What is a contact tier in HubSpot?

HubSpot has been one of the fastest-growing digital agencies for over ten years, helping businesses grow their customer base through integrated software solutions. The company's popular flagship product is its Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool called Contact Center Enterprise (CCE). CCE integrates all aspects of an organization's sales cycle from lead generation, pipeline management, campaign tracking, and more into a single platform.

The goal of this article is not only to inform you about what HubSpot offers but also to show you where you can find out information on specific products or features. For example, if you're looking at using HubSpot as part of your business operations, we'll give you some tips on how to choose which plan best suits your needs. In addition, there will be links throughout the article pointing to other articles that may help answer any questions you have.

In order to understand what a contact tier means in HubSpot, it helps to first define what a contact is. A contact is defined by the HubSpot system as "a person who interacts directly with your website." It could include someone filling out an online form such as a potential buyer inquiring about a service or product offered on your site, calling in to ask a question, sending you an e-mail, etc. When someone visits your website they are considered a prospect until they enter your conversion funnel. Once inside your conversion funnel, a prospect becomes a subscriber, leads, customers, clients, partners, vendors, etc., depending on your goals. We've broken down these different tiers so you can see where each one fits in relation to the others.

Let's take a look at the different types of accounts available in HubSpot. You might notice that when you log in to HubSpot, you get automatically logged into whichever version you currently use. This happens because HubSpot uses cookies to track your login history, meaning that once you sign in, you won't need to reenter your password every time you visit. If you click on Account Settings & Preferences, then go to Security, you'll see two options: Use Secure Browsing and Logout Me Now. Both of them allow you to change your security settings based on your preferences. We recommend checking both boxes because sometimes browsers don't always keep up with new security standards. With secure browsing enabled, your browser encrypts data between your computer and HubSpot servers before it even leaves your device. By enabling logout me now, you ensure that your session cookie doesn't contain sensitive information such as credit card numbers, passwords, addresses, phone numbers, emails, social media profiles, etc. To learn more about protecting yourself while surfing safely online, check out our guide here.

So what exactly are contact tiers in HubSpot? Let's start with Tier 1 Contacts. These are people who come across your web page via search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo!, AOL Search, Ask Jeeves, etc. They land on your website, read something interesting, decide to try clicking something else, and end up being directed to another website. Tier 2 Contacts are those who opt-in to receive updates from you after landing on your website. As mentioned earlier, prospects become subscribers once they enter your conversion funnel. Tier 3 Contacts are prospects who convert into leads. Leads are qualified individuals who fill out applications or request additional services. Clients are people who purchase goods or services from your company, either digitally or physically. Lastly, Partners are companies who partner with you for promotional purposes. Vendors provide you with complementary goods and/or services.

Now that we've covered the basics, let's talk about the five main objects found under the "Contacts" tab in the top navigation bar of the CCE interface: Agents, Campaigns, Communications, Customers, and Leads.

Agents represent employees who handle incoming calls and inquiries. There are three agents per user level -- Admin, Agent, and Supervisor -- which allows users to assign responsibilities to their team members. All agents must follow the policies set forth by HubSpot and complete mandatory training so that the company maintains compliance.

Campaigns refer to the process of managing multiple communications sent to different audiences. Within campaigns, users can create unique content for each audience, monitor results, run split tests, and measure conversions. Users can send messages to contacts individually or en masse. Also, since campaigns often involve many channels including text messaging, voice mail, e-mails, instant messenger apps, faxes, voicemails, tweets, video, images, and more, users should make sure that their devices support these platforms, otherwise they may miss important notifications.

Communications refers to the ability to share documents and files with contacts during conversations. Content includes everything from spreadsheets to presentations, templates, logos, press releases, photos, videos, audio clips, and more. Communication Objects are the items used to communicate within your workflow. Examples include Documents, Files, Presentations, Photos, Videos, Audio Clips, Spreadsheets, Templates, Press Releases, Voicemail Messages, Faxes, Voice Mailboxes, Email Attachments, Images, PDF Forms, and Web Page Links.

