Managing inventory shouldn't feel like herding cats. Yet, for many businesses, that's exactly what it feels like – especially when you're juggling spreadsheets, multiple systems, and manual updates that eat up valuable time.
But here's the good news: HubSpot's platform can transform this chaos into a streamlined operation that practically runs itself. Let us show you how.
What Are The Challenges of More Traditional Inventory Management?
Traditional inventory management is like trying to conduct an orchestra with musicians in different rooms – it's complicated, prone to mistakes, and incredibly frustrating. Most businesses face these common challenges:
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- Manual data entry devours countless hours as team members update spreadsheets, reconcile numbers across systems, and double-check everything to avoid mistakes. Your skilled employees spend their time on tedious data entry instead of strategic work.
- Lack of real-time visibility means you're often flying blind. When you get an inventory report, the numbers are already outdated. This leads to overselling, stockouts, and awkward conversations with customers about products that aren't actually available.
- Disconnected systems create data silos between your ERP, CRM, and other platforms. Your sales team works from one set of numbers while operations use another, leading to confusion and mistakes. Important updates get lost in the shuffle between systems.
- Tracking product relationships becomes nearly impossible when managing complex relationships between products, deals, and customers across multiple platforms. Understanding which products are available to which customers, at what times, and under what conditions turns into a logistical nightmare. This also can deter from a good customer experience because the ability to track product relationships allows you to send the right message to the right person at the right time for marketing opportunities.
How Can You Use HubSpot for Inventory Management?
While HubSpot is not a dedicated inventory management system, it can be leveraged alongside custom objects, CRM extensions, workflows, and integrations to support inventory-related processes. With that in mind, here's how to make the most of the platform.
Custom Objects for Product Management
A well-structured custom object architecture is at the heart of an effective inventory system. Creating custom objects for your products can build relationships between products, deals, and customers that mirror your business processes. These objects can track traditional metrics like SKUs and stock levels, but they can also handle complex scenarios like tiered pricing structures, seasonal availability, or bundled offerings.
You might set up properties that monitor reorder points, track supplier information, or manage product variations – all customized to your specific inventory management needs. While HubSpot allows you to store and relate inventory data, it does not natively adjust stock levels in real time. An integration with an external inventory management system or custom API connection/custom code is required for live inventory updates — but this can be done with a skilled developer or third-party partner. And you should consider it as the real power comes from connecting these objects to your deals and contacts, creating a web of relationships that gives you a complete view of your inventory ecosystem.
Custom CRM Cards and Views
Transform how your team interacts with inventory data by building custom CRM cards, which are customizable UI components that display relevant external data within HubSpot records. These cards can surface inventory details, pricing, or stock availability directly within deal records, company profiles, or custom dashboards, ensuring your team has the right information at the right time. Imagine a sales rep viewing a deal and seeing not just what products are available but also being able to filter by category, check current stock levels, and add items to the deal without switching screens.
You can also create different views for different teams: sales might see availability and pricing, while operations might see supplier information and reorder points. If real-time updates or interactive features are needed, a custom extension or third-party inventory integration is required. These cards can also include quick-action buttons for everyday tasks or dynamic filters for sorting through large product catalogs.
Real-Time Inventory Tracking
Modern inventory management demands real-time accuracy, and HubSpot's platform can support this through a combination of workflows and custom code. While HubSpot does not automatically adjust stock levels, it can be configured to sync with external code to ensure stock counts are accurate as deals move through the pipeline. You can set up tracking that monitors current stock levels and tracks items in different statuses — quoted, on order, reserved, or in transit.
Workflows can trigger alerts when inventory drops below specified thresholds, factoring in lead times and seasonal demand patterns. However, HubSpot has no built-in reservation system to hold inventory while deals are being finalized temporarily. If this functionality is required, a third-party integration or a custom-coded workflow is needed to prevent overselling — again, possible with the right team.
