HubSpot vs. Salesforce Comparison: Which CRM is Best?
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HubSpot Vs. Salesforce: Which platform is best for your business?

TransFunnel Consulting
TransFunnel Consulting
May 26, 2023

Overview


Choosing between CRM giants requires a deep dive into Salesforce vs HubSpot features to see which platform aligns with your business goals. While Salesforce is known for its deep customization and enterprise-level power, HubSpot is one of the salesforce biggest competitors due to its ease of use and all-in-one approach. For teams seeking salesforce alternatives, HubSpot offers a more intuitive, unified solution for scaling marketing and sales.

According to the HubSpot newsroom, over 216,000 customers in 135 countries use HubSpot services to attract, engage, and delight potential customers. In contrast, more than 150,000 customers leverage Salesforce to streamline and maximise sales, ultimately generating significant revenue. 

So, if you're struggling to choose between these two top-rated CRM options, it's essential to compare their features, pricing models, ease of use, implementation, customization capabilities, support, and how well they align with your core business requirements. Doing so will help you address your business challenges effectively and make an informed decision. 

This blog post delves into a detailed HubSpot versus Salesforce comparison to help you decide which platform best meets your business needs. Read on to explore more!

About HubSpot 

HubSpot is a powerful customer relationship management platform with a strong focus on inbound marketing. It excels in aligning sales and marketing, monitoring marketing journeys, automating workflows, and creating detailed dashboards from reports. HubSpot provides a unified place to manage everything seamlessly. 

Key benefits of HubSpot marketing automation platform include:

  • User-friendly lead handling
  • Third-party app integration
  • Effective communication tracking
  • Social media management
  • Excellent value for investment

About Salesforce

Salesforce is a rapidly growing technology platform designed to manage the entire sales journey, from initial user interest to customer retention, catering to small, medium, and large enterprises. Due to its versatile services and exceptional capabilities, Salesforce often comes with a higher price tag. However, it is an excellent alternative to HubSpot if managing a large volume of data, sales, and customer satisfaction is your priority. 

Benefits of the Salesforce marketing automation platform include: 

  • Effectively tracking interactions, sales, and marketing
  • Catering to the needs of businesses of all sizes
  • Enabling real-time collaboration with the team
  • Streamlining processes, automating tasks, and creating efficient workflows
  • Running your entire business with the Salesforce mobile app

HubSpot vs Salesforce comparison

HubSpot CRM vs Salesforce differ in core features, budget, pricing, and accessibility. The more premium plans you have with these platforms, the more features you avail. HubSpot is great for inbound marketing efforts and outbound marketing campaigns, while Salesforce is more geared toward managing and streamlining sales efforts.

Parameter 

HubSpot 

Salesforce 

Platform 

All-in-one platform offering Sales, Marketing, and Services 

More sales-oriented platform 

Marketing features 

Extensive marketing features such as lead scoring, personalisation and more with free and startup plans 

Extensive marketing features with Salesforce marketing cloud and premium plans 

Sales reporting & forecasting 

Accessibility of advanced sales analytics and reporting features to keep tabs on sales performance with premium plans. 

Dashboards show the alignment between sales and marketing with a detailed view of customer and sales reps' progress 
 
Also offers on the fly reporting with custom reports 

Advanced sales analytics and reporting features to get real-time visibility into insights - sales progress with even baseline plans. 

Moreover, the popular forecasting feature is available on / user basis too 

Dashboard shows detailed pipeline view and revenue prospects. 

Ease of use 

With a well-integrated dashboard and navigation, HubSpot offers strong onboarding with step-by-step guidance 

Salesforce initially may seem to have a complex layout and offers onboarding with a demo-like account 

Customisation 

Customisable workflows and automation based on triggers 

Customisable workflows as well as custom code 

Coding access 

No code access 

All code capabilities access 

Integrations 

HubSpot App Marketplace has 1000+ applications for integration including free and paid such as Aircall, Mailchimp and much more 

Salesforce offers buffets of integrations (2500+) on its trailhead including DocuSign, Conga Composer and more 

Sales management process 

HubSpot sales hub is a solid platform that allows sales reps to create deals, track progress of sales opportunities and helps in overall sales pipeline management 

Salesforce sales cloud is a comprehensive selling solution. You can create a custom sales report and add it to the dashboard to get insights into sales performance in one place 

User-Interface 

Quite friendly and easy-to-use interface 

Slightly sophisticated user interface 

Educational resources 

Free certifications and courses to uplevel skills in different areas including sales, marketing and support 

Sales focused paid certifications are available in Salesforce. 

