HubSpot Marketing: Engage Beginners & Advanced Users

A Beginner’s Guide to Catering to Both Beginner and Advanced Practitioners with Marketing Automation

Catering to both beginner and advanced practitioners is a challenge in any field, but marketing presents unique hurdles. How do you create campaigns that resonate with both audiences without alienating one or the other? This guide will walk you through using HubSpot’s Smart Content features to achieve just that.

Step 1: Define Your Beginner and Advanced Personas

Before you even touch HubSpot, you need to clearly define your target audiences. I recommend starting with a brainstorming session – who are these people? What are their pain points, goals, and levels of expertise?

• Beginner Persona: This person is likely new to marketing, perhaps a small business owner or a junior marketer. They’re looking for foundational knowledge, step-by-step instructions, and easy-to-understand explanations. They might be overwhelmed by technical jargon and complex strategies.
• Advanced Persona: This person has years of experience and is comfortable with data analysis, complex campaign structures, and advanced tools. They’re looking for insights, new strategies, and ways to optimize their existing campaigns. They want to know about the latest trends and how to implement them effectively.

Pro Tip: Don’t overcomplicate it. Two well-defined personas are better than five vague ones.

Step 2: Create Your Personas in HubSpot

Now, let’s bring those personas to life within HubSpot.

1. Navigate to Contacts > Contacts > Create Contact (yes, even though we’re creating a persona, we’re using the “Create Contact” function).

1. Manually fill out the contact information. Use “Beginner Persona” and “Advanced Persona” as first names to differentiate.

1. The key here is the Persona property. You might need to create a custom property if one doesn’t exist. To do this, go to Settings > Properties > Create Property. Label it “Persona,” set the field type to “Dropdown select,” and add “Beginner” and “Advanced” as options.

1. Assign the appropriate “Persona” value to each contact.

Common Mistake: Forgetting to save the contact after assigning the persona. It’s easy to do!

Expected Outcome: You’ll have two contacts in your HubSpot CRM, each tagged with their respective “Persona.”

Step 3: Build Smart Lists Based on Personas

Next, we’ll create lists that automatically group contacts based on their persona. This is where the magic starts.

1. Go to Contacts > Lists > Create List.

1. Choose Active List.

1. Give your list a descriptive name, such as “Beginner Marketers” or “Advanced Marketers.”

1. Set the criteria. Click Add Filter and select Persona. Choose “is equal to” and select either “Beginner” or “Advanced,” depending on the list.

1. Click Save.

Repeat these steps to create a list for each persona.

Pro Tip: Make sure the “Re-evaluate list membership” option is enabled so that contacts are automatically added or removed from the list based on their persona.

Expected Outcome: HubSpot will automatically populate these lists with contacts matching the specified persona criteria. As you add more contacts and assign personas, the lists will update dynamically.

Step 4: Craft Content for Both Levels

This is where your content strategy comes into play. You need to create content that caters to both beginners and advanced marketers.

• Beginner Content: Focus on the fundamentals. Explain core marketing concepts in simple terms. Provide step-by-step tutorials, checklists, and templates. Examples include “What is SEO?” or “How to Set Up Your First Email Campaign.”
• Advanced Content: Dive deeper into strategy, data analysis, and emerging trends. Share case studies, research findings, and advanced tactics. Examples include “Advanced SEO Strategies for 2026” or “Using AI for Predictive Marketing.”

Editorial Aside: Don’t dumb down your advanced content. Your advanced audience will see right through it.

Step 5: Implement Smart Content on Your Website

Now, let’s use HubSpot’s Smart Content feature to personalize the website experience.

1. Open the page you want to personalize in the HubSpot page editor.

1. Select the module you want to make “smart.” Let’s say it’s a call-to-action button.

1. In the module editor, click Make Smart.

1. Choose List Membership as the criteria.

1. Select the “Beginner Marketers” list. Now, you can customize the content of the CTA button specifically for beginners. Perhaps you change the text from “Advanced Segmentation Strategies” to “Learn the Basics of Segmentation.”

1. Repeat the process for the “Advanced Marketers” list. Change the CTA button to reflect their interests.

1. Click Publish to save your changes.

Common Mistake: Forgetting to set a default version for visitors who aren’t on either list. Make sure you have a general version of the content that appeals to a broader audience.

Expected Outcome: Visitors on the “Beginner Marketers” list will see the beginner-friendly version of the content, while visitors on the “Advanced Marketers” list will see the advanced version. This creates a personalized experience that resonates with each audience.

Step 6: Personalize Emails with Smart Content

Email marketing is another powerful way to leverage Smart Content. Let’s consider how funnel tactics can work with personalized emails.

1. Create a new email in HubSpot (Marketing > Email > Create Email).

1. Design your email as usual.

1. Select the module you want to personalize. Let’s say it’s a block of text.

1. Click Make Smart.

1. Choose List Membership as the criteria.

1. Select the “Beginner Marketers” list. Now, you can customize the text specifically for beginners. Perhaps you provide a brief introduction to the topic.

1. Repeat the process for the “Advanced Marketers” list. Change the text to offer a more in-depth analysis.

1. Before sending, make sure you’ve selected both the “Beginner Marketers” and “Advanced Marketers” lists as recipients in the “Send to” section.

1. Click Send.

Pro Tip: Use A/B testing to experiment with different versions of your Smart Content and see what resonates best with each audience.

Expected Outcome: Beginners will receive an email tailored to their level of expertise, while advanced marketers will receive an email that speaks to their more sophisticated knowledge.

Step 7: Extend Smart Content to Landing Pages

Landing pages are crucial for lead generation, and Smart Content can make them even more effective. The process is very similar to personalizing website pages.

1. Open the landing page you want to personalize in the HubSpot landing page editor.

1. Select the module you want to make smart.

1. Click Make Smart.

1. Choose List Membership as the criteria.

1. Select the “Beginner Marketers” list. Customize the content to appeal to beginners. For example, simplify the form fields or offer a beginner-friendly ebook as a lead magnet.

1. Repeat the process for the “Advanced Marketers” list. Offer a more advanced resource, such as a white paper or a webinar.

1. Click Publish to save your changes.

I had a client last year who saw a 30% increase in landing page conversion rates after implementing Smart Content. It’s a powerful tool!

Expected Outcome: Visitors from each list will see a landing page tailored to their specific interests and needs, increasing the likelihood of conversion.

Step 8: Track and Analyze Your Results

The final step is to monitor your results and make adjustments as needed. HubSpot provides detailed analytics that can help you track the performance of your Smart Content.

1. Go to Reports > Analytics Tools.

1. Analyze your website traffic, email open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates for each persona.

1. Identify areas where you can improve your content or targeting.

1. Make adjustments to your Smart Content based on your findings.

A Nielsen study found that personalized experiences can increase customer satisfaction by 20%. Keep refining your approach and you’ll see those numbers climb! For more on how to improve your marketing, consider unlocking growth with data.

Expected Outcome: You’ll gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of your Smart Content and be able to continuously improve your marketing efforts.

Implementing Smart Content in HubSpot is a powerful way to cater to both beginner and advanced practitioners. By personalizing your website, emails, and landing pages, you can create a more engaging and effective experience for each audience. The key is to start with a clear understanding of your target personas and then use HubSpot’s tools to deliver the right content to the right people. For those struggling with messy data, consider if fixing your Mixpanel data could help.

Don’t be afraid to experiment! Start small, test your assumptions, and iterate based on the data. The ability to tailor your message to different skill levels is a HUGE advantage in today’s competitive market. Finally, remember that marketing experimentation is key to unlocking growth.