Category: Digital Marketing

The beauty of freelancing for most of my decade-long career is that I’ve worked on both sides of the B2B and B2C marketing coin. One week, I’m helping a B2B SaaS brand rewrite a whitepaper. The next, I’m deep in campaign planning for a B2C real estate brand. It’s a front-row seat to how marketing…

For what seems like ages, “Google” has been synonymous with “search.” Have a question? Google it. Looking for a product? Google it. But consumer search behavior has changed.

Remember the last time you got an email that started with ‘Hey {First_Name}’ and immediately felt like deleting it? That visceral reaction isn’t just about poor execution — it signals a fundamental shift in buyer expectations. HubSpot research shows that 78% of customers expect more personalization in business interactions than ever before. Yet only 47%…

When I started in content marketing in 2013, my digital marketing analytics strategy was refreshing Google Analytics to check if page views were up. Traffic climbing meant we were winning; traffic dropping meant panic mode.

Content syndication is the secret to getting your excellent content in front of more people. Instead of posting your content on your site only, content syndication requires repurposing content across the web.

Microsoft Excel know-how is so expected that it hardly warrants a line on a resume anymore. But how well do you really know how to use it?

With more than 1 billion monthly active users, Instagram is one of the most essential social media platforms for marketers and business owners to connect with their audience.

HubSpot‘s Transactional Email add-on is a specialized email delivery solution that helps businesses send automated, relationship-based communications like order confirmations, password resets, and account updates through a dedicated IP address.

Do you need to learn HTML, CSS, and JavaScript in web design when you can easily create websites with AI-powered tools? That’s a question that stopped me in the tracks because there’s no easy answer.

Whenever I work on branding with companies, I see everyone light up about the tactics. It’s fun to play with logo makers, brainstorm names with ChatGPT, or post their first updates on Instagram.

There’s a challenge brewing for businesses everywhere. Content is becoming virtually indistinguishable online, and it all boils down to the latest industry disruptor: AI. It’s no secret that AI adoption is reaching top speed across many aspects of life and work. Forbes predicts that by the end of this year, 378 million people will be…

When I set out to build an email list from scratch for MarketingIdeas.com, I didn’t have a product. No pricing page. No polished brand. Just a one-liner and a waitlist. Within a few weeks, that waitlist had grown to hundreds of people, and that list became the foundation for everything that followed. Since then, I’ve…

Small business owners are all saying the same thing: “My website traffic is tanking, and the stuff that used to work just doesn‘t anymore.” And they’re right. Nearly 60% of searches don’t end in a click — people are getting answers from AI and never visiting your site. But here‘s what’s crazy: The same AI…

My graphic design journey started on Fiverr. I used to sell banners and background removal services for $5. I am not the best designer. Far from it. However, tools like Photoshop and Canva helped me create decent graphics by editing my way through their premium templates.

It’s time to drop the baggage around the word “influencer.”

Picture the Starbucks siren logo. Now picture it in bright HubSpot orange. How wrong does that feel to you?

I remember when ChatGPT first launched. The entire marketing community was split on whether they should use AI chatbots or not. Posts about ChatGPT would get hundreds of comments, with one side debating the convenience of AI and the other arguing that AI can never match human creativity.

There are some lessons you only learn when life hits you hard. This week’s master stared down the loss of his business —

A few years ago, I was in charge of presenting a big marketing strategy deck to a senior executive. My team and I prepared a script that went something like this:

With 5.5 billion people online (and counting), the internet has never been busier — or had more opportunity. But, businesses keep asking if blogging benefits are still worth the effort.

Read this line from one of my favorite authors: “I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.”

At my last job I was tasked with launching a newsletter, and was suddenly faced with a bunch of unfamiliar acronyms: DKIM, DMARC, SPF. (Apparently that last one is not related to sun protection?)

Most companies calculate their customer acquisition cost (CAC) incorrectly. They focus on individual channel metrics, such as $50 from paid ads, $30 from content marketing, and $75 from partnership, without understanding their true CAC across all channels. This incomplete picture leads to misallocated budgets, unrealistic growth projections, and investor presentations that don’t hold up under…

For anyone struggling with using AI in Instagram marketing, now is definitely the time to learn. Nearly half of the marketers we surveyed for our 2025 State of AI Marketing report said they’re already using AI for social media, with 49% using it for text-based social content and 47% for video/audio-based content.

Marketing is a paradoxical undertaking: We create campaigns for the masses, but those messages are only ever experienced on the individual level. How does a good marketer straddle this? By writing directly to a single viewer, aka their buyer persona.

As the founder of AI newsletter Mindstream, I’m constantly thinking about scale, especially when it comes to content. For me, video was the bottleneck. I wanted to show up consistently, but I didn’t want to spend hours filming, editing, or setting up gear. That’s what led me to explore AI avatars.

Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) are wired to want proof, not promises. While we marketers light up at impressions, and engagement — excuse the stars in my eyes — CFOs focus on revenue, risk, and return.

Let‘s be honest: if you’re running a business focused on AI tools and you‘re not using AI to grow that business, you’re missing the point entirely.

