Sandler Training UK HubSpot Sales Hub Onboarding and Implementation Case Study

Sandler Training UK HubSpot Sales Implementation Case Study

About Sandler UK:

Sandler is a sales training company with over 50 years of experience, founded with the vision to revolutionize the sales profession. With main branches in the UK, Canada, and the US and locations around the world, Sandler reaches companies and salespeople around the globe.

Sandler was created with this question in mind: If professionals such as doctors and lawyers receive years of training to gain skills and knowledge, why are salespeople (the main revenue drivers in a company) expected to achieve success after receiving only a week of training or less? Sandler seeks to close this training gap in sales by providing proven knowledge and tools to close deals and take companies to the next level.

Project:

The UK branch of Sandler is based on independently operated franchises. This environment supports the inclusion of ambitious trainers by supporting their entrepreneurial spirit and allowing them to adjust training sessions to their teaching style. That said, this configuration made it difficult to maintain one standardized sales process, since each franchise modified the process for their use, with some using individual HubSpot portals, and others using different methods to keep track of their sales process. 

The goal of the project was to unify these diverse sales processes into one HubSpot portal with an easy-to-use Sales Process while maintaining the independence of each franchise.

Whitehat & Digifianz Collaboration:

This successful project resulted from the tight collaboration between Digifianz and Whitehat SEO. Our teams brought complementary strengths to bring Sandler's vision to life within HubSpot. Digifianz leveraged its expertise in sales process design, refining Sandler's established methodology to function seamlessly within HubSpot Sales Hub. Meanwhile, Whitehat SEO played a lead role in the technical implementation, bringing a high level of HubSpot expertise, CRM skills and knowledge of the UK market.

Sandler's CMO, Jeremy Thomson, appreciated the transformative nature of this partnership:

“The way that you have [your sales process] in your mind is not the way it necessarily should work in the system — it’s a great exercise to find out what you could do differently [to] help your business”

Whitehat SEO, founded in 2011, is an inbound marketing agency with deep experience based in West London. Their team has provided essential insights about the UK market, aiding in crafting custom strategies to maximize success. Together, Digifianz and Whitehat delivered a powerful Sales Hub Enterprise implementation tailored to the unique needs of Sandler UK.

Main Challenges

Sandler UK's franchise structure offered both a challenge and an opportunity for this HubSpot implementation. The core challenge lay in creating a streamlined, standardized sales process that still honoured the individual needs and operational styles of each franchise. Whitehat's technical expertise was key in addressing these aspects:

• Flexible System: The implementation needed to empower franchises to easily manage their informational meeting schedules, ensuring a smooth customer experience regardless of the franchise a prospect engaged with.

• User-Friendly Design: We prioritized an intuitive design, making the HubSpot interface easy for franchisees to manage their sales pipelines, regardless of their technological proficiency.

• Scalability: The design had to accommodate the addition of future franchises or adjustments to existing locations. Our team focused on creating a solution that would facilitate a smooth onboarding process for future Sandler UK expansions.

Challenge: Maintaining Franchise Boundaries

One crucial aspect of this implementation was preventing potential clients from switching between franchises mid-process. This presented several interconnected challenges:

• Lead Assignment: We needed a system to reliably assign contacts to their initial franchise contact, protecting franchise relationships and ensuring accurate reporting. We built-in automation of custom HubSpot properties to manage this.

• Resource Separation: Materials and communications at each stage of the process needed clear association with the correct franchise to maintain consistency.

• Customer-Centric Experience: Despite these internal requirements, we wanted to maintain Sandler's commitment to a user-friendly experience. Clear informational meeting registration systems and personalized communication (set up as automated workflows by the implementation team) played a big role in this.

Result

The Sales Hub implementation was praised by the central Sandler UK team and individual franchisees for its ease of use, streamlined processes, and improved reporting capabilities.

Outcome: Increased Efficiency and Focus

The Sales Hub implementation yielded impressive results for Sandler UK:

• Franchise Success: Franchisees now spend less time navigating their pipeline and more time nurturing client relationships. With greater organization thanks to HubSpot's platform (and likely Whitehat's tailored setup), their efforts yield stronger results.

• Enhanced Oversight: The central Sandler UK team benefits from increased visibility and streamlined reporting across franchises. This data-driven approach (boosted by our data management expertise) empowers the leadership team with real-time network insights.

These outcomes echo Jeremy Thomson's observations:

“[We can see that representatives] have gone through the entire process that has been built for them, [and] they have been able to focus on selling and training...The big difference is that we now have results as a network … we have data that we never had before.”

