Datel

Putting the brand first on HubSpot Content Hub

Project type

Brand

Website

Industry

Professional Services

Location

United Kingdom

Services provided

Brand

Copy

Design

Development

Strategy

About the project

When Datel, the UK's leading Sage partner with 40 years of heritage, decided to add Sage Intacct to its portfolio in 2021, they faced a big challenge. This wasn't just adding another product to the mix, it meant attracting a new type of buyer, serving different industries, and establishing themselves in an unfamiliar market.

Working with Blend, Datel underwent a complete brand and website transformation powered by HubSpot Content Hub. The challenge was to preserve their 40-year heritage while creating a digital-first experience that would build credibility with new audiences as they introduced a new product to an expanded set of buyers.

The results speak for themselves. Since then, they’ve seen a 35% increase in turnover, 63% increase in profit, and an 800% ROI on their marketing in-year investment.


The challenge

Datel faced a pivotal moment in 2021. Despite their established dominance in Sage finance and ERP, they recognised that future growth required adopting the cloud-based Sage solution Sage Intacct and attracting an entirely new industry sector - service businesses.

This wasn't simply adding another product to their portfolio. As Emma Pownall, Datel's Marketing Director, explained:

"We had to attract a different type of buyer for a different type of software going through a different buying cycle. And from a standing start, so we had to establish a brand in that space."

Emma Pownall, Marketing Director at Datel

Strategic brand evolution

Datel needed to maintain their 40-year heritage and credibility while appealing to entirely new buyers with different expectations. We executed a complete rebrand that preserved their established trust while creating a modern identity that resonated with their new target audience.

HubSpot-powered website

The website transformation represented a fundamental shift in strategy and approach, enabled by HubSpot Content Hub's features.

As Emma noted:

"We had to attract a different type of buyer for a different type of software going through a different buying cycle. And from a standing start, so we had to establish a brand in that space."

Emma Pownall, Marketing Director at Datel

This complete departure from traditional lead generation to buyer enablement recognised that Intacct prospects wanted comprehensive information before engaging.

HubSpot Content Hub provided the essential platform for this transformation, enabling consistent brand presentation across all digital touchpoints while giving Datel's team easy content management without technical dependencies.

The platform supported their demand generation strategy through comprehensive content distribution, with HubDB integration handling complex product information and resources.

The site was completely reimagined around buyer needs rather than company structure.

DTL Website-1
DTL Website-2

Customer microsite

Recognising that 50% of their customers stay with them for five years or more, Datel needed a dual-website approach. The main site focuses on attracting new prospects, while a dedicated customer microsite provides a VIP experience for existing clients, using a darker brand treatment to create a premium feeling space.

DTL Customer–Homepage
DTL Customer-Sage 200

The results

The HubSpot-powered transformation fuelled exceptional results that enabled Datel to boost its business trajectory and market position.

Financial performance

The business impact of the rebrand and addition of Sage Intacct was immediate and sustained:

35%

increase in revenue (2021 to 2024)

63%

increase in profit during the same period

800%

marketing in-year ROI on closed-won revenue

Marketing performance

The HubSpot-powered transformation delivered consistent quarter-over-quarter improvements across all key marketing metrics.

The focus on generating and converting high-quality traffic saw positive and consistent growth across the 12-month period (Q1 - Q4 2024):

38%

increase in high-intent MQLs

84%

improvement in session-to-MQL rate, indicating dramatically better efficiency at capturing demand

50%+

MQL-to-opportunity conversion

The impact

The transformation fundamentally changed Datel's trajectory through four key elements:

  • New visual identity and market positioning established credibility with a new product offering from zero presence
  • HubSpot platform infrastructure supporting multi-market operations and future expansion without additional investment
  • Website strategy shift from lead capture to buyer enablement dramatically improved conversion quality

"Everything else has stayed pretty steady, so the growth has been fueled by taking this product on, attracting the right type of buyers and growing in the market."

Emma Pownall, Marketing Director at Datel