In times of chaos, marketing team structure is often overlooked, but for companies in hypergrowth, this can be a recipe for disaster. The lean marketing team that got a business off the ground is not the same team that will help it scale. Trust — as a serial marketing team of one, I’ve experienced the…

With advances in technology and evolving media consumption habits over the years, publishers are no strangers to business model pivots — and it’s only getting more challenging with the rise of generative AI. To conquer obstacles to monetization and distribution, publishing companies need to be able to build stronger relationships with their readers, subscribers, and…

For the past ten years, I’ve lived and breathed marketing. I’ve run social campaigns, worked with influencers, created content, built affiliate programs, and everything in between. One factor unites everything: Every single winning strategy has always tied back to community.

Marketing teams today are drowning in software. The 2024 Marketing Technology Landscape revealed a staggering 14,106 martech products available, representing 27.8% growth year-over-year. But here’s the uncomfortable truth: marketers estimate they waste an average of 26% of their budgets on ineffective channels and strategies, with about half of respondents saying they misspend at least 20%…

With college enrollment trending downward and experts anticipating a “demographic cliff” in 2025 — having a higher education CRM is absolutely vital to ensuring a thriving institution. A CRM is key to attracting and retaining students, ensuring enrollee success, and fostering relationships with alumni and donors.

Spreadsheets and manual processes can hold back your wholesale business from growing. As wholesalers face increasing pressures to deliver faster, maintain accurate inventory visibility, and provide exceptional customer service, the right CRM becomes essential for success.

There‘s more to healthcare than the visit itself. Whether you’re a doctor’s office, dental practice, or senior living facility, you know that consistent, personalized communication is key to meeting patients’ changing health needs. In fact, it’s what patients prefer. Research by global healthcare company Abbott found that 72% of patients want more personalized care.

Managing relationships across healthcare professionals (HCPs), healthcare organizations (HCOs), and complex regulatory requirements makes choosing the right CRM critical for pharmaceutical companies. Whether you’re tracking drug samples, coordinating clinical trials, or ensuring compliance, pharmaceutical companies benefit from CRM systems with features that support their specialized workflows.

When I spoke to this week’s master in marketing, I was surprised at how seamlessly she had combined her two professional loves, digital marketing and life coaching. I’ll admit to having been skeptical about life coaching in the past, but this conversation changed my mind. As a life coach, she developed a framework she calls…

As a digital marketing consultant, I spend a lot of time promoting website content on social media. But what about promoting your social presence via your website? Embedding enables you to do exactly that. I’ll often use this tactic for video content as a way to repurpose it and increase its reach.

The newsletter platform and social media site, Substack, has become one of the hottest spaces for online creators—and now brands and celebrities are joining the bandwagon. Boasting more than five million paid subscribers across the platform, Substack invites creators like myself to build an audience, make money, and connect with other readers and writers.

If you’re creating content without an editorial calendar you’re setting yourself up for stress, inconsistency, and missed opportunities. Been there, done that, got the “I meant to do more” t-shirt.

If missed appointments, mismanaged invoices, and fragmented customer communication are draining your revenue, it’s time to consider implementing a CRM for plumbers. The right platform helps reduce no-shows, speeds up emergency dispatch, and provides the insights you need to improve profitability and customer loyalty.

In the crowded digital marketplace, a single click is everything. It’s not just a metric, it’s the heartbeat of conversion. But what compels someone to click? Is it the headline? The button color? The layout?

Stacks of notes. A half-finished webinar script. Google Docs open in every tab. That’s the beginning of a lead magnet story I hear from peers, founders, and marketers on tight budgets.

If I were looking for the best way to divide a room full of marketers, I’d bring up the topic of guest blogging and link building.

Running a successful cleaning business in 2025 goes far beyond spotless floors and sparkling windows — it requires seamless communication, efficient scheduling, and reliable customer management. Yet, finding the right tools to keep everything organized is a challenge; here’s why: the CRM needs of cleaning businesses are uniquely demanding, blending field service logistics with customer…

Investment banking operates in a fast-paced environment where relationship management, deal tracking, and regulatory compliance determine success. Investment banks face rapid market changes and growing client demands, increasing regulatory demands, and the need to manage intricate client relationships that traditional spreadsheets and generic tools simply cannot handle effectively.

Managing customer relationships in call centers presents challenges that standard business software simply can’t address. Unlike typical sales environments, call center teams handle hundreds of interactions daily, require instant access to customer history across multiple touchpoints, and need sophisticated routing and monitoring capabilities to maintain service quality. These high-volume, fast-paced environments demand specialized tools to…

The oil and gas industry faces unique challenges that standard business software often can’t address. From managing complex, multi-year drilling projects to tracking equipment across remote locations, energy companies need specialized tools to stay competitive. Customer relationship management (CRM) systems designed for oil and gas operations help companies streamline vendor relationships, manage lengthy sales cycles,…

Landscaping companies juggle seasonal crews, multiple job sites, and weather-dependent schedules — all while trying to track customer communications, quotes, and service histories. That’s a tough job, and without the right software to stay organized, you may miss opportunities and lose revenue. You need a flexible CRM that matches your daily reality.

Running an HVAC business means juggling emergency calls, seasonal demand spikes, and multi-visit jobs that can span weeks. You’re dealing with a technician shortage, meanwhile customers expect rapid response times when their AC fails or their furnace breaks.

Running a roofing business is tough. You’re juggling estimates, managing crews, and trying to keep customers happy. On top of that, most roofing companies struggle to find a CRM that works for their unique needs.

