I’ve been thinking through the reasons to recommend upgrading from HubSpot Pro to Enterprise (when chatting with clients) and the broader implications of HubSpot’s pricing strategy.
It’s such a complex area – I’d love to be a fly on the wall when the HubSpot product teams decide which features belong in Pro versus Enterprise and how they adjust these over time.
Feature Allocation
Worth noting that some features initially exclusive to Enterprise are sometimes made available in Pro. For example, Playbooks was once an Enterprise-only feature.
Attribution: Stronger attribution features tend to be in the Enterprise tier.
Upgrade Incentives: Certain features seem designed to encourage upgrades. For instance, making sequences available from workflows is an Enterprise feature, which many Sales Pro users would love – and are tempted by (to avoid the manual workarounds they currently use).
Contradictions
Single Sign-On (SSO): It’s frustrating that SSO is an Enterprise feature across many tools (not just HubSpot). I believe SSO should be a security feature available to all users, even those on free plans.
I’d love to see HubSpot lead the way by making SSO free – but I doubt it will ever happen since SSO drives a fair chunk of Enterprise sales.
(Aside: this is something I’ve been saying for years)
Pricing Considerations
Value at Lower Tiers: The free and starter levels offer significant value at a low price point, which is commendable.
Pro Tier: While some find the Pro pricing steep, it provides substantial functionality and can save time and effort compared to integrating multiple platforms (the amount of time I see companies burning through trying to connect a bunch of different platforms is staggering…).
Enterprise Tier: The jump to Enterprise is significant, especially in marketing, often justified by enhanced attribution and reporting features. The pricing also reflects market competition, as higher pricing can sometimes lend credibility to the product.
Market Perception
Pricing Strategy: Pricing is a delicate, complex balance. It must keep customers happy while ensuring company growth. Interestingly, some companies dismiss HubSpot due to its lower price, assuming it’s less capable than competitors. Thus, pricing must also position the product as a serious contender in the enterprise market.
Overall, it’s a fascinating area. I’m not being critical – except for the SSO issue – I’m curious about how these decisions are made. Balancing customer satisfaction with business growth is no easy task.
