10 min read
Brian Garvey
Oct 20, 2025 1:14:11 PM
You've decided to bring in outside help with HubSpot. Smart move. But now comes the part that makes a lot of people nervous: How do you actually make this work?
If you've never worked with a fractional expert, consultant, or contractor before, it's normal to have questions. How often should you meet? What should you prepare? How do you stay aligned when they're not sitting in your office?
The good news: there are proven best practices that make these engagements successful. We've talked to dozens of experienced HubSpot experts who've worked with hundreds of clients, and the patterns are clear. This guide will walk you through what works so you can get great results without the guesswork.
The best engagements don't start with work - they start with understanding.
Before any expert can truly help you, they need context. Not just about your HubSpot portal, but about your business, your goals, your team, and your challenges. A good fractional expert will want to understand:
Pro Tip: The best discovery conversations include both leadership and frontline users. Managers know the goals, but the people using HubSpot every day know where the real pain points are. Make it a safe space so everyone feels comfortable speaking up.
This discovery phase might feel like extra time upfront, but it's what separates a generic solution from one that actually fits your business. Expect a few conversations, maybe some portal review time, and questions that go deeper than "what's broken?"
Not all fractional HubSpot help looks the same. Before you start, it helps to understand which type of support makes the most sense for your situation:
Implementation/Hands-On Admin This is someone who executes in HubSpot - updating properties, building forms, creating workflows, generating reports, etc. Best for teams with limited HubSpot knowledge who need someone to handle the technical work. This tends to be the most affordable option.
Strategic Admin
This person advises on HubSpot strategy while also doing hands-on building of more complex workflows, integrations, and automations. They help align your tech stack, improve handoffs between departments, and implement HubSpot updates that fit your business. Good for teams that understand HubSpot basics but need specialized expertise.
Coaching/Advisory This is less hands-on and more consultative. Best for organizations that already have in-house HubSpot expertise but want an outside perspective, strategic guidance, and someone who lives and breathes HubSpot updates and best practices. This typically commands premium pricing.
Many fractional experts can operate across all three modes - the key is being clear about what you actually need so you're not paying strategic rates for basic implementation work (or vice versa).
One of the biggest mistakes companies make is starting work without defining what success actually looks like.
You don't need a 30-page requirements document, but you do need clarity on what you're trying to accomplish. Are you trying to increase lead conversion by 20%? Clean up your data so sales can trust the CRM? Automate manual work that's eating up 10 hours a week?
Write it down. Make it specific. Make it measurable.
Why this matters: When goals are clear and documented, everyone stays aligned. It's easier to prioritize, easier to make decisions, and much easier to know when you're done. Vague goals lead to scope creep, frustration, and projects that never quite feel finished.
Good experts will help you define these goals if you're not sure - but the clearer you can be from the start, the faster you'll see results.
Here's a pattern we see with almost every successful engagement: weekly or bi-weekly meetings.
These don't need to be long - often 30 minutes to an hour - but they need to happen consistently. This is where you:
Important: Don't skip these meetings. When meetings get pushed or canceled repeatedly, projects stall, context is lost, and work slows down. If you can't make a meeting, reschedule it for another day that same week - try not to just push it to next week.
Nothing slows down a project faster than trying to coordinate with three or four different people who all have different priorities and opinions (and time zones!).
Best practice: Assign one person as the main point of contact. This is the person who:
Most experts recommend this person be at least a manager level - often a head of marketing, head of sales, or director of operations. For smaller companies, it might be the CEO or founder.
Why it works: One clear contact means faster decisions, clearer communication, and less time spent navigating internal politics or mixed messages.
Fractional experts aren't full-time employees - and that's the point. But it also means you need to set expectations around availability from the start.
Most experts will outline their working hours and response times in their proposal or contract. Common patterns include:
What this means for you: You probably won't be able to ping them at 11pm and get an instant reply (unless that’s what you’ve agreed to). And that's to be expected. The tradeoff is you're getting specialized expertise that probably wouldn’t otherwise be accessible.
Pro Tip: Many experts offer a meeting link tied to their calendar -- keep it handy! It's often the fastest way to get time with them without the back-and-forth of email scheduling.
About Slack and real-time communication: Some experts are comfortable being added to your Slack or Teams workspace, while others prefer to avoid real-time chat entirely. There's no universal rule - just make sure you align on communication preferences early.
