2023 Changes to Untiered Partner Requirements

Helping partners understand the tiering changes, how it impacts their business, and enabling change in 2023 and beyond.

At Partner Kickoff 2023, HubSpot announced changes to our commission policy that include new guidelines for untiered partners. This is a summary of those changes. For more on Partner Kickoff announcements, please see the recap page and the commissions FAQs.

 

Before diving into what’s changing,  let's cover what's not changing. There are no changes to tiering requirements or the tiering structure for gold, platinum, diamond, or elite partners. That means tier targets are not changing in 2023. Learn more about tier requirements here

What’s changing for untiered partners, and how will it impact their business?

Going forward, all untiered partners will have two years from their start date to achieve gold tier status. If partners remain untiered at the two-year mark, partners will have the choice to move to the provider level of the program or leave the program and become a customer. 

If a partner chooses to be moved to the provider level, any previously sold deals will be subject to the provider commissions policy, which is 20% for one year. For deals sold >12 months prior, commissions will end immediately upon moving to the provider level. For deals sold <12 months prior, commissions will be given a duration of twelve months from the original sold date. If a partner does not notify HubSpot that they would like to move to the provider level, they will automatically be converted to a customer.

Moving forward, any partners who have been in the partner program for more than two years must achieve and/or maintain gold status to remain at the partner level.

What does this mean for existing partners?

Current untiered partners who joined the program before January 17, 2021 will be removed from the partner level of the program if they do not achieve gold tier (or above) by July 15, 2023. Gold partners recently downgraded during the January 2023 recalibration are NOT impacted by the July removal process. This process will continue every six months during the tier recalibration process. 

What does this mean for new partners?

All new partners who join the program going forward from Partner Kickoff 2023, will have two years to reach gold tier status. HubSpot will evaluate all partners older than two years old every six months during the tier recalibration process. During this process, the partners who have reached their two-year mark will be given six months’ notice to tier back up to gold by the next tier recalibration process. If these partners don’t achieve gold tier within those six months, they will be offered the choice to move to the provider level or exit the program. 

Timeline & Scenarios

Untiered Partner Timeline

Who is impacted and when?

July 2023 Removal January 2024 Removal

Impacted: 

Untiered partners greater than two years old as of January 17, 2023

Impacted:

Untiered partners greater than two years old as of July 19, 2023 (before downtiering takes place)

Not Impacted
- Untiered partners greater than two years old who reach gold by July 15, 2023

- Untiered partners who reach their two-year mark between January 18 and July 15, 2023

- Gold+ partners greater than two years old that get downgraded to untiered during the January 2023 recalibration process

- Gold+ partners that downgrade to untiered in July 2023 recalibration process

Not Impacted
- Untiered partners greater than two years old that reach gold by January 2024 recalibration

- Untiered partners that hit their two-year mark between July 20, 2023 and Jan 2024

- Gold+ partners greater than two years old that get downgraded to untiered in July 2023 recalibration process

- Gold+ partners greater than two years old that get downgraded to untiered in January 2024 process

Actions You Can Take:

1. Meet with your CAM to address questions and review your current pipeline.

2. Review your Mutual Action Plan (MAP) and revise it to create short-term attainable goals to achieve gold. Check your portal to see how you’re tracking toward gold.

3. Visit the Get to Gold Resource Center, a carefully curated selection of the most impactful resources and tools to help you tier in the program.

 

More resources to help partners tier up:

• Need help with pitching HubSpot? Take the “Why Choose HubSpot” lesson

• Not sure where to start? Download the How to Build a Successful HubSpot Practice playbook

• Need a refresher on selling and servicing best practices and resources? Ask your CAM or CC about Onboarding Foundations for Partners to get back to the basics.

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Here you'll find all the resources to empower you to achieve your growth goals and help you reach gold tier status. We've carefully selected these programs and tools based on what's been most impactful for our most successful partners.

FAQs