• User Adoption: The focus on an intuitive end-user experience resulted in a highly successful adoption rate of over 90%— proof that the solution truly aids franchises without complicating daily operations. Usability prioritization played a significant role in this achievement.

Take a look at the full story with our interview with Jeremy:

How We Did It: Process Redesign and Technical Expertise

Sales Process Mapping & Implementation Process

Our collaborative process was designed to transform Sandler UK's existing sales methodology into an optimized HubSpot setup. Here's how we approached it:

1. Process Analysis: We partnered with Sandler to deeply understand their current sales approach. This in-depth review, paired with HubSpot knowledge allowed us to pinpoint pain points and areas ripe for streamlining.

1. Customized Design: With Sandler's needs as our blueprint, we designed a comprehensive sales process tailored to HubSpot's tools. This included defining pipeline stages, setting goals, crafting automation, creating custom properties, and establishing a lead status system— all carefully mapped for a streamlined experience.

1. Team Collaboration: Throughout, we maintained close communication with Sandler's executive team, incorporating their feedback and addressing questions at every step. This ensured ongoing alignment.

1. Technical Implementation: We translated the approved process design into a functional HubSpot configuration. This encompassed:
   • Sales pipeline setup
   • User and team permissions
   • Custom properties
   • Franchise-specific forms
   • Internal workflows for efficient contract assignment
   • Client communication automations

Focus on Flexibility: A priority was building a modular sales system that could accommodate franchise needs while ensuring standardization. This allows for future scaling and reflects the unique structure of Sandler UK.

Modularity: Franchise Freedom Within a Unified System

A key requirement of the implementation was empowering each franchise while maintaining overall process consistency. We achieved this through a carefully designed modular approach:

• Flexible Registration: During the initial contact stage, franchises retain control over:
  • Registration forms designed to meet their specific needs
  • Individual meeting dates and times
  • Unique meeting links

This customized entry point grants franchises independence in how they initiate contact, seamlessly integrated into the broader sales process.

• Standardized Pipeline: Beyond this entry stage, the system unifies. Our team's HubSpot expertise was key in this, ensuring that contacts flow into a centralized pipeline with standardized stages and reporting. Franchises still have access to customizable elements— such as personalized communication for their respective clients—to nurture leads within this consistent framework.

Unification and Separation: Maintaining Boundaries for Streamlined Operation

A core challenge lies in balancing a unified sales process with the need for franchise autonomy. Here's how we achieved it:

• Intelligent Workflows: Designing complex workflows to ensure contacts and deals remained tightly connected with their respective franchises. This intricate configuration prevented crossover and minimized manual adjustments.

• Data Integrity: Custom form fields were essential for automatically assigning the correct franchise location to each contact. This data became the backbone for accurate lead distribution and personalized confirmation emails—enhancing both internal tracking and the client experience.

• Strategic Balance: This carefully managed system empowers Sandler UK with a powerful standardized process. This enables them to collect centralized network data for strategic insights, all while allowing each franchise to operate with independence, protecting relationships and sales potential.

Guidance and Continuity: Empowering Success Across Franchises

Recognizing that team members had varying HubSpot proficiency, we prioritized comprehensive training solutions. A focus on long-term sustainability likely involved close collaboration between Sandler and our team:

• Skill Development: Two tailored training sessions covered essential HubSpot tools:
  • HubSpot Marketing Hub Training provided a well-rounded platform overview with a focus on marketing functions.
  • HubSpot Sales Team Training empowered users with pipeline-driven skills, tailored to Sandler's newly implemented sales process.

• Anytime Learning: Recording these sessions created an internal knowledge base for Sandler. This valuable resource ensures that new team members, across existing and future franchises, can onboard seamlessly.

• Maintaining Agility: Key central team leaders received specialized training to manage franchise changes within HubSpot. In addition, we created detailed tutorials and a comprehensive guide to provide step-by-step support for the system's ongoing administration.

These resources underscore the project's emphasis on standardization and user-friendliness, empowering Sandler's continued success with the platform.

Conclusion: A Transformative Sales Experience

The Sandler Sales Hub implementation delivered success on multiple levels. The process reimagined Sandler UK's sales operations, leading to greater efficiency and a streamlined experience for both teams and prospects. This close collaboration showcases the potential of tailored HubSpot solutions and leaves us eager to support Sandler UK's continued growth in the future.

If you seek similar results for your own HubSpot implementations, our collaborative team brings deep knowledge and commitment to deliver transformative results. Let's discuss how we can elevate your sales approach through the power of HubSpot!