Human Resources firms face a unique set of challenges when managing client relationships. From tracking candidate pipelines and coordinating with hiring managers to managing client accounts and compliance documentation, HR workflow is multifaceted and high-touch. Traditional tools like spreadsheets or generic databases quickly fall short when firms scale, leaving communication gaps, workflow inefficiencies, and lost…

Brands want to know that they are on the right track toward achieving their goals. That’s why measurement matters. Key performance indicators (KPIs) often give leaders signals to determine if what they’re doing is working or if they need to adjust.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Right? There’s a lot to glean from turbulent times like the 2008 recession and the more recent COVID-19 pandemic. Within these periods are droves of case studies proving that whether or not a company comes out thriving is largely dependent on the strength of its marketing. It’s no…

Managing a pest control business means juggling customer appointments, technician schedules, service plans, and follow-ups. A traditional spreadsheet or generic tool simply can’t keep up. That’s why teams are turning to CRMs for pest control — built for these unique needs.

I’m not saying I exploited my position as managing editor to meet one of my favorite YouTubers…

Venture capital (VC) firms have unique relationship management needs that many customer relationship management (CRM) systems don’t address.

Let’s be honest — running a dental practice is challenging enough without juggling spreadsheets, missed follow-ups, and disconnected systems. Between managing patient relationships, scheduling appointments, and nurturing new leads, you need technology that actually works for you, not against you.

For the past few months, I‘ve been deep in the trenches testing the latest AI models, spending $200 a month on ChatGPT Pro, and building games with AI that would have required entire development teams just months ago.

In the construction industry, managing client relationships isn’t as simple as logging a few notes and tracking emails. With long project cycles, complex stakeholder networks, on-site and off-site coordination, and a steady stream of subcontractors, suppliers, and clients, construction businesses have unique customer relationship management (CRM) needs far beyond the average sales pipeline.

Managing a successful gym requires more than just great equipment and passionate trainers. With fitness members increasingly expecting seamless digital experiences, gyms need robust customer relationship management (CRM) systems to handle everything from lead nurturing to membership retention. Gold’s Gym SoCal achieved its best six months of sales in history after implementing HubSpot’s unified CRM…

Managing investor relationships isn’t like managing any old leads or sales deals. Investment firms deal with high-stakes portfolios, detailed reporting cycles, and strict compliance rules — all of which require special consideration.

Nonprofits face distinct challenges when it comes to managing relationships and driving engagement. Unlike for-profit businesses, nonprofits must balance limited budgets with the need to maintain strong donor relationships, manage volunteers, run programming, and track impact, often across dispersed teams. These unique demands require tools that go beyond traditional customer management.

I’ve recently been using Substack to find new music to listen to. That’s probably not quite what its founders had in mind, but it has a ton of newsletters written by people who just really love music. It’s less professional music criticism and more “hey, this album was great, give it a listen.”

LinkedIn is the highest ROI channel for career growth, but many people aren’t prioritizing it — yet. I’m convinced most people don’t realize the goldmine they’re sitting on, for both their personal brand and their company.

Social media businesses face unique challenges in managing customer relationships across multiple platforms while scaling their operations. With over 5.24 billion social media users worldwide, social media companies must integrate their CRM systems with social platforms to capture every interaction and convert engagement into revenue.

Client relationships are the lifeblood of any legal practice, but managing them effectively poses unique challenges. Law firms must balance client confidentiality, complex case timelines, and regulatory requirements while delivering timely, personalized service. These demands make traditional client management tools inadequate for the legal industry.

If you’ve been following the AI space lately, it’s easy to feel like you’re drowning in acronyms and version numbers.

Business brokers face a variety of challenges in managing complex deal flows, maintaining long-term client relationships, and coordinating between buyers and sellers. A specialized CRM system becomes essential for organizing prospect databases, automating follow-ups, and ensuring no potential deal falls through the cracks.

Property management comes with unique challenges that go far beyond simple contact management. Property managers must juggle tenant relationships, owner communications, maintenance requests, and lead generation while maintaining detailed records of all interactions. Traditional CRM systems often fall short because they lack the specialized features property managers need to thrive. Property management CRM software addresses…

Finance companies face unique challenges that require specialized CRM solutions. Managing complex client relationships, ensuring regulatory compliance, and handling sensitive financial data demands more than a basic customer relationship management system. The right CRM streamlines operations while maintaining the security and compliance standards that finance professionals require.

Managing customer relationships in ecommerce isn‘t just about collecting emails and tracking orders anymore. Modern ecommerce businesses need powerful CRM systems that can handle complex customer journeys, integrate with multiple sales channels, and provide actionable insights to drive growth.

Manufacturing companies face unique challenges when managing customer relationships. Complex sales cycles, custom product configurations, and multi-stakeholder decision processes require specialized CRM capabilities that go beyond basic contact management.

Managing client relationships is the cornerstone of any successful consulting business. Consulting firms face unique challenges in tracking prospects, managing complex project pipelines, and maintaining long-term client relationships across multiple engagements. Unlike traditional sales processes, consulting requires nurturing relationships over extended periods while juggling multiple stakeholders and project phases.