Visual Calendar Management
For businesses managing time-sensitive inventory or seasonal products, visual calendar views (which can be built using custom CRM cards) provide crucial visibility into product availability. These calendars can be built to display availability across different timeframes – daily, weekly, monthly, or even yearly for long-term planning. Color coding helps teams quickly identify product status: green for available, yellow for low stock, and red for sold out. Note: This is only for a calendar-like view, not a true calendar itself, because HubSpot does not have a native inventory calendar feature. However, it is possible to simulate one by embedding an external calendar tool within the HubSpot dashboard or creating a custom-built reporting dashboard with timeline-based inventory views.
Going this route, you can take it a step further by adding filtering capabilities that let users focus on specific product categories, locations, or customer segments. The calendar can also display critical inventory-related events like scheduled deliveries, maintenance periods, or promotional campaigns, giving teams a comprehensive view of inventory operations. You can also go even further by adding products directly to a quote or a deal from the calendar view, which adjusts the inventory available for other sales reps.
Automated Workflows
Another powerful feature of HubSpot that you could tap into for your inventory management capabilities comes from its workflow automation potential. Create sophisticated workflows that trigger based on multiple conditions – not just when deals close but also when they reach specific stages when quantity thresholds are met or when certain customer criteria are satisfied. These workflows can handle complex tasks like sending stock alerts, triggering notifications to purchasing teams, and updating inventory data in external systems.
While HubSpot workflows can streamline many processes, they do not natively manage inventory movement across multiple locations or handle predictive restocking without integrations. If advanced forecasting or predictive inventory adjustments are needed, an external system integrated with HubSpot is required (but Lynton can help with this). However, you can still utilize workflows to ensure promotional activities align with product availability, automatically pausing campaigns for low-stock items or triggering special promotions for overstocked products.
What Are The Benefits Of Using HubSpot for Inventory Management?
Transforming your inventory management with HubSpot delivers concrete advantages that impact your bottom line. Take a look at some incredible benefits you could achieve:
- Time Savings Through Automation: Teams can save up to 15-20 hours per week by eliminating manual data entry and reconciliation. Automated updates handle routine tasks, freeing your team to focus on strategic initiatives and customer relationships.
- Enhanced Accuracy and Reliability: Real-time updates and automated workflows can potentially reduce human error by up to 95%. No more discrepancies between systems or outdated information leading to costly mistakes. Every team member works from the same accurate data.
- Improved Customer Experience: Real-time inventory visibility helps you avoid overselling and manage customer expectations better. Your sales team can confidently quote delivery times and availability, leading to higher customer satisfaction and fewer canceled orders.
- Powerful Reporting and Analytics: Generate detailed insights about inventory turnover, product performance, and sales trends. Track key metrics in real time and make data-driven decisions about inventory levels, reordering, and product strategy.
Case Study: Ensemble Travel's Transformation
Having trouble believing if it's all real? Well, we've done something similar for a client:
Ensemble Travel's journey from fragmented systems to streamlined success perfectly illustrates the power of custom HubSpot inventory solutions. They were struggling with a complex web of Zoho, Zendesk, and Smartsheets — a situation that might feel familiar to many businesses.
Their transformation centered on a comprehensive custom inventory management system built within HubSpot, using outside code and some real technical prowess on our end. The solution included:
- Custom CRM cards providing instant access to product availability
- Visual calendar views for tracking time-sensitive offerings
- Automated workflows handling inventory updates
- Integrated reporting for better decision-making
The immediate and significant impact resulted in many of the benefits listed above. Manual updates that once consumed hours now happen automatically. Their team has real-time visibility into product availability, and their sales and marketing efforts are perfectly synchronized with their inventory status.
Let's Transform Your Inventory Management
Don't let outdated inventory management hold your business back. Whether dealing with physical products, digital assets, or service packages, a custom HubSpot solution can streamline your operations and drive growth.
Ready to learn more? Let's explore how we can build a custom HubSpot inventory management solution that matches your needs. Schedule a conversation today to see how we can help your business achieve the same kind of transformation we delivered for Ensemble Travel.
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