Switching marketing automation platforms often becomes necessary due to shifting business strategies, evolving needs, or the need for better features. As companies scale or refocus, many teams find that their current tools—like Marketo—no longer align with their goals.
For small to medium-sized businesses in particular, budget constraints, limited technical resources, and a lack of in-house expertise can lead to underutilized Marketo licenses. As a result, many consider moving to a more flexible yet easy-to-use platform like HubSpot.
That said, migrating CRM and marketing automation systems requires a thoughtful approach and shouldn’t be rushed. If done hastily, it can lead to broken workflows, data loss, and reporting issues. But with the right plan, it becomes an opportunity to streamline processes, clean up data, and implement automation that better supports your business.
Having led dozens of Marketo to HubSpot migrations, we understand how daunting the transition can be. But with careful planning, the process becomes manageable. This guide outlines each step of the Marketo to HubSpot migration journey to help you avoid common pitfalls and make the most of your move to HubSpot.
Why Teams Migrate from Marketo to HubSpot?
Marketo and HubSpot are both leading marketing automation platforms, each with their own strengths. Marketo is known for its robust capabilities in complex campaign orchestration, advanced lead scoring, and enterprise-level integrations. It's a powerful tool especially for large organizations with dedicated technical teams.
However, for many small to mid-sized companies, or even lean enterprise teams, Marketo can feel overly complex, resource-intensive, and reliant on technical support for day-to-day management.
HubSpot offers a more streamlined, user-friendly experience. Its intuitive interface, native CRM, and integrated tools for marketing, sales, and service make it easier for teams to execute campaigns without constant IT involvement. It also tends to be more cost-efficient, especially for organizations looking to consolidate tools and reduce overhead.
Common reasons teams migrate from Marketo to HubSpot include:
- A simpler, more intuitive interface for non-technical users
- Lower total cost of ownership
- Built-in CRM and scalable automation
- Easier campaign setup and management
- Improved alignment between marketing, sales, and service
- Strong analytics and customizable reporting without add-ons
- All-in-one platform that reduces integration overhead
- Native scalability for lead scoring, workflows, and reporting
Pitfalls and Challenges in Migrating from Marketo to HubSpot
Migrating from Marketo to HubSpot offers clear advantages, but it also comes with several pitfalls and challenges that can disrupt operations if not properly addressed. The process goes far beyond simply moving data and involves reestablishing your marketing strategy, automation logic, and technology stack within a new platform.
One common pitfall is the loss or corruption of data during the transition. Marketo and HubSpot use different data structures, so contact fields, custom objects, and engagement data may not map directly. If not handled carefully, this can lead to missing fields, broken filters, or reporting discrepancies in HubSpot.
Another major challenge is replicating workflows and automations. Marketo often hosts complex, nested logic built over time, and HubSpot’s system—while intuitive—requires these processes to be rebuilt, not copied. Overlooking dependencies such as hidden fields, scoring criteria, or triggered actions can result in broken campaigns or failed lead routing after migration.
Integration gaps also pose a significant risk. Many organizations rely on third-party tools like CRMs, event platforms, or enrichment services integrated with Marketo. While HubSpot offers a robust app ecosystem, not every tool behaves the same way or has an equivalent integration. If compatibility isn’t evaluated ahead of time, it could lead to disconnected systems or unexpected behavior post-migration.
Then there’s the challenge of user adoption. HubSpot is known for its user-friendly design, but teams familiar with Marketo may still face a learning curve. Without proper onboarding and role-specific training, teams may underuse new capabilities or struggle to rebuild their workflows effectively.
In short, the most common pitfalls and challenges include:
- Data mismatches due to schema incompatibility
- Loss of automation logic and hidden dependencies
- Gaps or changes in integration behavior
- Incomplete transfer of engagement history and lead scores
- Delayed adoption from untrained users
Understanding these issues upfront allows you to build a migration strategy that prioritizes data integrity, functional parity, and team readiness. Addressing each of these areas proactively can help towards a smoother transition and optimal HubSpot adoption.
Pre-Migration Checklist
Before diving into the technical work of migration, take the time to prepare thoroughly. A well-structured plan reduces stress, prevents costly mistakes, shortens the timeline, and helps you make the most of your investment in HubSpot. Here’s how to set a strong foundation for your transition:
1. Audit Your Existing Marketo Setup
Begin by conducting a full audit of your Marketo instance. The goal is to understand what you currently have, what should be migrated, and what can be retired. Key areas to review include:
- Assets and Content: This includes active landing pages, emails, forms, lists, and engagement programs. Determine which assets are still relevant and which are outdated.
