@altweddingfair I have used Hubspot with good results, but what is most important is what you want to do. If you primarily need marketing automation, there are other good services out there. Its analytics are great and well presented.

I understand they have made a lot of improvements since I was a customer-user, so take a good look. Their support is great, and if they’ve added and improved the product, it might be what you need.

@altweddingfair it would all depend on what you want to do most, and what you know about your clients and prospective clients

Some to look at include Eloqua, Pardot, Silverpop & Marketo. It takes quite a bit to compare and contrast, so first I would list what you want to achieve and do with any system, and what you would anticipate ROI to be. Then look at ease of use, support, etc. as a start.

@altweddingfair I know that both Hubspot and Pardot do a pretty good job of tracking conversions.

What about SEO are you hoping to gain from the system? Hubspot has a free website grader that will help  you identify problems that are often simple to fix.

@altweddingfair Heidi, Google Analytics helped me determine the most searched- for keywords for my industry, but that’s not always a good thing.  I’m a food coach, but do I really want to rely on using the most popular keywords — diet/dieting, weight loss, overeating — when there are a gazillion other sites using those same words?  I also use less searched-for terms, like compulsive eating and disordered eating.

Diet/dieting, weight loss, overeating……some searchers are my targets
Compulsive/disordered eating……most searchers are my targets

I love Hubspot for the content they provide. I’ve had a hard time getting them to take me seriously as a potential partner. I seem to be stuck in their sales funnel with no way out! I guess I’m not big enough. I don’t get calls returned no matter how many times I fill out their form and then I thought I had an appointment for a call. When I didn’t get the call, I called them and got a voice message.

And so I keep looking around.

They sure sound good, though!

I use their free services a lot… websitegrader.com and their new marketinggrader.com.  Both services have really helped my business as well as some of my clients.

@judithgotwald what do you mean by “a potential partner?”

I use HubSpot every day and love it. Inside the program you have not only a website grader, but a page grader that tells you issues with specific pages and then pretty much walks you through how to fix them.

Their keyword grader is good on the free version, but again, their program lets you track up to 1000 keywords and up to 10 competitors to see how they rank compared to you. It’s really in depth. 

My only suggestion is do a trial…no matter what company you are looking at going with, do a trial. You won’t get results in 1 month, but you can at least get a feel for the program and see if it is going to do everything you want.

I am a HubSpot small biz customer – I pay $250 per month which I think is a great deal considering the support, training, and the product itself.  I’m no techie – so I think it’s very simple to use and understand.
I agree with @Liz Karschner do a trial.

In searching for an integrated platform I looked at Marin, Kennshoo, adSage, Source Metcks, Eloqua, Pardot, Silverpop & Marketo, most are too expensive or don’t do what I need.  What you think?  is HubSpot the way to go?

Here is what I want:1. integration between all social platforms2. manage emails3. download all orders to decide which emails go out based on purchases4. auto-responders
Anyone operating a store on HubSpot?