HubSpot Custom Properties for Data Segmentation

HubSpot custom properties let you organize customer data in ways standard fields can't. They enable businesses to create tailored fields for specific needs, improving data segmentation and personalization. This leads to more targeted marketing, better sales efficiency, and enhanced customer service. Here's what you need to know:

• Custom Properties: User-defined fields for tracking unique data points like product preferences, customer tiers, or communication channels.
• Why Segmentation Matters: Personalized campaigns can increase revenue by up to 760% and boost email open rates by 14.31%.
• How Custom Properties Help: They allow detailed segmentation based on industry, behavior, or lifecycle stage, integrating seamlessly with HubSpot's tools.
• Best Practices: Plan properties carefully, use clear naming, and align them with business goals. Regular audits keep data clean and usable.
• Real-World Applications: Examples include geographic campaigns, lifecycle tracking, and engagement scoring.

Custom properties make HubSpot a powerful tool for tailored marketing and sales strategies. Start small by identifying gaps in your current data collection and focusing on fields that directly support your goals.

Learning HubSpot | Understanding & Creating Custom CRM Properties

Planning and Designing Custom Properties

Creating custom properties that truly work for your business requires thoughtful planning before diving into HubSpot's property creation tool. Skipping this step often leads to duplicate fields and incomplete data, which can make segmentation a nightmare. The goal? Every custom property should align with your business needs and be easy for your team to use consistently.

Aligning Custom Properties with Business Goals

To make the most of segmentation, start by connecting your custom properties to your business objectives. Map out your customer journey to figure out what data you need to make better decisions. For example, if your focus is boosting conversion rates for enterprise clients, you might need properties like "Company Size", "Budget Range", or "Decision Timeline" to better organize and target prospects.

Work backward from the segments you want to create to determine the data points required. For instance, if you’re segmenting by product interest, using a dropdown property can help avoid messy, inconsistent data entries.

Take a close look at your existing data. Dive into analytics and customer insights to uncover gaps in your current setup. Check what your sales team asks during qualification, what marketing campaigns are performing best, and the common support issues flagged by customer service. These insights will guide you toward properties that actually deliver value, rather than just collecting data for the sake of it.

Also, think beyond just lead generation. Properties that help qualify leads can also support retention strategies. For example, an "Industry Sector" property could help marketing send tailored content to prospects while also enabling customer success teams to compare client performance within the same sector.

Best Practices for Property Design

Clarity is key. Use straightforward names like "Preferred Contact Method" instead of confusing abbreviations like "PrefContMeth." Avoid internal jargon or shorthand that might confuse new team members or anyone outside your immediate department.

Adopt a consistent naming structure across your organization. Many companies use prefixes to organize properties by department, such as "Sales_Lead_Source" or "Marketing_Campaign_Type." This approach keeps things organized, making it easier to find properties and reducing the risk of duplicate fields.

Stick to standardized field types to keep your data clean. Dropdown menus are a great choice, as they prevent variations like "New York", "NY", and "new york" from cluttering your data. For US-based teams, ensure date fields follow the MM/DD/YYYY format and currency fields display in US dollars (e.g., $1,234.56).

Set up validation rules to maintain data quality. Only mark fields as required if they’re absolutely essential. Too many required fields can frustrate your team, leading to incomplete entries or workarounds that undermine the process.

Document each property’s purpose and guidelines directly in HubSpot. This helps team members understand when and how to use each property, reducing inconsistencies that could disrupt segmentation.

Once your properties are well-designed, the next step is ensuring smooth collaboration across teams.

Working Across Teams for Effective Design

Collaboration across departments is crucial because each team interacts with different kinds of customer data. Sales might need lead qualification properties, marketing might focus on campaign tracking, and customer service might prioritize support categorization.

Start with a collaborative workshop where representatives from sales, marketing, and customer service discuss their specific data needs. Ask each team to share what information they currently track outside of HubSpot and what additional data would make their work more effective. These discussions often reveal overlapping needs that can be streamlined with shared properties.

Once the properties are defined, implement clear processes and training to ensure everyone uses them consistently. As one OT:OT client shared:

"OT:OT has been transformative for our organization. Their clear, streamlined approach helped us focus on what we do best - without getting lost in the data".

