In the competitive Atlanta marketing scene, generating leads is no longer enough. You need to actively cultivate demand. Demand generation, a holistic approach to marketing, focuses on creating awareness and interest in your product or service, nurturing potential customers, and guiding them through the sales funnel. Is your current marketing strategy truly creating demand, or just hoping for it?
Key Takeaways
- Demand generation focuses on creating awareness and interest, not just capturing existing leads.
- HubSpot’s Demand Generation Dashboard, found under Reports > Dashboards > Create Dashboard > Demand Generation, helps track key metrics.
- Use multi-touch attribution models in HubSpot’s Attribution Reporting tool (Reports > Attribution) to understand which campaigns drive the most value.
- Regularly analyze your data using HubSpot’s reporting tools to identify bottlenecks and optimize your demand generation strategy.
Setting Up Your Demand Generation Dashboard in HubSpot (2026)
HubSpot is a popular choice for many marketing teams, and for good reason. It offers a robust suite of tools for managing all aspects of your marketing efforts, including demand generation. This tutorial will guide you through setting up a dedicated Demand Generation Dashboard within HubSpot to track your progress and optimize your strategies.
Step 1: Creating a New Dashboard
- Navigate to Reports > Dashboards in your HubSpot account.
- Click the “Create Dashboard” button in the upper right corner.
- Choose “Start from scratch”.
- Give your dashboard a descriptive name, such as “Demand Generation Performance” or “Q3 Demand Gen Overview.” I recommend including the date range in the title.
- Set the visibility to “All users” or a specific team, depending on your organizational structure.
- Click “Create Dashboard.”
Pro Tip: If you have multiple dashboards, use a consistent naming convention to keep things organized. For example, “[Team Name] – [Dashboard Purpose] – [Date Range]”.
Step 2: Adding Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Now, let’s populate your dashboard with the most relevant KPIs for demand generation. Here’s where you’ll see the real power of HubSpot come to life. Remember, these metrics provide insights into the effectiveness of your campaigns and help you identify areas for improvement.
- Click “Add Report” on your new dashboard.
- Use the search bar to find the reports you need. Here are some essential reports to include:
- Website Traffic: Track overall website traffic trends, including sessions, page views, and bounce rate. You can find this under Reports > Website Analytics.
- New Contacts: Monitor the number of new contacts generated each month. This report is usually found under Contacts > Reports > Contacts Created.
- Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs): Track the number of contacts that meet your MQL criteria. You’ll need to have your MQL definition set up in HubSpot’s lead scoring settings (Settings > Sales > Lead Scoring). Then, create a custom report based on that score.
- Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs): Similar to MQLs, track the number of contacts that have been qualified by your sales team. This data comes from your CRM and should be readily available under Sales > Reports > SQLs Created.
- Deals Created: Monitor the number of new deals created, as this indicates the effectiveness of your demand generation efforts in driving sales opportunities. You can usually find this under Sales > Reports > Deals Created.
- Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Calculate the cost of acquiring a new customer. This requires integrating your advertising spend data with your sales data. Use HubSpot’s custom report builder (Reports > Custom Reports) to combine these datasets.
- Attribution Reports: I can’t stress this enough — attribution reporting is essential. A recent IAB report highlights the increasing importance of understanding the customer journey across multiple touchpoints. Use HubSpot’s Attribution Reporting tool (Reports > Attribution) to understand which campaigns are driving the most value.
- Customize each report to display the desired date range, visualization type (e.g., line chart, bar graph, pie chart), and filters.
- Click “Save” to add the report to your dashboard.
Common Mistake: Neglecting to customize the date range on your reports. Make sure you’re comparing apples to apples when analyzing your data.
Expected Outcome: A visually appealing dashboard providing a comprehensive overview of your demand generation performance.
Step 3: Setting Up Attribution Reporting
Attribution reporting is crucial for understanding which marketing activities are most effective in driving revenue. Without it, you’re flying blind. Here’s how to set it up in HubSpot:
- Navigate to Reports > Attribution.
- Click “Create Attribution Report”.
- Choose an attribution model. HubSpot offers several options, including:
- First Touch: Attributes 100% of the credit to the first interaction a prospect has with your brand.
- Last Touch: Attributes 100% of the credit to the last interaction before a conversion.
- Linear: Distributes credit evenly across all touchpoints.
- U-Shaped (Position-Based): Attributes 40% of the credit to the first touch, 40% to the last touch, and distributes the remaining 20% across the other touchpoints.
- W-Shaped: Attributes 30% of the credit to the first touch, 30% to the lead conversion touch, and 30% to the opportunity creation touch, with the remaining 10% distributed across other touchpoints.
- Full Path: Attributes 22.5% of the credit to the first touch, lead conversion, opportunity creation, and close, with the remaining 10% distributed across other touchpoints.
- Select your conversion event (e.g., deal creation, form submission).
- Choose the touchpoints you want to include in your report (e.g., website visits, email clicks, social media interactions).
- Run the report and analyze the results.
Pro Tip: Experiment with different attribution models to get a more complete picture of your marketing performance. Multi-touch attribution is generally considered more accurate than single-touch models.