You need a shared system of record for tracking work, priorities, and progress. This isn't optional.
Popular choices include:
A number of pros also mention Monday.com, Trello, or just plain old Google Docs.
The specific tool matters less than using one consistently. This is where you'll:
Bonus: Many experts will also send you meeting recordings (via tools like Fathom or Fireflies) and link to tasks or notes in your PM tool. This creates a clear record of what was discussed and decided - so nothing gets lost.
This might sound obvious, but it's worth saying: prepare for the meetings in advance.
Before your weekly or bi-weekly check-in:
Why this matters: Experts can only move as fast as you do. If they're waiting on approvals, assets, or answers, the project stalls. When you show up ready to engage, you get more done in less time - everyone wins!
Different experts structure their work differently, and it's important to know what you're signing up for.
Hourly Rates
Some experts bill by the hour. This works well when scope is uncertain or when you need ongoing, flexible support. Just be aware: if you keep adding requests or changing direction, hours add up quickly.
Project-Based Pricing
Others price by the project or deliverable. You'll know the cost upfront, and the expert owns the timeline and process. This tends to work well for clearly defined work - like a CRM setup, data migration, or automation buildout.
Retainer Arrangements
Some experts offer monthly retainers, which give you consistent access and predictable billing. This is common for ongoing support, optimization, or strategic guidance -- and it often provides the best value for long-term relationships.
The key: Make sure you understand how your expert prices their work, what's included, and what triggers additional cost. A good expert will spell this out clearly in their proposal or contract - and won't surprise you with unexpected invoices.
Pro tip: Experts do not bill by the minute. It’s normal for experts to round to the quarter hour or full hour. We’ve seen this cause confusion in the past so it’s worth aligning on in advance if you have questions.
You don't have to solve everything at once. In fact, you probably shouldn't.
Many successful engagements start with Phase 1 - a focused, high-impact project that solves a specific problem. Once that's complete, you can evaluate what's working, what's next, and whether you want to continue.
Why this works:
One expert we spoke with described it this way: "Sometimes what we fix in Phase 1 actually solves the issue they thought they'd need Phase 3 for. A phased approach lets us stay flexible and focused on what actually matters."
Discovery doesn't end after the first few calls. The best engagements involve ongoing context sharing.
When something changes in your business -- new goals, new campaigns, leadership changes, product launches - let your expert know. They can't help you if they're working with outdated information.
One expert put it plainly: "My job is to make you look great. If the business has goals or activities I don't know about, I can't build the support systems you'll need. Tell me what's coming so I can help you get ready."
This doesn't mean daily check-ins. Just keep them in the loop on anything that might impact the work, the data, or the strategy.
HubSpot projects take time - especially if you're fixing years of technical debt, cleaning messy data, or rebuilding core systems.
That said, good experts will find ways to deliver value early. Maybe it's fixing a broken workflow, cleaning up a key report, or automating something that's been eating up hours every week.
Set realistic expectations: A full CRM overhaul might take months. But you should start seeing progress - and impact - within the first few weeks.
You brought in an expert for a reason - let them do what they do best.
If they recommend a different approach than what you had in mind, hear them out. If they push back on a request because it won't actually solve the problem, listen. You don't have to agree with everything, but be open to their perspective.
One expert shared a story about a client who kept insisting on a specific workflow setup - even though it wouldn't scale and would create more problems down the road. "I tried to explain why it wouldn't work, but they didn't want to hear it. Six months later, they came back asking me to fix the exact issues I'd warned them about."
Even if you have strong in-house HubSpot knowledge, fractional experts bring something valuable: diverse experience across industries and companies, plus the bandwidth to stay current with constant platform updates. One expert we spoke with works with a client who has their own HubSpot admin, but brings her in for complex projects and strategic guidance precisely because she's seen dozens of implementations and knows what works (and what doesn't) across different contexts.
Not every engagement goes perfectly. Sometimes expectations aren't aligned, communication breaks down, or the work just isn't landing the way you hoped.
Here's how to handle it:
Speak up early
If something feels off, say so. Don't wait until you're frustrated or the project is off the rails. A simple, "Hey, I'm not sure we're aligned on this - can we talk it through?" can save an engagement.
Be specific
"This isn't working" isn't helpful feedback. "I expected weekly updates and I haven't heard anything in two weeks" is. The more specific you can be, the easier it is to fix.