Customers are representatives of your current or past customers. Since HubSpot was created specifically to improve the way small businesses interact with existing and prospective customers, contacts can be assigned to individual customers. Customers can access resources related to billing, refunds, payment plans, promotions, newsletters, and more.

Leads are qualified individuals interested in working with your company. Lead Objectives determine whether leads want to speak with salespeople or simply have general inquiries. Salespeople can target specific leads according to their interests.

Lastly, HubSpot provides several reports that tell you valuable information regarding your performance. Reports are categorized into Dashboards, Charts, Analytics, KPI Reporting, Visitor Tracking, User Activity Monitoring, Event Tracking, and More. Each report contains statistics associated with the corresponding dashboard. For instance, the Events Report shows how visitors interacted with your websites and how much traffic you received from various sources. On the other hand, the Visitors Chart displays trends such as average duration spent on each webpage, percentage of returning visitors, most common pages viewed, etc.

Next, we'll explain the relationship between HubSpot and Facebook Marketing Cloud.

Facebook Marketing Cloud is owned by Facebook Inc. However, Facebook Marketing Cloud operates independently of Facebook Inc. While the two systems' functionalities overlap somewhat, they aren't fully identical. Some differences include pricing structures, capabilities, integrations, reporting mechanisms, and more.

To find out more about the difference between the two platforms, take a look at this comparison chart.

As far as advertising goes, HubSpot supports four major networks including Facebook Advertising Platform, Twitter Ads Manager, LinkedIn Sponsored Listings, and YouTube Partner Program. Other smaller networks are supported too, but HubSpot recommends focusing on the biggest ones due to budget constraints.

Finally, we'll discuss HubSpot Academy. From simple tasks to complex projects, HubSpot Academy has tutorials covering just about anything you'd need to know. Not only is the academy free, but you can also earn college credits and certifications by completing courses. Courses are organized into categories and topics. Topics range from beginner to advanced. Categories cover areas such as accounting, design, development, project management, database administration, and more.

For example, the Design category consists of 20+ lessons ranging from How to Create a Website Using Canva to HTML Basics 101. Most lessons require little effort to complete, making HubSpot Academy ideal for learning new skills without having to spend hours doing research. Just click play and watch the tutorial whenever you feel like taking a break!

If you would like to explore HubSpot further, please review our blog post detailing how to build your own successful mobile app.

When you start using HubSpot, it will ask if you want to import all your existing data or create new accounts from scratch. If you choose to use an existing database for importing data into HubSpot, then some users may find themselves struggling to meet their monthly quotas on unique emails sent per month.

This is where Contact Tiers come in. In this article we'll explain what they are, and show you how to get started setting them up properly so you don't run out of room before the end of the year!

HubSpot's Contact Tier feature allows you to limit the amount of people who receive messages from your campaigns based on certain criteria like whether someone has opted-in to your mailing list or not. This way, you won't be bombarded by thousands of spammy emails every day, but still offer valuable content to those who actually want to hear about it.

In other words - you only send useful information to customers who've asked for it.

You can also use these tiers to group different types of leads together, such as opt-ins vs. regular visitors vs. subscribers. These groups might help prioritize which lead sources you should focus on first when building your own followup sequence.

If you're looking to build multiple lists within your account (e.g. Sales Leads, Subscribers, Opt Ins), HubSpot makes it easy to add each one separately and assign Contacts accordingly. You can even filter down further depending on specific fields like gender or location.

Here’s everything you need to know about Contact Tiers in HubSpot...

How do I automatically set contacts as market contacts in HubSpot?

To enable automatic Contact Tier creation in HubSpot, go to Settings " Campaigns & Lists " Customize Your Data Sources. Then check the box next to Create New Market Segments Based On Existing Database Fields.

Now whenever you open any campaign, you'll see custom segments pop right onto the left side panel under Manage Lead Flow. From there, you can edit anything you wish.

