For credit unions using HubSpot, the path to personalized marketing and automated efficiency often begins with one major roadblock: messy data.

Over time, portals become cluttered with outdated contact records, duplicated properties, and inconsistent information structures. Before you can create smart campaigns, you need clean, structured data that reflects how your members actually engage with your credit union.

In this post, we’ll break down how credit unions can transition from a complex HubSpot setup to a streamlined data model that powers smarter marketing and enhanced member experiences.

Why Data Gets Messy in the First Place

HubSpot is powerful, but it’s also flexible. That flexibility means portals can be used in many different ways, especially by teams that inherited an existing setup. Here are a few reasons why things often get messy:

• Member and account data is stored in the wrong object (usually everything ends up on the contact record).
• There are no clear naming conventions for properties, lists, or workflows.
• Manual imports from core systems introduce formatting inconsistencies.
• Contacts are associated with multiple memberships or accounts without proper mapping.
  
  

The Consequences of a Disorganized Portal

When your data is scattered or inaccurately structured, it creates real challenges:

• Inaccurate segmentation: Campaigns are sent to the wrong members or miss key audiences.
• Automation errors: Workflows don’t trigger as intended (or trigger too many times).
• Reporting breakdowns: It’s hard to track which marketing efforts are working.
• Poor member experience: Duplicate emails or irrelevant messaging erode trust.
  
  

What a Clean HubSpot Data Model Looks Like

At WebStrategies, we’ve helped many credit unions transition to a cleaner, more structured setup using a standard data model. Here’s what that typically includes:

• Contacts: Represent individuals (with unique email addresses).
• Members (Custom Object): Each membership record is tied to a contact, allowing for multiple memberships per person.
• Deals: Used to represent financial accounts (checking, auto loans, mortgages, etc.), each associated with a specific membership.
  
  

This structure reflects how credit unions actually operate and gives marketers the power to:

• Personalize communications based on membership and account type.
• Track lifecycle stages more accurately.
• Build smarter workflows that account for nuanced member relationships.
  
  

How to Make the Transition

If your portal is already full of legacy data, transitioning to this model can feel overwhelming. But with the right process, it can be manageable and well worth the effort:

1. Audit Your Current Data
   
   
   • Identify where the member and account data currently live.

1. • Review lists, workflows, and properties for overlap or confusion
     
     
2. Build a Sandbox Environment
   
   
   • Don’t make changes in your live portal first.
     
     
   • Test your new data structure and imports in a safe environment
     
     
3. Create Your Custom Objects and Associations
   
   
   • Set up the Member and Deal objects.
     
     
   • Map associations between contacts, members, and accounts properly
     
     
4. Clean and Reimport Your Data
   
   
   • Standardize formats (names, dates, IDs)
     
     
   • Remove or merge duplicates.
     
     
   • Import in logical stages (e.g., contacts first, then members, then deals)
     
     
5. Update Lists and Workflows
   
   
   • Rebuild lists based on new data points.
     
     
   • Adjust automation triggers to reflect the new model.
     
     
6. Train Your Team
   
   
   • Document the new structure.
     
     
   • Align internal teams on how to use and maintain the new mode.l
     
     

Final Thoughts
You can’t build great marketing on a broken foundation. Cleaning up your HubSpot data model unlocks the full potential of the platform: precise targeting, meaningful personalization, and reporting that drives confident decisions.

If you’re a credit union marketer struggling to make sense of your data or frustrated with workflow limitations, it might be time to rethink your setup.

We’ve helped credit unions of all sizes make this transition—and we can help you, too.

Final Takeaway

If your credit union is using or considering HubSpot, don’t just assume that "simple" workflows will be simple. Ensure that your automation logic accurately reflects your data reality.

And if you’re not sure where to start, we’re here to help. Reach out here