Advocacy Marketing Strategies Inspired by Hubspot

Successful brands like Hubspot show that turning satisfied customers into active advocates is one of the most powerful ways to grow trust, loyalty, and revenue. This guide walks you through what advocacy marketing is, why it works, and how to build your own scalable program.

Advocacy marketing goes beyond basic satisfaction. It focuses on motivating customers to speak positively about your brand, share content, create referrals, and influence new buyers at every stage of the journey.

What Is Advocacy Marketing?

Advocacy marketing is a strategy that encourages your happiest customers to promote your products or services voluntarily. Rather than relying only on ads, you leverage real experiences and relationships to influence new prospects.

Common forms of advocacy include:

• Word-of-mouth recommendations to peers
• Online reviews and ratings
• Social media posts and shares
• Testimonials and case studies
• Referrals and introductions

Because the message comes from a trusted peer instead of the brand itself, advocacy feels more authentic and credible.

Why Advocacy Marketing Works: Lessons from Hubspot

Modern buyers rely heavily on the opinions of others. The approach used by brands such as Hubspot shows that advocacy marketing works because it taps into three core drivers:

1. Trust: People trust their colleagues, friends, and networks far more than ads.
2. Social proof: Seeing others succeed with a product reduces perceived risk.
3. Community: Advocates feel part of something bigger than a simple transaction.

When you design programs that reward, recognize, and empower advocates, you can lower acquisition costs and increase customer lifetime value without aggressively pushing promotions.

Essential Elements of a Hubspot-Style Advocacy Program

To build an effective advocacy marketing program, you need a clear structure. Below are the key components commonly seen in successful, Hubspot-inspired strategies.

1. Clear Goals and KPIs

Start with specific outcomes you want from advocacy activities. Examples include:

• Number of new customer referrals per quarter
• Volume and quality of reviews on key platforms
• Increase in social media mentions and shares
• Number of customer stories or case studies published

Define how you will track and attribute results from advocate-driven engagement.

2. Ideal Advocate Profiles

Not every customer will become an advocate. Identify who is most likely to champion your brand:

• High NPS (Net Promoter Score) respondents
• Customers who adopt product features deeply and consistently
• Users who already share feedback, content, or referrals
• Clients with strong networks or industry influence

Once you know who your ideal advocates are, segment them and tailor messaging to each group.

3. Motivating Value for Advocates

Advocates need meaningful reasons to participate. Consider a mix of incentives and recognition:

• Exclusive educational content and training
• Early access to beta features or new releases
• Spotlights in blogs, webinars, or social channels
• Points, swag, or tiered rewards for ongoing advocacy

Make sure any rewards feel aligned with your brand and do not undermine authenticity.

4. Structured Advocate Activities

Create a clear menu of actions advocates can take. For example:

• Leave a review on an agreed platform
• Join a customer advisory board
• Participate in a case study or video testimonial
• Share a success story on LinkedIn or X
• Refer a colleague or partner organization

Give them simple, documented steps, along with templates and sample messages they can adapt.

How to Build an Advocacy Program Step by Step

Use this step-by-step process, inspired by the structure behind the Hubspot customer community and similar programs, to set up your own advocacy engine.

Step 1: Map the Customer Journey

Identify where advocacy naturally fits into your customer lifecycle:

• Onboarding and first value
• Renewal and expansion moments
• Milestones such as usage achievements or ROI goals

Advocacy requests perform best right after a clear win or success milestone.

Step 2: Identify and Invite Potential Advocates

Use data and signals to find your happiest customers:

• High engagement in your product or platform
• Positive survey responses and feedback
• Support tickets that ended with strong satisfaction

Send personalized invitations that explain the benefits of joining your advocacy initiative and what participation looks like.

Step 3: Design Your Advocate Hub

Give advocates a central place where they can see available activities, rewards, and resources. This can be a community portal, a dedicated page in your help center, or a private group.

Core components to include:

• Welcome message and program overview
• List of available advocacy tasks
• Reward structure and points system if used
• Educational resources, templates, and FAQs

Step 4: Provide Content and Enablement

Make it easy for advocates to share your story. Offer ready-to-use materials such as:

• Short product summaries and one-sheets
• Social media copy templates and images
• Presentation slides outlining your solution
• Guides to help them talk about results and ROI

The easier you make it, the more consistently your advocates will participate.

Step 5: Recognize, Reward, and Measure

Advocates should feel genuinely appreciated. Build in:

• Public recognition in newsletters, events, or social posts
• Badges or status levels for long-term contributors
• Tangible rewards such as credits, swag, or training

Track metrics like referrals generated, deals influenced, content produced, and engagement levels. Optimize your program based on which activities drive the most impact.

Types of Advocacy Campaigns You Can Run

To keep your advocacy program fresh and valuable, rotate different campaign types through the year.

Review and Testimonial Campaigns

Ask satisfied customers to share their experiences on key platforms or through structured testimonials. Provide guidelines on what to highlight, such as time saved, revenue gained, or process improvements.

Referral Campaigns

Design referral programs that reward both the advocate and the new customer. Make referral links simple to share and track, and clearly explain how rewards are earned.

Content Collaboration Campaigns

Invite advocates to co-create content, including:

• Case studies and written success stories
• Webinar guest appearances
• Podcast interviews or panel discussions
• Guest blog posts or guides

These collaborations deepen relationships and create highly credible assets you can reuse across marketing and sales.

Best Practices from Hubspot-Inspired Programs

When modeling your strategy after leaders in the space, including the original advocacy marketing insights published by Hubspot on its blog, several best practices stand out.

• Focus first on delivering real customer value before asking for advocacy.
• Keep communication personalized and human, not transactional.
• Offer multiple ways to participate, from low-effort to high-impact.
• Celebrate wins and share the results of advocacy back with participants.
• Iterate based on feedback and performance data over time.

Getting Support for Your Advocacy Strategy

Building a mature, scalable advocacy engine takes planning, technology, and cross-functional coordination. If you need help designing metrics, workflows, or automation aligned with your CRM and service tools, consider partnering with a specialized consultancy such as Consultevo to accelerate your implementation.

By following these principles and drawing inspiration from how organizations like Hubspot organize their communities, you can turn loyal customers into a powerful growth channel and create a sustainable cycle of trust, engagement, and expansion.