Your hotel already has a lot to manage in its tech stack. Between your PMS, CRS, and booking engine, it’s easy to lose sight of exactly what’s driving revenue — not to mention the frustration of losing commissions to OTAs. Using a CRM ensures you can pinpoint revenue sources, calculate ROI, and most importantly, foster…

Water, electricity, and heat are complicated enough. Add the responsibility of regulations and customer relations, and utilities companies are set up for some complex challenges. Managing customer relationships, responding quickly to outages, integrating billing systems, and maintaining regulatory compliance — a customer relationship management system (CRM) for utilities can make these things easier.

HubSpot’s Marketing Hub is a comprehensive marketing automation platform that helps businesses generate leads, automate campaigns, measure marketing performance, and more — all powered by HubSpot’s AI. With 82% of marketers reporting that HubSpot increased their lead generation, the platform has proven its effectiveness across businesses of all sizes. This guide provides current pricing information…

HubSpot’s Operations Hub is designed for teams who want to streamline operations and unlock new growth opportunities for their business. Whether you’re syncing apps, building efficient workflows, or governing complex datasets, Operations Hub helps you transform operations into a growth engine. 83% of businesses saw an increase in revenue in the first 12 months using…

Government agencies face unprecedented challenges in managing citizen relationships, delivering public services, and maintaining transparency while ensuring data security and regulatory compliance.

The CRM needs of private equity firms are fundamentally different from those of traditional sales-driven organizations. In an industry where deal flow, relationship intelligence, and portfolio performance are critical, private equity professionals require a CRM beyond simple contact management. They need a centralized system that supports long-term relationship tracking, deal pipeline visibility, investor communications, and…

Managing a restaurant is tough work. Between juggling tables, staff, and endless orders, keeping track of customer relationships can feel impossible. That’s where restaurant CRM software becomes your secret weapon.

In an hour, ChatGPT-o3 can make you dozens of high-level marketing graphics — the kinds of campaigns that would take some teams weeks to complete. And the graphics aren’t just a first draft starting point. They’re final assets ready to run.

Is billboard advertising still relevant today? Yes, all because of costly signaling. This behavioral science principle states that expensive signals indicate higher quality or status.

A few days ago, Jane was browsing for new sunglasses. Before she knew it, every site she visited was showing her relevant ads. It wasn’t magic. Just algorithms working with behavioral data. But data collection is no longer something we can do in the background. With rising privacy concerns, businesses must now lean on zero-party…

AI voice technology has been moving fast for a while now. But recently, it feels like we‘ve shifted into a completely different gear. We’re not just talking about smoother narration or cleaner text-to-speech anymore. These tools are starting to sound like actual people, with emotions, personalities, and conversational quirks that can genuinely fool you.

If you’re a startup founder or marketer trying to build momentum with little to no budget, good news: Being scrappy is the best place to start. Some of the most effective marketing I’ve ever done — from the early days of my career to my time at Drift — came from moments when there was…

Looking to grow your marketing team? It all starts with marketing job descriptions written to attract your best potential. Wording, structure, even emojis — everything counts. I’ve encountered countless job descriptions during my time as a marketer and have learned a thing or two along the way. Not surprisingly, 52% of job seekers say the…

How’s your cottagecore vibe? Are you ready for light academia aesthetic to dominate your feed or for the next generative-AI action figure trend?

Do you ever look at an ad and wonder, “What on earth does that mean?” That’s how I felt after viewing this Stripe ad.

When generative AI first came out, I was skeptical. While it came up with some good ideas, I saw it more as a novelty than a real copywriting tool. Honestly, I didn’t believe “great” and “on-brand AI copywriting” would ever belong in the same sentence. To be clear, I still see my own brain and…

Like, comment, share. This used to be the holy trinity of social media engagement, but savable content has emerged as a new contender in recent years.

Every summer, a familiar shift hits marketing teams. Engagement cools, inboxes slow, and campaign results taper off just as internal pressure starts to heat up. Clients pause new projects. Content calendars fill with refreshes and lighter lifts. And whether you’re in-house or freelance, it can feel like you’re sprinting in place. As a content strategist…

I love talking to creative people because they always notice details that I don’t. Like today’s master in marketing, who saw a boost in impressions from one tiny, seemingly insignificant detail: when their photo model bent their knee.

Let’s say you‘re the CMO of a scrappy startup, and you’ve got limited (or no) budget. You’ve got no name recognition, and no time to waste. So, where do you start to make the biggest impact?

At first, AI marketing campaigns were pretty obvious — robotic and stiff. Then, slowly but surely, brands started getting it. Now I’m seeing AI-driven campaigns that feel alive; they’re innovative, tailored, and sometimes so smart, you’d swear they were made by humans. Curious to see what I’m talking about? Stick around because I’m diving into…

ChatGPT and Google Bard have entered the chat. If you haven‘t joined the conversation around artificial intelligence (AI) in digital marketing, you’re missing the party.

You know that moment when you stumble on a brilliant growth tactic hidden in a Reddit thread or buried deep in a comment section? That’s the kind of stuff I live for.

We all know AI assistants can help with marketing tasks. But, here’s what most people are missing: Using AI as a prompt engineer is where the real productivity gains happen.

A writer who (gasp) used AI to help write? Before you clutch your pearls in my direction, know this — AI, when used as a tool and a creative collaborator, is a fantastic way to brainstorm, outline, and yep, even organize and polish my ideas.

