SME Software Help

Case study

CRM and email marketing automation for a B2B HR consultancy

A practical system built around one source of truth, automated newsletter sign-ups, and proactive follow-up for warm and high-intent leads.

Sector
B2B HR consultancy
Primary goals
Single customer record, automated newsletter sign-ups, monthly newsletters, proactive prospect follow-up
Tools deployed
Capsule CRM, Transpond, Zapier
Outcome focus
Reliable lead capture, consistent nurture, and stronger deliverability through list hygiene

The challenge

A UK-based B2B HR consultancy needed to centralise customer and prospect data and use it to run consistent monthly newsletters and structured follow-up. Like many consultancies, they were balancing delivery work with business development, and their marketing was suffering as a result. SME Software Help transformed their Marketing operations utilising automation and segmentation to reduce workload and improve results.

120 days
Inactivity threshold
Self-pruning automation
3
Lead temperatures
Hot, warm and cold sequences
1
Source of truth
Single CRM for all contacts

Data existed across tools and spreadsheets, making segmentation unreliable and follow-up inconsistent. Manual list management was also creating avoidable risk: invalid email addresses inflated costs, and unengaged contacts weakened deliverability. The brief was clear: store everything in one place, automate newsletter sign-ups, and introduce proactive prospect follow-up.

What SME Software Help delivered

A joined-up CRM and email marketing setup designed to keep data accurate, automate routine work, and improve visibility across sales and marketing.

  • CRM structure using tags and custom fields to support segmentation, reporting, and consistent follow-up.
  • Website newsletter sign-up automation to create or update CRM records and subscribe contacts to the newsletter list.
  • Lead nurture automations for hot, warm and cold prospects, each with its own messaging and cadence.
  • List hygiene controls, including invalid address removal and a 120-day inactivity prune to protect domain reputation.
  • Marketing planning workflows using CRM projects to coordinate campaigns and content.
  • Email campaign delivery with optional social post scheduling from the marketing platform.

Phase 1: Creating a single source of truth in the CRM

The first step was to standardise how contacts were stored and identified. We implemented a simple data model in Capsule CRM using tags and custom fields that the team could apply consistently. This created a reliable foundation for segmentation and reporting, and ensured that marketing and sales activity could be driven by accurate data rather than assumptions.

Before and after the engagement

Before
After
Contact data spread across tools and spreadsheets with no consistent structure
All contacts in Capsule CRM with consistent tags, fields and record format
Website sign-ups required manual processing before entering the CRM
Form submissions automatically create or update CRM records and subscribe contacts
All leads received the same generic follow-up regardless of intent
Separate nurture sequences for hot, warm and cold prospects
Unengaged contacts and invalid addresses inflating list size and costs
120-day inactivity prune and invalid address removal running automatically

Phase 2: Automating newsletter sign-ups and lead capture

With the data model in place, we turned to automating the points of entry. Every hour spent manually processing sign-ups or managing list hygiene is an hour not spent advising clients.

The automation we put in place

  1. Website newsletter sign-up automation

    Connected the website form to Capsule CRM via Transpond. New submissions now create or update the contact record in the CRM, apply the correct source and consent markers, and subscribe the contact to the newsletter audience automatically.

  2. Lead nurture by temperature

    Introduced Transpond automations to support structured follow-up based on prospect intent. Hot, warm and cold leads each receive a separate nurture approach, making it easier to stay responsive with high-intent leads while maintaining a measured cadence for early-stage prospects.

  3. List hygiene automation

    Performed contact list cleans to remove invalid email addresses. Implemented an engagement-based self-pruning automation: contacts who have not interacted with any email in the past 120 days are removed from ongoing marketing sends.

  4. Marketing planning workflows

    Used Capsule's projects feature for marketing planning so campaign tasks, deadlines, and owners are visible in one place. This supports steady execution alongside consultancy delivery work.

The value of list hygiene for a consultancy

For a B2B consultancy, email reputation matters as much as it does for a high-volume sender. Invalid addresses and unengaged contacts do not just inflate costs. They weaken deliverability across the entire list, which affects the emails that matter most: client communications and proposal follow-ups.

Results and impact

  • Customer and prospect data centralised in one CRM, with a repeatable structure for segmentation and reporting.
  • Website sign-ups captured reliably, with newsletter subscriptions handled automatically.
  • Clearer prospect follow-up through separate hot, warm and cold lead automations.
  • Reduced marketing waste and costs through invalid address removal and engagement-based list pruning.
  • Improved planning and accountability using CRM projects for marketing coordination.

Key takeaways for HR consultancies and professional services firms

  • Start with a clean CRM structure. Automation is only as effective as the data driving it.
  • Automate lead capture at the point of entry so follow-up is reliable and timely.
  • Use lead temperature to tailor messaging and cadence, rather than sending one generic sequence.
  • Build list hygiene into your operating rhythm to protect deliverability and reduce ongoing costs.
  • Plan marketing activity in the same system as customer data to reduce context switching and missed deadlines.

Want better visibility across sales and marketing?

If your data is spread across tools, or your newsletters depend on manual work, we can help you simplify the setup and make it scalable.

Talk to us about CRM automation

Achieving similar results on other platforms

The outcomes in this case study are platform-agnostic: centralised data, reliable lead capture, segmented nurture, and disciplined list hygiene. Most established platforms can deliver similar results when the data model and operating process are defined first.

HubSpot

Use HubSpot workflows to automate form capture, lead routing, nurture sequences, and list membership. (Create workflows in HubSpot)

Zoho Bigin

Use Bigin for lightweight CRM structure and connect it to a marketing tool for newsletters and segmentation, using tags and fields as your foundation. (Bigin by Zoho CRM)

Mailchimp

Use marketing automation journeys for sign-ups and nurture flows, and maintain list health with engagement-based audience management. (Mailchimp marketing automation)

ActiveCampaign

Use tagging, lead scoring, and conditional automations to deliver temperature-based follow-up and reduce sends to unengaged contacts. (ActiveCampaign marketing automation)

Note: features vary by plan. The most reliable route is to define segmentation, consent handling, and list hygiene rules first, then select the platform that supports them cleanly.