- Critical Workflows: Identify key automations, such as lead scoring models, routing rules, nurture tracks, and triggered campaigns, that need to be rebuilt in HubSpot.
- Custom Data Structures: Review custom fields, tags, segmentations, and tokens. Document how they’re used across assets and whether they need to be recreated in HubSpot.
- Campaign Dependencies: Flag workflows or campaigns that rely on external integrations, webhooks, or custom scripts. These may need reconfiguration or replacement.
- Performance Benchmarks: Record current engagement and conversion metrics. This provides a baseline for evaluating HubSpot performance post-migration and helps you replicate what’s working.
2. Back Up Your Data
Even if you plan to use automated migration tools or services, manually backing up your data is critical. Export:
- Contact lists and segmentation logic
- Form submissions and download history
- Email and campaign performance metrics
- Lead scores and lifecycle stages
- Workflow documentation and campaign logic
This backup ensures you have access to historical data for validation, compliance, and internal reference even if something is lost or changed during the migration.
3. Define Your Migration Objectives
Clearly define what success looks like in HubSpot so the transition supports your long-term goals.
- Why are we migrating? Common reasons include reducing platform complexity, improving team adoption, lowering costs, or achieving better sales and marketing alignment.
- What do we want to improve? Examples include easier reporting, simplified lead flows, faster campaign launches, or tighter integration with CRM and sales tools.
- What do we want to leave behind? Outdated assets, complex logic that’s no longer needed, or underused fields that clutter reports.
Establish clear KPIs (e.g., improved email engagement, shorter lead response time) to track progress post-migration.
4. Define the Scope, Timeline, and Team
Without clear scope and ownership, migrations can drag out or go off-track. Set clear expectations around:
- What will be migrated: Will you move everything, or just high-value campaigns and active assets? Are historical metrics and engagement logs necessary?
- When it will happen: Set a phased timeline including planning, migration, testing, team training, and final launch. Factor in time for review and stakeholder feedback.
- Who is responsible: Identify a cross-functional migration team. Assign a project lead to coordinate activities and approvals.
- What to expect during migration: While the goal is a smooth transition, temporary downtime or reduced functionality may occur. Communicate this early to internal teams and stakeholders to avoid confusion and reduce the risk of disrupted workflows or customer impact.
Migration Requirements
To ensure a smooth process, gather the following:
Access & Credentials
- Admin-level access to both Marketo and HubSpot
- Access to connected tools (e.g., Salesforce, Drift, ZoomInfo)
Documentation
- Lists of workflows, campaigns, lifecycle stages, and scoring logic
- Naming conventions for assets
- Dashboards or reports you need replicated in HubSpot
Internal Resources
- A point of contact for decisions and questions
- Stakeholders available for feedback and testing
- Team members ready to attend training sessions
Step-by-Step Migration Process
Once you’ve completed your planning and prep work, it’s time to execute the migration itself. The process must be structured to minimize disruption, avoid data loss, and ensure continuity in your campaigns.
1. Clean Up Your Data
Start by cleaning your database. HubSpot charges based on the number of marketing contacts, so removing unnecessary or low-quality records can directly reduce your costs and improve overall platform performance.
- Consolidate overlapping or fragmented lists and segmentation rules.
- Identify and delete duplicate records, invalid email addresses, and unengaged leads.
- Archive or remove old assets such as outdated landing pages, emails, or forms that no longer align with your current strategy.
- Review subscription preferences and compliance-related data (e.g., GDPR consent) to ensure all records are valid and usable.
This is your chance to reset and ensure only clean, relevant, and compliant data makes its way into HubSpot.
2. Map Data Fields
Data in Marketo and HubSpot isn’t always structured the same way. Proper data mapping is crucial to avoid misclassification and maintain accurate reporting. Before importing anything, you’ll need to align your data fields and business rules.
- Identify the core fields in your Marketo database—name, company, job title, source, lifecycle stage, etc.—and map them to existing or newly created properties in HubSpot.
- Recreate any custom fields or dropdown values manually in HubSpot to preserve segmentation and personalization capabilities.
- Translate Marketo’s lead scoring logic into HubSpot’s scoring model, adjusting for differences in how each platform handles scoring rules, decay, and thresholds.
3. Choose Your Migration Method
There are several ways to migrate your assets and data. The best migration approach depends on your database size, automation complexity, and available resources. Manual migration works well for small, simple setups but can be time-consuming. Automated tools assist with bulk transfers, but may overlook complex campaign logic or customizations. Expert-assisted migration is ideal for organizations with advanced workflows or critical campaigns. Consultants or HubSpot Solutions Partners can help rebuild Marketo logic using HubSpot’s native features.
