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If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’ve asked yourself: “Are we actually using HubSpot to its full potential?”
It’s not a throwaway thought… it’s usually prompted by something specific. Maybe your marketing feels disjointed despite having HubSpot’s automation tools. Maybe reporting still takes hours of manual work. Or maybe you’re looking at the renewal fee and wondering if you’re getting your money’s worth.
Most businesses only tap into a fraction of what HubSpot can do.
It’s not because the platform can’t deliver, but because day-to-day priorities push optimisation to the back burner.
The CRM works “well enough,” so deeper features stay untouched.
The problem? Those unused features could be the difference between a platform that passively stores data and one that actively drives revenue.
In this article, you’ll learn exactly how to tell if you’re underusing HubSpot, the key areas most businesses overlook, and the steps to unlock the full value of the platform you’ve already invested in.
Why Most Companies Don’t Fully Utilise HubSpot’s Capabilities
HubSpot is a bit like buying a fully loaded car and only ever driving it in first gear. You’ve got heated seats, adaptive cruise control, and lane assist… but if you don’t know they’re there (or how to turn them on), you’re not getting the full experience.
From working with hundreds of companies using HubSpot, here’s what we’ve seen usually happens:
- They start with the basics: Most companies jump in using HubSpot as a CRM and email marketing platform. These are quick wins, easy to set up, and they deliver visible results fast.
- The urgent overtakes the important: Once the basics are running, teams get pulled back into daily campaigns, sales calls, and reporting deadlines, leaving no time to explore more advanced features.
- Knowledge gaps widen over time: Without regular training or an optimisation partner, teams stick to what they know. New features get released, but they go unnoticed or unused.
- The platform’s potential gets buried: Automations, lead scoring, attribution reporting, and integration opportunities never get implemented, meaning the platform is only doing part of the job it could be doing.
The result?
- Missed opportunities for automation that could save hours every week.
- Underdeveloped insights from reporting that could improve decision-making.
- Weaker ROI because the platform isn’t set up to drive maximum conversions.
It’s not about technical skill. Even high-performing marketing and sales teams fall into this pattern because there’s no dedicated time or resource to review, optimise, and expand how they use HubSpot.
Signs You’re Underusing HubSpot
If you’re wondering whether you’re getting everything you can from HubSpot, run through this list. If any of these sound familiar, chances are you’re leaving value on the table.
1. Your CRM is basically a contact database
If you’re only using HubSpot to store names, emails, and phone numbers, you’re missing out on deal tracking, pipeline management, and activity logging that can help your team close faster.
Example: Sales reps manually entering notes into spreadsheets instead of logging calls and emails directly in HubSpot.
2. Automations are minimal or non-existent
HubSpot can automate repetitive tasks, from sending follow-up emails to updating lead statuses, but many teams still do these manually.
Example: Manually sending “thank you” emails after a form fill instead of setting up an automated workflow that personalises and triggers instantly.
3. Your reports don’t go beyond basics
If your reporting dashboard only tracks email opens or website visits, you’re missing deeper insights like revenue attribution, lead source effectiveness, and pipeline velocity.
Example: Running separate reports in Excel because HubSpot’s built-in reports aren’t set up to pull the right metrics.
4. You’re not using lead scoring
Without a scoring system, all leads get treated equally, meaning sales teams waste time on low-intent contacts.
Example: A high-value lead downloads three resources and visits your pricing page twice, but they get the same follow-up sequence as a casual newsletter subscriber.
5. Integrations aren’t connected
HubSpot works best when it’s the hub for all your marketing, sales, and service tools, but many companies never connect other platforms.
Example: Webinar attendees from Zoom aren’t automatically added to your HubSpot lists, so follow-up takes days instead of minutes.
The more boxes you tick here, the more room there is to optimise. The good news? Even fixing one or two of these areas can create a noticeable improvement in results.
How to Audit Your HubSpot Usage
If you want to know whether you’re truly using HubSpot to its full potential, these five areas are where you’ll find the biggest wins and the biggest gaps.
1. CRM Setup & Data Quality
Your CRM is the foundation for everything else in HubSpot. If your data is incomplete, inconsistent, or disorganised, your marketing and sales efforts will suffer.
- What to review: Are contact records complete and up to date? Are properties standardised? Is your pipeline clearly defined?
- Why it matters: Clean, well-structured data makes segmentation, reporting, and automation far more effective.
- Quick win: Audit your contact properties and create standardised fields for key data points.
2. Marketing Automation
HubSpot’s workflows can take repetitive, manual tasks off your team’s plate and ensure consistent follow-up.
- What to review: Are you using workflows for lead nurturing, onboarding, re-engagement, and internal notifications?
- Why it matters: Automated nurturing moves leads through the funnel faster and frees your team to focus on higher-value work.
