How can I automate a referral tracking system in HubSpot?

Step 1: Create a Custom Property for Referrals

• Navigate to the "Contacts" section in HubSpot.
• Click on "Actions" and select "Edit properties."
• Click on "Create property."
• Name the property something like "Referral Source" or "Referred By" and save.

Step 2: Set Up Referral Forms

• Navigate to the "Marketing" tab, then "Lead Capture," and finally "Forms."
• Either create a new form or edit an existing one.
• Add the custom property "Referral Source" to your form.
• Ensure you prompt the lead to mention who referred them.

Step 3: Automate Email Notifications

• Navigate to "Automation" then "Workflows."
• Click "Create workflow."
• Name your workflow something relevant like "Referral Notification."
• Set the enrollment trigger to be when the "Referral Source" property is not empty.
• Add an action to send a notification email to the appropriate team members with the lead details and the referral source.

Step 4: Create a Referral Dashboard

• Navigate to "Reports" then "Dashboards."
• Create a new dashboard and name it "Referral Tracking."
• Add custom reports that show data related to the "Referral Source" property. This might include the number of referrals in a given month, most common referrers, etc.

Step 5: Offer Incentives

• Consider creating automated emails to thank those who refer new leads. This could also include discount codes, special offers, or other incentives for their next purchase.
• To automate this, set up a workflow that triggers when the "Referral Source" is a known contact. This workflow should then send out the thank-you email with the incentive.

Step 6: Analyze and Optimize

• Regularly check your "Referral Tracking" dashboard to understand the effectiveness of your referral program.
• Look for trends, such as certain customers who refer more often than others, or specific incentives that seem particularly effective.
• Adjust your referral program as necessary based on the data.

Step 7: Keep Referral Data Updated

• Make it a practice to regularly clean and update the "Referral Source" property.
• Train your sales or customer service team to ask new customers about referrals and manually update the property if a referral is mentioned later in the sales process.

Step 8: Integration with Other Tools (if needed)

• If you're using other referral tracking tools or platforms, consider integrating them with HubSpot via APIs or available integrations.
• Regularly check that data flows smoothly between systems to avoid missing or misattributed referrals.

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