For example, you could select 'Tier 1' and change its color from orange to red. Or maybe make the text bolder, or larger. The possibilities really are endless here -- just drag whatever you'd like around until you find something that looks good enough to call your own!

Once done, click Save Changes. Now the segment will stay put wherever you decide to place it.

Note: When creating new segments, you can also manually specify names, colors, etc., too. It saves time if you already have data imported from another system.

How many contacts can I have in HubSpot free?

As mentioned earlier, HubSpot offers unlimited Contact Tiers. However, if you plan to grow beyond 100,000+ customer records, you'll need to upgrade. Fortunately, HubSpot gives you 14 days to try the premium version of the software completely risk-free. Afterward, you can continue using HubSpot at no charge indefinitely. Just head over to Pricing to learn more.

What are the core products of HubSpot?

There are 5 main components to HubSpot:

CRM/Sales Automation Software - As the name suggests, this component helps businesses track sales activities throughout the pipeline. With this tool, you can easily schedule meetings, initiate calls, record tasks, export reports and much more.

Email Marketing Platform - This part lets you design professional newsletters and landing pages, craft autoresponder sequences, analyze traffic results and more. Plus, you can integrate it seamlessly with your website via Zapier.

Ad Management Tool - This section features customizable ads across platforms. For instance, you can display banner ads on websites, mobile apps, social media profiles, blogs and more.

Content Syndication Engine - Allows publishers to syndicate your blog posts and articles directly through RSS feeds.

Analytics Suite - Offering insights on things like trends, behavior, performance and ROI, this module includes powerful reporting capabilities.

What is HubSpot CRM built?

The last piece of HubSpot is called HubSpot CRM. Its primary purpose is to allow teams to collaborate efficiently while managing their client relationships, prospects and opportunities.

It consists of various modules including Calendar, Documents, Forms, People, Projects, Quotes, Invoices, Reports, Opportunities, Timesheet and Visibility. All of these pieces connect seamlessly to provide greater visibility and control over your business processes.

What happens after you purchase HubSpot Premium?

After purchasing the full package, you simply log into HubSpot using your credentials to access everything. There aren't separate plans or upgrades, since everything works smoothly together.

And remember -- once you buy HubSpot Premium, you can keep using it forever without ever paying again. Even better, you never have to worry about technical support or updates either. Our team handles both responsibilities instead. We believe our clients deserve nothing less than peace of mind.

Is there a learning curve when switching between systems?

Absolutely not. Switching over to HubSpot takes mere moments and feels seamless thanks to the intuitive interface. And because it integrates with hundreds of third party applications, it's also quick and simple to switch back and forth between programs.

No matter which platform you prefer (Outlook, Google Sheets, Excel, etc.), moving your data doesn't take long. So you can rest assured knowing that everything stays organized and ready to go.

Also, HubSpot uses industry standard API integrations and connectors that let you easily move data out of other popular programs like Mailchimp, Zoho and AWeber.

Plus, you can always download files containing your old customer details in CSV format. This means you can transfer data anywhere you want without losing precious documents or important records.

Can I customize my templates?

Yes! By default, HubSpot comes with several prebuilt layouts for most industries, but you can also upload your very own designs. To begin editing, navigate straight to Design Center " Templates. Once inside, you can browse through dozens of professionally designed layouts to suit your needs. Clicking on one reveals additional options for customization.

For example, you can adjust fonts, sizes, backgrounds, images, photos, videos, icons, logos, emojis, buttons, tabs, columns and much more. You can even delete parts of layout elements to fit your preferences perfectly.

Keep in mind though that changing template settings requires upgrading to HubSpot Pro. Otherwise, changes will apply globally to all your campaigns.

Do I need to pay extra fees for advanced services?

Nope! HubSpot is fully integrated with Microsoft Office 365. Thus, you can view all your data in Outlook, Word, PowerPoint and Excel. Furthermore, you can sync schedules, calendars and task lists directly from Outlook to HubSpot. Doing so keeps everyone updated.

