Customized technology quotes are full of administrative tasks that are both time-consuming and susceptible to mistakes—from manually building a bill of materials using complex spreadsheets, entering customer data into proposals, sending out emails to key stakeholders, and remembering to update your CRM along the way.
When we were an MSP, we struggled with balancing accuracy and quality vs time and output. The faster we tried to move the more mistakes we would inevitably make.
Even with the use of CRM and quoting software, we were finding it difficult to create a process that allowed us to increase our speed while also minimizing errors.
The integration between HubSpot and our then quoting service, Quosal, was provided by a third party.
While there are plenty of great third-party integrations out there (Zapier), this one was unreliable, rarely in real-time, and complex to set up and manage.
We spent a lot of time, effort, and money trying to make it work right, and through a complicated maze of other tools and processes, we managed to make ends meet, albeit extremely painful.
If you’re an MSP like we were, relying on a large tech stack for your business operations, then you know the pain, and we’re happy to say we’ve built a solution.
We're thrilled to announce the integration between Central Office and HubSpot, a leading CRM platform that provides businesses with a suite of tools that eliminates data silos and streamlines administrative tasks so you can move away from spreadsheets and automate your sales processes.
With this native integration, we can decrease the time it takes to generate a quote while also lowering your chances of making a mistake by syncing critical data in real time between the two platforms.
How the Integration Works
While the HubSpot CRM will remain the source of truth for managing your customer relationships and the progress of your deals, Central Office will provide a path to speed up the quoting process and reduce errors in some pretty cool ways. Here's how:
Easy to setup and make changes
Given our prior experience with integrations, we made sure the setup process would be easy and seamless.
A lot of the setup is typically handled during our onboarding process where our team will help walk you through the data mapping process. However, it was designed to be very intuitive and simple to master—especially if you’ve worked with CRMs before.
We've created data mapping for several different categories including:
- Company
- Contact
- Deal
- Deal stage pipelines
- Tickets
Once your CRM properties have been mapped, making any changes is also simple to do. Make sure your new properties are available in HubSpot, then move over to Central Office to adjust your mappings—it only takes a few clicks.
Real-time data sync
If the data moving between your CRM and quoting service is too slow, it kind of defeats the purpose of having the integration in the first place. Our integration has been approved by HubSpot using their developer tools.
Both systems can send and receive the exact data needed in a secure manner, keeping API requests and data transfers to a minimum. What this really boils down to is that you get near real-time data synchronization, meaning you can move as fast as you need to.
Get the most out of this Integration
It's essential to ensure that all your data is accurate and up-to-date. This means checking to make sure your customer contact information, quotes, and deals in HubSpot is updated. This will help you avoid any errors or discrepancies when generating quotes.
Following healthy data best practices is essential when integrating your tech stack. This helps ensure data quality, accuracy, and security and minimizes the risk of errors and data breaches.
With healthy data practices in place, you can be confident that your systems are working as intended, and that your team has the insights they need to make informed decisions.
Train your team
It's also crucial that everyone on your team understands how the integration works. Make sure everyone knows which data is synced and how to create quotes in Central Office.
By investing time in educating your team, you can maximize the benefits of this integration and make your sales process more efficient and effective. We are confident that this integration with HubSpot will provide a seamless and uninterrupted experience for your team by streamlining the quoting process, eliminating data silos, and giving everyone involved a better view of the customer journey.
Final Thoughts
This integration between HubSpot and Central Office offers a solution for MSPs who struggle with balancing accuracy and quality vs time and output in the quoting process. The integration streamlines administrative tasks and decreases the time it takes to generate a quote while minimizing errors by syncing critical data in real time between the two platforms.
The setup process is easy, and the integration is customizable, allowing you to tailor automation processes to match your unique sales cycle and customer journey. By automating the process and ensuring that data is always up-to-date, sales teams can focus on what they do best – closing deals and driving growth.
Healthy data practices and training your team are crucial to ensuring a seamless and uninterrupted experience. This can help you move away from spreadsheets and automate your sales processes, ultimately leading to more successful deals and a more optimized revenue strategy.
