Managing customer relationships on spreadsheets or sticky notes is a recipe for missed opportunities. Setting up HubSpot CRM allows you to centralise your data, track every interaction with Australian leads, and gain a professional edge that helps your small business scale without the manual headache.
Prerequisites
Before you start, ensure you have the following ready:- A professional business email address (avoid @gmail.com or @outlook.com if possible).
- Your business website URL.
- A list of current customers or leads (CSV or Excel format).
- Access to your business's email provider login (Outlook or Gmail).
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Step 1: Create Your Free Account
Go to the HubSpot website and sign up for the free CRM. During the signup process, HubSpot will ask for your industry and company size. Be accurate here, as HubSpot uses this data to suggest the most relevant dashboard templates for your specific niche. What you’ll see: A series of onboarding questions. Once finished, you’ll land on a clean dashboard with a "Getting Started" checklist on the right-hand side.Step 2: Configure Your Basic Settings
Don't dive into importing data just yet. Click the Settings icon (the gear in the top right corner). Under General, set your time zone to your local Australian state (e.g., GMT+10 for Brisbane/Sydney) and your currency to AUD. This ensures your deal forecasting and activity timestamps are accurate for the local market.Step 3: Connect Your Email Inbox
This is the "secret sauce" of HubSpot. Go to Settings > Objects > Activities > Email personal accounts. Connect your Gmail or Outlook account. Why this matters: Once connected, HubSpot can automatically log the emails you send to clients directly into their CRM profile. You can also see when a Brisbane lead opens your proposal in real-time.Step 4: Install the HubSpot Sales Extension
Download the HubSpot Sales extension for Chrome or Outlook. This lives inside your email browser. It allows you to track emails and access CRM templates without leaving your inbox. Pro Tip: If you're using Chrome, you’ll see a little HubSpot sprocket icon in your browser bar. Make sure it's pinned for easy access.Step 5: Customise Your Deal Stages
Every business has a different sales process. Go to Settings > Objects > Deals. Click on the Pipelines tab.Standard stages like "Appointment Scheduled" or "Contract Sent" are fine, but customise them to match how you work. For example, a local Brisbane tradesman might have stages like "Site Visit Completed" or "Quote Sent via Xero."
Step 6: Define Your Custom Properties
HubSpot comes with standard fields (First Name, Email, etc.), but you likely need specific data. Do you need to track a client's ABN? Their preferred delivery day?Go to Settings > Properties. Create "Contact Properties" for any unique info you need to collect.
Warning: Keep it simple. Don't create 50 custom properties you'll never fill out. Start with the 5 most important pieces of data you need to close a sale.
Step 7: Import Your Existing Contacts
If you have a spreadsheet of leads, it's time to bring them in. Go to Contacts > Import. What you’ll see: An upload tool that asks you to map your spreadsheet columns to HubSpot properties. Ensure your "Email Address" column matches the HubSpot "Email" property, as this is the unique identifier HubSpot uses to prevent duplicate records.Step 8: Filter Your Views
Once your data is in, the default list can look cluttered. Click on Contacts and use the "Advanced Filters" to create a view for "My Brisbane Leads" or "Customers - Last Contacted > 30 days ago." Save these views as tabs at the top of your screen so you can access your priority lists with one click.Step 9: Set Up Your Meeting Link
Stop the back-and-forth "Are you free Tuesday?" emails. Go to Sales > Meetings. Connect your calendar and create a scheduling link. You can include this link in your email signature, allowing Australian prospects to book a discovery call directly into your calendar based on your real-time availability.Step 10: Create Your First Email Template
Do you find yourself typing the same "Thanks for your enquiry" email five times a day? Go to Library > Templates. Create a template for your most common responses. You can use "Tokens" to automatically pull in the contact's first name, making a mass-produced email feel personal.Step 11: Invite Your Team
If you have staff, add them now. Go to Settings > Users & Teams. Send them an invite. Common Mistake: Giving everyone "Super Admin" access. For security, only give team members the permissions they actually need to do their jobs. For example, a VA might only need "View" access to contacts but not the ability to export data.---
Pro Tips for Australian Small Businesses
- Mobile App: Download the HubSpot app on your phone. It’s excellent for logging notes via voice-to-text immediately after you leave a client meeting or a job site.
- ABN Tracking: Use a custom property for ABNs. When you're ready to move a lead to your accounting software (like Xero or MYOB), having that data ready saves a massive amount of time.
- The 2-Minute Rule: If a task takes less than two minutes (like logging a quick phone call note), do it immediately in the CRM. Data integrity is the difference between a useful CRM and an expensive digital filing cabinet.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Issue: Emails aren't logging in the CRM. Solution:* Check your "Never Log" list in Settings. Also, ensure the "Log" and "Track" boxes are ticked in your Gmail/Outlook HubSpot sidebar when you're composing an email. Issue: Duplicate contacts are appearing. Solution:* HubSpot deduplicates based on Email Address. If you have the same person with two different emails, they will show as two contacts. You can manually merge them by going to the contact record, clicking "Actions," and selecting "Merge." Issue: My import failed. Solution:* Usually, this is due to a formatting error in your CSV file. Ensure there are no special characters in the headers and that every row has an email address.---
Next Steps
Now that your CRM is live, your next goal should be automation.- Integrate your website forms: Connect your "Contact Us" form so website enquiries flow directly into HubSpot.
- Connect your socials: Link your Facebook or LinkedIn business pages to track ad performance.
Need help getting your CRM to talk to your website or setting up advanced sales sequences? The team at Local Marketing Group is here to help Australian businesses bridge the gap between technology and growth. Contact us today to book a CRM audit.