This quote underscores the importance of structured processes that make property usage a natural part of daily workflows.

Put guardrails in place to avoid a flood of unnecessary properties. Limit who can create new properties and require an approval process for additions. Regular audits will help you spot unused fields, duplicates, or outdated properties that need updating as your business evolves.

If you’re working with integrations across multiple platforms, ensure your custom properties align with fields in those systems. This will keep your data synchronized and prevent the creation of silos that disrupt workflows.

Expert advisors like OT:OT can help streamline this entire process. They offer guidance on customer data modeling and architecture, helping businesses create custom properties that meet their unique needs while staying scalable. This approach supports the shift from traditional CRM setups to a more comprehensive customer platform strategy.

Creating and Managing Custom Properties in HubSpot

Once you've planned your properties, it's time to implement and manage them in HubSpot. Setting up these fields is relatively simple, but a thoughtful approach can save you from messy data cleanups later.

How to Create Custom Properties

To create custom properties in HubSpot, head to Settings > Properties in your account. Select the object type for your property - such as contacts, companies, deals, or tickets. Then, click Create property to open the property builder.

When naming your property, choose a label that’s clear and easy for your team to understand. For example, use "Annual Contract Value" rather than abbreviations like "ACV." HubSpot will automatically generate an internal name, but you can tweak it if needed, especially for integrations.

Selecting the right property type is key to maintaining clean, organized data. Here are some common property types and their uses:

• Dropdown properties are perfect for standardized responses, avoiding inconsistencies like "New York", "NY", or "new york."
• Number properties work well for numerical data, such as revenue, employee count, or deal size. You can configure currency fields to display amounts in US dollars (e.g., $1,234.56) and set validation rules to ensure data accuracy.
• Date properties are ideal for time-based data like "Last Purchase Date" or "Contract Renewal Date." For US-based teams, follow the MM/DD/YYYY format.
• Text properties offer flexibility but require users to input data consistently. Add field descriptions to guide entries and use sparingly to avoid messy datasets.
• Checkbox properties are great for yes/no questions or tagging multiple attributes. For example, a "Product Interests" checkbox might include options like "CRM Software", "Marketing Automation", and "Sales Analytics."

Once you've configured the property, set default values and validation rules. Defaults help maintain consistency, while validation ensures the data stays accurate.

Managing and Editing Properties

When editing existing properties, proceed carefully to avoid disrupting your data. HubSpot allows you to modify labels, descriptions, and dropdown options, but changing a property type - like switching a text field to a number - can result in data loss if the entries don’t match the new format.

If you need to update dropdown options, you can add new ones easily. However, before removing an option, reassign any associated records to avoid losing data. It’s best to make these changes during quieter periods and notify your team beforehand.

The Clone feature is a handy tool for creating similar properties without starting from scratch. For instance, if you have a "Lead Source" property for prospects, you can clone it to create a "Customer Source" property for existing clients and adjust the options as needed.

Regularly auditing your properties ensures your system stays efficient. Review them quarterly to identify duplicates, unused fields, or outdated options. HubSpot’s property usage data can show which fields are actively being populated, helping you decide which ones to retire.

If your properties sync with external systems, make sure field names and formats align to avoid errors. Remember, creating a property in HubSpot doesn’t automatically sync it with other platforms - you’ll need to configure that separately.

Keep a record of any changes made to properties, especially if multiple team members have editing access. A simple log noting what was changed, why, and when can save time and prevent confusion down the line.