There’s no way around it — every business needs to drive leads to grow. However, B2B lead generation is far from a simple task. You are competing with other businesses, navigating misinformation, and playing trial and error with various tools. Not to mention, you also might be selling a product that’s more expensive or requires…

I see a lot of marketing teams stuck in the same cycle: They believe in content. They’re creating constantly. But, they’re just not seeing the results they want. Add that the CEO is asking why the competitor is “suddenly everywhere.”

The other day, I was reading a blog post when something caught my eye: a section about how to create a landing page to promote offers like a free ebook. Naturally, I clicked the link. It took me to a clean, focused page that broke down what the ebook included, how to get it, and…

I’m a teacher, so I’m now used to the faces of students who are scared to learn. More specifically, they’re scared to fail to learn. It’s ingrained early in our studies — As are good, Fs are bad, and you’d better learn the right answers before time runs out. That mentality crashes and burns in…

A couple of years ago, I deleted my Instagram account (after realizing I was spending 4+ hours a day on the app).

Like many buyers in America today, I cringe whenever I swipe my credit card. Amid a “shifting economic landscape” (read: messy economic times), we’re all watching our wallets, trying to keep spending down, and questioning where our dollars go. And it’s not just consumers — businesses, too, are monitoring budgets and seeking better deals. All…

LinkedIn might be the most underrated growth channel in marketing right now. I‘ve been obsessing over this lately. While everyone’s fighting for attention on every other platform, LinkedIn remains a place where smart marketers can still build massive audiences without burning through ad budget.

If you’ve ever stared down a sea of bland AI content and whispered, “Is this my job now?”, you’ll enjoy this master’s take: “The amount of blog posts that are written with AI is at an all-time high… And all of it is trash.”

In 2020, I interviewed Andrea Lisbona for Forbes about her less than two-year-old hand sanitizer brand, Touchland. The pandemic was wreaking havoc and the very green startup needed to act quickly and smartly. That they did — tightening their marketing strategy to meet the demands of the times. It was a real-time masterclass in surviving…

A few years ago, I was head of content at a health insurance company — a role that required a team of full-time employees and freelancers to get the job done. But once ChatGPT hit the scene, I realized I could strike out on my own.

Look, we‘ve all been there — you know your website could be converting better, but figuring out exactly what to fix feels like solving a Rubik’s cube blindfolded. You‘re running A/B tests, analyzing heat maps, and guessing at what’s actually going to move the needle.

With 66% of marketers globally using artificial intelligence in their roles, it’s no longer a matter of if you should use AI but how. How are other marketers (and your competition) using AI? How can you use AI ethically?

Welcome to Breaking the Blueprint — a blog series that dives into the unique business challenges and opportunities of underrepresented business owners and entrepreneurs. Learn how they’ve grown or scaled their businesses, explored entrepreneurial ventures within their companies, or created side hustles, and how their stories can inspire and inform your own success.

When clients first started asking me to handle their social media, I figured the image part would be easy. Create one clean graphic, upload it across platforms, and the tools would adjust everything automatically. Boy, was I wrong. Between cropped headers, stretched thumbnails, and text that disappeared on mobile, it didn’t take long to realize…

“I tried using AI for our marketing content, but it just doesn’t sound like us.”

Limited marketing budgets make marketers think creatively to get the most out of every cent. And those who see room for business growth rather than constraint create outstanding low-budget advertising campaigns. Surprisingly, many budget-friendly marketing ideas deliver a better return on investment than those that cost top dollar. The proof follows. I spoke to global…

  Since late 2024, major players in the chatbot game have been rolling out a deep research feature designed to provide what they call “expert-level analysis.” With a focus on multi-step research tasks and more source transparency, this new capability promises to deliver data-rich reports with applications in a variety of industries. Let’s explore what…

Every few years, a new channel takes center stage — short-form video, podcasting, or AI-generated content — and people start asking the same question: “Are blogs dead?” It’s a fair question. After all, platforms evolve and audience habits shift. But the idea that blogs are irrelevant today? That’s a myth I was eager to investigate….

LinkedIn is full of narcissists, and I have the data to prove it.

Welcome to Breaking the Blueprint — a blog series that dives into the unique business challenges and opportunities of underrepresented business owners and entrepreneurs. Learn how they’ve grown or scaled their businesses, explored entrepreneurial ventures within their companies, or created side hustles, and how their stories can inspire and inform your success. This piece is…

Time is money in marketing, so why not use AI workflows to boost productivity? I spoke with some of my colleagues at HubSpot, and they say they’ve found workflows that maximize their productivity, save time, and act as the perfect automated assistant. If you‘re looking for workflows that make your work life easier, you’ve come…

When I stepped into my role as head of content at Gong, I didn’t come with a decade of marketing experience. I came with a sales background and a whole lot of time spent chasing leads. That experience turned out to be my unfair advantage.

In February, OpenAI gave a two-minute demonstration at a private event in Tokyo. The demo didn’t stay quiet for long. It set off a firestorm in the sales industry.

Running a marketing agency used to mean juggling a small army of freelancers, risking missed deadlines, and spending more time managing people than creating content and building strategies.

SEO is changing. We’re entering a new era of search — the AI age — and with it comes generative engine optimization (GEO), the practice of optimizing content for AI-driven engines such as ChatGPT or Perplexity. If we want our content to reach the right people, we need to adapt. There’s no need to throw…

One of the most powerful — but least used — aspects of social media is its ability to turn customers into community.

