HubSpot Training Session — 2026-04-05

Overview

Training session with the BluePoint ATM team covering HubSpot integrations, contact record customization, workflow automation concepts, competitor tracking strategy, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator setup. Wade and Mike came prepared with a prioritized question list developed during a prior CRM working session.

Attendees:
- Wade Zirkle — BluePoint ATM (wade@bluepointatm.com)
- Mike Stebbins — BluePoint ATM (mike@bluepointatm.com)
- Mark Hope — Asymmetric (mark.hope@asymmetric.pro)
- Melissa Cusumano — Asymmetric (melissa.cusumano@asymmetric.pro)

Key Decisions

• CallRail recommended over HubSpot native calling for phone tracking and recording. CallRail's dynamic number insertion, attribution tracking, AI call categorization, and HubSpot integration make it the preferred solution for BluePoint's inbound/outbound call needs. Cost: ~$100/month for multiple numbers and full feature set.
• Fathom integration is already connected to HubSpot. The current sync is manual (one-click "Sync to CRM" from within a Fathom recording), which is acceptable for now. Mike needs to enable the Fathom sync on his own account.
• LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced Plus required for the HubSpot CRM integration. BluePoint currently has Advanced; upgrade cost is approximately $1,600/seat/year — similar to current spend. Decision deferred; noted for follow-up.
• Competitor tracking to be built inside HubSpot using company records for venues/locations, with custom fields for account status (our account / competitor's account / uncontested / not viable) and a competitor name dropdown. Google Alerts recommended as the feed mechanism.
• HubSpot as single source of truth — explicit goal established. All competitive intel, call notes, and activity should live in HubSpot rather than scattered across Google Drive or other tools.
• Advanced workflow automation deferred to a dedicated future session. Wade and Mike will draft their desired automation logic first (drip sequences, lifecycle stage triggers, etc.) before building.

Action Items

Topics Covered

Fathom Integration

Fathom was already connected to HubSpot (Wade had set it up previously). The integration supports syncing AI summaries, transcripts, and deal properties to HubSpot contacts, companies, and deals. Current sync is manual — from within a Fathom recording, click "Sync to CRM" and select the HubSpot icon. Mark noted that copying full transcripts into a shared Google Doc and querying them via ChatGPT is a useful pattern for searching across historical calls.

HubSpot also has a built-in AI assistant (top navigation bar) that can search across HubSpot data, including synced call records.

CallRail for Phone Call Tracking

CallRail was recommended as the primary solution for recording and attributing inbound/outbound calls. Key capabilities discussed:

• Dynamic number insertion — replaces the phone number shown on a webpage based on the visitor's traffic source, enabling keyword- and campaign-level attribution for phone calls
• Attribution tracking — connects a call back to the ad click and search keyword that drove it
• AI call categorization — automatically classifies calls (complaints, sales inquiries, service calls, etc.)
• HubSpot integration — calls and recordings sync directly into contact activity records
• Call routing — can route calls by type (complaint → one number, lead → another)
• Number flexibility — toll-free, local area codes, dynamic insertion numbers, all managed in one panel

BluePoint had previously discussed CallRail in the context of state landing pages with unique area codes. This session confirmed it also solves their need for call recording and note-taking during mobile/driving scenarios.

HubSpot Contact Record Customization

Demonstrated how to customize the contact record layout and the fields displayed in list views:

• Gear icon on a contact record → add/remove property cards, reorder sections
• Pencil icon on "About this contact" card → drag-and-drop field reordering, add properties
• Actions → View All Properties → Manage Properties → edit dropdown options for custom fields (e.g., the "Vertical" field). Note: changing a dropdown value affects all records already using that value.
• Edit Columns in list view → add/remove columns visible in the contacts table
• Layouts are per-user by default; a global layout can be enforced if needed (relevant if team scales)
• Mike's permissions were upgraded to Super Admin during the session to resolve an access issue with "Manage Properties"

Pro tip shared: Right-click contacts in list view → "Open in new tab" to avoid losing your place in the list when reviewing individual records.