Examples of Common Property Use Cases

Once your properties are set up and managed effectively, you can use them to enhance segmentation and drive better results. Here are some examples:

• Geographic segmentation: A "State" dropdown property with all 50 US states can help with region-specific campaigns or managing sales territories. Pair this with a "Time Zone" property to optimize outreach timing.
• Customer lifecycle tracking: A SaaS company might use an "Onboarding Stage" dropdown with options like "Welcome Email Sent", "Initial Setup Complete", and "Fully Activated" to help customer success teams segment users and plan follow-ups.
• Industry-specific segmentation: A B2B software company could create properties like "Compliance Requirements" or "Integration Needs" to tailor communications for different industries.
• Engagement scoring: Properties such as "Email Engagement Level" (High, Medium, Low) or "Website Activity Score" (0-100) can help prioritize leads and automate sales segmentation.
• Purchase behavior tracking: E-commerce businesses might use properties like "Average Order Value" or "Preferred Product Category" to identify high-value customers or those needing additional nurturing.
• Decision-maker information: For complex sales, properties like "Decision Timeline" or "Budget Authority" can help prioritize opportunities and customize the sales approach.

Building Segments Using Custom Properties

Once you've set up your custom properties, the next step is segmentation - turning your data into actionable audience groups. HubSpot's segmentation tools allow you to combine custom properties with filters, helping you zero in on the right contacts. This approach lays the groundwork for fine-tuning your marketing and sales strategies.

Static vs. Active Segments

Knowing the difference between static and active segments is key to effective segmentation.

Static segments are like a snapshot - they capture a fixed list of contacts at a specific point in time. These segments remain unchanged, even if contact details are updated later. Static lists are perfect for one-time events or campaigns. For instance, if you’re organizing a trade show in Chicago in March 2025, you might create a static list of attendees. Even if someone updates their contact information afterward, the list remains as it was when created.

Active segments, on the other hand, are dynamic. They automatically update as contacts meet or no longer meet the set criteria. These are ideal for ongoing campaigns or nurturing efforts. For example, a software company targeting "Marketing Qualified Leads in California with Product Interest = CRM Software" would use an active segment. As new leads express interest in CRM tools, they’re added to the list and start receiving relevant emails. When leads convert or their details change, they’re removed automatically.

Choosing between static and active segments depends on your goals. Use static segments for consistency and control, and active ones when you need your lists to adapt to changing data.

Using Filters and Logical Operators

HubSpot’s segment builder uses AND and OR operators to refine your audience criteria with precision.

• AND operators narrow your list by requiring contacts to meet every specified condition. This creates smaller, more focused groups. For example, a segment with "Customer Tier = Premium" AND "State = Texas" AND "Last Purchase Date > 6 months ago" will only include premium customers in Texas who haven’t purchased recently - ideal for a re-engagement campaign.
• OR operators broaden your list by including contacts who meet any one of the conditions. This results in larger, more inclusive groups.

You can also combine AND and OR filters to create highly detailed segments. For instance, you might target contacts in the "Healthcare" OR "Finance" industries, but only if they’re also in the "Sales Qualified Lead" stage and located in specific regions. HubSpot’s segment builder supports up to 250 filters per segment, including up to 60 associated object filters, allowing for intricate segmentation setups.

When creating complex segments, start with broad criteria and refine them with additional filters. Grouping filters - such as one set for location and another for behavior - helps structure your logic effectively, making it easier to build sophisticated targeting rules.

Practical Examples of Data Segmentation

Real-world scenarios highlight how custom properties and segmentation can drive results:

• Holiday Promotions: A U.S.-based e-commerce company segmented its audience by "Product Interest" and "Customer Tier" for a holiday campaign. By targeting premium customers interested in specific products, they achieved a 25% higher conversion rate compared to previous efforts.
• Regional Outreach: Geographic segmentation is invaluable for businesses with regional operations. For example, a retailer might use a "State" property to send location-specific promotions. During hurricane season, they could group contacts in Florida, Texas, and Louisiana to send safety updates and adjust delivery expectations.
• Behavioral Targeting: A B2B software company segmented contacts by industry and deal stage, tailoring sales outreach to boost performance. By creating groups like "Healthcare prospects in discovery stage" and "Manufacturing customers ready for renewal", they increased qualified leads by 30% and shortened the sales cycle by 15%.
• Customer Lifecycle: Lifecycle segmentation helps nurture contacts through different stages. A SaaS company might create segments for "Trial users who haven’t logged in recently", "New customers in their first 30 days", and "Long-term customers nearing renewal", ensuring messaging aligns with each stage of the journey.
• Engagement Levels: Engagement-based segmentation identifies active and disengaged contacts. Using properties like "Email Engagement Level" or "Website Activity Score", you can create lists for prospects ready for outreach and others needing reactivation campaigns.
• Revenue Prioritization: Revenue-focused segmentation helps focus on high-value opportunities. Properties like "Annual Contract Value" or "Deal Size" allow you to create segments for enterprise clients, mid-market prospects, and small businesses, tailoring sales efforts to each group.

