
Click on the "Connect Personal Email" button, then follow the directions to enable automation, accept terms, and give permissions.
-
NB: this is your individual business email, not your personal, non-work email, as if for an account backup or something like that.
-
Download the HubSpot Gmail or Outlook Extension so that you can track emails and use HubSpot tools like Templates and Meeting links within your ordinary email window.
-
-
Connect Phone
-
Click on the "Calling" tab.
-
Click "Add your phone number," then type in whatever number you are already using, send a verification code, and enter the code into HubSpot once you have received it.
-
NB: Connecting a pre-existing number only works for outbound calls that YOU place. In order to capture data about inbound calls or voicemails inside of HubSpot, talk with your administrator about using a HubSpot number or an integration partner like Aircall.
-
-
Connect Calendar
-
Click on the "Calendar" tab.
-
Click the "Connect my calendar" button, then follow the directions to give the necessary permissions, etc.
-
-
🎉 Savor all of the time you just won back! 🎉
-
Congrats! Now you can send emails, make calls, and schedule meetings, and all from any record page inside of HubSpot.
-
Using Filters and Views
Let's highlight the data you want to see, when you want it!
-
Navigate to any Object Overview Page.
-
These principles apply to Contacts, Companies, Deals, Tickets, and more!
-
For Deals and Tickets, make sure that you're in the list view rather than the board view (these icons are found in the upper left, next to the name of the object).
-
-
Use default or Advanced Filters to see only the records you want.
-
Use the row of drop-down menus above the table to filter by commonly-used properties like Contact Owner and Create Date.
-
The Advanced Filters button gives you access to all of the properties for this type of record, including custom properties. Advanced Filters also allow you to filter by more complicated conditions, like "has ever been equal to," or use "or" conditions, which you cannot use through the default filter options.
-
Filters can be mixed and matched in an infinite number of ways to get at what you want. Remember, the more records you have, the more conditions you will need to isolate the specific records you're looking for.
-
-
Edit the columns to focus on only the information you want.
-
Click on the "Edit Columns" button at the top right of the table.
-
On the left side, check the properties that matter to you right now, or uncheck them if they don't.
-
On the right side, move the properties up or down to rearrange their order in the table.
-
-
Save your view
-
Setting filters and arranging columns is useful, but can be a hassle if you're doing this repetitively, especially if the conditions are complex.
-
To re-use a set of filters and columns later, click the "Save View" button to the right of the filters. You may have to click "Save as New," but once you name your view and decide who can view it, it will be added to your screen and you'll always be able to access it.
-
Use the "Add view" button to find views that you or others have made that might be useful for what you're doing right now!
-
-
🎉 Enjoy always knowing where to find the needle in the haystack! 🎉
Enrolling a Contact in a Sequence
When you enroll a contact in a sequence, HubSpot will automatically generate a series of outreach tasks (including automated emails) on whatever schedule that you set up. This helps you organize and evaluate your outreach over time, while also making sure that leads don't fall through the cracks.
-
Create a Sequence
-
Under the Automation tab, click on Sequences. Then, either create a new sequence from scratch or modify an existing template.
-
Choose which actions you want to execute, and how much of a delay you want between each one. You can choose between automated emails, manual emails, calls, and LinkedIn tasks.
-
NB: Both automated and manual emails rely on email Templates, so it's a good idea to invest time in crafting those as well. Templates for automated emails need to be able to be sent with limited customization (using Personalization tokens such as "First Name," "Company Name," etc.), but Templates for manual emails can leave more room for you to customize whole sentences or paragraphs when the task actually comes around.
-
-
Enroll a Contact
-
Option 1: From an individual Contact Record, click the Email button to open the Email editor. Then, click on the Sequence button near the top of the editor. Select the sequence you want and make any edits particular to this contact. Finally, click "Start Sequence."
-
Option 2: From a View or List of contacts, check multiple contacts. Then click "Enroll in Sequence" and make any edits to the sequence for the whole group or for specific individuals. Finally, click "Enroll Contacts."
-
Option 3: From a Sequence overview page, click "Enroll contacts" in the top-right. Then make any edits and click "Start Sequence."
-
Option 4 (Requires Sales Enterprise): Use a Workflow to automatically enroll a contact in a sequence when they meet a certain criteria.
-
-
Do the outreach
-
While HubSpot sends any automated emails without you needing to do anything, all calls, manual emails, and other tasks depend on you. There are two main ways to see/do these tasks:
-
Task window: This window is found under the "Sales" menu and lets you see/organize your tasks in queues. You may also begin a series of tasks which will efficiently take you from one contact record to another to complete your tasks.
-
Prospecting window: This window is found under the "Sales" menu and combines much of what you get in the Task window with more insight into your sequences' performance, your schedule for the day, and a feed of your prospects' interactions with your email or web content. NB: This feature is in Beta, so you may need an admin to enable it on your account.
-
-
-
Monitor performance
-
From the Sequences page, you can keep track of open rates, reply rates, meetings booked rates, and much more! These metrics apply both to sequences as a whole and to the individual steps within them, so you can tweak both over time to optimize your prospecting performance.