- Quick win: Set up a simple lead nurture workflow for form submissions that personalises content based on the lead’s interest.
How Can You Track Where Your Leads Come From in HubSpot?
3. Sales Enablement
HubSpot isn’t just for marketing, it can arm your sales team with the right information at the right time.
- What to review: Are your sales playbooks, sequences, and templates built out? Are you tracking deal stages accurately?
- Why it matters: Better-aligned sales processes mean more consistent follow-up and higher close rates.
- Quick win: Create a standardised sales sequence for high-intent leads so every rep follows the same proven process.
What is HubSpot’s AI Prospecting Tool and How Does It Work?
4. Reporting & Analytics
Dashboards are where you see whether your work is paying off, but only if they’re set up to answer the right questions.
- What to review: Are you tracking revenue attribution, campaign performance, and lead source quality?
- Why it matters: Without clear visibility, it’s impossible to optimise spend or strategy effectively.
- Quick win: Build a dashboard that ties marketing activity directly to closed deals.
Best HubSpot Marketing Reports (with Beginner and Advanced examples)
5. Integrations & Ecosystem
HubSpot is designed to be the hub of your tech stack, but that only works if your tools are connected.
- What to review: Are your webinar tools, ad platforms, e-commerce systems, and customer service software integrated?
- Why it matters: Integrations create a single source of truth, speed up processes, and enable better personalisation.
- Quick win: Connect your paid ads account so lead and revenue data sync automatically.
An honest review of these areas will quickly reveal whether you’re getting everything you can from HubSpot or whether you’re leaving revenue-driving features on the shelf.
Pro Tip: A self-audit is a great start, but an experienced HubSpot partner can uncover opportunities you might not see, simply because they’ve run dozens of audits before and know exactly where to look for hidden potential.
Need an audit from a HubSpot Partner? Apply for a HubSpot Audit here.
When to Bring in a HubSpot Partner Agency
You can absolutely make improvements to HubSpot on your own. But there’s a reason so many businesses eventually turn to a certified HubSpot partner: speed, expertise, and measurable ROI.
Here’s when it makes sense to bring in outside help:
1. You’ve Hit a Plateau
If your lead volume, sales pipeline, or conversion rates have flatlined despite using HubSpot, an agency can diagnose whether it’s a strategy gap, a technical gap, or both.
2. You Don’t Have the Time
Optimising HubSpot isn’t just a one-off project, it’s an ongoing process of testing, tweaking, and adopting new features. Agencies live on the platform daily, so they can implement changes while your team focuses on running the business.
3. You Need Advanced Features Set Up
Complex automation workflows, multi-touch attribution reporting, custom integrations — these are powerful, but tricky to set up without experience. An agency can get them live in days instead of months.
4. You Want Faster ROI
Every month your HubSpot sits underused and is budget wasted. Agencies can often unlock quick wins within weeks that pay for their services.
Bottom line: A partner agency isn’t just there to “fix” HubSpot, they’re there to transform it into the revenue-driving engine it’s meant to be.
Red Flags to Watch Out for When Hiring a HubSpot Agency
Quick Wins vs Long Term Initiatives
Not every HubSpot improvement needs to be a big project. In fact, small changes can deliver quick results, but pairing them with a long-term optimisation plan is where the real transformation happens.
Here’s a table summarising quick wins you can implement this month vs longer, strategic initiatives.
| Quick Wins (This Month) | Long-Term Optimisation (6–12 Months) |
| Set up a simple lead scoring model to prioritise hottest leads. | Build advanced multi-branch automation workflows. |
| Create a post-form submission workflow to trigger follow-up emails and sales notifications. | Implement full attribution reporting to track every touchpoint to conversion. |
| Connect one new integration (e.g., webinar, ads, e-commerce) to sync data automatically. | Conduct CRM data cleanup and enrichment on an ongoing basis. |
| Build a dashboard to track leads, deals closed, and marketing-attributed revenue. | Align marketing, sales, and service teams on shared processes and definitions. |
| — | Continuously adopt and test new HubSpot features as they’re released. |
So, What’s Next?
You’ve already made the smart move by investing in HubSpot. The question now is whether you’re letting it sit at half power or using it as the full-strength growth engine it’s meant to be.
Every day that automation isn’t set up, reports aren’t optimised, and integrations aren’t connected is a day you’re leaving leads and revenue on the table.
The good news? Closing those gaps doesn’t have to take months of trial and error. With the right expertise, you can uncover missed opportunities, activate underused features, and start seeing measurable results within weeks.
So here’s your next step: run a quick internal audit using the checklist in this article, then decide if you have the time, resources, and know-how to optimise HubSpot yourself. If not, partner with an agency that lives and breathes HubSpot every day and can turn it into the high-ROI platform you originally signed up for.
Need a HubSpot Audit? Get in touch with us here.
