Copper vs HubSpot

2023. HubSpot unveils strategy to integrate AI across the platform



HubSpot, the marketing and CRM platform, has unveiled its comprehensive AI strategy known as HubSpot AI. While the incorporation of AI elements has been an ongoing effort for HubSpot and other enterprise SaaS vendors, the advent of technologies like ChatGPT has prompted HubSpot to adopt a more extensive approach while retaining earlier features. The CRM database stores valuable company data, enabling users to gain insights into customer profiles, encompassing basic information, purchase history, customer service interactions, and more. HubSpot AI encompasses a four-pronged strategy, starting with content assistants that assist users in generating various content types across the platform. Additionally, AI agents, currently in different development stages, aim to automate customer service tasks and answer queries. The third component, AI Insights, provides predictive analytics, such as identifying customers likely to churn or make a purchase, a capability integrated into the platform over time.


2020. HubSpot’s new end-to-end sales hub aims to simplify CRM for mid-market customers



HubSpot, renowned for its role in shaping the concept of inbound marketing, has unveiled the HubSpot Sales Hub Enterprise. While the company has been providing a CRM tool for five years, which has successfully addressed the usability concerns of salespeople, the new offering aims to deliver a comprehensive approach that caters to the needs of not only sales professionals but also management and system administrators. HubSpot recognizes that larger players in the industry, such as Adobe, Salesforce, and SAP, typically acquire various components of the technology stack and integrate them into their solutions, or customers themselves piece together different elements. In contrast, HubSpot believes that developing a unified, integrated solution in-house will naturally result in a more user-friendly experience.


2020. HubSpot unveils new content management system for marketers



HubSpot, a renowned inbound marketing firm, has introduced a dedicated content management system (CMS) specifically designed to simplify the process of adding and updating content for marketing professionals. While content management has always been a fundamental aspect of HubSpot's offerings, this new CMS has been developed from scratch with marketers in mind. It provides developers with the flexibility to use their preferred programming languages while leveraging the modular structure of the HubSpot CMS. Simultaneously, the user-friendly interface empowers marketers to make frequent changes necessary for modern websites.


2018. HubSpot added customer service tools to its marketing platform



HubSpot is venturing beyond sales and marketing by officially introducing its Service Hub, a comprehensive solution for managing customer service. This expansion includes an all-in-one inbox for organizing all customer communications, a bot-builder to automate certain customer interactions, features for developing a company knowledge base (which can be utilized by the bot-builder), survey creation tools, and a dashboard for monitoring the performance of your service team. Service Hub is seamlessly integrated with HubSpot's existing products, enabling businesses to track customer interactions across sales, marketing, and support.


2017. HubSpot unveiled Conversations



CRM, marketing, sales, and customer experience provider HubSpot has introduced a range of product updates, including notable integrations with Facebook for advertising purposes, Shopify for ecommerce functionalities, and the introduction of a new tool called "Conversations." The Conversations tool, facilitated by chatbots, consolidates customer messages into a single inbox, representing the evolution of HubSpot's live chat platform. This unified messaging system becomes crucial during significant transitions, such as the handoff from sales to support. Key features of Conversations include seamless integration with HubSpot CRM and the ability to create chatbots, leveraging the technology obtained from HubSpot's recent acquisition of the chatbot platform, Motion AI. These updates aim to enhance customer interactions and streamline communication processes within the HubSpot platform.


2017. G Suite-centric CRM service ProsperWorks raised $53M



ProsperWorks, a provider of Google-centric CRM tools, has successfully raised $53 million in a Series C funding round. The primary objective of ProsperWorks has always been to simplify the usability of CRM systems and help companies derive value from their services. In contrast to other alternatives, ProsperWorks focuses on deep integration with Google's G Suite, aiming to deliver a user experience that aligns seamlessly with Google's product ecosystem. This integration ensures that users can effortlessly transition between different productivity applications without feeling a constant need to switch contexts. With the newly secured funding, ProsperWorks intends to double its engineering team, thereby accelerating product development. The company also plans to introduce new industry-specific solutions to enhance its service offerings. Furthermore, ProsperWorks is actively exploring opportunities for international expansion. Notably, the company has prioritized a complete redesign of its platform, which will bring significant benefits to its existing user base.


2017. Marketing platform HubSpot acquires AI startup Kemvi



Inbound marketing and sales platform HubSpot has made an acquisition of Kemvi, a startup that utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning to assist sales teams. A short while ago, Kemvi introduced DeepGraph, a product that examines public data to enable salespeople in identifying the optimal time (such as after a job transition or the release of an article) to connect with potential customers. Additionally, it takes proactive measures to verify leads. HubSpot was actively seeking innovative ways to incorporate AI technology into its platform as a means to combat competitors. The acquisition of Kemvi was especially attractive to HubSpot due to its ability to address a genuine requirement among salespeople.


2016. Google-centric CRM ProsperWorks raised $24M



ProsperWorks, a versatile customer relationship management (CRM) service that seamlessly integrates with the Google for Work platform, has successfully secured a funding round of $24 million. The company intends to utilize this fresh capital to further enhance its technology and expand its sales and marketing team. This investment arrives at a noteworthy juncture for enterprise companies that rely on Google's productivity suite. With Google's renewed focus on the enterprise sector, the platform is expected to experience continuous growth. Such growth holds promising prospects for the businesses operating within its ecosystem. However, it is important to acknowledge that being closely aligned with Google also entails certain risks. For instance, Google might introduce its own fully integrated CRM solution, which could potentially pose a challenge for ProsperWorks and its counterparts.


2015. HubSpot launches own CRM system



HubSpot, a renowned company recognized for its marketing tools, has officially launched its CRM product, moving it out of the beta phase. The CRM tool is available for free, while HubSpot's sales "acceleration" tool, Sidekick, is priced at $50 per seat per month. HubSpot describes the CRM tool as designed to assist sales representatives in minimizing the tedious aspects of data entry and interaction management. The tool automatically captures data from the sales process and organizes it in a chronological format. This strategy of providing free software to companies and subsequently upselling their IT departments has proven successful for software companies like Dropbox and Box. Although there are still costs associated with the sales process, having products integrated into more businesses helps reduce certain barriers.


2014. Marketing giant HubSpot files $100M IPO



HubSpot, a leading provider of marketing automation software, has recently filed for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) with the aim of raising up to $100 million. This move follows a similar path taken by its competitor Marketo, which went public the previous year. Notably, other rivals such as Eloqua and ExactTarget chose to be acquired by larger software companies—Eloqua was acquired by Oracle for $871 million in late 2012, while ExactTarget was acquired by Salesforce.com for a whopping $2.5 billion just six months later. It's worth mentioning that both Salesforce and Google have also invested in HubSpot, further highlighting the company's industry significance and appeal.