-
-
🎉 Enjoy never forgetting which email/InMail/call you need to send (and when) again! 🎉
Creating a Deal
Deals are an essential way to manage your selling opportunities with a client, whether it's a long-shot for a year from now or a big contract that just closed.
-
Option 1: From the Deal Page
-
From the main Deal overview page (found under the "Sales" menu), find and click on the Create Deal button in the top right. Then, enter all of the information you have, especially mandatory properties like Deal Pipeline and Stage, and associate
-
-
Option 2: From another Record
-
On a Contact, Company, or other Record, look for the Deals field in the right sidebar (you may have to scroll down, but you can rearrange these sections if you want).
-
Click on the "Add +" button, then either create a new deal from scratch or associate a pre-existing deal to the current record.
-
-
Option 3: From a Workflow
-
If you know that you want to create a new deal every time a certain event or set of conditions happens (for instance every time a lead books a discovery call), you can create a workflow to do that for you.
-
Using a Playbook
Let's accelerate your call prep and iron out your takeaways!
-
Create a Playbook
-
Under the Sales tab, click on Playbooks. Then, either create a new Playbook from scratch or modify an existing template based on the sort of call you want to plan.
-
Add a mix of questions you want to make sure to ask, helpful text to guide you or a teammate during calls, and useful pictures, links, or other assets that you might want to access during a call.
-
NB: Accounts that have Sales Enterprise can update property values directly from a Playbook, which is incredibly useful and cuts down on post-call data entry. Accounts with Sales Pro just save all questions and answers to an activity on the relevant record (Contact, Deal, Company, etc.).
-
-
Use the Playbook.
-
On an individual Contact or other Record, look for the Playbooks field in the right sidebar (you may have to scroll down, but you can rearrange these sections if you want).
-
Click on or search for the Playbook you want and activate it. If you have too many Playbooks to easily keep track of, you can edit some settings on the Playbook to recommend it at certain points of the Customer Lifecycle or on certain records.
-
Take notes as you have your call or meeting and log the activity when you are done.
-
NB: if you are making notes for an activity that is already in your CRM (like a call you placed through HubSpot or a meeting someone scheduled on your meeting link), you can attach a Playbook's notes to avoid creating a duplicate activity.
-
-
🎉 Enjoy never having to send a "Hey, sorry I forgot to ask X..." email again! 🎉
Creating Quotes
Quotes are an awesome tool to streamline your process, using your deal and contact data to easily deliver beautiful, well-rounded proposals to your prospects.
-
Create your Quote
-
In any Deal Record, find the "Quote" tab in the right sidebar. Then, click the "+ Add" button to create your quote. You can also create a quote by going to the Quote page via the Sales menu at the top of the screen.
-
-
Configure your Quote
-
Choose your Template (these can be customized beyond what you see as a default) and edit the link you want the quote to appear at, then add any extra comments to your buyer or purchase terms.
-
Make sure that the buyer and seller information is assigned correctly.
-
Edit and add line items to the quote, and add any discounts, fees, taxes, or details around payment schedules.
-
Configure the Signature/Payment process, whether you would like to do all of that through HubSpot or do some or all of it offline or in another program.
-
Review your quote to make sure that everything looks good, and then either Create it directly or Request Approval.
-
-
Send your Quote
-
Once the quote has been created, HubSpot will create a unique link that leads to it, which it is easy to send to your prospect in an email, or even a text message!
-
-
🎉 Say goodbye to hours of editing proposals for every opportunity! 🎉
Reading Reports
Reporting is a great part of HubSpot, but can be pretty complicated, too. Let's learn some basics!
-
Dashboards
-
Dashboards are customizable containers into which you can pack a number of reports and other things, including text, videos, and even external websites!
-
You can set a Dashboard up to a great place to survey your responsibilities, as well as launch into any kind of task within HubSpot.
-
Because of that, it's common to set Dashboards as your home page within HubSpot and to make a particular Dashboard your default, so that whenever you start HubSpot you are taken there.
-
-
Reports
-
Every report is a visualization of an underlying set of data. Figuring out what set of data you need to answer a question and filtering accordingly is the hard part of reporting.
-
You can change the filters on a report from a dashboard, though more complicated edits may require opening a different window. NB: There is a feature in Beta which allows you to change filters for an entire dashboard all at once, rather than individually by reports. Talk to your Admin if you'd like to get that enabled.
-
-
Some ways to dig into the data when you have already created a report:
-
Mouse over the visualization to reveal some more granular numbers.
-
Remove sections of the data by clicking on the legend at the top of the report.
-
Click on the visualization to surface the underlying data in a table for further investigation
-
Export the underlying data into an Excel file or CSV to do analysis manually that you can't do inside of HubSpot.
-
-
-
Sharing
-
You can set up a report or a Dashboard to be sent as an email either one time or on a recurring basis. This is a great way to increase transparency while reducing the manual labor of communicating the information you've got in your reports.
-
-
🎉 Enjoy the easy-to-understand, good-looking insight you'll get into your business! 🎉