Best known as 

Inbound marketing tool 

Sales automation platform 

Onboarding experience 

Onboarding is a smooth experience for new users in HubSpot because it is detailed, dynamic and intuitive 

Salesforce offers a wide range of customisable features that are taken care of during the onboarding experience 

Layout 

Simple, clean and easy to navigate layout 

Sophisticated layout 

Customer support 

Email, phone, online chat, HubSpot community, HubSpot academy, and the online knowledge base 

Phone, online messaging, chat, research center, trailhead, and community forum 

Best fit for 

Small to mid-sized businesses 

Large enterprises 

Free trial 

HubSpot offers 14-day free trial and free plan as well to get you started 

Salesforce offers 30-day free trial, but no free plan 

Pricing 

HubSpot offers free, Starter, Professional and Enterprise Plans, ranging from free to 1200 USD/ month 

Salesforce packages are designed on a /month/ user basis and can range from 25 USD/ month/ user to 300 USD / month/ user. You can pay and add features to the existing plan 


Salesforce vs HubSpot: Which is best for your business?

Deciding upon which CRM platform is apt comprehensively relies on parameters such as industry size, requirements, budget and growth trajectory. HubSpot gives you a clear look and feel with a simple interface, accessibility and free tools that best fit to accomplish small business to medium-sized business requirements. On the other hand, Salesforce marketing cloud is better suited for larger enterprises with more complex needs.

Need a partner to help you with the integration? Let TransFunnel help you get the perfect SFDC integration, to help accelerate your business.

Why TransFunnel?

TransFunnel is a HubSpot-accredited partner specializing in Onboarding, CRM Implementation, and Platform Enablement. We address all your concerns and provide tailored solutions to meet your business goals. We take pride in delivering comprehensive solutions. Our subject matter experts implement the right CRM solutions to cater to your specific business needs.  

Through HubSpot Salesforce integration, you can even use both platforms for your different teams to make the most of both platforms.  With this fast, reliable, and powerful integration, data can be synced quickly and accurately. You can also take advantage of the reporting features of both platforms.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the main difference between HubSpot and Salesforce?

The primary difference between HubSpot and Salesforce lies in their architecture and user experience. HubSpot is an all-in-one, "all-on-one" platform built on a single code base, making it incredibly intuitive and easy to use. In contrast, Salesforce is a highly customizable, modular system designed for complex enterprise needs that often requires a dedicated administrator to manage.

2. Can HubSpot replace Salesforce for growing enterprises?

Yes, for many companies, the answer to "Can HubSpot replace Salesforce?" is a definitive yes. While Salesforce was historically the only choice for large corporations, HubSpot’s Enterprise Tier now offers advanced reporting, custom objects, and sophisticated permissions that rival Salesforce, often at a lower total cost of ownership and with higher adoption rates among sales teams.

3. Salesforce Marketing Cloud vs HubSpot: Which is better for automation?

When comparing Salesforce Marketing Cloud vs HubSpot, the choice depends on your technical resources. Salesforce Marketing Cloud is a powerful, high-end tool for complex, multi-channel journeys but has a steep learning curve. HubSpot Marketing Hub offers similar power with a much friendlier interface, allowing marketers to launch advanced automation, email campaigns, and lead scoring without needing a developer.

4. Is Salesforce vs HubSpot for small business a better choice?

When evaluating Salesforce vs HubSpot for small business, HubSpot is typically the winner. HubSpot offers a "Free Forever" CRM and affordable Starter tiers that include essential tools for lead generation. Salesforce’s entry-level versions can be more difficult to set up and often lack the integrated marketing tools that small businesses need to grow quickly.

5. Which CRM offers better integration and scalability?

Both platforms scale well, but they do so differently. Salesforce offers almost limitless customization through its Apex coding language, making it the standard for complex global operations. HubSpot, however, offers a massive App Marketplace with one-click integrations, ensuring that as you scale, your tech stack remains connected without constant manual maintenance.

Don't let an initial consultation slow you down. Talk to our experts!

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