SaaS is here to stay, and SaaS companies usually rely on a subscription-based model. So it’s absolutely critical to the success of any SaaS company that it sets up a payments system that works without a hitch.
Billforward is the leading solution for companies looking to boost and streamline recurring revenue. Billforward can handle all kinds of complex software billing needs, including flat fees, event and usage-based metered billing, volume-based and tier-based discounts, promotions, affiliate programs and free trials.
HubSpot is also a leading provider, a powerful and easy-to-use CRM system that facilitates every part of the buyer journey and supports sales, marketing, and customer care teams.
By not just using these two tools together but also integrating them, you can not only reach more new customers but also onboard them seamlessly, taking payment on whatever cadence you need, updating subscriptions at a moment’s notice, and keeping customers happy throughout their journey with your product.
Keep reading to learn about the Billforward and HubSpot integration.
3 Ways to Use the Billforward Integration with HubSpot to Grow Your Subscription Business
1. Manage customer subscriptions and learn more about your audience in HubSpot
Once a prospect becomes a customer and starts using your product, you want to focus on LTV and maximise their usage — maybe even upgrading to a higher tier product.
Sometimes customers don’t follow this plan – perhaps because they have finished a one-off project or maybe because they were too optimistic about their budget for the year – and they look to cancel or pause their subscription. Billforward has tools to optimise these processes, and by integrating with Hubspot, Billforward allows experienced Customer Success and Sales teams to access them, ideally at the same time as reducing a cancellation to a pause, and a pause to a continuation, by being able to quickly access and manage a customer’s profile and implementing a flexible pricing strategy that can help businesses grow, particularly during times where budgets are changing by the month.
With the Billforward x HubSpot integration, customer-facing teams can see all the information they need about a customer’s subscription from the Billforward card inside HubSpot – when the subscription started, when it next renews, how many payments have been taken. Then, they can start, stop, pause, upgrade, or downgrade them instantly. They can also choose to go into Billforward through HubSpot and process whatever change they need to in Billforward — with the changes being reflected back into HubSpot right away.
Example: A company selling accounting software for small businesses has three tiers of their offerings: an affordable one location package, a 2-10 locations package for growing businesses, and an enterprise package. A customer on the one location tier calls the customer care line because they’ve been doing very well and plan to open a second location, so they’re ready to upgrade to the next tier. The customer care agent can quickly pull up their contact profile in HubSpot, see all their information and purchase history, and upgrade their subscription, effective right away. Their new billing date and cadence can be set as well, and the customer can be on their way.
2. Close more deals by creating customized product and pricing plans within HubSpot
Many tiered SaaS companies price their Enterprise tier on a custom basis. Enterprise companies have varied needs, and some will require certain functionalities that others won’t. In these situations, it’s up to the sales team to create the best price package they can for the customer.
Sales teams can pre-save product plans in their Billforward account, or use Billforward to put together a custom pricing plan on the go.
Enterprise sales teams speaking to potential customers on the phone can subscribe a new customer to a pre-saved product plan in Billforward, or build them a custom plan while they’re on the phone with them.
Example: A company sells an inventory platform for hotels. Their basic packages work great for boutique hotels and small groups, but when a potential customer like Marriott gets in touch and wants to use the platform in every single one of their locations, custom pricing is in order. The enterprise sales manager can set meetings with the necessary stakeholders and then figure out a custom price for them right within HubSpot using the Billforward integration.
3. Capture customers’ payment card details in HubSpot and keep it current (and secure)
By connecting Billforward and HubSpot, a customer’s payment information and history will always be accessible. Finance teams can see what subscription a customer has signed up to, what they have paid to date, if any outstanding payments are due. They can also access and download a PDF invoice for each transaction.
If a customer’s payment method has failed, the integration allows finance teams to request new card details using a secure email link directly from within HubSpot — or they can take card details over the phone.
Using HubSpot’s automation features, you can schedule reminders for customers when payments are coming due or overdue, or when you’re having promotions.
Example: A customer on a subscription plan doesn’t realize that the card they used to sign up has recently expired. Since payments will no longer be able to be processed, Billforward and HubSpot can trigger a notification to their account manager and let them easily request new card information.
Simplify Billing and Tailor Your Service to Customer Needs with HubSpot and Billforward
With a transparent billing system that works with their CRM and can handle the complex nature of tiered subscription-based offerings, companies won’t have to think twice about their billing processes. MRDZYN Studio says “Billforward has been great for my business. I [can] now extend the functionalities of PayPal and give more options for clients to pay for subscriptions.”
Author: Katherine Boyarsky
Katherine is the cofounder and CMO of CXD Studio, a creative content marketing agency. She is also a registered nurse and resides in the Boston area.