Another perk worth mentioning is that HubSpot includes live chat integration. Using this feature, anyone can message you 24 hours a day, seven days a week, regardless of their geographical location. Of course, you can disable this function if you so desire.

Will I lose my current subscriber base if I upgrade to HubSpot Premium?

Not necessarily. While HubSpot does require payment processing for any service received, you can avoid having to rework your entire subscriber base by exporting your data beforehand. Simply visit Settings " Tools " Export Customer Details, and save it locally.

Then, anytime you need to deactivate subscriptions, you can simply pull up the exported file, modify it according to your requirements and submit it back online. No worries!

Are there discounts available for bulk purchases?

Yes, absolutely. Bulk orders give your company a significant price break, allowing you to reduce costs by buying HubSpot licenses en masse. But unlike other companies, HubSpot doesn't force you into committing to long contracts. Instead, you have 30 days to review your experience with us.

During this period, if you decide to cancel your subscription, you can request a refund, and vice versa. That said, if you do feel comfortable using HubSpot longer, you can stick with it for as long as you please.

However, doing so puts you at risk of being charged late fees. Therefore, it would probably benefit you to sign a contract extension with HubSpot. If you're unsure of the terms, speak to a HubSpot representative to discuss.

Does HubSpot include analytics? How often is my data checked?

Of course! Every major product offered by HubSpot contains robust analytical capabilities. Whether you're trying to figure out why your conversion rates are low or how to improve response times, HubSpot has got you covered.

All metrics displayed on dashboards reflect real-time results, meaning you can monitor KPIs yourself without waiting weeks for responses.

Additionally, HubSpot checks user activity regularly. Each morning, your dashboard shows stats on recent interactions made on your site. During peak periods, the frequency increases to hourly.

That said, we recommend checking your Dashboard frequently to ensure HubSpot isn't running unnecessary background scans. If you notice unusual patterns, reach out to a HubSpot expert immediately for resolution.

Lastly, HubSpot provides detailed analysis reports for free. Depending on your usage, these reports cover topics ranging from average opening and clicking times to bounce rate averages.

When it comes to growing an audience, getting more people through your website's door or on your sales team, one of the most important things you need is targeted traffic. And while there are many ways to get this kind of visibility (from search engine optimization techniques to social media), all roads lead back to content creation and distribution.

The problem is, not everyone is going to see what you're sharing right away -- some may never see it at all because they don't have access to your material yet. This means that even though you've spent hours creating something great, someone who wants to engage but doesn't have any way to reach out to you won't be able to take advantage of your hard work until they become part of your list.

This brings us to another term we hear often when talking about using HubSpot products: "contact tiers." Contact tiers allow you to set up different pricing plans so that those who want to start engaging with your company early can use HubSpot free of charge, whereas others will have to choose a paid plan before they begin interacting with your business. The idea here is that once these users sign up and opt into your program, you'll be able to track their interactions with your brand and provide them with updates on new offerings from your organization.

In short, contact tiers are essentially two types of customers: Marketing Contacts and Non-Marketing Contacts. Let's look at each type separately to help understand how they differ. In addition, we'll also give you a few examples of good practices for setting up both contact tiers in order to maximize efficiency.

How much do you pay for HubSpot?

If you already have a subscription to HubSpot but haven't taken a look at its contact management features recently, then be sure to check out our beginner's guide to using HubSpot CRM to learn everything you need to know! If you just purchased your own copy, however, it should go without saying that you aren't paying enough money for HubSpot. Not only does HubSpot offer tiered packages based on usage requirements, but if you purchase multiple copies of the software, you could end up spending hundreds per year on unnecessary subscriptions. To avoid this situation, make sure you buy only what you actually need in terms of services.

Now let's move onto looking at the difference between marketing and non-marketing contacts. As mentioned above, HubSpot offers three contact tiers depending on whether or not you subscribe to certain features within the platform. For instance, you might decide that you only need basic functionality like scheduling meetings or sending emails. On the other hand, if you'd rather create custom forms and landing pages instead of using templates, you would likely benefit by subscribing to advanced tiers.

