How to Master the HubSpot Salesforce Sync

The importance of the HubSpot Integration User

With any implementation of HubSpot-Salesforce, an Integration User needs to be set up in Salesforce, which will require a license. We call this selective sync. We recommend setting up this user as per the HubSpot help article here, and also setting up a HubSpot integration user-specific profile.

The integration user is what connects HubSpot to Sales Cloud. If the integration user cannot edit or view a record, this means HubSpot cannot edit or view that record. This includes new Leads! 

Think of the integration user like a bridge. Most companies want two-way traffic that allows either side to send things either way. Some businesses will only allow one-way traffic (read-only).

If, for whatever reason, this hypothetical bridge has a lane closure (custom restriction), it means that vehicles (data) cannot move to the other side. The vehicle still exists, but it cannot travel to the other side, which means the other side will only hold information from when it last saw it! This can create blind spots and out-of-sync data. It is important to ensure the integration user can see everything they need to see for both systems to work properly.

Within the context of lead assignment, this is why the HubSpot-Salesforce integration is so important to get right, because we cannot risk losing leads due to data sync issues!

HubSpot Inclusion Lists / Inclusion Segment

By default, all records in HubSpot will sync to Sales Cloud unless we configure the settings (via inclusion list or selective sync).

This is why we often set up an ‘inclusion list’ via the Salesforce connector, because it will limit what can sync between HubSpot and Salesforce. 

To clarify, if the Contact is not in the Inclusion List the record will not sync between Hubspot and Salesforce. I’ll say that again - not being on the Inclusion List prevents the record from syncing in either direction, effectively pausing synchronisation.

This list is an active list in HubSpot (so it regularly updates) that limits the data that can flow between HubSpot and Salesforce. 

A reason to use this might be to prevent any cold, un-nurtured Leads from syncing across into Salesforce. You may only want to push MQLs across to the sales team (see example further down in the blog).

In simple terms, an inclusion list is what limits data from HubSpot to Sales Cloud. 

The Integration User is what allows Sales Cloud data to sync back into HubSpot.

Some marketing teams will not want to have, e.g, 1,000 records in HubSpot that align with 1,000 records in Sales Cloud. The reason for this is that most Leads require nurturing before passing over to Sales as an MQL.

To ensure we do not automatically sync over every record in HubSpot, we might decide that (based on default lifecycle stages) Subscribers and Leads can stay in HubSpot, and only when they proceed past the MQL stage, can they sync to Salesforce. This might look like this:

Your active Inclusion List should be defined and amended based on your own business needs.

Triggering Lead Assignment from HubSpot to Salesforce

Using the example above, to trigger assignment in Sales Cloud, all we would need to do is ensure the Contact is moved beyond the MQL lifecycle stage. 

It’s a little bit like auto-blocking with some cookie consent management tools. Once cookies are accepted and the block is lifted, it allows all of the cookies to flow through.

Because the Contact will be added to the active Inclusion List, it will open the doors to Sales Cloud and be let in. 

This is where we start to look at how records are actually assigned.

HubSpot can overwrite Lead/Contact Owner by default

Out of the box, the Contact Owner is a two-way sync between systems. This means that HubSpot can overwrite the Lead/Contact owner in Salesforce. 

Pardot users should take note of this because it is a different sync behaviour from what they are used to. In Pardot, once a Lead/Contact is assigned in Salesforce, nothing can be changed from the Pardot side. In HubSpot, it can. 

If you do not want to use HubSpot to assign or re-assign Leads/Contacts, the easiest way to implement this is behaviorally. Make sure users do not add assignment logic to any automation in HubSpot - easy as that!

However, to implement a workaround one-way relationship for Contact Owner where Salesforce is the master record holder, we would need to have unmapped users in HubSpot. This is because if HubSpot attempts to sync an owner that doesn't exist in Salesforce, the Owner ID field will reset to the last value from Salesforce. In other words, it will remain the user we assigned to in Salesforce. 

All Salesforce users can sync to HubSpot (via integration user), but only mapped HubSpot users can sync back into the Salesforce Contact Owner field (lead assignment). So, if you do not want HubSpot reassigning Leads/Contacts, we need to ensure specific HubSpot users are not mapped to Salesforce.

Allow Salesforce to drive assignment logic

When a new contact syncs from HubSpot to Salesforce without a pre-assigned HubSpot owner, Salesforce’s assignment logic will take over - Assuming the contact meets your inclusion list criteria (if you have one configured)

Whether the user exists in HubSpot or not, they will appear as the owner on the Contact in HubSpot. 

Be careful when relying on a new Salesforce active assignment rule because if an unassigned Contact in HubSpot triggers a sync and it doesn’t meet the criteria of Salesforce’s assignment rule, it will default to assigning to the integration user.

So, if you have correctly set up an integration user with the name ‘HubSpot Integration’, you could easily create a view to see if this is happening as part of your HubSpot-Salesforce implementation.

Using HubSpot for Automated Lead Assignment

If we want to lean on HubSpot for lead assignment, the first step is to make sure you have defined your assignment logic so you know how to use branches within Workflows:

Next, you need to make sure that the assignment happens prior to the record syncing with Salesforce. 

Will you lean on Salesforce notifications or HubSpot to alert the salesperson?

Using our example using lifecycle stages above, it means we need to assign to a user before the Contact reaches the MQL stage (the Inclusion List). Otherwise, Salesforce assignment logic will trigger first, and HubSpot will overwrite the outcome of that decision.

In practice, if we want to assign via HubSpot once someone reaches over 100 points,  it might look something like the below, where we assign first and update the lifecycle stage second: 

• The first time a contact syncs from HubSpot to Salesforce, the owner is determined by whichever system assigns it first.

• HubSpot's Salesforce connector checks for changes approximately every 15 minutes or instantly when triggered by a record update.

• As HubSpot uses the email address as the primary key, if it does not find a corresponding Lead/Contact record in Salesforce, it will create a new Lead (assuming it meets the criteria of the Inclusion List if there is one). 

• If your HubSpot-created leads are assigned an owner in HubSpot before syncing to Salesforce, Salesforce detects that an owner is already assigned and won't run the active assignment rule.

If lead assignment feels like more headache than help, you’re not alone, and it doesn’t have to be that way. At MarCloud, we help teams streamline their sync setup, so leads flow where they should, automatically. No more manual fixes, missed opportunities, or confused sales reps.

Get in touch with our team to chat about your setup, no jargon, no pressure, just expert advice to make your marketing automation finally work the way it should.