Dynamic Pages Powered By CRM Objects

For businesses that have a constantly updating page of products or services, keeping your website up to date can be almost impossible.

Not only do you have to update the website, but you also need to ensure that everything connected to that webpage is correctly configured.

When someone fills out a form saying they want to speak with a sales rep about a specific order, is it sending the correct information in the confirmation email? Is it routing to the correct sales rep’s calendar?

Depending on your inventory flow, these small updates can really add up.

To make this change on your website, you’re likely cloning an existing page and making updates throughout, hoping you don’t miss any details. Or you might even have to gather the information and assets and send them to a development team to update. And then you’re left waiting for the changes to be implemented.

It should be easier, right?

After all, all this information already exists in your customer relationship management (CRM) or enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Why reinvent the wheel?

That’s where HubSpot’s dynamic pages come in. Dynamic pages are developed with modules that are populated by information already in your CRM. This information is called an "object."

How Do Dynamic CRM Pages Work?

Dynamic pages are designed and coded like any other custom website page. But certain content or information on the website page is taken directly from the CRM record and reflected on the live website.

For our manufacturing client, website pages that show products have product descriptions, images, specifications and potentially pricing.

For the website developer, they’ll build the pages with specific modules with "objects" that reference the information in your CRM or ERP, like "{product.name} {product.description} {product.specs}."

When your prospects visit the website, they’ll see the part name, description and specifications. These variables can be used throughout the page to create a remarkably personalized experience. The more you know about your visitors, the more you can personalize website pages just for them. 

80% of people are more likely to do business with a company that offers personalized experiences, Epsilon research reports.

You can do the same. You just need to create the record with the right information, and a few clicks later, you can have a dynamic page with all the right information. It’ll also automatically populate on the listing page, too.

When Should I Use A Dynamic Page?

If you need to create a lot of pages that have a standard format, dynamic pages will save you time in the long run. Additionally, if you want to simplify your tech stack and integrate services, HubSpot may have the ability to bring your teams and data together.

Let’s say you run a consulting/training business with a variable number of training sessions each month. You need to be able to remove out-of-date or sold-out sessions and publish new ones while keeping your registration, payments processor and CRM data flowing seamlessly.

Those event listings all need to have the class location, instructor, fee and description. Maybe you want members to be able to sign up without seeing the payment page or you want to send an email to certain members with the new session offering before everyone else.

When you have a dynamic CRM page, you would simply create a new record for each training session with all the fields that display on the page.

Simply type in the name, choose the date and set the price. In a few clicks, you’ll have a beautiful webpage published on your website and added to your session listing page – with no design or development time needed.

Because these pages are all built on the HubSpot CMS, they work seamlessly with your contact records, workflows and other HubSpot tools. For instance, you may be able to use HubSpot Payments to power the checkout process, which will automatically log to the associated deal and can be used in workflow automation to trigger other actions.

You can even go to the next level with custom-developed “programmable” email templates, which automatically pull in related listings and send automated emails to prospects.

How Do I Get Started With Dynamic Pages?

Unlike a drag-and-drop template, a dynamic page takes a bit more legwork to get set up.

First, you’ll want to think strategically. What information needs to be included on the page? Are there any areas that you need to show for some listings but not others? And what actions need to be taken after a product or service is purchased? Should the page be visible to certain groups but not others?

Your operations team will set up the custom object and properties that should be included on the pages. They will also build automation to scale. There are a number of ways to automatically trigger a set of emails based on the action someone takes on your website. 

Again, the more personalized the experience, the more leads, the more sales opportunities, the shorter your sales cycle and the higher your close rate.

Next, you’ll move to the design phase. You’ll need a design for the individual pages as well as a listing page. The listing page is just like a blog listing page and can display a set number of sections, each with a photo, title and description. Each listing automatically links to its own page.

Don’t forget to mock up the mobile device designs for both the listing and page, too.

The design will then move on to development. The developers will need the internal names of the properties that need to be displayed in each section of the page. The developers will work with both design and operations to ensure that the functionality is working as planned and expected.

Finally, it’s time to test. You want to ensure that the pages are fully QA (quality assurance) tested, the workflows run as intended and any connected services (emails, tickets and chat, to name a few) are all working properly.

Don't forget to also consider internal processes. When someone creates a new record or updates a deal, are all the fields you need for the page required? Should someone get notified when a page gets published?

Once all these pieces are tied together, your team can work quickly to update the website in just a few clicks. A developed dynamic CRM template gives your marketers the power to get work done without being held up by design, development, testing and approvals.

So many industries and businesses can benefit from a CRM-powered page. Here are just some of the use cases:

• Building an LMS (learning management system) with members-only classes
• Selling parts for manufacturing businesses
• Sharing real estate and property management listings
• Managing inventory for large, diversified manufacturers
• Adding an e-commerce channel to your existing direct and/or distributor sales models

Dynamic pages are just one way your website, marketing efforts and CRM data can work together to power revenue, streamline processes and engage your customers. Take advantage of the tools you’ve already invested in and boost your business to the next level.