As a general rule of thumb, here's a breakdown of what you typically spend on HubSpot versus what you pay for contact tiers:

Basic Tier ($9/mo): Scheduling meetings, sending emails, importing data, etc.

Standard Tier ($19/mo): Creating flows, adding documents, tracking leads, etc.

Premium Tier ($29/mo & Up): Advanced analytics, mobile apps, event management, etc.

For example, if you were to schedule meetings via Google Calendar, import data from LinkedIn, send emails, and track prospects on HubSpot, you would fall under the Basic tier category. However, if you wanted to build customized forms and landing pages, add photos and videos to your campaigns, run reports, and integrate your calendar with HubSpot events, you would qualify as a Premium customer. You can find full details regarding which tier you currently fit into below. Don't forget that you can upgrade to premium anytime during the course of your contract with HubSpot.

Below is a table detailing exactly what you pay for each tier:

Tier 1 - Basic Usage Requirements

Tier 2 - Standard Usage Requirements

Tier 3 - Advanced Usage Requirements

Email Sending Frequency Weekly

Monthly

Quarterly

Weekly

Monthly

Scheduled Meetings Monthly

Yearly

Monthly

Quarterly

Weekly

Monthly

Data Import Frequency Once Per Month

Once Per Quarter

Once Per Year

Once Per Year

Custom Forms Creation No

Landing Page Design Options Yes

Lead Tracking Tools Reporting Reports

Phone Calls

Emails

HubSpot Analytics Dashboards

Integration With Third Party Apps N/A

CRMs Other Than HubSpot

Event Management Software

Social Media Platforms Facebook

LinkedIn

YouTube

Google Plus

Twitter

Pinterest

Snapchat

Storify

Contact Manager Features Email Auto Responder

Follow Ups

Conversations

Contacts Lists Viewer

Dashboard

Form Builder

Meeting Minutes

Opportunity Tracker

Reports

Templates

Third Party Integrations None

None

None

None

Segmentation Based on Data Attribute Value

Which tier(s) apply to me depends upon where you live. If you happen to reside in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Pakistan, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Madagascar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Macedonia, Moldova, Albania, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Egypt, Egypt, Sudan, Mauritania, Niger, Chad, Mali, Guinea, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde Islands, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote D'Ivoire, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mauritanian, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambican, Swaziland, Comoros, Seychelles, Somalia, Sao Tome and Principe, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Rwanda, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Saint Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, São Tomé and Príncipe, Togo, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Timor Leste, Laos, Cambodia, Mongolia, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, North Korea, Tonga, Samoa, Wallis and Futuna, Fiji, Macao, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Turks and Caicos Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Montserrat, Dominica, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Suriname, Guyana, Bahamas, Bermuda, Barbados, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay, Venezuela, British Virgin Islands, Netherlands, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, San Marino, Vatican City State, Malta, Gibraltar, Monaco, Andorra, Slovakia, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Denmark, Cyprus, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Isle Of Man, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, UK, US, Zagreb, Oslo, Krakow, Warsaw, Bratislava, Budapest, Prague, Riga, Vilnius.

How do I know if my contact is a marketing contact HubSpot?

Before marking anyone as a marketing contact, you must first ensure that they meet all of HubSpot's eligibility criteria. These include having either opted into a newsletter or downloaded a whitepaper. You can easily identify potential marketing contacts by searching for specific keywords on your mailing lists, such as "[First Name] [Last Name]" OR "[Company Name]". When doing this, keep in mind that HubSpot automatically marks anyone coming directly from a web form, phone call, text message, or mail merge as marketing contacts. Thus, if you receive a lot of inquiries from individuals who didn't opt into anything, it's best to manually review them.

It's worth mentioning that HubSpot has a feature called Lead Scoring that allows you to assign a score to every person on your list. By default, marketing contacts receive higher scores than regular ones due to the fact that they tend to convert better. That said, individual preferences vary, so feel free to adjust this value according to your needs. To view your current scoring values, navigate to Administer > Leads > Score Cards.