How Hubspot Uses the 3 Cs of Social Media Marketing

The classic 3 Cs of social media marketing—content, community, and commerce—are at the core of how Hubspot has historically approached social networks to build relationships and support business growth.

This guide breaks down each C, explains how they work together, and shows you how to adapt the original Hubspot framework to your own social media strategy today.

Overview of the Hubspot 3 Cs Framework

The original article from Hubspot’s blog on the 3 Cs of social media marketing outlined a simple model that still applies:

• Content attracts and educates.
• Community engages and retains.
• Commerce converts interest into revenue.

Instead of treating social media as a broadcast channel, this model encourages you to design your presence around helpful content, real conversations, and a clear but respectful path to purchase.

Hubspot Content Strategy: Lead With Value

The first C—content—is the foundation. In the original framework, Hubspot emphasized using social media to share information that your audience genuinely wants, not just promotional updates.

Define your audience and problems

Start by clarifying who you serve and what challenges they face. Use simple questions:

• What topics do they research before buying?
• What common mistakes or misconceptions do they have?
• What shortcuts, templates, or checklists would save them time?

Your answers become the creative brief for your content calendar.

Create educational, repeatable content formats

Adapt the educational focus that made Hubspot content effective:

• How-to threads and posts that walk through a process step-by-step.
• Short explainer videos that break down one key idea at a time.
• Visual summaries such as diagrams, carousels, and simple charts.
• Curated links with commentary that add context and opinion.

Keep each post focused on one clear takeaway. The goal is to earn attention by solving a small problem every time someone sees your brand in their feed.

Plan a consistent publishing rhythm

A simple weekly schedule inspired by the original Hubspot approach might look like this:

1. 2–3 educational posts that teach a concept or tactic.
2. 1–2 engagement posts with questions or polls.
3. 1 promotional post that invites people to a resource, demo, or offer.

Consistency matters more than volume. Choose a pace that you can maintain for months rather than days.

Hubspot Community Strategy: Build Real Engagement

The second C—community—is about conversation, not just audience size. The original Hubspot article stressed that social media works best when you treat it as a place to interact, not a megaphone.

Turn channels into two-way conversations

To turn your followers into a real community, focus on behaviors like these:

• Reply quickly to comments and mentions with specific, thoughtful answers.
• Ask open-ended questions that invite stories and opinions.
• Highlight your audience by sharing user-generated content and wins.
• Thank people publicly for feedback, even when it includes criticism.

This two-way style of communication was central to the early social media tactics described by Hubspot and still builds trust today.

Design recurring community touchpoints

Create predictable moments when your audience knows they can interact with you:

• Weekly Q&A threads on LinkedIn, X, or Facebook.
• Live office hours on YouTube, Instagram, or another platform.
• Recurring prompts such as “Monday Wins” or “Friday Challenges.”

These recurring formats train your audience to participate and gradually turn passive followers into active community members.

Measure real community signals

Beyond likes or follower counts, track deeper indicators of the kind of community growth that the Hubspot framework encourages:

• Meaningful comments and discussions.
• Shares with personal endorsements.
• Repeat interactions from the same people.
• Direct messages that reference your posts.

Use these signals to learn what topics resonate and where your brand is truly adding value.

Hubspot Commerce Strategy: Convert Without Pushing

The third C—commerce—connects your social media work to measurable business outcomes. The original Hubspot thinking framed social channels as a bridge from education to purchase, not a place for constant hard selling.

Map a gentle social-to-sales journey

Design a simple journey:

1. Discover: Someone finds one of your helpful posts.
2. Engage: They follow, comment, or click to learn more.
3. Evaluate: They consume a deeper resource, such as a guide or webinar.
4. Decide: They book a call, start a trial, or purchase.

Each stage should have clear, low-friction calls to action that feel like the logical next step, not a sudden sales pitch.

Use content and community to enable buying

Combine the first two Cs to support commerce:

• Educational content addresses objections and explains outcomes.
• Community interactions provide social proof and peer validation.
• Case studies and success stories show real-world results.

This mirrors how Hubspot historically used its own content and user community to generate qualified leads and product demand.

Track the right conversion metrics

Instead of treating clicks alone as success, go deeper with metrics such as:

• Leads or sign-ups generated from specific posts or campaigns.
• Demo or consultation bookings sourced from social media.
• Trials started or purchases completed after social interactions.

Connect these numbers to revenue so you can clearly see how your social efforts support the third C of commerce.

Adapting the Hubspot 3 Cs to Your Business

To make the 3 Cs model actionable, work through it in a structured way and document each step for your team.

Step 1: Audit your current presence

Review your last 30–60 days of social activity and ask:

• What percentage of posts are promotional versus educational?
• Which posts generated real discussion?
• Are there clear paths from your content to offers?

This quick audit reveals whether your current efforts are balanced across content, community, and commerce.

Step 2: Create a 3 Cs content calendar

Build a simple calendar that tags each planned post as one or more of the 3 Cs. Aim for a mix such as:

• 60–70% content-focused posts.
• 20–30% community-focused posts.
• 10–20% commerce-focused posts.

Adjust the exact percentages based on your industry and goals while keeping the overall structure inspired by the Hubspot model.

Step 3: Systematize engagement and follow-up

Assign ownership for community and conversion tasks:

• Who responds to comments and messages?
• Who monitors potential leads from social interactions?
• Who tracks the numbers and reports results?

Document simple, repeatable workflows so your team can execute the 3 Cs reliably every week.

Next Steps: Implement the Hubspot 3 Cs in Your Strategy

The 3 Cs framework from the original Hubspot article remains a practical checklist for modern social media:

• Are you publishing useful, consistent content?
• Are you nurturing a genuine community?
• Are you creating clear, respectful paths to commerce?

If you want expert help operationalizing this framework—especially around analytics, SEO, or conversion optimization—consider partnering with a specialist agency like Consultevo to accelerate implementation and measurement.

By aligning your social media activity with these three pillars, you can build a presence that not only attracts attention but also builds relationships and drives sustainable revenue.

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