All New HubSpot CMS Starter! Here’s Why It’s Better Than WordPress

Just last week, HubSpot announced its introduction of HubSpot CMS Starter, and we couldn’t be more thrilled! It’s an economical content management system for companies that need to boost their online presence without breaking the bank. And even companies that already have a website can benefit from using it, too (we’ll share several potential use cases in a bit).

How much is HubSpot CMS Starter? It’s just $25 per month, making it an affordable way to get started with HubSpot, inbound marketing, and CRM-powered website personalization. Did we mention that it’s also superior to other inexpensive website options like WordPress?

Here’s why.

Why Use HubSpot CMS vs. WordPress?

Most companies think they should start with WordPress. After all, it seems like everyone else is doing it. But remember what mom always said about doing what all the other “cool” kids were doing? Looking back, you know your mom was right, and the same applies here.

WordPress is the most popular CMS, and it’s cheap. You can get started with a WordPress site with hosting for around $100. Sounds like a good deal, right? 

But, here is the issue … actually, many issues:

1. WordPress is difficult to work with. It is open-source, meaning it has thousands of independent developers working on it, and it can be modified or customized. While that seems like a positive, it can also be a huge negative with too many hands in the pot, varying quality, and innumerable updates that might break something. It can get messy. I’ve seen worse CMS backends, but there are better ones out there, including HubSpot’s.
2. Introduced in 2003, WordPress wasn’t built with inbound marketing in mind — inbound didn’t become mainstream until nearly a decade later. While it has evolved through the years and added features, it never caught up to the robust functionality of HubSpot’s all-in-one, CRM-powered platform that has kept a laser focus on inbound methodologies since day one.
3. Much of the functionality of WordPress is built with plugins and third-party downloads, each of which needs to be kept up to date. Miss an important update and your site will experience glitches and sluggish performance, or worse...
4. The biggest issue with plugins is that they expose your website to major security vulnerabilities. With such a large footprint and an almost infinite number of open source plugins, WordPress is very vulnerable to hacking.

FOR MORE FEATURE COMPARISONS:

Get our HubSpot vs. WordPress Comparison Guide

It’s not just WordPress; many open-source website options have similar issues. Other website providers like SquareSpace and Wix are nice for starting out, but they’re not meant for growing websites — or growing businesses — that might need to expand their online presence and capabilities.

What is HubSpot CMS Starter?

HubSpot has offered a stand-alone CMS package for a while now, but at $300 a month, it was prohibitively expensive for many smaller companies or those just starting an inbound journey.

Then, along came HubSpot CMS Starter, featuring drag and drop editing, flexible themes and free templates, local development, and more, for $25 per month. The platform takes care of maintenance and comes standard with an SSL certificate, 24/7 security monitoring, and web application firewall.

What’s pretty incredible is that it also includes HubSpot’s free and fully integrated customer relationship management (CRM) software, which allows you to truly leverage inbound for attracting, engaging, and delighting leads. With it, you can track emails and deals, schedule meetings, use chat functions, view reporting dashboards, and a lot more.

It does have some limitations (one blog feed and 15 pages) but, at only $25 a month, it is much more competitive with WordPress and other inexpensive solutions. 

Add in the rest of the free HubSpot tools, and you have a lot of possibilities.

7 Best Use Cases for HubSpot CMS Starter

At first glance, it may seem that HubSpot CMS Starter is too limited to benefit organizations with an established online presence or that already have a robust inbound program. That’s not necessarily the case. As promised, here are several ways to use the all-new HubSpot CMS Starter to either get started with an inbound program or to enhance your existing marketing efforts.

1. Start an inbound marketing launchpad website for your company. 

Many companies do not need a large website to start with. Once you see success with your Starter website as an entry point to HubSpot, you can expand into their larger CMS when needed.

LEARN MORE: What is Launchpad Site

2. Create a microsite for an event

Are you hosting a conference (in-person or virtual) or have a major product announcement? Consider using HubSpot Starter CMS as a microsite that you can link to from your main site.

3. Develop a subsite for a company division

Don’t have the ability to move your whole company to HubSpot? Perhaps you have a smaller division or brand that warrants its own online presence. You could move that particular division to HubSpot as a beta test to show how HubSpot’s functionality produces better results and finally prove to leadership that inbound is the way to go for the rest of your company.

4. Add a marketing-focused website

Support your company’s marketing efforts by having your new inbound blog, resources, videos, and other supporting content on their own domain or subdomain.

LEARN MORE about the power of Marketing Hub and CMS Hub when used together

5. Create a sales support website

Does your sales team struggle to keep all of its content and quote tools organized? Support them with a dedicated website containing all the documents and information they need to streamline their sales processes and wow their prospects.

6. Finally launch your company’s internal intranet

Enhancing your company’s culture and engagement is critical during a time when skilled labor is at a premium and good talent is being lured away by competitors. Keep everyone on your team on the same page with a company blog, announcements, general employee documents, and other information. 

7. Enhance your customer experience with a customer support site

Use the HubSpot CMS along with their free Service Hub tools (ticketing, email scheduling, live chat, shared inbox, and contact management). It’s a great way to elevate your customer service and track engagement so that no one falls through the cracks.

RELATED: Tips for Creating Meaningful Customer-Focused Marketing 

Ready to get started? Get in touch with us for a free consultation to talk through licensing and how to leverage HubSpot CMS Starter to its fullest. Still need convincing that HubSpot is right for your company? Then check out our resource below outlining why using HubSpot is possibly the best decision you could make to spur your company’s growth.