How HubSpot sends onboarding email
Triggered emails, custom workflows, and everything I did wrong when I signed up
HubSpot invented
inbound and the color orange.
er, I think that’s right.
HubSpot is one of the leading growth tools out there. They have software for most any marketing and sales need you can imagine. So how do you even go about introducing your many great products to a newly-interested user? (Me.)
You probably need to rely on a lot of data and triggers, neither of which I provided much of when I signed up. Here’s a rundown of the onboarding emails I received during my first few days with HubSpot’s marketing software.
How often HubSpot sends email to new users
The first 35 days
Total: Four emails sent, including the email confirmation.
My best guess at HubSpot’s onboarding strategy
So … I didn’t get a whole lot of email form HubSpot.
I take the blame for this because, as you’ll see below, I failed to complete so many different steps in the onboarding process. My hunch is that HubSpot might assume that if I’m not going to the trouble of installing the software, then I’m probably not very qualified to use the product. Safe assumption!
In the in-app onboarding, you’re asked to provide a lot of information and complete many steps. I fizzled out fast and skipped right to the “Finish” end.
My four-emails-in-35-days experience is probably intentional and probably one of dozens of different experiences you could have with HubSpot’s onboarding, depending on the actions you take during your first days.
Do active users receive upsells? (The HubSpot marketing software is freemium.) Do you get more tips in your early days with HubSpot if you’re, you know, using the product?
I believe so. HubSpot is so good at marketing best practices; I’d be shocked if everyone got as minimal of an email experience as I did. (Although, on the other hand, I know HubSpot is big on chatbots and messengers, so maybe that’s become an outlet for onboarding.)
Learnings
- You don’t have to spend onboarding time to onboard people who are unlikely to convert
- When possible, send emails that are triggered by in-app actions (or triggered by the lack of in-app actions)
- HubSpot mixes its emails: some are from HubSpot (the company) and others are from people at HubSpot
- Each email had some very clear, very helpful CTAs — if I would only have been interested!
3 onboarding email tips and takeaways from HubSpot
- Know who you’re emailing.
- Don’t bother over-emailing someone who’s unlikely to use your product
- Be friendly, not pushy
Here are all the onboarding emails (and beyond) that HubSpot sends
Here’s more on each email that I received from HubSpot during those 35 days. Caveat: I’m sure tons has changed and will change with their onboarding emails, so your mileage may vary when you sign up and see for yourself. 😊
Confirmation email
Sent minutes after I signed up.
Subject: Confirm Your HubSpot Account
From: HubSpot, noreply@hubspot.com
First email
Sent minutes after I confirmed.
Subject: Welcome to HubSpot!
From: Hubspot Growth Products, hubspot-growth-products@hubspot.com
Second email
Sent the day after I signed up.
Subject: Need some help getting set up?
From: James Hylas, jhylas@hubspot.com
Third email
Sent two days after I signed up.
Subject: one more step!
From: James Hylas, jhylas@hubspot.com
Your thoughts
If you have some thoughts or questions about HubSpot’s onboarding flow, I’d love to hear them.
- What do your HubSpot emails look like? (I’m sure you’ve received more than I have.)
- What would you do with someone who never activated with your product?
Add a response here on Medium.
Highlight any favorite pieces or parts.
Or clap along to help surface this story to others. 👏
Thank you!
Want to see more onboarding email breakdowns? Check out the rest of Season One of the series, featuring onboarding campaigns from …
👉 👉 Intercom ……. Trello ……. Extra.ai ……. Brandless ……. Fullstory ……. Wistia ……. MixMax ……. Grammarly ……. Dribbble ……. Hubspot ……. Pocket ……. Treehouse ……. CBS All Access…….