It feels like not that long ago, companies were just starting to talk about AI in their operations. You had highly specific use cases or industry needs, but the sweeping proclamations of “artificial intelligence will upend business as we know it” are only now feeling especially urgent. I blinked, and everything was ChatGPT. Blink again,…

Let‘s be honest: AI assistants aren’t just for executives anymore. They’re the secret weapon that can make you 10x more productive than everyone else in your company.

Image editing used to mean opening Photoshop, wading through complex tools, and spending hours on tedious fixes. I’ve been there. It was frustrating and a massive bottleneck.

When I started working with B2B companies, I quickly realized that understanding how your customers make purchasing decisions is just as important as knowing your product inside and out. This is where a B2B buyer journey map becomes an invaluable asset.

I’ll never forget the first time someone asked me for a marketing performance update. I had six messy spreadsheets open, no clear narrative, and no KPI dashboard to tie it all together. I had the numbers, technically … but not the clarity. I wasn’t even sure which metrics mattered most. That’s when I started building…

Right now, some people will absolutely, 100% say that we’re in, without a doubt, a recession. Others will say that we’re absolutely, positively not in a recession. I think those people should argue with a brick wall. Regardless of where you might personally stand, there’s a lot of ambiguity about what’s actually going on; I’m…

Writing with clarity means making your content easy to read and understand. If your audience can’t grasp what you’re trying to say, what’s the point? Hi, I’m Alana, your friendly neighborhood blog editor. I spent most of my early marketing career in the public health field. We focused on one main writing principle: using plain…

Video in ecommerce isn’t optional anymore — it’s the bare minimum. I don’t want to read novel-length product descriptions. I want to see it, feel it, trust it. And your customers want the same. A good video does what ten blocks of text can’t. It shows off your product and convinces people to buy fast….

Your website strategy should help drive business and marketing objectives. For your website to work, you need to keep up with what makes a good website today. Website trends and customer expectations change rapidly. It feels like yesterday when I worked in a leading website design agency. Back then, we encouraged clients to build a…

If you’ve watched the news recently, the possibility of a recession has captured everyone’s attention.

Video is no longer a nice-to-have. It’s now an absolute must and should be at the forefront of any marketing strategy. With almost half of Gen Z and millennials watching short-form video to discover new products, video is essential to increasing visibility and getting brand recognition.

Millions of businesses worldwide invest billions in paid ads each year to put themselves in front of as many people as possible. And they’re doing it because online advertising, when done right, delivers outstanding results.

I know I’m in the minority, but the second September hits, I want to break out the Christmas tree, play “Jingle Bells,” and cover everything in baubles and tinsel. But one of the more accepted signs that the festive season is officially upon us is when holiday marketing campaigns start jingling, ringing and ho-ho-ho-ing into…

When Threads launched in July 2023, it made headlines for breaking records — 100 million sign-ups in less than five days — and was quickly dubbed the “Twitter killer.” But within weeks, usage dropped sharply. Headlines followed, warning that Threads was already losing steam.

Customer communication preferences vary widely in today‘s digital landscape. Some may want to go to a company’s landing page, initiate a conversation with a chatbot, or even pick up the phone to learn more about a service or product.

I first tested AI tools in 2019 to automate repetitive parts of my workflow. It seemed like the perfect solution: Let the code execute the manual stuff I was too bored to do. However, I quickly discovered hidden costs to everything I did. My automation script needed a server to live on. The server needed…

Ethan Mollick, professor of management at Wharton Business School, has a simple benchmark for tracking the progress of AI’s image generation capabilities: “Otter on a plane using wifi.” Mollick uses that prompt to create images of … an otter using Wi-Fi on an airplane. Here are his results from a generative AI image tool around…

I cofounded Morning Brew in 2015. Since then, the content landscape has transformed into an even more competitive arena. The cost of paid acquisition has skyrocketed. Content differentiation has become harder than ever, especially when AI can write generic posts in seconds.

When Instagram released Threads in July of 2023 as a competing platform to X (previously Twitter), I’ll admit that I was unconvinced it would make a splash. But here we stand in 2025: Threads has surpassed TikTok and Instagram in the social apps category in Apple’s App Store. Not everyone’s using it, but those who…

Do you ever look at CEOs and wonder, “What makes them so successful?” I‘ll tell you their secret: It’s not what they know, it’s who they know. Every great leader has a board of directors — smart people who challenge their thinking.

Growth is the mandate for brands each year. One way to grow? Create offerings that appeal to a wider group of people. That’s where inclusive marketing comes in.

Welcome to HubSpot’s Expert Edge Series, where we interview top execs at major brands to explore their perspectives on the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping the industry. Over the past few months, you might‘ve noticed a shift in HubSpot’s social strategy. The more traditional B2B posts have given way to a social media presence…

Let’s take a moment to commiserate, marketers.

On average, Facebook is home to over 3.35 billion daily active users — from CEOs to students to your favorite brands. It’s an absolutely massive audience, but it can get tricky when it’s time to start connecting with them. From personal experience — ads I’ve run myself and worked with clients to develop, we’ve learned…

Hot take: I don’t think everyone needs a personal brand. Plenty of businesses have expanded their reach with company social accounts as their mouthpieces. However, executives and founders can create personal brands that supercharge growth. How do I know? I’ve done it myself.