Expected Outcome: A clear understanding of which marketing channels and campaigns are driving the most revenue.
| Factor | HubSpot Native | Dedicated BI Tool (e.g., Tableau) |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Setup | Simple, Drag & Drop | Steeper Learning Curve |
| Data Integration | Seamless HubSpot Data | Requires API Connections, Data Wrangling |
| Customization | Limited Templates & Metrics | Highly Customizable Visuals |
| Reporting Frequency | Real-Time, Automated | Scheduled, Manual Refreshes |
| Cost | Included in HubSpot Subscription | Separate Subscription Cost |
| Team Collaboration | Built-in Sharing Features | Advanced Collaboration Options |
Analyzing Your Demand Generation Data
Creating a dashboard is only half the battle. You need to regularly analyze the data and use it to inform your decisions.
Step 4: Regular Monitoring and Analysis
Set aside time each week (or at least every other week) to review your Demand Generation Dashboard. Look for trends, anomalies, and areas where you can improve your performance.
- Review your website traffic report. Are you seeing consistent growth? If not, investigate potential causes, such as changes in search engine rankings or a decline in social media engagement.
- Analyze your new contacts and MQL reports. Are you generating enough leads to meet your sales goals? If not, consider investing in more lead generation activities, such as content marketing or paid advertising.
- Examine your SQL and deal creation reports. Are your leads converting into sales opportunities? If not, work with your sales team to improve the lead qualification process.
- Use your attribution reports to identify your most effective marketing channels and campaigns. Allocate more resources to these channels and campaigns, and experiment with new strategies to improve the performance of less effective ones.
Common Mistake: Failing to take action based on your data. Don’t just look at the numbers – use them to make informed decisions about your marketing strategy.
Expected Outcome: Continuous improvement in your demand generation performance.
Step 5: Identifying Bottlenecks
Demand generation is a complex process, and there are often bottlenecks that can prevent you from reaching your full potential. Identifying and addressing these bottlenecks is essential for optimizing your performance.
- Analyze your conversion rates at each stage of the funnel. Where are you losing the most prospects?
- Talk to your sales team. What are their biggest challenges in converting leads into customers?
- Conduct customer surveys. What are the biggest pain points that your customers experience?
- Use HubSpot’s analytics tools to identify specific pages or forms that are underperforming.
For example, I had a client last year who was generating a lot of leads, but very few of them were converting into sales. After analyzing their data, we discovered that their lead nurturing emails were not relevant to the prospects’ needs. We revamped their email sequences and saw a significant improvement in their conversion rates.
Pro Tip: Don’t be afraid to experiment with different approaches to address your bottlenecks. A/B testing can be a powerful tool for optimizing your marketing campaigns.
Expected Outcome: A smoother, more efficient demand generation process.
Advanced Demand Generation Tactics in HubSpot
Once you have a solid foundation in place, you can start experimenting with more advanced demand generation tactics. Here are a few ideas:
Personalized Content
Use HubSpot’s personalization tools to deliver targeted content to your prospects based on their interests, behaviors, and demographics. For example, you could show different website content to visitors from different industries, or send personalized email messages based on their past interactions with your brand. Nobody wants to feel like they’re just another number.
Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
If you’re targeting enterprise clients, consider using ABM to focus your marketing efforts on a specific set of high-value accounts. HubSpot offers a suite of ABM tools that can help you identify target accounts, personalize your messaging, and track your progress.
Predictive Lead Scoring
Use HubSpot’s predictive lead scoring feature to identify your most promising leads. This feature uses machine learning to analyze your historical data and predict which leads are most likely to convert into customers. This helps your sales team prioritize their efforts and close more deals.
Understanding smarter customer acquisition is also key to leveraging your demand generation efforts effectively. By understanding how to better acquire customers, you will be able to better see the ROI of your demand generation investments.
What’s the difference between demand generation and lead generation?
Lead generation focuses on capturing contact information from individuals who have already expressed interest in your product or service. Demand generation, on the other hand, focuses on creating awareness and interest in your product or service, even among people who may not be actively looking for a solution.
How long does it take to see results from a demand generation strategy?
It can take several months to see significant results from a demand generation strategy. This is because it takes time to build awareness, nurture leads, and guide them through the sales funnel.
What are some common demand generation metrics?
Some common demand generation metrics include website traffic, new contacts, MQLs, SQLs, deal creation, customer acquisition cost, and attribution reports.
What if my sales team isn’t using HubSpot?
It’s critical to get sales on board with HubSpot for accurate reporting. If they’re using a different CRM, explore integration options. Without sales data, your attribution reports will be incomplete.
Is demand generation only for B2B companies?
While often associated with B2B, demand generation principles can be applied to B2C as well. Creating brand awareness and nurturing potential customers are valuable for any business.
Mastering demand generation takes time and dedication. It’s not a “set it and forget it” strategy. We ran into this exact issue at my previous firm. It requires constant monitoring, analysis, and optimization. However, the rewards are well worth the effort. By creating a strong demand generation engine, you can drive sustainable growth for your business.
The most actionable takeaway? Start building your Demand Generation Dashboard in HubSpot today. Even a basic setup will provide invaluable insights into your marketing performance. Forget blindly chasing leads and start building real, sustainable demand.
For more information on how AI is impacting marketing, check out our article on brand leadership’s AI reckoning.
