A New Agency With an Inbound Agenda
Diogo Chaves was leading the Portuguese branch of Laureate International Universities when he discovered the inbound methodology and the HubSpot software.
“The results we achieved were tremendous – so impressive in fact that Laureate adopted the method globally. I realised that this was something that needed to be shared. In 2016, I co-founded Latigid, a marketing agency centred around inbound, to help other Portuguese companies to replicate our success.”
Naturally, the HubSpot software was at the top of the list when he was deciding on a marketing automation solution for his new agency. However, Diogo did his due diligence and investigated other providers, including Marketo.
“I was already 90% sure that I wanted to go with HubSpot, but that really confirmed it for me. The HubSpot software was by far the most intuitive – we wouldn’t have to worry about our customers getting bogged down by a complicated system.”
The HubSpot Partner Program was also a huge selling point for Latigid.
“We were starting from scratch, and the Partner Program offered all the coaching, support and training that we would need to hit the ground running. It would allow us to not only deepen our understanding of inbound but also grow as a new agency. We signed up in 2016, and it’s been a decision that we have never regretted.”
Surging Ahead With Help From HubSpot
The HubSpot team was crucial in helping Latigid getting up and running as an inbound agency, says Diogo.
“The guidance we received was phenomenal. First of all, they helped us set up the HubSpot growth stack, the combination of the Marketing, CRM and Sales software, for ourselves, and we turned our website into an inbound machine.”
However, the real game changer was the training that comes with the Partner Program.
“My HubSpot channel account manager showed me how to leverage the inbound methodology, drive leads down the funnel and close deals. I could see all the mistakes I had been making – on my own, it would have taken me four years to resolve them. I wouldn't be where I am today in terms of my sales process if I hadn't had that support.”
This comprehensive guidance has had an ancillary benefit. The inbound methodology is relatively unknown in the Portuguese market, and Diogo uses all of the knowledge that he has gained to convince potential clients of its value.
“I’m an inbound preacher – I want to open their eyes to how it can turn their businesses around. For example, with HubSpot Marketing’s inbuilt analytics, we can show them the impact of every marketing move we make. Once they see that we can get them ROI that they are looking for, they are willing to sign up for longer and more lucrative contracts. That means that we get predictable revenue, which is really important to us as a startup.”
The usability of the HubSpot software is also helping Latigid to make the case for inbound. The agency targets education and B2B IT businesses, and many of its clients are smaller companies that don’t want to work with software that is overly complex.
“For example, you don’t have to be tech-savvy to use the HubSpot CRM; it’s just plug and play. That’s really attractive for companies that may have never used one before.”
Building a True Partnership
Latigid is reaping the benefits of the HubSpot Partner Program, and it has already established itself as an inbound agency to be reckoned with.
“We get an average of 15 well-qualified leads each month and today, 40% of our leads come through inbound, which is impressive in a market as emergent as ours.
“We now have two clients on the HubSpot software, and revenue is growing.”
The agency has attained Silver Tier status, and 80% of its customers are on retainer contracts.
“We put that down to guidance we got from HubSpot when we were setting up – they really helped us to define and then achieve our business goals. We do still take on some project work, but we find that it usually leads to clients signing up to retainers. They want us to keep getting them those results,” explains Diogo.
Clients typically double their leads and boost their traffic by 30% within six months of coming on board with Latigid.
Diogo hopes to get eight customers on the HubSpot software within the next year and plans to continue to spread the inbound message throughout Portugal.
“In our young marketplace, you need the people who are doing inbound to do it right. We actually want more agencies to join the Partner Program, because then potential customers will be better educated and that’s good for everyone.”
In the longer term, the goal is to become a leading inbound agency in Europe.
“HubSpot is going to be key to that, from helping us drive leads to training our team.”
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