The Challenge
A rapidly growing education brand was experiencing ballooning HubSpot costs as their contact database expanded unchecked. With over 400,000 contacts marked as marketing, but fewer than 80,000 showing engagement in the previous two years, the company faced inflated subscription fees, messy reporting, and increased risk to email deliverability. With a contract renewal deadline approaching, the team needed a solution that would safeguard active customer relationships while eliminating unnecessary costs and streamlining their data infrastructure.
The Solution
The company evaluated several approaches to reduce costs and improve marketing precision. Ultimately, they chose HubSpot Marketing Hub’s contact management capabilities for its powerful segmentation, engagement tracking, and workflow automation. Leveraging a focused five-step process—comprehensive audit, precise inactive segmentation, a targeted re-engagement campaign, systematic reclassification of non-responsive contacts, and a negotiated contract adjustment—they executed the cleanup in just 14 days. As the Director of Marketing shared, “We went from paying for hundreds of thousands of disengaged contacts to a lean, healthy database in just two weeks. The savings were immediate and our reporting finally made sense.” This disciplined, data-driven approach not only ensured critical contacts were protected but also set the stage for scalable, cost-effective growth.
The Results
In just 14 days, the company saw a dramatic reduction in paid HubSpot marketing contacts—from 400,000 to under 80,000—generating annual savings of approximately $40,000. The move also delivered cleaner dashboards, clearer engagement metrics, and strengthened sender reputation by eliminating cold, inactive records. With auditable lists and accurate reporting now in place, forecasting and decision-making became more reliable. The client’s marketing team gained a streamlined, high-performing database that supports ongoing growth, maximizes ROI, and keeps leadership confident in their marketing investment.