The secret to effective segmentation lies in defining clear business goals, creating segments that align with those objectives, and continuously testing and refining your approach to maximize engagement and conversions.

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Best Practices for Data Segmentation and Reporting

Maintaining effective data segmentation requires consistent attention and clear reporting. Without proper upkeep, even the most carefully designed systems can become outdated, leading to inaccurate segments and unreliable insights. Here's how to keep your segmentation strategy sharp and turn your data into actionable insights.

Regular Audits and Updates

Frequent audits are essential - quarterly reviews are common, though some organizations opt for monthly checks or even continuous monitoring. During these audits, focus on identifying and addressing redundant properties, outdated segments, and data inconsistencies.

For example, custom properties often contain variations like "Healthcare", "health care", or "HC", which can lead to segmentation errors. These inconsistencies may result in duplicates, blanks, or fields that create confusion. Cleaning up these issues ensures your segments remain reliable.

Unused properties - such as those created for one-off campaigns - should be removed or archived. This reduces clutter and prevents confusion among team members. Always test your segment filters with sample records to confirm they’re capturing the right contacts. Additionally, update segments tied to frequently changing properties, such as lifecycle stage or engagement level.

Documenting changes is equally important. Create a data dictionary that explains the purpose of each property, acceptable values, and the teams that use it. This resource can help new team members get up to speed and ensure consistency when revisiting properties that haven’t been used in a while.

Once your data is clean and organized, the next step is to transform it into actionable insights using dashboards.

Using Dashboards for Reporting

Custom dashboards can turn your segmentation data into visual insights that drive smarter decisions. Start by identifying key stakeholders and the metrics they care about most.

For instance, metrics like segment size can help track growth or decline, while engagement and conversion rates reveal which audiences are most responsive. If your focus is revenue, include metrics such as deal value or win rate by segment.

Trend charts are particularly useful for visualizing performance over time - whether monthly or quarterly. Use color coding and visual indicators to highlight underperforming segments, and include filters to allow users to drill down by segment, date range, or campaign specifics.

Here’s a real-world example: In 2023, a B2B SaaS company used HubSpot custom properties to segment contacts by industry and product interest. They then created dashboards to monitor performance. Over six months, they saw a 22% increase in email open rates and a 17% rise in demo bookings. These dashboards provided clear visibility into which segments were driving results.

To keep dashboards relevant, ensure data updates in real-time or at least daily. Additionally, make them mobile-friendly so team members can access insights on the go. The goal is to create dashboards that teams actively use for decision-making - not reports that gather dust.

When your dashboards clarify performance, the next step is to tailor your messaging to each segment.

Using Segmentation for Personalization

Segmentation allows you to personalize your messaging, offers, and content for specific customer groups based on their characteristics, behaviors, and needs. The key is aligning your message with each segment’s unique context and stage in the customer journey.

For instance, industry-based segments can be targeted with content that addresses their specific challenges. A "Healthcare" segment might receive resources on HIPAA compliance and patient data security, while a "Finance" segment could benefit from messaging about regulatory requirements or fraud prevention. This approach ensures your communications feel relevant and meaningful.

Behavioral segments enable targeting based on engagement levels. Highly engaged contacts might be invited to exclusive webinars or offered early access to new features, while less engaged contacts could receive re-engagement campaigns with special incentives. Lead scoring can also help prioritize high-value prospects for personalized outreach and account management.

Lifecycle stage segments allow you to provide tailored messaging at every step of the customer journey. Prospects can receive educational content, customers might get onboarding materials and best practices, and at-risk customers can be targeted with retention offers through win-back campaigns.

