HubSpot vs Salesforce: which one is better for RevOps?

Revenue Operations (RevOps) is a rapidly growing field that focuses on aligning different departments within a company to optimize revenue growth.

Two of the most popular platforms for developing RevOps are HubSpot and Salesforce. Both platforms have their strengths and choosing one over the other will depend on many factors. However, in my personal opinion, although Salesforce is an excellent tool, HubSpot, in overall terms, is better suited by offering a comprehensive and integrated approach, greater ease of use and an ongoing focus on generating great experiences for leads and customers. This approach is very important to maintain a solid and sustainable long-term business growth strategy.

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One of HubSpot's key advantages over Salesforce is its 360° approach to each and every operational aspect of RevOps. It is an all-in-one platform, offering a huge set of tools for marketing, sales and customer service operations. It allows you to implement inclusive, collaborative and dynamic work strategies, facilitating the alignment of all operational areas of your business. 

Moreover, HubSpot offers a wide range of tech integrations with various third-party software and applications, such as e-commerce platforms, content management systems, project management tools, social media management tools, financial operations apps and many others.

By integrating HubSpot with other tools, companies can improve data management, streamline workflows, deliver a more personalized customer experience and automate tasks. Some popular HubSpot integrations include Salesforce, Shopify, WordPress, Slack, Mailchimp, Zoom, Quickbooks and many, many others. 

Salesforce, on the other hand, is a platform that allows for a high level of customization. This is a priceless advantage. However, it is also more difficult to learn, implement and use. This presents a potential problem for effectively aligning different operational processes across teams.

Ease of Use

As we've been saying, one advantage HubSpot has over Salesforce is its ease of use. It's designed to be intuitive to use, which is critical for fast and smooth adoption, allowing teams to get up and running quickly. 

In addition, HubSpot's interface is also designed to be customizable, so users can create their own views, tailored to their needs.

Salesforce, on the other hand, has a steeper learning curve and can be more difficult for teams. Its interface is usually more complex and overwhelming, with many features and options that are often difficult to understand. In addition, Salesforce's customization options can be more difficult to use, requiring specialized knowledge and experience to implement.

Customer Experience

Finally, one of HubSpot's key advantages over Salesforce is its focus on customer experience. HubSpot is designed to help companies create a great end-to-end customer experience with tools to attract, engage and delight them. It relies on the Inbound methodology, which focuses on creating valuable content that attracts customers and building quality connections with these people over time.

Salesforce, on the other hand, focuses more on sales, which can sometimes be to the detriment of the customer experience, as teams can prioritize closing deals over creating a quality connection with those individuals. 

It's true that Salesforce offers some customer experience tools, such as the Service Cloud, but they don't focus on the customer experience in a holistic way, as HubSpot does.

Pricing

HubSpot and Salesforce offer different pricing models and plans to fit various business needs and budgets.

For individuals and small teams HubSpot offers two excellent pricing options: 

• Free plan: this plan includes basic CRM features, email marketing, and a limited number of contact and storage limits.
• Starter CRM Suite: this plan starts at US$50 per month and includes additional marketing and sales features, along with increased contact and storage limits. It includes the Starter versions of all Hubs (Marketing, Sales, Customer Service, CMS and Operations), which, separately, cost between US$20 and US$25 each.

For bigger businesses and enterprises, HubSpot offers two plans:

• Professional: depending on the Hub, this plan goes from US$400 to US$890. It includes more advanced features, such as marketing automation and predictive lead scoring, along with higher contact and storage limits.
• Enterprise: depending on the Hub, this plan goes from US$1.200 to US$3.600. It includes even more advanced features, such as multi-touch revenue attribution reporting and custom event triggers.

On the other hand, Salesforce pricing is divided into four main clouds:

• Sales Cloud: this cloud includes features such as lead and opportunity management and basic reporting. Pricing goes from US$25 to US$300 per user per month.
• Service Cloud: this cloud includes features such as case management and customer support tools. Pricing goes from US$25 to US$300 per user per month.
• Marketing Cloud: this cloud includes features such as email marketing and social media management. Pricing starts at $400 per month.
• Commerce Cloud: this cloud includes features such as eCommerce tools and order management. Pricing varies depending on business size and needs.

Salesforce also offers add-ons and additional features, such as Einstein AI and custom applications, which can increase the overall cost of the platform.

HubSpot is generally considered more cost-effective than Salesforce for several reasons:

• User-friendly: HubSpot requires less training and support, saving businesses time and money.
• Lower starting price: HubSpot's pricing plans start at a lower price point than Salesforce, making it more accessible for small businesses and those on a tight budget.
• Free version: HubSpot offers a free version of its CRM, which is a great option for businesses that are just starting out or have a limited budget.

Conclusion

While both HubSpot and Salesforce are popular platforms for managing RevOps, HubSpot is better suited for this purpose because of its focus on customer experience, ease of use, and integrated approach. It's an all-in-one platform that allows teams to work together more effectively. Its easy-to-use interface makes it simple for teams to get up and running quickly and focus on their revenue-generating tasks. In addition, HubSpot's approach to generating great customer experiences enables companies to drive short- and long-term revenue growth in a sustainable way.

In terms of pricing, HubSpot is the clear winner, offering a free version of its CRM and lower upfront pricing than Salesforce. It also requires less training and support, making it easier to use for small businesses on a tight budget.