If you're reading this, you probably want to track leads from your marketing videos without babysitting spreadsheets or chasing down manual reports. Maybe your sales team is tired of guessing who's interested, or you're just trying to get your marketing stack to play nice together. This guide is for marketers, sales ops folks, and anyone who wants Vidyard and HubSpot to actually deliver on their “seamless integration” promises. Spoiler: it’s not all as smooth as the sales decks claim—but it does work if you set it up right.
Let’s cut through the noise and get your video leads flowing into HubSpot, step by step.
Why Link Vidyard and HubSpot, Anyway?
- See who’s watching your videos—and what they do next.
- Score leads based on video engagement, not just email opens.
- Trigger automated HubSpot workflows when someone finishes (or bails on) a video.
- Kill the guesswork: know which videos actually move the needle.
If you’re already using both tools, connecting them is a no-brainer. But don’t expect magic. You’ll need to prep a few things first.
What You Need Before You Start
- Vidyard account: A paid plan with integrations (free plans are too limited for real tracking).
- HubSpot account: Marketing Hub Professional or higher. The free tier won’t cut it here.
- Admin access: You’ll need permissions to add integrations in both tools.
- Some patience: The setup isn’t rocket science, but you’ll hit a few head-scratchers.
Pro tip: Double-check your subscription levels. Vidyard’s HubSpot integration isn’t available on all plans, and HubSpot’s APIs are locked on lower tiers.
Step 1: Connect Vidyard to HubSpot
1.1. Start in Vidyard
- Log in to Vidyard.
- Go to Admin > Integrations (the menu might look different depending on your plan).
- Find HubSpot in the integrations list and click Connect.
1.2. Authorize the Connection
- You’ll be prompted to sign into HubSpot and pick which account to connect.
- Confirm permissions—Vidyard needs access to your contacts, forms, and analytics.
- Click Grant Access (don’t overthink the scary warning screens; the basics are safe).
Heads up: If you have multiple HubSpot accounts, triple-check you’re picking the right one. People mess this up more often than you’d think.
Step 2: Set Up Lead Capture in Your Videos
This is where the magic happens—getting contact info from viewers and sending it to HubSpot.
2.1. Use Vidyard’s Forms (Turnstiles)
- In Vidyard, open the video you want to use.
- Click Calls-to-Action or Turnstile (the name changes, but it’s the form overlay).
- Set it to collect email and name. You can add more fields, but less is usually better for conversions.
- Choose when the form appears (start, middle, or end of the video).
What works: Short forms. Don’t ask for a phone number unless you really need it.
2.2. Map Form Fields to HubSpot
- Vidyard lets you map the fields from your video form to HubSpot contact fields.
- For each field (email, name, etc.), pick the matching HubSpot property.
- Save your mappings.
Pro tip: Stick to standard fields at first. Custom fields sometimes don’t sync right—if you see errors, start simple and expand after you know it works.
2.3. Test It
- Open the video as a viewer (incognito mode helps).
- Fill out the form.
- Check HubSpot for a new contact with your test info.
If the contact shows up, you’re golden. If not, check the mappings and make sure the integration is still connected.
Step 3: Track Video Engagement in HubSpot
Capturing leads is good. Tracking what they actually watch is better.
3.1. Turn on Engagement Tracking
- In Vidyard, go to the Integration Settings for HubSpot.
- Make sure Send video view data to HubSpot is enabled.
This pushes video view data (who watched, how much, which video) into HubSpot timelines.
3.2. What Data Actually Syncs?
Vidyard sends over:
- Contact info (from your forms)
- Video view events (shows up on the contact’s timeline)
- Engagement score (how much of the video was watched)
What doesn’t sync: Granular heatmaps or every pause/play. HubSpot gets the basics, not the play-by-play. If you want super granular analytics, you’ll still need to check Vidyard.
3.3. Check HubSpot Contacts
- Open a contact you used for testing.
- Scroll down their timeline—you should see events like “Watched [Video Name] for X%.”
If you don’t see anything, give it a few minutes. Sometimes it’s just slow.
Step 4: Automate With HubSpot Workflows
Now you can actually do something when someone watches your videos.
4.1. Build a New Workflow
- In HubSpot, go to Automation > Workflows.
- Create a workflow triggered by Video View or Form Submission events.
4.2. Example Triggers
- “Contact watched 75% of [Demo Video]”
- “Contact submitted Vidyard form on [Landing Page]”
4.3. Example Actions
- Send a personalized follow-up email.
- Notify a sales rep in Slack or by email.
- Move the contact to a new lifecycle stage.
- Add them to a targeted list.
What works: Targeted, relevant follow-ups. Don’t just blast every contact with the same email—they’ll tune you out fast.
What to ignore: Overcomplicated scoring. Don’t try to build a perfect lead score based on every second of video watched. Start simple.
Step 5: Troubleshooting and Gotchas
Let’s be real—integrations break or act weird. Here’s what to watch for:
- Contacts not syncing: Double-check your field mappings and that required fields are filled.
- Video views missing: Make sure engagement tracking is enabled in the integration settings.
- Duplicate contacts: If viewers use different emails, you’ll get duplicates. HubSpot can help merge them, but it’s not perfect.
- Custom fields not syncing: Stick to default fields until you’re sure things work.
- Forms not showing up: Some ad blockers or browsers can block Vidyard overlays. Always test in a few browsers.
Pro tip: If things stop syncing, just disconnect and reconnect the integration. It fixes most gremlins.
Step 6: Pro Tips to Get More Out of the Integration
- Limit the number of forms: Too many pop-ups annoy viewers and hurt completion rates.
- Use video data to segment lists: Create lists in HubSpot based on which videos people watched—great for targeted campaigns.
- Keep videos short: The longer the video, the fewer people finish and fill out your form.
- Review privacy settings: Make sure you’re compliant with GDPR or other rules if you’re collecting personal data.
- Regularly audit the integration: At least once a quarter, check that data is still flowing—especially after software updates.
Wrapping Up
Connecting Vidyard and HubSpot won’t magically make your leads better—but it will help you see who’s actually engaging with your content, so you can act faster and smarter. Don’t get bogged down chasing “advanced” setups right away. Start simple, make sure the basics work, and build from there. The real payoff comes from using the data, not just collecting it.
Now go set it up—and if something doesn’t work, don’t bang your head on the keyboard. Most issues are just a setting or two away from being fixed. Test, tweak, and keep things moving.