The benefits are clear: segmented email campaigns have been shown to drive up to a 760% increase in revenue compared to non-segmented campaigns. Marketers using segmentation have reported 14.31% higher open rates and 100.95% higher click-through rates compared to their non-segmented counterparts.

Geographic segmentation is another powerful tool, enabling localized content, offers, or event invitations tailored to specific regions. For B2B accounts, segmentation by company size and industry can refine your outreach even further. Enterprise prospects might receive detailed case studies or ROI calculators, while mid-market prospects could be offered implementation timelines and pricing details.

To maximize results, continuously test and refine your personalization efforts. Monitor which messages resonate with each segment and adjust your strategy based on performance data. This ongoing process ensures your segmentation stays aligned with both your audience’s needs and your business objectives.

Working with Advisory Services

HubSpot's segmentation features are powerful, but many organizations don't take full advantage of them. This often happens due to implementation hurdles or the challenge of upgrading HubSpot from a basic CRM to a full-scale customer platform. Expert advisory services can bridge this gap, offering tailored solutions that transform how businesses use HubSpot.

How OT:OT Enhances HubSpot Customization

OT:OT brings expertise in strategic advisory, enablement, and customer platform delivery, focusing on customer data modeling and HubSpot data architecture. Their goal? To make HubSpot a tool your team uses daily to drive revenue - not just another software expense.

One of the common problems they tackle is messy or duplicate properties, which can make it hard to trust your data or create reliable segments. OT:OT steps in to clean up these issues, addressing outdated pipelines and reports that no longer provide actionable insights. They create trusted dashboards and reliable forecasts, ensuring your team has the transparency needed for smarter decisions.

Additionally, OT:OT configures custom properties and builds workflows that are directly tied to revenue generation. This ensures your data architecture aligns perfectly with your business goals.

Aligning Data Architecture with Business Needs

When your business is ready to go beyond basic segmentation, a customized data architecture becomes essential. OT:OT starts by reviewing your current data setup, business objectives, and workflows to identify gaps between your goals and your existing HubSpot configuration.

They then design scalable, compliant data models tailored to your needs. For example, a B2B company might require custom properties for industry type, product interest, and deal stages to fine-tune its segmentation. On the other hand, a retailer with multiple locations might need segmentation based on region and purchase history for localized campaigns.

OT:OT ensures that your data architecture supports key objectives like targeted marketing, sales enablement, and efficient customer service. They implement best practices, such as standardized naming conventions and detailed documentation, to keep things clear as your team grows.

Collaboration across departments is another cornerstone of their approach. OT:OT works with marketing, sales, and service teams to align custom properties and segmentation strategies with the needs of all stakeholders. This breaks down silos and creates a unified customer management system.

The result? A flexible data architecture that grows with your business. Regular audits and ongoing support keep your segmentation strategies up to date as your organization evolves.

Getting More from HubSpot with Expert Guidance

Switching from a traditional CRM to a full-fledged customer platform requires more than just transferring data. OT:OT guides businesses through this transformation by mapping legacy data to new custom properties, designing scalable data structures, and configuring HubSpot for advanced segmentation and automation.

This hands-on guidance speeds up HubSpot adoption and unlocks its advanced features. With custom properties in place, you can achieve better targeting, improved personalization, and more accurate reporting. For instance, you’ll be able to track metrics like email open rates, click-through rates, conversion rates, and lead qualification speed - all through segmented campaigns. Custom dashboards provide actionable insights, helping you refine your strategy over time.

As your segmentation efforts expand, integration becomes key. OT:OT helps connect HubSpot with platforms like Salesforce, Dynamics, Mailchimp, and Google Analytics to ensure consistent data across your tools, maximizing the impact of your segmentation.

Advisory services are especially helpful if your sales team still relies on spreadsheets instead of HubSpot, your properties are cluttered with duplicates, or your platform feels neglected. The process usually starts with a discovery session to outline your goals, challenges, and desired outcomes. From there, OT:OT creates a tailored roadmap for data model design, property creation, segmentation strategy, and ongoing support - turning HubSpot into a powerful tool for managing your customer relationships effectively.

