Is Your HubSpot Setup Helping or Hurting? The Hidden Costs of Getting It Wrong
Hiring a HubSpot Agency? Read This First to Avoid Costly Mistakes
Thinking About Hiring a HubSpot Agency? Read This First.
You know HubSpot has the potential to transform your business, but something’s holding you back. Maybe you’ve looked at agencies, seen the price tags, and thought, Is this really worth it? Or perhaps you’ve heard stories of companies pouring money into HubSpot setups, only to use a fraction of its capabilities.
Before you take the plunge, let’s talk about why many businesses hesitate—and why those concerns make perfect sense.
As two seasoned HubSpot consultants, we’ve seen businesses caught between wanting expert help and fearing agency bloat. The good news? You don’t need a big agency to get big results.
Let’s break down the five biggest concerns and show you a smarter, leaner way to get HubSpot working for you.
1. HubSpot Agencies Overcomplicate Things—Will You Ever See ROI?
What Businesses Fear:
HubSpot is supposed to make things easier, but it can feel like stepping into a labyrinth. Instead of a streamlined tool, businesses often find themselves buried under layers of automation, complex workflows, and dashboards they don’t understand. What was supposed to bring clarity now brings confusion, frustration, and wasted hours spent trying to figure out basic functions.
Leaders who championed HubSpot now feel trapped—they pushed for innovation, only to face resistance from their teams. The fear of looking incompetent or admitting the tool isn’t working creeps in. Employees quietly revert to their old systems, and the investment starts to look like an expensive mistake. HubSpot itself reports that 42% of businesses struggle with CRM adoption due to platform complexity (HubSpot).
A Better Way:
HubSpot should work for you, not the other way around. We start with the essentials, ensuring your team actually uses them, and then layer on complexity only when necessary.
2. Hidden Costs: Why HubSpot Agencies Drain Your Budget Fast
What Businesses Fear:
HubSpot agencies love to promise the earth, the moon, and the stars—until the invoices start rolling in. The setup fee is just the beginning. Monthly retainers creep up, "optimisation" services add unexpected costs, and before you know it, you’re locked into an expensive cycle where you’re bleeding cash and seeing little return.
That fear is valid. Many businesses go all-in on HubSpot, only to realize they’re paying for a Ferrari but only driving it to the corner shop. A study by Martech Today found that 68% of SMBs cite budget constraints as their biggest barrier to CRM adoption (Martech Today).
The worst part? Decision-makers who pushed for HubSpot adoption now feel the guilt of wasted budget. The CFO is scrutinizing numbers, the marketing team is grumbling about inefficiencies, and leadership feels like they’ve been duped by yet another overhyped software solution. The pressure is immense—no one wants to admit they made a bad call, especially when thousands have been sunk into it.
A Better Way:
We keep costs lean—no bloated retainers, no upsells. Just targeted, meaningful support that ensures HubSpot actually pays for itself through efficiency and results.
3. Integrating HubSpot? The Nightmare of Broken Systems & Lost Data
What Businesses Fear:
A CRM switch sounds exciting in theory, but in reality? It’s an operational minefield. Data migration is risky. Sales pipelines can break. Custom integrations can go haywire. The fear of losing critical data or disrupting workflows keeps many businesses stuck in limbo, knowing they need to modernise but dreading the fallout of doing it wrong.
The worst-case scenario? You invest in HubSpot, start migrating, and suddenly your systems don’t talk to each other. Customer records are missing. Reporting doesn’t line up. Employees are in full-blown panic mode, and leadership is asking, Why did we ever do this? A report by CIO Magazine found that 56% of digital transformation projects fail due to integration issues (CIO Magazine).
A Better Way:
We take a phased approach, integrating HubSpot gradually to avoid system conflicts and operational chaos. Your existing workflows stay intact while we ensure smooth transitions—no sudden disruptions, no lost data, no regrets.
4. What Happens When Your HubSpot Agency Disappears Post-Launch?
What Businesses Fear:
Too many agencies treat HubSpot implementation like a one-and-done job. They set everything up, send over a few training materials, and disappear—leaving businesses scrambling when real-world problems arise.
Employees struggle, leadership grows frustrated, and adoption craters. What started as a promising investment turns into an expensive, underutilised tool. Internal teams blame the decision-makers, who in turn feel the crushing weight of accountability. Nobody wants to be the person who championed a failed system. A survey by SmartBug Media found that 54% of businesses feel undertrained after HubSpot implementation (SmartBug Media).
A Better Way:
We don’t disappear after implementation. We provide ongoing, hands-on support so your team doesn’t just have HubSpot—they master it.
5. Why One-Size-Fits-All HubSpot Setups Leave Businesses Stuck
What Businesses Fear:
Many agencies rely on cookie-cutter solutions to maximize their efficiency—not yours. They roll out the same automations, dashboards, and workflows for every client, whether it makes sense or not. Your business ends up trapped in a rigid system that doesn’t actually reflect how you operate.
This results in frustration at every level. Sales teams struggle to work with clunky automations. Marketing teams find themselves limited by prebuilt workflows that don’t align with their goals. And leadership? They look at the money spent and wonder why they didn’t just stick with their old system. HubSpot itself found that businesses using customised CRM workflows see 27% higher efficiency than those using standard setups (HubSpot).
A Better Way:
We reject cookie-cutter. We tailor your HubSpot setup to your unique processes, team dynamics, and long-term goals.
The Smarter Alternative: A Lean, Expert-Driven Approach
If you’ve been hesitant about hiring a HubSpot agency, you’re not alone. The concerns are real. But that doesn’t mean you have to figure out HubSpot alone.
We offer a different way—a lean, flexible, expert-driven approach that gives you what you need, when you need it, without the bloat, complexity, or unnecessary cost. No long-term retainers. No junior account managers. Just two experienced consultants helping businesses get HubSpot working properly.
Thinking About HubSpot Help? Let’s Chat.
If you’re considering a HubSpot partner and want to avoid the common pitfalls, let’s have a quick, no-pressure chat. We’ll help you figure out your next best steps—even if that doesn’t involve us.
