Learn about a niche use case for HubSpot custom objects: Tracking pets treated by a veterinarian’s office.
HubSpot custom objects allow you to store data that doesn’t fit into any of the standard HubSpot object types such as Contacts, Companies, or Deals. Custom object records can be associated with other types of objects, and tailor-made to fit your portal.
The ability to create custom objects is only available to those with an Enterprise subscription to any hub - Sales, Service, Marketing, Operations, or CMS.
Here’s an example of a use case for custom objects: A veterinarian’s office could use custom objects to store information about the pets they’ve treated. HubSpot frequently cites ‘pets’ as a good example of a productive custom object use case, so let’s go through the basics of how we’d build it out.
Step 1: Determine need
The first thing you should ask yourself when considering custom objects is: Can a standard HubSpot object type fulfill my need? In general, if your data conforms to one of the object types that come with your HubSpot subscription, you should use them, in order to avoid unnecessary work and overcomplicated data.
In the case of a vet’s office, they have a need to store information about pets which may not fit into the standard object types. Thus, creating a custom object would be worth their while.
Step 2: Configure custom objects
Create and define a custom object called Pets.
- Navigate to Settings > Objects > Custom Objects. Click Create a Custom Object.
- Choose an object name: Pets.
- Create a property Pet Name and set it as the primary display property. The primary display property is the main identifying property for objects in HubSpot.
- Create or choose secondary display properties, which appear under the primary display property in object records. A Pet Type property would be useful as the secondary display property in this case.
Step 3: Define secondary properties
Additional custom properties that would be useful for a pet record include:
- Pet Age
- Breed
- Pet Birthday
- Last appointment date
- Treatment notes
Step 4: Define association labels
Once the Pets custom object is configured, add an association label in order to associate contact records with pet records.
Association labels require two pieces of information: The two objects you’re associating, and a value for the label. A vet’s office would benefit from adding a Contacts-to-Pet association, and labeling it Owner. This way, contact records of pet owners can be connected to their pets within the CRM.
Once the initial setup is complete, the data stored in the Pets custom property can be used in automation and reporting, and generally makes for a more organized and clearly defined data management system.