Right-Sizing HubSpot: How We Helped One Client Save $14K in Licence Fees Without Losing What Mattered

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The Problem

Pepper’s Personal Assistants was paying for HubSpot Marketing Professional and Sales Professional—a powerful combination built for teams running large-scale marketing automation alongside an active sales operation. On paper, it was a robust setup. In practice, only half of it was earning its keep.

Their marketing strategy had shifted. After switching agencies and losing the capacity to maintain it, close to 80% of the advanced marketing features were unused. The marketing side of the platform had become an expense rather than an engine, but the team still felt they were getting value from Sales Professional.

Pepper’s Personal Assistants’ team knew there were some superfluous features but weren’t sure where to draw the line and what to do about it. A full downgrade felt too drastic, but continuing to pay for unused marketing features didn’t make sense either. They reached out to Centric Squared for an honest assessment and a clear recommendation.

Rather than recommending an all-or-nothing change, we conducted a reality-check audit of Pepper’s Personal Assistants’ entire HubSpot portal—hub by hub. We took a close look at what they were actually using and, just as importantly, what they weren’t.

On the marketing side, we reviewed feature usage, automation dependencies, active workflows, and reporting. We assessed their existing content to see if it still aligned with their current business direction. At every step, we asked two questions: Is this adding value? and Could we simplify or improve this?

On the sales side, the picture was different. The team was actively using Sales Professional features. Sequences, custom deal reporting, and pipeline automation were part of their daily workflow. That tier was earning its keep.

The recommendation was nuanced: downgrade Marketing Hub from Professional to Starter, but keep Sales Hub Professional in place. This gave Pepper’s Personal Assistants the best of both worlds. They shed the marketing complexity and cost they weren’t using while protecting the sales tools their team relied on every day.

We helped them right-size their contract at renewal, ensuring the transition was seamless. More importantly, nothing was lost and nothing was broken.

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The Solution

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The Solution

Rather than recommending an all-or-nothing change, we conducted a reality-check audit of Pepper’s Personal Assistants’ entire HubSpot portal—hub by hub. We took a close look at what they were actually using and, just as importantly, what they weren’t.

On the marketing side, we reviewed feature usage, automation dependencies, active workflows, and reporting. We assessed their existing content to see if it still aligned with their current business direction. At every step, we asked two questions: Is this adding value? and Could we simplify or improve this?

On the sales side, the picture was different. The team was actively using Sales Professional features. Sequences, custom deal reporting, and pipeline automation were part of their daily workflow. That tier was earning its keep.

The recommendation was nuanced: downgrade Marketing Hub from Professional to Starter, but keep Sales Hub Professional in place. This gave Pepper’s Personal Assistants the best of both worlds. They shed the marketing complexity and cost they weren’t using while protecting the sales tools their team relied on every day.

We helped them right-size their contract at renewal, ensuring the transition was seamless. More importantly, nothing was lost and nothing was broken.

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The Results

By downgrading Marketing Hub from Professional to Starter—while keeping Sales Hub Professional—Pepper’s Personal Assistants achieved:

$14,000 in annual savings

Real budget freed up for other initiatives

Maintained full sales capability

Sales Professional stayed in place, so the team’s pipeline management, sequences, and reporting continued without interruption.

Kept core marketing functionality

The CRM, email marketing, and foundational marketing tools they relied on stayed fully intact.

Better tool-to-team fit

Each hub finally matched how that team actually worked, not a one-size-fits-all tier.

The downgrade didn’t sacrifice any of their capability. It simply eliminated waste while protecting their investment. Ultimately, Pepper’s Personal Assistants got a leaner marketing setup their team could confidently own, kept the sales tools that drove revenue, and put $14K back in their budget.