Conclusion

HubSpot custom properties take contact management to the next level by enabling businesses to segment data in ways that standard CRM fields simply can't. They allow you to capture specific details like industry classifications, product preferences, and behavioral triggers, creating a solid foundation for segmentation that powers automated workflows and highly targeted communications.

Why Custom Properties Matter

Custom properties unlock the potential for advanced segmentation, which can increase revenue by as much as 760% while significantly improving email open and click-through rates. The key is personalization at scale. By segmenting based on factors like buying stage, location, or engagement levels, you can deliver content that resonates and converts.

These properties also enhance decision-making through custom dashboards that track metrics like conversion rates and engagement. With this added visibility, you can allocate resources more effectively and fine-tune your strategies based on real data.

Another advantage? Automated workflows. For example, when a prospect downloads a pricing guide, their "Buying Stage" property can update automatically, triggering follow-up actions from your sales team. By refining your data capture and segmentation strategy, you can tap into these benefits right away.

Getting Started with Custom Properties

To make the most of custom properties, start by auditing your current data collection practices. Identify gaps where custom fields could add immediate value. For instance, any information your team is currently tracking in spreadsheets or repeatedly discussing during sales calls is a strong candidate for a custom property.

Develop a focused implementation plan. Begin with three to five key properties that directly align with your revenue goals, such as industry classification, product interest, lead source, and buying stage. Prioritize these to ensure you're addressing the most impactful areas first.

Collaboration is essential. Sales teams can highlight customer traits that often lead to closed deals, while marketing can pinpoint segments that respond best to specific campaigns. Service teams might also identify data points that help streamline support efforts.

Think about the long-term structure of your data. Avoid pitfalls like duplicate fields or inconsistent naming conventions, which can create confusion and hinder scalability. As one client shared:

"OT:OT has been a game-changer for our organization. Their clear, streamlined approach helped us focus on what we do best - without getting lost in the data." - OT:OT Client

Finally, use HubSpot dashboards to monitor how your segmentation efforts are performing. Track metrics like email open rates, conversion rates, and sales cycle times for each segment. Regular audits will help ensure your custom properties stay aligned with your business goals and maintain data quality.

If your HubSpot account feels cluttered with redundant fields or unreliable reports, consider seeking professional advice. Expert guidance can provide the structure and clarity you need to turn your data into actionable insights that drive revenue growth.

FAQs

How do custom properties in HubSpot help enhance marketing and sales strategies?

Custom properties in HubSpot give you the power to shape your data around what matters most to your business. By customizing customer information, you can create more focused marketing campaigns and arm your sales team with insights that make connecting with prospects easier and more effective.

These properties let you track details specific to your business - like customer preferences or purchase history - making it possible to tailor your approach to each customer. This personalization not only enhances communication but also strengthens relationships, paving the way for better results in both marketing and sales.

What are the best practices for creating and using custom properties in HubSpot to maintain consistent and accurate data?

When setting up and managing custom properties in HubSpot, maintaining data consistency is crucial. Here’s how to do it effectively:

• Establish clear naming conventions: Use names that are straightforward and consistent, so your team can easily understand and manage them. Align these names with your business processes to avoid confusion.
• Select the right property types: Whether it’s single-line text, dropdown menus, or dates, pick the format that best suits the data you’re handling. This reduces errors and ensures everything stays properly formatted.
• Regularly review and clean up: Periodically check for unused or outdated properties and remove them. This keeps your database streamlined and efficient.

By sticking to these practices, you’ll build a more organized and dependable system for managing customer data in HubSpot.

How can I use HubSpot's custom properties to create targeted audience segments?

HubSpot's custom properties give you the flexibility to organize and segment your data in a way that fits your business goals. By creating specific fields tailored to your customer data, you can build audience segments based on details like purchase habits, geographic location, or engagement patterns.

Start by pinpointing the key data points you want to monitor, such as customer interests or where they are in their journey with your brand. Next, set up custom properties in HubSpot to collect this information. Once these are in place, you can use them to filter and group your contacts into meaningful segments, enabling more targeted marketing and sales efforts.

This method not only deepens your understanding of your audience but also ensures your campaigns are focused and impactful, helping to strengthen customer relationships and achieve better outcomes.

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