INBOUND 2019 — HubSpot’s annual, over-the-top, 20,000 attendees strong, marketing conference — brought together a myriad of speakers from every corner of the planet to discuss and celebrate the inbound marketing methodology. Key themes from this year’s conference included a focus on projecting authenticity of voice, along with the importance of effective storytelling in your marketing. The main focus, however, was on creating a more effective and enjoyable customer experience.
With over 250 speakers jammed into the Boston Convention Center for the three-day event, there was an abundance of advice, recommendations, best practices, and inspiration to absorb. The speakers included:
- Brian Halligan, HubSpot CEO and co-founder, discussed the next wave of companies — “experience disruptors” — that are reshaping how we do business, and the 5 adaptations these companies go through;
- Dharmesh Shah, HubSpot CTO and co-founder, who talked about the 5 common fears shared by most brands while they grow;
- Sal Khan, CEO and founder of Khan Academy, shared the excitement he felt when he first heard Bill Gates talking about his company, and the power of being excited about education, showing videos of students celebrating their grades from all around the world;
- Sallie Krawcheck, CEO and co-founder of Ellevest, a digital-first investment platform for women, discussed how, despite perceptions, women are NOT more risk-averse than men – they actually take more risks (and have to). They do tend to be more risk-aware;
- Christine Ntim, founder of Haiti Tech Summit, who expressed the importance of authenticity when leveraging your brand to your audience; and
- Chip and Joanna Gaines, founders of Magnolia and HGTV’s Fixer Upper, shared how by embracing their story and being open about their own struggles and triumphs, they were able to grow a massive following (and make money doing what they loved!).
Preparing for changes and upgrades in HubSpot
In between speakers and sessions, HubSpot announced many new product updates at INBOUND 2019, all related to creating a more enjoyable experience for its customers and platform users. Each of the updates works to make tasks easier in HubSpot, increase company growth, and accommodate companies who may have a tight budget. Great news, right?
The upgrades are reflected throughout each of HubSpot’s subscription levels (all the way from Free to Enterprise). With over 15 new updates announced, we wanted to share 4 of the upgrades we are looking forward to using and sharing with our clients.
Giving HubSpot Starter Real Teeth
HubSpot’s entry-level paid license option, Starter, got a major upgrade with 2 fantastic enhancements:
- Landing pages: Starter now has a brand new drag-and-drop editor to create beautiful, optimized landing pages without needing to learn HTML, CSS, or JavaScript. This was a huge hole in the usefulness of the offering.
- Form follow-up emails: You can now send up to three automated emails after form submissions to start nurturing and converting leads. So yes, HubSpot Starter now offers Marketing Automation!
Redesigned App Marketplace
Using just one marketing tool to grow your business today is unrealistic — even HubSpot can’t be everything to everyone. The more integrated your applications are, the easier it is to offer effective customer experiences. That’s why HubSpot has updated and improved its App Marketplace.
The updated marketplace — also referred to as their application ecosystem — now has over 300 available applications to integrate into HubSpot, along with redesigned app listing and search capabilities that make it easier than ever to find the exact solution you need. Available to all HubSpot users, this renovated App Marketplace can offer more ways to connect your data and grow your business.
Business Card Scanner
Adding the information you find on a business card after every networking event you attend isn’t always at the top of your to-do list. 
It can take hours out of your day (especially if you’ve been collecting them consistently), it can cost you money if you hire someone to take care of them, and there’s always the possibility the cards never leave your wallet.
HubSpot has come out with a solution! The Business Card Scanner App is available for IOS and Android, and is free for all HubSpot users. The app will pull names, phone numbers, emails and more right into your database. Time to empty out all those old business cards from your wallet.
Free Email Marketing & Ads
Conventional wisdom is no friend to email marketing these days. Considered to be incredibly underrated, admit it, it’s undeniably useful. And now it’s free, along with Digital Ad management, in the already always free HubSpot CRM, making it even easier for you to capture those leads!
Were you at INBOUND this year? Or do you have questions about the many new updates? Check out HubSpot’s review of each new update, and leave any thoughts in the comments below.