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Case study · HubSpot for asset managers

From incumbent Salesforce to a HubSpot CRM built for distribution

After moving marketing off Pardot, a specialist asset manager concluded Salesforce was staying only because it was the incumbent. I built the decision case, then took ownership of the HubSpot CRM after the migration and extended it around how asset managers sell.

Client
Specialist asset manager, intermediary and institutional channels
Platforms
HubSpot Sales, Marketing and Operations Hub Enterprise, FINTRX
Services
HubSpot for asset managers, CRM architecture, ongoing RevOps

Key result

~40%

lower projected annual platform cost than staying on Salesforce, with no lost functionality

  • Monthly

    FINTRX enrichment matched by CRD number

  • 3

    consultant dispositions tracked like pipeline

  • 1

    platform for sales, marketing and enrichment

The situation

Asset managers don't sell to one kind of buyer. This firm sells to individual advisors, to the home offices and platforms that decide which products advisors can use, and to institutions whose decisions often run through investment consultants. A generic opportunity pipeline describes none of them well.

The firm ran sales in Salesforce. Once marketing moved to HubSpot, leadership asked whether Salesforce was still earning its place.

What was getting in the way

  • Salesforce cost more for less

    Prospecting, marketing integration and support were weak points, and cost inflation ran well above HubSpot's.

  • Consultant relationships weren't measurable

    Whether a consultant was neutral, warming or sending business lived in people's heads.

  • Advisor data was hard to use

    Enrichment data existed, but not in fields segmentation, routing and reporting could use.

  • The previous sales handoff had failed

    A sales accepted lead process launched before reps built it into how they sold, and was abandoned.

Consultants recommend rather than buy, so I track their disposition and report its movement the way the team reports pipeline.

What I built

The decision case, then a CRM extended around how the firm sells.

  1. The decision case

    Team-by-team usage mapped, both platforms scored and cost modeled for equivalent functionality.

  2. Ownership after migration

    A structured handoff from the implementation partner, with the build documented.

  3. A consultant pipeline

    From identification through strategy review to a buy rating, built from scratch.

  4. A disposition model

    Neutral, Favorable and Preferred tracked and reported, with four-level account tiering.

  5. FINTRX in standard properties

    Advisor data mapped to standard fields and refreshed monthly by CRD number.

  6. A sales handoff reps use

    Leads created at SQL, with status moved automatically as reps log activity.

How it works now

Before
After
BeforeSalesforce kept as the incumbent
AfterOne HubSpot platform for sales, marketing and enrichment
BeforeConsultant stance lived in people's heads
AfterNeutral, Favorable and Preferred tracked and reported
BeforeAdvisor data in unusable fields
AfterFINTRX mapped to standard properties, refreshed monthly
BeforeAn abandoned lead handoff
AfterLeads created at SQL, status moved by logged activity

What carries to your firm

Model each relationship on its own terms, and measure gatekeeper sentiment as seriously as revenue.

Asset managers sell through intermediaries, platforms and consultants, and each moves differently. Put enrichment data where your workflows and reports can use it.