British Council Transforms Marketing with HubSpot and Huble

About British Council

The British Council, established nearly 90 years ago by the UK government, aims to support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding, and trust between the UK and countries worldwide. With expertise in arts and culture, education, and English, the British Council operates in over 100 countries.

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The Challenge

Cathy Blake, Global Group Marketing Director for the British Council, faced the task of rethinking their marketing approach to ensure growth, seamless global and regional collaboration, and data-driven decision-making. The COVID-19 pandemic further complicated matters, forcing the organisation to transform from face-to-face operations to digital interactions.

Cathy Blake, British Council
Cathy Blake
British Council

"COVID was incredibly difficult for the British Council. We operate face to face, and not being able to do so meant that we had to completely transform how we operate."

The Solution

The British Council collaborated with Huble to implement HubSpot as their marketing automation platform. As Cathy explains, this decision followed a comprehensive review of potential vendors, with HubSpot emerging as the ideal choice due to its comprehensive features, ease of use, and ease of implementation.

 

"We went through a very comprehensive review of all potential vendors in the marketplace. And what we were looking for is one that fit our requirements and would work as we grew in different areas going forward.

 

And HubSpot met all of those compared to five other vendors." 

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Implementation

Maria Christoforidou, Lead Marketing Consultant at Huble, emphasises the importance of understanding the British Council’s requirements, pain points, and KPIs. Initial discovery sessions helped identify and review existing processes and set the stage for the to-be process, envisioning future improvements and optimisations.

Maria Christoforidou Huble
Maria Christoforidou
Huble

"We reviewed their existing campaigns, their tech stack, their lead management frameworks, everything that they had available."

Results

The implementation of HubSpot, facilitated by Huble, significantly improved the British Council’s marketing efficiency and growth. The organisation now operates with a single source of truth for data, enabling more effective and connected work processes.

 

Cathy explains: "We asked for a major investment. So it's important that we were able to prove that it worked. And there were two things the organization was looking for. One, were we more efficient? And two, were we driving growth? Through the pilot program and the rest of the implementation, I'm so happy to say we delivered on both of those."

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Partnership and Collaboration

The successful implementation of HubSpot transformed the working relationship between the British Council and Huble into a true partnership.

 

Regular communication, feedback loops, and stakeholder engagement were critical to the project’s success.

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Cathy Blake, British Council
Cathy Blake
British Council

"One of the keys to success for this program was how well we worked together with Huble. They became part of the team. We were able to talk about challenging times. We were able to talk about shared objectives. And it was this partnership that made sure this implementation really worked."

Continuous Improvement and Future Plans

The British Council and Huble continue to collaborate on new projects, including customer journeys, brand campaigns, and content writing. The partnership aims to further empower the British Council teams to maximise the use of HubSpot and explore new marketing automation opportunities.

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"It's been such a journey working with Huble to get to where we are, and I'm really excited about the things that we can still continue to develop."

Cathy Blake, British Council
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Conclusion

The British Council’s journey with HubSpot and Huble showcases the transformative power of marketing automation.

 

Through a strategic partnership, they have successfully navigated challenges, driven growth, and laid the foundation for continued innovation in marketing and communications.