Merging Salesforce and HubSpot for real business impact at Busworld

Apr 23, 2025

sales, marketing and service

Busworld organizes online and offline B2B events for the bus and coach industry worldwide. To optimize their processes and advance their digital maturity, they needed a new CRM that truly matched their unique non-profit operations and lean team. delaware rose to the challenge: we combined and enriched two proven technologies in a best-of-breed approach. (4 minute read)

Challenge

Professionalize marketing efforts with a tailor-made CRM that runs on clean data and suits Busworld’s business identity.

Solution

Two tried-and-true technologies, seamlessly connected and tweaked to better match Busworld’s operations.

Results

Streamlined marketing efforts and smooth event/exhibitor management, based on clean data.

Challenge

Busworld faced significant challenges with its previous CRM. Performance issues affected user experience, and while the provider meant well, it lacked the market insight Busworld needed. Additionally, data management practices over the years had led to inconsistencies and an unreliable database.

“In the end, Busworld needed more than a tool,” says Lawrence De Rycke, Salesforce Sales Consultant at delaware. “They needed a strategic partner to guide them in their digital growth. How could they maximize impact, improve visibility into event data, recruit participants, and maintain brand awareness worldwide? We provided the structure, expertise and support they needed.”

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Data pollution: Busworld’s CRM was filled with inconsistent data, which clouded the essential visibility into exhibitor and participant data.
Minimal team, maximum impact: Like many non-profits, Busworld aimed to maximize their impact with a small team. To work more efficiently, they needed a CRM that fit their unique event-focused operations: flexible yet equipped with the right functionalities, unlike traditional and more commercially organized platforms.

Solution

The first priority: cleaning up Busworld’s database. Afterwards, following a series of deep-dive workshops, delaware identified the ideal CRM solution: Salesforce as the core platform, and HubSpot for marketing automation. A strong standard connector seamlessly integrates both platforms for smooth collaboration.

Moreover, delaware customized these existing tools to fully support Busworld’s growth. We leveraged our non-profit accelerator to tailor Salesforce to Busworld’s needs, and integrated Event 360, a comprehensive tool for event management. “Thanks to this best-of-breed approach, Busworld can use proven technologies to address their challenges and still allow room for flexibility,” Lawrence explains. “By building upon existing features and making them Busworld-proof, we saved valuable time.”

Salesforce: Busworld’s new core platform for account, membership and event management. It creates a 100% transparent and traceable overview of all accounts and interactions, which makes it easier to track and manage member relationships and event information.
HubSpot: This powerful yet user-friendly tool helps Busworld organize and distribute their marketing materials, create personalized campaigns, and tailor their communications to different stakeholders in the industry.

We sincerely appreciate delaware’s professionalism and expertise. Their flawless implementation, clear communication, and tailored solutions have enabled us to optimize our processes and grow with confidence.

Vincent Dewaele, General Manager at Busworld International

Results

“A smooth implementation process, constructive feedback, and strong mutual trust: Busworld’s commitment and involvement made user adoption an instant success,” adds Lawrence.

After several months of using Salesforce and HubSpot, Busworld is already seeing significant strategic benefits. The platforms have streamlined membership and marketing efforts, and have simplified event management, the onboarding of new members, and targeted communications.

Initial campaigns have been launched and the team is integrating the tools into daily operations, in anticipation of the Busworld exhibition in Brussels in October 2025. Furthermore, Salesforce helps protect data integrity, preventing database pollution while internal best practices continue to evolve.

delaware remains a trusted partner throughout by providing ongoing support, process adjustments, and weekly check-ins.

Busworld & delaware

Since 1971, Busworld organizes events for the bus and coach industry around the world. From live exhibitions and conferences to online events, they bring bus people together to network, do business, and exchange knowledge.

“Quality tools drive quality work,” says Vincent Dewaele, General Manager at Busworld International. “So don’t hesitate to invest in quality. Salesforce and HubSpot empower our team almost effortlessly. I barely need to motivate my employees to use it, because it gets easier and more valuable every day. I couldn’t be more excited for the future.”