Gateway for Cancer Research, a nonprofit that funds early-phase cancer clinical trials, kept decades of donor records in a Salesforce instance that one staff member used regularly. Growth moved it to HubSpot, with a Household object for more than 100,000 family records and four fundraising pipelines. About 14 weeks after kickoff the project was complete, with 113,000 contacts in HubSpot and the team running its biggest event as its first HubSpot campaign.
| At a glance | |
|---|
| Client | Gateway for Cancer Research |
| Industry | Nonprofit: funding early-phase clinical trials for people with cancer |
| Company size | A small team working across several states |
| HubSpot | Marketing Hub and Sales Hub |
| Started from | Salesforce, used regularly by one person |
| Growth's work | Salesforce to HubSpot migration and implementation, then a monthly retainer |
| Timeline | Kickoff on October 15, 2025; project review on January 21, 2026 |
| Result | 113,000 contacts and a Household object in HubSpot |
Why did Gateway for Cancer Research leave Salesforce?
Gateway for Cancer Research has funded clinical trials for more than three decades, and its donor history sat in Salesforce. Few people on the team worked in it, and only one used it regularly. A small fundraising and marketing team, spread across several states, needed one place to see donors, households, events and grants. Gateway for Cancer Research met HubSpot first, and HubSpot brought Growth in for the migration.
What changed for Gateway for Cancer Research?
Gateway for Cancer Research's development, marketing and operations staff now work in one HubSpot portal.
| Before | After |
|---|
| Donor records | In Salesforce, used by one person | 113,000 contacts in HubSpot |
| Households | No record type of their own | A Household object with more than 100,000 records |
| Fundraising | Not tracked as pipelines | Event, Grant, Annual Fund and Major Gift pipelines |
| Meetings and inquiries | A separate scheduling tool | HubSpot meetings, and a contact form that routes each inquiry |
| Calls and notes | Rarely recorded in one place | Logged on the donor's record |
How did Growth migrate Gateway for Cancer Research to HubSpot?
Growth, an Elite HubSpot Solutions Partner accredited in CRM Implementation and CRM Data Migration, kicked off with Gateway for Cancer Research on October 15, 2025, and worked in weekly sessions with the team.
- Data mapping sessions to decide which Salesforce data moved and where it landed.
- A Household custom object, so family members share one household record.
- Four fundraising pipelines: Event, Grant, Annual Fund and Major Gift.
- The import on December 10, 2025, which ran with zero errors.
- A routed contact form, HubSpot meetings, dashboards, and training in January 2026.
A Growth retainer has supported the team since.
For HubSpot teams
- Hubs: Marketing Hub and Sales Hub, with service and commerce seats.
- Migration: Salesforce to HubSpot, donor history included.
- Built: Household custom object (100,000+ records), Event, Grant, Annual Fund and Major Gift pipelines, routed contact form, meetings, dashboards.
- Introduced by: HubSpot, which brought Growth in for the migration.
- Partner: Growth Operations Firm, Elite HubSpot Solutions Partner.
- A good fit for: nonprofits leaving Salesforce that give by household and run events, grants and major gifts side by side.
Questions about this project
How long did Gateway for Cancer Research's move to HubSpot take?
About 14 weeks. Growth kicked off on October 15, 2025, ran the import on December 10, trained the team in January, and the project review on January 21, 2026 marked it complete.
Can HubSpot track donor households?
Yes. Growth built Gateway for Cancer Research a Household custom object with more than 100,000 records, so family members are linked to one household instead of being stored as separate donors.
Can a nonprofit move from Salesforce to HubSpot?
Yes. Gateway for Cancer Research moved its donor records from Salesforce into HubSpot, which now holds 113,000 contacts and its event, grant, annual fund and major gift pipelines.
Leaving Salesforce for HubSpot? Book a consultation with Growth. More from Growth: How to avoid nonprofit CRM implementation failures.