When I first started managing social media for my first brand, I felt like I was constantly throwing spaghetti at the wall. Every day was a scramble to come up with something — anything — to post. Some days it was a motivational quote; other days, it was a rushed product promo. Engagement was inconsistent,…

Reddit is inherently simple — think old-school internet forums. And despite — or perhaps because of — that simplicity, it can be overwhelming. I can’t tell you how many rabbit holes I’ve found myself surfing down, only to realize I’ve lost a ton of time or that I’m not doing what I set out to…

I still remember how uncomfortable I felt the first time someone suggested I needed to “build my personal brand.” It seemed so … self-promoting. Weren’t my ideas and work supposed to speak for themselves?

SEO is dead, long live SEO!

When it comes to AI, it’s easy to get distracted by all the flashy demos and headlines that are constantly splashed across social media. But the fact is, most people still aren’t leveraging AI in one of the simplest, most impactful ways it can be used: by creating an AI project assistant.

We’re past the hype cycle and deep into the experimentation phase of social media’s most recent rivalry: X vs. Threads. X, formerly known as Twitter, has dramatically changed over the past few years — from leadership shakeups to shifting content policies. Yet, it remains the go-to platform for real-time commentary, breaking news, and cultural chaos….

Cookie-scented body wash flew off the shelves. Shaken espressos made a comeback (as long as they’re associated with short ‘n sweet blondes), and, oddly, interactive guerrilla marketing caught a second wind (or whiff?). I think it’s safe to say that 2025, thus far, has been a chaotically charming year to be both a marketer and,…

Welcome to HubSpot’s Expert Edge Series, where we interview top execs at major brands to explore their perspectives on the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping the industry. TikTok is the envy of social media sites. Between 2024 and 2025, we’ve seen many social networks rolling out their own vertical video feeds to become more…

I was running social media for an organization when TweetDeck hit the market. That dashboard with mentions, DMs, lists, and trends was the neatest piece of technology. I left it running in a tab 24/7 in between using it to plan our posts and stay abreast of our audience’s needs.

When I first started in marketing, the term “lead generation” felt like this big, vague thing everyone was obsessed with, but no one could explain clearly. I’d hear phrases like “capture demand” and “fill your funnel,” and I’d nod along pretending to understand while secretly Googling things like “what is a lead magnet?” during team…

​​Okay. So if you’ve been around here for more than a little bit, you know that I follow a gluten-free diet for health reasons. So when I go to a restaurant, I’m wondering, does their menu work for people like me? Now your ideal customers are going to have these questions as people like me…

Every marketing campaign I’ve participated in has always had social media at its core. It’s no shock — over five billion people are active on social platforms daily. So if you want your product, service, and mission to reach the maximum number of people, your business needs to be on social media, too. However, the…

Choosing your B2B marketing team structure hinges on two essential criteria: something that works for your needs now and something that will work in the future. At the most basic level, you’re always looking for something road-worthy — something that can take you (and your passengers) from point A to point B without a hitch…

I can’t imagine any company today experiencing substantial growth without proper social media advertising.

Personalized experiences are becoming increasingly important to customers — and marketers are listening. Just look at Imañya James, a product and marketing specialist for the widely regarded skincare brand Topicals. She’s appeared in many of the brand’s campaigns herself, demonstrating first-hand how products work, sharing recommendations, progression photos, and usage tips. I’m increasingly impressed by…

The world of hiring and managing remote marketing teams is still changing. You would think that every kink in this process was resolved in 2020, but technology and workers continually evolve. This forces managers to continually update their process for finding and retaining the best marketing talent. I’ve been a remote digital marketer for years…

Social media marketing is a lot of work. It’s a fast-paced industry that quickly evolves by the time you learn a new skill, trend, or platform update. Whether you’re a marketer, a content creator, or a business owner, understanding social media involves a range of skills that require you to always be learning. To hone…

I started my career in modeling, which, as anyone in the industry knows, is basically a crash course in branding. You learn very quickly how to present yourself online, especially on platforms like Instagram. From there, I moved into sales and the world of B2B. I figured, if I could thrive in sales, I could…

Optimizing the customer buying cycle is primarily about being at the right place, at the right time. This is something I’ve learned over the last 6+ years of running my own business. Recently, I reached out to one of the leading AI companies that secured VC funding. I really wanted to cooperate with them, so…

“Email is the only marketing channel that offers an equal playing field for all marketers,” says Jay Schwedelson.

