Hubspot Sales Coaching Guide for Modern Teams

Hubspot has helped popularize a practical, conversation-driven approach to sales coaching that any team can adapt to improve performance, consistency, and revenue growth.

This guide distills the core ideas from the original sales coaching framework and shows you how to turn them into a repeatable system for your own reps and managers.

What Is Sales Coaching in the Hubspot Framework?

In the Hubspot-inspired view, sales coaching is a structured, ongoing conversation that helps reps improve how they sell, not just how much they sell.

Instead of focusing only on results, the coaching process zooms in on behaviors, skills, and decisions within actual deals.

Key Principles in the Hubspot Model

• Coach the process, not just the number. Look at stages, activities, and skills behind quota attainment.
• Use real deals. Ground every session in a current opportunity so feedback is specific and actionable.
• Ask, don’t tell. Use questions to help reps reflect, diagnose, and commit to change.
• Make it recurring. Treat coaching like a scheduled program, not a one-off conversation.

How to Build a Hubspot-Style Sales Coaching Program

To turn ad-hoc conversations into a predictable system, follow these steps and adapt them to your team structure and deal cycle.

1. Define the Purpose of Your Coaching Program

First, decide what your coaching program is trying to achieve. In the Hubspot approach, clarity of purpose keeps sessions focused and measurable.

Common goals include:

• Improving qualification and discovery
• Shortening sales cycles
• Increasing win rates for a specific segment
• Ramping new reps faster

Write down your primary goal and 1–2 secondary goals. Use them to guide which skills and metrics you’ll track.

2. Choose the Right Sales Metrics

Hubspot emphasizes using metrics as a starting point for coaching, not as the entire conversation. Select a small, meaningful set of indicators for each rep.

Helpful metrics include:

• Number of qualified opportunities created
• Conversion rate between pipeline stages
• Average deal size and cycle length
• Meeting-to-opportunity conversion rate

Look for trends and outliers. Metrics should highlight where to look, while coaching explores why those numbers exist.

3. Create a Simple Coaching Cadence

A Hubspot-style program works best with a clear calendar rhythm. For example:

• Weekly: 30–45 minute 1:1 coaching session per rep
• Biweekly: Team call review or role-play session
• Monthly: Deeper performance review connecting skills to results

Keep to the schedule consistently so reps see coaching as a normal, reliable part of their job.

Running Effective Hubspot Coaching Conversations

Once the structure is in place, the quality of each conversation determines your impact. The Hubspot approach uses a repeatable flow so sessions are focused and time-efficient.

Step 1: Start With the Rep’s Perspective

Begin every session with open questions:

• “What went well since we last met?”
• “What deals or situations are you most concerned about?”
• “Where do you feel stuck right now?”

This aligns the conversation with the rep’s reality and builds trust.

Step 2: Review Data and Pipeline Together

Following the Hubspot style, bring objective data to the conversation but use it as context, not judgment.

Look at:

• Current pipeline by stage
• Recent activities (calls, meetings, emails)
• Key deals that moved forward or stalled

Ask the rep to interpret the numbers before you share your opinion.

Step 3: Deep-Dive Into One Live Deal

Choose a live opportunity that is important, stuck, or representative of a pattern. Then explore it using targeted questions:

• “What is the customer’s main problem in their words?”
• “Who is involved in the buying decision?”
• “What has to happen for this to move to the next stage?”
• “What risks do you see in this deal?”

This deep dive, recommended in the Hubspot framework, reveals specific skills to coach, such as discovery, qualification, or closing.

Step 4: Identify One Skill to Improve

Instead of giving broad feedback, narrow down to a single, high-impact skill. Examples:

• Asking better follow-up questions
• Confirming next steps and timelines
• Mapping stakeholders and decision process
• Handling a recurring objection more confidently

Summarize what you both observed and name the skill clearly.

Step 5: Co-Create a Short Action Plan

End every Hubspot-style coaching session with a concrete plan. Keep it specific and time-bound:

1. One or two actions the rep will take before the next session
2. What “good” will look like
3. How you will both measure or observe progress

Document these actions in your CRM or coaching notes so you can follow up later.

Hubspot Sales Coaching Questions You Can Reuse

Strong questions are at the heart of this coaching style. Here are reusable prompts inspired by the Hubspot approach:

Deal and Pipeline Questions

• “What changed in this deal since last week?”
• “Why do you think the customer is evaluating solutions now?”
• “If this deal falls through, what will be the most likely reason?”

Skill and Behavior Questions

• “Where in your process do you feel least confident?”
• “What questions have worked best to uncover real priorities?”
• “How do you know a prospect is truly qualified?”

Reflection and Commitment Questions

• “What would you do differently if you could redo that call?”
• “What will you try before our next session?”
• “How will we know that this new approach is working?”

Scaling a Hubspot-Style Coaching Culture

Once your 1:1s are running smoothly, focus on spreading the same habits across the team.

Standardize Coaching Templates

Create simple, repeatable templates modeled on the Hubspot method:

• Pre-call plan and post-call recap forms
• Deal review checklists
• Monthly performance review outlines

Use the same templates across managers to keep coaching quality consistent.

Use Recordings and Call Libraries

Encourage reps to share call recordings or meeting notes. Build a library of examples:

• Great discovery calls
• Strong objection handling moments
• Excellent closing conversations

Review these together, pausing often to ask what the rep noticed and what they might try next time.

Invest in Manager Coaching Skills

In a Hubspot-style program, managers must learn to coach instead of simply directing. Helpful skills include:

• Asking open, non-leading questions
• Listening without immediately solving the problem
• Giving specific, behavior-based feedback
• Balancing accountability with support

Consider external training or specialized consulting support from firms such as Consultevo to reinforce these capabilities across your leadership team.

Learn More From the Original Hubspot Sales Coaching Framework

The ideas in this guide are based on the established sales coaching approach published by Hubspot. To explore additional examples, templates, and context, review the original article here: Hubspot sales coaching article.

By combining a clear structure, strong questions, live deal reviews, and follow-through on action plans, you can build a sales coaching program that mirrors the best parts of the Hubspot framework while staying tailored to your team’s goals, market, and culture.