HubSpot buyer intent shows which companies are shopping for what you sell
Buyers often read your site for weeks before they call. HubSpot buyer intent shows you which companies are looking and which pages they read. We set it up so each rep gets a short list of companies worth calling this week.
Free, 30 minutes, and you'll leave with at least one clear next step.
- Hub
- Marketing, Sales, Service, Data or Content Hub
- Plan needed
- Starter and up (Revenue Hub: Professional and up)
- Status
- Generally available
Tracked companies use HubSpot credits each month
What signals does buyer intent show?
Visitor intent
HubSpot matches anonymous website visits to the company behind them, using the visitor's internet address. You see how often they came, how many people from that company visited and which pages they read.
Research intent
Shows companies researching topics you choose across the web, even if they haven't found your site yet. You pick topics that match what you sell.
News signals
Flags company news like funding, new executives, layoffs, product launches and mergers. A new leader in the buying seat or a fresh round of funding is often a good reason to call.
What does buyer intent cost?
Buyer intent runs on HubSpot credits, a usage allowance that comes with your plan. You use credits when you add a company and start tracking it, then every month while you keep tracking it. HubSpot's credit rate sheet sets how many.
So the credits you use grow with every company you track. Your plan includes some credits each month. Check how many you have, the current rate, and what extra credits cost on HubSpot's pricing page, before you track hundreds of companies.
Custom signals, still in beta, use more credits per company, and each signal you add uses more again. Creating company records from HubSpot's market segments, also in beta, uses credits for each record.
Limits to plan around
- Seeing more than 20 companies in a view requires credits
- You can exclude up to 100 companies, such as current customers or competitors
- The timeframe filter goes back 90 days
- Auto-add only picks up companies that enter a view after you turn it on, so older matches have to be added by hand
- Matching by internet address tends to work for people on an office network, and less often for people browsing from home or on a phone
Is buyer intent worth the credits?
Worth paying for when
- You sell to a defined list of companies, such as mid-size firms in a few regions or a set of large accounts
- Your site gets steady traffic from business visitors
- Reps have time to follow up within a few days
- You can name the topics your buyers research before they buy
Hold off for now when
- Most of your buyers are consumers or one-person shops
- Your site gets little traffic, so there's not much to match
- Follow-up has no owner, so signals would sit unread
- Your company records are full of duplicates, so tracked companies won't line up with the right rep
Turning signals into calls
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Define who's worth tracking
We start with your best customers and build a target list from what they have in common, such as industry, size and region. Current customers and competitors go on the exclusion list.
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Pick the pages and topics that signal buying
A visit to your pricing, contact or product detail pages means more than a visit to your careers page. We agree which pages and research topics count, so the list shows companies researching a purchase.
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Set a credit budget
We work out how many companies you can track with the credits you have. The lists are set up so you don't spend credits on companies you'd never call.
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Route signals to the right rep
We tie each tracked company to an owner and set up tasks or alerts, so a signal turns into a call. Where it fits, signals can also feed the Prospecting Agent or your lead scores.
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Review after the first month
We look at which signals led to sales conversations and trim the rest. Reps trust a short list more than a long one.
Examples by industry
A software or services firm sees three people from a target account read its pricing page in one week, with no form filled out. The account owner gets a task with the pages listed, so the call starts in the right place.
A manufacturer tracks its target accounts and gets a news signal that one just hired a new head of purchasing. That's a good week to ask for a meeting.
An online brand with a wholesale arm spots retailers browsing its wholesale pages and passes them to whoever runs those accounts. Our industry pages go deeper on each.
What buyer intent can't see
Buyer intent tells you who's looking. It doesn't know what they bought from you before, or whether they're late to buy again. That history often lives in your accounting or order system. Say you want to flag a lapsed customer who's back on your site. That means combining signals with purchase history, which is custom AI workflow work. The result lands in HubSpot for your reps.
For filling in details on the companies you find, see data enrichment, which doesn't use credits.
Buyer intent questions
How does HubSpot know which company visited my site?
It matches the visitor's internet address to a company. That tends to work for people on an office network and less often for people at home or on a phone. Treat it as a strong hint, and expect gaps.
When does buyer intent start using credits?
When you add a company and start tracking it, and then each month while you keep tracking it. Custom signals, in beta, use more credits per company for each signal. HubSpot's credit rate sheet has the current rates.
Can we use buyer intent on a Starter plan?
Yes. It works on Starter, Professional or Enterprise of Marketing Hub, Sales Hub, Service Hub, Data Hub and Content Hub. On Revenue Hub it needs Professional or Enterprise. Either way, you need HubSpot credits to track companies.
Can I see every company that visits my website?
No. A view shows up to 20 companies unless you use credits, and address matching can't identify every visitor. You'll see a useful share of business visitors, which is plenty if you focus on the right companies.
How far back can I see intent data?
The timeframe filter goes back 90 days. Auto-add only picks up companies that enter a view after you turn it on.
Does buyer intent work with the Prospecting Agent?
They work well together. The Prospecting Agent watches target companies for buying signals and drafts outreach for reps to review. Buyer intent is a good way to decide which companies it should watch.
Is buyer intent useful for a small company?
It can be, if your site gets steady visits from companies you'd sell to. If traffic is low or most visitors are consumers, there won't be enough to match, and the credits are better spent elsewhere.
Related
Check whether your site traffic is worth tracking
Bring your site traffic and your follow-up process to the call. We'll tell you whether buyer intent is worth the credits for your team, and which companies to track first.