How 2manydots started automating documents straight from HubSpot

We run everything on Google and HubSpot. Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets. Everything lives there. And HubSpot is our source of truth for contacts, employees, assets. When we needed to produce documents, we were doing it manually in Google Docs. Clone a document, change the details, save it somewhere. It worked, but it wasn't reliable.

I was copying documents for years with the wrong address because someone had moved. I didn't notice until much later. We were cloning old performance reviews and the old address was still there. When you're copying and pasting manually, errors creep in and you don't always catch them.

PandaDoc wasn't built to work with our tools

I tried PandaDoc. It didn't work for us.

We're heavily invested in the Google suite. Everything lives on Drive or in Google Docs. But PandaDoc had its own editor. It changed things in the markup. The document I created in PandaDoc wasn't the same as the one I'd get out. It wasn't as easy to work with, and it was more expensive.

What I really wanted was something that worked inside Google Docs but could pull data from HubSpot. We use HubSpot for everything. All our employees are in there as contacts with address information. We have a custom object for assets, so every laptop and device is tracked. The data was already there. I just needed a way to use it without copying and pasting.

It works inside Google Docs and runs from HubSpot

That's what Portant gave us. It's just a Google Doc. It replaces the terms we need and the markup stays the same. That made it much easier for me to work with than tools that have their own editor.

The integration with HubSpot was the other big thing. I can run documents directly from HubSpot. Click the person, run the Portant document, and they get something they can sign. No jumping between platforms. No copying data. The information comes straight from HubSpot, so it's always right.

The reason I was looking for this in the first place was that we send quotes using HubSpot's built-in quote system for most deals. But for new customers, we like to send something that looks like a proper document. A nice PDF they can review. That's where Portant started for us. I created a workflow that replaces the name, company, and chamber of commerce numbers into the document. It's always accurate.

Asset agreements, performance reviews, labour contracts

We're working towards ISO 27001 and 9001 certification, which requires a lot of internal documentation. Portant handles that now.

I use it for asset agreements. If someone gets a laptop, I click the person in HubSpot, select the devices from our custom object, and they receive a document to sign. I use it for performance reviews. I use it for labour agreements, freelance agreements, amendments. Same format every time.

Before, I would clone a document and change the details. It didn't take long, but it wasn't reliable. Now the chance of an error is much lower because we're using the same source in HubSpot. We update it there, I run the document from there, and it's saved in the right folder in Drive.

One source of truth, no more wrong addresses

When someone's onboarding, it really does save time. I'm not hunting for the right template or wondering if the address is current. The data is in HubSpot. Portant pulls it. The document goes out.

The number of errors is lower. The format is consistent. For compliance, contracts, and getting documents out in a format you can trust, it's been a big win.

I'm happy with the tool. I love that it works conveniently. If there's inspiration or things I can do with Portant, just inspire me.

If you're in HubSpot and Google and you're tired of jumping between platforms and copying data by hand, start for free via the HubSpot Marketplace.