4. Migrate in Phases
Avoid migrating everything at once. A phased approach helps maintain business continuity and allows for easier troubleshooting. Break down complex workflows into smaller parts and test each component before going live.
- Phase 1: Start with the basics—contacts, forms, landing pages, and simple email templates. Get these live first and check if they’re working properly.
- Phase 2: Move on to more advanced elements like lead scoring models, workflow automations, and smart lists or dynamic segments.
- Phase 3: Handle integrations with other tools (e.g., CRM, enrichment platforms), set up custom reports and dashboards, and replicate any custom objects if needed.
5. Test and Validate
Quality assurance is a critical part of migration. You need to ensure data integrity and system functionality before launch. Verify that all data transferred correctly by spot-checking contact records, form submissions, email performance history, and list memberships.
Test workflows to ensure logic executes as expected—lead routing, scoring, follow-up emails, and triggers should all behave properly. Conducting internal user acceptance testing (UAT) by involving marketers and sales reps can also help uncover gaps or issues early. Don’t rush this phase as thorough testing now prevents performance issues later.
6. Train and Onboard Your Team
Even though HubSpot is considered more intuitive than Marketo, your team will still need time and support to adapt. Plan for role-based onboarding sessions tailored to marketing, sales, and operations users. Provide documentation with clear screenshots and step-by-step instructions for common tasks. Offer launch-week support and Q&A sessions to address real-time questions. The more confident your team becomes with the platform, the better they can maximize the value of your migration investment.
7. Launch and Monitor
Once everything is in place, you’re ready to launch. But the work doesn’t stop there—monitor closely and be ready to make adjustments. Use dashboards to track early performance indicators like email open rates, form conversions, and pipeline creation. Watch for unexpected behavior in workflows, sync delays with integrations, or gaps in reporting. Collect feedback from internal users regularly and iterate on processes and automation flows as needed.
Post-Migration Optimization
After the migration, your focus should shift toward refining your processes, enhancing user adoption, and leveraging HubSpot’s full potential.
Start by auditing your data regularly, especially during the first month. This helps catch any discrepancies or overlooked details that may have slipped through during the migration.
It’s also essential to revisit and refine your lifecycle stages and lead management workflows. Even if you’ve mapped these during the migration, HubSpot’s structure and best practices may offer better ways to streamline lead flows, scoring models, and automation logic.
Encourage your team to use HubSpot Academy’s free training to stay up to date and build confidence with new features. Engage with HubSpot’s active user community through forums, webinars, and user groups to share insights and stay informed about best practices and platform updates.
Team feedback is invaluable during this stage. Your users interact with HubSpot daily and can highlight friction points, missed opportunities, or areas for improvement that aren't visible from a technical or strategic level. In parallel, keep a close eye on your performance metrics. Monitor campaign results, engagement trends, and conversion rates to establish new benchmarks and compare them to your pre-migration data.
Unlocking long-term success with HubSpot comes from tailoring your processes to fit its ecosystem, rather than trying to replicate Marketo’s setup exactly. Leverage HubSpot's unique strengths to optimize your workflows and drive better results. Finally, revisit your original goals. Reflect on why you migrated in the first place and assess whether your current use of HubSpot is helping you meet those objectives. Regular check-ins with your strategic goals ensure your HubSpot implementation continues to deliver value as your business grows and evolves.
When to Bring in Experts
There are times when bringing in expert MarTech support is the smart move, especially if your migration involves complex workflows, custom APIs, or limited internal resources. Professional help can ensure a smooth transition while also offering strategic improvements rather than just replicating what you had.
At SR Pro Marketing, we assist clients not only with transferring data and workflows but also with enhancing their marketing automation setup during the move. Our focus is on preserving the integrity of user experiences while helping teams improve logic, engagement strategies, and cross-functional alignment as they transition to HubSpot.
Conclusion: A Successful Migration Sets the Stage for Growth
A successful migration unlocks the full potential of HubSpot’s marketing and sales capabilities. Moving from Marketo to HubSpot offers a fresh start with streamlined automation, cleaner data, and improved team collaboration. However, achieving success requires careful planning, seamless coordination, and expert support.
With the right approach, you’ll avoid pitfalls and lay the foundation for long-term growth, maximizing your investment and driving better results across your marketing efforts.
Thinking about a Marketo to HubSpot migration? With in-depth knowledge of both Marketo and HubSpot, we assist business of all sizes in navigating platform transitions and automation strategy. Whether you need a full-service migration or strategic guidance, our team is here to make your transition seamless. Let’s make your migration a win. Contact us today and learn more about how we can help.