You heard of Hubspot, what it's capable of, and decided to invest in the platform, but you are still not getting your money's worth.
If yes, you're not alone. A lot of businesses invest in the platform, hoping this one move will overcome all their marketing hurdles.
The thing is, no matter how powerful HubSpot might be or how complex marketing gets, real progress requires the right expertise and implementation. This is where a certified HubSpot partner comes in. They are professionals, trained and vetted by HubSpot to help businesses implement, optimize, and align HubSpot with their business goals.
This guide explores what it means to be a certified HubSpot partner, why it matters, and how to evaluate and choose the right one for your business.
Certified HubSpot Partner: An Overview
Certified HubSpot partners aren't just any service provider who has some level of experience with HubSpot. They are highly specialized service providers or agencies that are part of HubSpot’s official Solutions Partner Program.
These agencies go through an exhaustive training process through the HubSpot Academy to be certified on Marketing, Sales, Service, CMS, and Operations.
Besides, these service providers don't just go through a one-time learning process. To retain their "certified partner" credentials, these organizations need to stay updated with periodic certifications to demonstrate their platform expertise.
These partners are also evaluated on their performance in the real world based on-
- Sold Points: These are earned on selling HubSpot licences to new customers
- Managed Points: These are earned by providing ongoing support and services to existing customers
These points are calculated based on their monthly recurring revenue (MRR). Based on their performance, HubSpot-certified partners are graded into a four-tier system (Gold, Elite, Platinum, and Elite). To rise up, partners need to meet the minimum threshold (sold + managed points).
What Services Can a Certified HubSpot Partner Deliver?
HubSpot-certified partners are not advisors or consultants. They are hands-on specialists who help you implement HubSpot into your business workflow. Here is a breakdown of the services they offer.
Platform setup across all hubs
A certified partner can help you step up and configure the five major HubSpot hubs:
- CRM
- Sales Hub
- Marketing Hub
- Service Hub
- Operations Hub
This includes setting up contact properties, building pipelines, adding lead scoring, configuring your ticketing system, and implementing other automations.
Custom integration with your existing systems
If your business uses several tools, like most TSPs, MSPs, and security firms, a certified HubSpot partner can help connect them all with HubSpot. This is done either via API, middleware, or even via custom code, if required. Their goal is always to make the platform functional from the get-go.
Strategic planning and campaign execution
A partner also helps you create a strategy that links your marketing, sales, and service efforts. The industry term for this is called RevOps alignment.
They’ll create workflows to automate routine tasks, design inbound campaigns that fit your audience, and ensure all the HubSpot tools work together to support your business goals.
Onboarding, training, and ongoing support
Certified HubSpot partners are responsible for onboarding your teams and training them on how to use the new system.
They also provide ongoing technical support and help you understand the data in your HubSpot dashboard so you can make better decisions.
In short, you gain an entire support system when you work with a certified HubSpot partner.
What Else Do You Gain When You Work With a Certified HubSpot Partner?
The real value of working with certified HubSpot Partners lies in how well they help solve industry-specific problems.
One of the biggest challenges businesses face is maintaining clean, centralized customer data. This is especially true for TSPs and MSPs that deal with long sales cycles, data privacy concerns, and complex buying processes.
A certified partner can help set up tiered access controls and build workflows to keep data accurate across their tech stack. They also ensure everything stays compliant with relevant regulations.
Faster onboarding is another major win. Integrating a new system often causes disruptions to operations. Certified partners solve this with training and ongoing support to help your teams figure out the system configurations or SOPs. The icing on the cake is that HubSpot also waives the onboarding fee when you receive services or buy the software through a certified partner.
The business impact is hard to ignore when you can back it up with numbers. According to HubSpot’s 2024 ROI Report, customers working with certified partners see 53% more inbound leads and close 3x more deals than those without one.
How to Evaluate and Choose the Right Certified HubSpot Partner
Once you've decided to work with a certified HubSpot partner, the next step is choosing the right one. Here's how-
- Check their tier status: A service partner's tier status is a strong indicator of both a partner's experience and HubSpot's trust in them. The higher the better.
- Inquire about their industry background: Ask if they have worked with your industry and what type of business it was (TSP, MSP, etc). Relevant experience matters.
- Verify their certifications and experience- Confirm they hold up-to-date certifications. A good certified HubSpot partner should be able to deploy and manage all major HubSpot hubs.
Apart from these, watch out for the following red flags-
- The partner can’t articulate the project scope well or is vague about the deliverables
- The partner isn't transparent about the fees (onboarding, service fee, for instance)
- The partner avoids discussing onboarding plans or the scope of the support they will provide
Also, don't hesitate to ask direct questions like-
- Have you worked with businesses like mine?
- Can you integrate HubSpot with our current tech stack?
- What level of support and strategic input do we get?
How they answer them will tell you a lot.
Key Takeaways
- Certified HubSpot partners are trusted agencies that undergo ongoing training in Marketing, Sales, Service, CMS, and Operations
- They manage a complete HubSpot setup and integration, including CRM, pipelines, lead scoring, automations, and connecting your existing tools
- They offer end-to-end support, from strategy and setup to training and ongoing assistance, while keeping your data accurate, compliant, and organized
- You get faster implementation with less disruption, and onboarding fees are often waived when purchasing through a partner
- Choose a partner with the right tier, certifications, and industry experience. Avoid vague responses—ask direct questions to ensure a good fit
Summing It Up
HubSpot's reputation as a powerful platform precedes itself. That said, it only works as well as it’s implemented, and if you don't have the in-house expertise, you won't be able to fully capitalize on its capabilities. A certified HubSpot partner will help you do just that.
If you are ready to make that step, Tactics Marketing is here to help. Book a call with us to evaluate us and to know more about how we can help you out as your dedicated certified HubSpot partner.