It doesn’t matter if you’re an entrepreneur, founder, director, or an employee working within an organization, knowing how to improve business skills will greatly impact your career success. There‘s a lot that goes into becoming more business-savvy, whether it’s learning the “softer” skills (like people management, communication, and public speaking) or mastering the “hard” skills…

I grew up a Nintendo kid (and yes, that includes the original NES console and Duck Hunt Zapper). For those who remember the Nintendo GameCube, you know a memorable brand experience. How could anyone forget this nine-second clip of branding brilliance? Whenever I think of “branding,” I go back to my memory of the GameCube…

I’m optimistic about the future of SEO, and I want everyone who reads this to feel the same. Of course, I can’t deny that things are changing, and I’m preparing for many major shifts over the next few years regarding AI and the future of SEO. Advancements like Google’s integration of generative AI into search…

I love the Back to the Future series, especially Part II where we see “the future.” Of course, the most famous part of our promised 2015 was the Mattel Hoverboard. A decade later, and I’m still waiting to glide down the sidewalk on my hoverboard. The pattern of excitement, overpromising, and then reality isn’t relegated…

I know the impact of ignoring buyer’s journey keywords all too well. Early in my SEO career, I generated two million clicks for an ecommerce store. The client and I were thrilled. The graph on Google Search Console was trending strongly up. The problem? I couldn’t quantify a single sale from two million visitors. I…

A content strategy for startups begins with a simple truth: Every piece of content needs a purpose. I learned this lesson the hard way when managing my first startup blog. Armed with enthusiasm but no real plan, I spent three months writing what I thought were brilliant posts about industry trends. When I finally dug…

Those who know me know that I have a healthy obsession with travel. So, I often pore over travel blogs looking for the best way to plan a trip and the best activities to do in a given place. One tool that will always help me find what I need is content aggregation. Since they’re…

It’s no secret that content is king. And with more and more channels to keep up with — each requiring unique formats for your creative content — AI tools aimed at social media are stepping in to do some of the heavy lifting. In this post, I’ll introduce you to 15 cutting-edge AI tools for…

Facebook ads can be incredibly powerful — when they’re done right. Most marketers say it consistently delivers a better ROI than any other social media platform. There’s just one catch — you need a solid Facebook ad strategy in place before you dive in. Otherwise, Meta’s evolving algorithms, changing audience expectations, and the nuance of…

Three years ago, if you’d asked Kasey Brown, founder and CEO of Different Breed Media, she’d tell you scheduling one post to identically populate across the gamut of social media platforms was a smart, time-saving strategy. But in 2025, that won’t fly. “These platforms are becoming more sophisticated in their own ways,” says Brown. That…

When I was first setting up my freelance business website, I read tons of articles and social media posts about how to find and attract quality leads. Because none of that advice said much about designing the actual form for capturing those leads, I didn’t put much thought into whether lead form best practices even…

AI is gaining traction in every industry and advertising is no different.

You and I both know it: there’s no secret to a successful social media campaign. Instead, there’s just strategy; nowadays, posting won’t cut it — and social media marketers are feeling the pressure more than ever. Tons of moving parts constitute a high-performing, truly modern social strategy. According to HubSpot’s 2025 Social Media Trends Report,…

The story of 7-Eleven’s remarkable transformation in Japan offers a masterclass in global expansion done right. Despite being an American brand, 7-Eleven has become a beloved institution in Japan with twice as many stores, and 8x higher profit margins than in its home country.

Prior to launching my own marketing business, I worked at athletic apparel company Gymshark, driving our marketing strategy around community. I knew that bringing people together was powerful. I just had to move that concept out of the fitness space and into business. How hard could it be?

I have seen things I wouldn’t have believed even a few years ago. ChatGPT drafting content strategies from a three-sentence prompt. Grammarly solving my Oxford comma woes across an entire manuscript. I have yet to watch C-beams glitter in the dark. But I’ve witnessed AI reshape how I work — and it’s only just begun….

If you’ve ever tried to put together an email marketing plan, you might have wanted to pull your hair out at least once or twice. Maybe you didn’t have enough time to properly segment your lists, so you knew your clickthrough rate was gonna totally suck.

A Microsoft study found that people spend 15% of the workday checking email— that’s about six hours a week squinting at their inboxes. While many want that number to be lower, the truth is that email is still a valuable communication tool.

Engagement on social media is like mingling at a party. There could be tons of people in the room (read: following you), the music could be great, and the vibe could be just right, but if no one’s conversing, the party’s dead — and no one wants to throw a lousy party.

Most brands chase exposure. They pour money into ads and PR, hoping to buy attention. And, it works if you have deep pockets. But if you don’t? Then, you’ve got a bunch of tactics to gain earned media value without paying for every mention. Here’s where your whole team will help you gain EMV. In…

These days, video is absolutely essential to get people to discover your business and their next must-have product. I’ve found some of my favorite businesses and products from videos that I saw scrolling on Instagram or Tiktok. #Tiktokmademebuyit is no joke. According to Wyzowl, 89% of businesses use video as a marketing tool, and 73%…

Conversion copywriters — the people who write landing page copy that converts readers and delivers sales — are wonderful human beings. Their writing pulls in readers, generates conversions, and ultimately produces buckets of cash.

“Inclusive marketing is all about brands acknowledging the many ways that people are different,” says this marketing master.

2025 is upon us, and a new year brings new trends and new challenges. If you‘re a brand looking to leverage social media video this year, you may not know what to expect but don’t worry.

It’s rare that a B2B marketer is funny on LinkedIn. 

Before this week’s master found her path to the nonprofit sector, she worked with big brands like Pepsi, Frito-Lay, and FedEx. And even founded her own small business clothing line.

2024 was the year of AI tools. Thousands of new apps launched — some just photo generators and gimmicks, others much more useful. What stood out to me were the tools that actually helped you get things done.

I first downloaded TikTok during college to scroll through comedy and pop culture discourse. But then, as I grew as a marketer, I started seeing some serious potential everywhere. And I’m not the only one who noticed.