Remember: most experts want happy clients
If you're working with a reputable professional, they want this to go well. Most issues can be resolved with a direct conversation and some adjustment. If it's truly not a fit, a good expert will tell you - and may even help you find someone better suited.
Fractional and consultant engagements are incredible for getting expertise without full-time overhead - but they're not always a forever solution.
You might be ready to bring someone in-house when:
The good news: Many fractional experts will tell you when you've hit that point. They're not trying to hold onto work that doesn't make sense anymore. In fact, some will even help you hire and transition their work to a full-time team member.
Working with a fractional HubSpot expert doesn't have to be complicated or risky. The companies that get the best results follow a few simple patterns:
✅ Start with real discovery and clear goals
✅ Meet regularly and show up prepared
✅ Use a shared project management system
✅ Set expectations around availability and communication
✅ Trust the expertise you hired
✅ Stay flexible and focus on outcomes, not just tasks
When you do these things, you'll find that fractional help isn't just cost-effective - it's often the smartest, fastest way to solve complex problems and unlock real growth.
The insights in this guide come from real conversations with experienced HubSpot professionals who've worked with hundreds of clients. If you're looking for fractional HubSpot help, here are four excellent options to consider:
Zach Hussion – HUSH RevOps
Platinum HubSpot Partner | Turning Complexity into Scalable Growth
Zach specializes in helping B2B manufacturers transform their revenue operations with HubSpot. With a focus on aligning marketing, sales, and customer success, he brings strategic thinking and hands-on execution to complex RevOps challenges. Known for his structured approach to discovery, weekly check-ins, and clear documentation, Zach is a great fit if you need someone who can turn messy systems into scalable growth engines.
Ashley Hill – Former HubSpotter, Freelance HubSpot Consultant
Making HubSpot work for you since 2012
Ashley worked in HubSpot Support back in the early days and has spent over a decade helping customers get real value from the platform. She's seen every kind of CRM setup imaginable and excels at understanding business context, not just clicking buttons. Ashley is known for long-term client relationships (some spanning 8-10 years), thoughtful strategic guidance, and making clients feel like true partners - not just project numbers.
Chris Toyn – Toyn Consultancy
HubSpot Consultant with 10+ years experience
Chris brings a decade of HubSpot expertise across SMEs and enterprises, with a particular strength in automation, data management, and complex implementations. He's worked with massive organizations (like Transcom) and scrappy startups alike, always tailoring his approach to fit the client's needs. Known for his straightforward, no-nonsense communication style and bi-weekly check-in cadence, Chris is a solid choice when you need someone who can tackle both strategic planning and hands-on execution.
Geoff Tucker – DataOps Group
13+ Years Solving and Growing HubSpot for SMBs
Geoff is a B2B marketing and HubSpot expert who specializes in optimizing HubSpot for data-driven decisions and reliable reporting. With over 13 years of experience, he's known for his structured approach to scoping work, clear SOWs, and focus on getting clients to retainer-based relationships that deliver consistent value. Geoff is particularly strong with companies that need help turning HubSpot into a strategic asset - not just another tool.
Casey Hawkins – Fractional HubSpot Admin & Operations Consultant
Building HubSpot systems that work (without the overwhelm)
Casey specializes in helping marketing and RevOps teams get more out of HubSpot through strategic implementation, workflow optimization, and cross-functional alignment. With experience spanning hands-on execution to high-level advisory work, she's known for managing complexity across multiple clients while keeping communication clear and priorities straight. Casey excels at working with teams that need sophisticated HubSpot builds - like property-triggered Slack notifications and multi-system integrations - as well as organizations looking for ongoing strategic guidance without a full-time hire.
At Profoundly, we make it easy to find and work with proven HubSpot experts who know how to deliver results. Whether you need a specialized consultant, a hands-on contractor, or a full-service agency partner, we'll help you find the right fit.
Post a project and get tailored proposals from vetted pros.
Talk to a sourcing expert if you're not sure where to start.
You've got the work. We'll help you find the right person to do it.
Profoundly : Mar 26, 2025 11:01:40 AM
Creating an effective project post on Profoundly is essential for quickly connecting with the right HubSpot expert for your needs. A well-crafted...
Rikki Lear : Oct 13, 2025 11:46:06 AM
If you are running a HubSpot Solutions Partner business, you are likely in one of two positions:
