There have been no shortage of fascinating guest speakers at HubSpot’s INBOUND conference over the past few years (if you’ve not watched former President Barack Obama’s address at INBOUND 2022, go do so) and this year was no different, with both Oscar-winning Actress Reese Witherspoon and Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter in attendance to impart their years of wisdom.
A sold-out INBOUND 2023 kicked off in Boston on Wednesday, but if you weren’t able to attend, don’t worry! Crowd is here to report back on all the latest product updates and industry innovations. The theme of INBOUND 2023 was undoubtedly that of artificial intelligence, with HubSpot CEO Yamini Rangan stating: “The way we live, work, and buy will change. We are going from acquiring information to acting on intelligence.”
Here are our top 5 takeaways from HubSpot’s INBOUND 2023:
1. HUBSPOT AI SUITE
The headlining announcement of INBOUND 2023 was undoubtedly HubSpot's brand new suite of generative AI products, intuitively named HubSpot AI. This involves a four-pronged approach, starting with content assistants, which help you to create emails, blog posts, landing pages, etc. The second piece is AI agents, which are there to provide automated help and take care of routine tasks. Thirdly, there are AI insights, which provide analysis and recommendations, letting you know which prospective customers are ready to buy and which need more nurturing. The final piece is a ChatGPT-like assistant, named ChatSpot.
2. CHATSPOT ASSISTANT
It's not exactly new news, but in his keynote speech on Wednesday, CTO and co-founder of HubSpot Dharmesh Shah took the opportunity to present ChatSpot to the world. "It's like ChatGPT and HubSpot CRM had a baby", he stated. Launched back in March and currently in public beta, ChatSpot combines the power of ChatGPT with dozens of unique data sources, including HubSpot, allowing businesses access to powerful generative AI capabilities, all in the context of their CRM. And the great thing is that ChatSpot is free to all, so you don't even need to be a HubSpot subscriber in order to take advantage of it.
3. SALES HUB MAKEOVER
Some might say it's long overdue, but HubSpot has gone back to the drawing board for a complete overhaul of its Sales Hub. The reimagined Sales Hub now includes such features as a prospecting workplace, which will act as a dedicated workspace for sales reps to consolidate activities into a unified experience. There is also an advanced lead management system, including a lead funnel report, sequence outcome reporting, AI forecasting, and more. The Sales Hub is an integral part of HubSpot's overall CRM package, so to see them go back to the drawing board and reevaluate how the system is used is a big step.
4. NATIVE SMS CAMPAIGNS
One element that has always felt missing from the HubSpot CRM is the ability to manage SMS or mobile messaging campaigns, with users having to rely on third-party platforms up to this point. Thankfully, HubSpot has now chosen to address this, with new messaging functionality that allows you to send broadcast messages to existing and prospective customers. This works with HubSpot's personalisation tokens, meaning you can offer tailored reminders, offers, and updates to drive engagement and action. Unfortunately, SMS is only available to Marketing Hub Pro users in the US, but globally with HubSpot's WhatsApp integration.
5. LINKEDIN EXPANSION
Finally, and perhaps the most exciting non-AI product update to come out of INBOUND 23, is the expansion of HubSpot’s relationship with LinkedIn across marketing and sales. This will integrate HubSpot's Smart CRM with LinkedIn's Sales Navigator, enabling sellers to be smarter and more efficient in how they prospect, build relationships and close deals. This major upgrade will allow users to sync data two ways between the two platforms, providing more automated insights and deeper reporting capabilities. This feature is currently in Private Beta and will be available to all Sales Hub Pro customers.
If you missed INBOUND 23, you can watch CEO Yamini Rangan's session here:
Interested in implementing HubSpot Marketing or Sales Hub for your business? Crowd can help! Contact us today to get started.
