The Right Choice: Business Units vs. Separate Portals in HubSpot

Introduction

Managing multiple brands can be a complex endeavor, and choosing the right tools to streamline this process is crucial. HubSpot offers two main approaches to tackle this challenge: Business Units and separate portals. Each method has its unique advantages and limitations, making it essential to understand when to use one over the other. This blog post delves into the specifics of both options, helping you make an informed decision to optimize cost, time, and complexity in your brand management efforts.

Business Units

What They Are

Business Units in HubSpot are an add-on feature for the Marketing Hub Enterprise that allows you to manage multiple brands within a single portal. This functionality is particularly beneficial for organizations operating multiple brands under one parent company. With Business Units, you can share marketing assets, CRM data, and other resources while maintaining distinct brand identities. This integrated approach facilitates a unified management system that enhances efficiency and cohesiveness across different brands.

What They Are Not (Limitations)

Despite their benefits, Business Units have certain limitations. Firstly, they do not support data hosting in different global regions, which can be a significant drawback for international companies needing to comply with various data sovereignty laws. Additionally, Business Units are not suitable for independently owned companies or franchises that require complete operational separation due to legal or operational reasons. The shared underlying database in Business Units can pose challenges for businesses needing stringent data privacy and separation, as it may not meet the legal requirements for completely separate data management. Furthermore, Business Units are not designed to manage entirely disjointed businesses within a single HubSpot portal, limiting their scope of application.

Use Cases

Business Units are ideal for a parent company managing several sub-brands. They are particularly useful when the same marketing team and assets are utilized across different brands, as they streamline resource sharing and coordination. This approach is also effective when there are cross-sell or upsell opportunities across brands, enabling more targeted and efficient marketing strategies. Additionally, Business Units are suitable for brands that have overlapping prospects and customers, allowing for a more cohesive customer relationship management system.

Best Practices

To maximize the benefits of Business Units, it is essential to follow best practices. Segmentation is key; segmenting audiences and campaigns by brand ensures that marketing efforts are targeted and effective. Organized asset management is another critical practice, utilizing partitioning features to keep assets like CRM records, reports, and marketing tools organized by brand. Setting up distinct permissions and roles for teams working on different brands helps avoid confusion and maintain brand integrity. Lastly, customizing brand kits, including logos and colors, ensures that each brand’s unique identity is maintained within the shared system.

Keeping Separate Portals

Pros

Choosing to keep separate portals for each brand offers several advantages. This approach allows for hosting brand-specific content and managing multiple domains independently, providing more flexibility and control over each brand’s digital presence. It is also suitable for managing a high volume of brands, particularly when more than ten business units are involved. Separate portals are ideal for independently owned brands or franchises, as they ensure complete operational and data separation. Additionally, separate portals are necessary when there are legal limitations on sharing data across brands, ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations.

Cons

However, maintaining separate portals comes with its own set of challenges. Sharing CRM data across brands is not straightforward and often requires a data warehousing tool, adding to the complexity and cost. Comparing marketing performance across brands can also be challenging due to the lack of integrated data and analytics. Furthermore, managing marketing assets can become difficult if the same marketers work across different brands, leading to potential inefficiencies and duplication of efforts.

Use Cases

Separate portals are ideal for businesses with completely independent brands that do not share resources or CRM data. They are necessary for businesses that need to keep operations legally and operationally separate, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements. Additionally, separate portals are beneficial when HubSpot billing and financial management need to be kept separate for each brand, providing clear and distinct financial oversight.

Conclusion

Choosing between HubSpot Business Units and separate portals depends on your specific needs and operational structure. Business Units are beneficial for managing multiple brands under a single parent company with shared resources and marketing teams, offering efficiency and streamlined management. In contrast, separate portals are better suited for independently owned brands or those requiring strict data separation due to legal or operational reasons. Understanding these distinctions will help you optimize your brand management strategy and maximize your HubSpot investment. By carefully considering your organization’s needs and the advantages and limitations of each approach, you can make an informed decision that supports your business goals.