Marketing vs. Non-Marketing Contacts

HubSpot distinguishes between marketing contacts (count against subscription limit, required for HTML marketing emails) and non-marketing contacts (can receive transactional/informational emails only, with formatting restrictions). The "Marketing Contact Status" field controls this. BluePoint should flag contacts they intend to email with marketing content.

Segments and Email Sending

Demonstrated creating and using contact segments for targeted email sends:

• Create email → select segment as recipient list → HubSpot shows recipient count minus opted-out contacts
• Segments can be created on the fly during the email send flow
• One-time batch sends (e.g., "everyone who attended this show") vs. automated workflow-triggered sends are distinct paths

Workflow Automation (Overview)

Introduced the concept of HubSpot workflows — automated sequences triggered by contact behavior or data changes:

• Trigger examples: form submission, lifecycle stage change, field value update, website visit
• Actions: send email, add to list, update a property, create a task, branch on conditions
• Branching logic: workflows can split based on whether a contact opened an email, clicked a link, has a certain field value, etc.
• Showed an existing entertainment vertical drip workflow: Email 1 → wait 7 days → delay to Tuesday/Friday → Email 2 → wait 7 days → Email 3, etc.
• Workflow health dashboard shows enrollment counts, errors, and opt-out rates

Agreed approach: Wade and Mike will define their desired automation logic (nurture sequences, re-engagement drips, lifecycle stage transitions) and share with Asymmetric. Chris will build the workflows. A dedicated automation training session will follow.

Competitor Tracking Strategy

Wade raised the need to track which venues/locations are served by competitors (BluePoint has ~4 major competitors). Proposed solution:

1. Create company records in HubSpot for venues and locations (stadiums, casinos, entertainment venues, etc.)
2. Add a custom field: Account Status (dropdown: Our Account / Competitor's Account / Uncontested / Not Viable)
3. Add a conditional custom field: Competitor Name (dropdown of the ~4 known competitors) — visible when Account Status = Competitor's Account
4. Use Google Alerts for each competitor to surface news; paste relevant items into the company record notes
5. Create a Competitors segment/view to filter and analyze by competitor

This approach makes HubSpot the single source of truth for competitive intelligence and eliminates the need to cross-reference Google Drive or other tools.

Example use case: If BluePoint learns a competitor has the Milwaukee Brewers stadium, they create/update that venue's company record, set Account Status = "Competitor's Account," select the competitor name, and note the source. They can then pull a view of all locations owned by that competitor.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator Integration

Walked through connecting LinkedIn Sales Navigator to HubSpot. The integration surfaces a Sales Navigator card on contact records showing LinkedIn profile data and a direct link to the contact's LinkedIn page.

Blocker identified: The HubSpot CRM integration requires LinkedIn Sales Navigator Advanced Plus. BluePoint currently has Advanced. Upgrade cost is ~$1,600/seat/year (similar to current spend). No free trial available for Advanced Plus. Decision deferred.

HubSpot UI: Company Name Not Displaying in Contact List

Mike flagged that many contacts show a company logo (indicating an associated company object) but no company name text in the contact list view.

Root cause: The "Company Name" column in the contact list view pulls from a contact-level property field, not from the name of the associated company object. These are two different things in HubSpot's data model.

Mark committed to investigating a solution — likely involves adding an associated company property column or using a workflow to sync the associated company name into a contact property field. Resolution pending.

Dashboards and Reporting (Brief Overview)

Three ways to monitor data in HubSpot:
1. Views — filterable, column-configurable lists (contacts, deals, companies); Mark's preferred daily working mode
2. Reports — pre-built and custom; found under Reporting → Reports (deals created, average deal size, activity by rep, etc.)
3. Dashboards — collections of report widgets; out-of-box options include Sales Manager Dashboard (closed deals, pipeline, leaderboard) and Sales Dashboard (call/meeting totals by rep)

Mark's recommendation: describe the report you want and Asymmetric will build it — DIY report building is time-consuming and often frustrating.

Related

• ^[1]
• ^[2]
• ^[3]
• ^[4]
• ^[5]
• ^[6]
• ^[7]