INBOUND23: Team Takeaways

How many INBOUND sessions can one person attend? What happens when you schedule your sessions, but find yourself in a conversation you just can't bear to leave? How do you find food when you can barely make it to a session on time?

Every year it's the same struggle— and it's a real struggle— there's so much great content at INBOUND that it's difficult to get to it all. 

Many folks offer takeaways and thought pieces, including our team here at Impulse Creative. It's a great way to see what you missed and give some thought to what HubSpot wanted to offer for our annual recharge and inspiration refill. 

Why read ours? Because some of our team have been travelling to Boston since before the event was called INBOUND. We've been using HubSpot for more than a decade. We serve clients of all industries around the world. 

I believe our perspective has a dash of our personality mixed with our experience. We got you.

The main space of INBOUND where vendors, meet-up spaces, and side stages all lived.

Overall INBOUND23 Takeaways

Community Matters

Each aspect of INBOUND seemed infused with a community-first purpose. The set-up of the vendor floor welcomed sponsors and general community members of the HubSpot world. They included community members Troy Sandidge and Christina Kay as co-hosts. Plus, the organizers offered sessions on actual community-led growth.

HubSpot's focus on community could be felt everywhere. 

The meet-up sessions and impromptu conversations in the Academy, Community, HubSpot User Groups, and HubSpot product areas all added to the feel of community.

Whether I was meeting someone for the first time and celebrating the Impulse Creative training, or I was reuniting with HubSpot team members I've known since 2010, it was like a family reunion.

The space was perfect for:

• Sitting down with a leader of the HubSpot Community team to answer questions about what works and what needs improvement. 
• Meeting fellow HubSpot User Group (HUG) leaders to discuss our efforts to help the community at large.
• Meeting HubSpot Academy professors we only see on screens and making that human connection.

Look at that branding! The glowing orange HubSpot logo was a beacon for connections.

Generative AI isn't Just Coming - It's Here

If a session didn't include the terms AI, ChatGPT, ChatSpot, or generative AI, the next one up probably did. 

From product updates to new tools in the marketplace, it's clear that AI will continue to become an inescapable tool in our business toolkits.

The good news is that, as Dharmesh Shah said in his keynote, "AI will most likely take your job. But it'll give you a better one."

A few of the product updates mentioned that will incorporate AI include:

• Chatbot AI
• Content Assistant
• Subject Line Generator
• Website Builder
• Campaign Assistant
• Image Generation
• Forecasting in Sales Hub

See all of the updates here.

Live Events are Alive and Well

#INBOUND23 brought together 12,000 people at the Boston seaport district for a conference on software. And parties. 

From in-person sessions for learn-it-alls to meet-ups for connections, and from coffee bars to dinners out, it's clear that connection happens face-to-face and we're all ready for it. 

"INBOUND is back!" - Juli

Specific INBOUND23 Takeaways

Dan Moyle

The magic still happens in the hallways. So many great conversations.

Our climate crisis is real, but all is not lost (yet). Can Ocean Technology Turn Back Climate Change? Dr. Peter de Menocal, President and Director, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

Solution selling is the best selling (and buying) process. Our very own Molly Rigatti crushed it on stage for a 90-minute deep dive all about solution selling - twice! I can tell you as a marketer who's not officially been a salesperson, her perspective had me thinking I should join the sales team! Get Molly's resources!

Kyle Jepson deserves the main stage. We attendees sat down in a sold-out room for a 45-minute session on HubSpot Admin work, and Kyle acknowledged that he had too much to share. But instead of going over, he finessed the material with humor and honesty.

HubSpot admin work is simple but not easy. Kyle shared some fantastic tips and insights for HubSpot Admins and others. His slide deck is a master class in HubSpot set-up.

Honest feedback doesn't have to be brutal. Kim Scott, author of Radical Candor, and Dr. Tina Opie chatted about Kim's perspective and how workplace culture can be affected by candor and feedback. They discussed how to receive and give feedback that lifts each other rather than beating people up with "brutal honesty." I learned a lot by simply thinking about how I can open myself up to candor and asking for it, rather than telling others how they can be more candid.

Curating your network is crucial to your mental health. Reese Witherspoon shared some great insights on keeping your mental health in check by curating your network. She credited her grandmother with the advice to keep those who lift you up and drop those who drag you down. 

Collaborating with others can only amplify and help. HubSpot collaborated with Jay Schwedelson and his GURU Events. Troy Sandidge and Christina Kay collaborated and were able to cohost. Partners collaborated for shared content. INBOUND reminded me that a rising tide lifts all vessels and inspired some future projects of my own. 

Helpful HUG Leader award with HubSpot CCO Rob Giglio

You never know your impact on others - be kind and aware. From sharing the impact of HubSpot Academy on me to clients sharing the impact of our work at Impulse Creative, I was reminded that simply helping others pays off. Even the recognition of my own help in the community and the HUG (HubSpot User Group) program reminded me that giving is better than taking. 

P.S. A huge shoutout to the bosses who support their team. Remington (our co-founder and CEO) has been a long-time fan. This photo encapsulates all the love.

Remington Begg and Dan Moyle celebrating Dan's HUG Leader award

Dharmesh Shah is a wizard. No notes. He's just fantastic on stage and in person, and it's fun to spot him in the crowd. 

Branding (personal or business) is really just reputation management. And it matters. From my personal "brand" as a helpful, humble HubSpotter to the innovative brand of Impulse Creative, walking among 12,000 of my closest friends meant people recognizing our team and thanking me for my work, and the Impulse Creative team for our work. 

Consistency is key even when your goal is being a Hall of Fame New York Yankees shortstop. Leadership lessons from Derek Jeter included advice on work ethic, showing up and working harder than anyone else, giving voice to others (including someone who may have been "competition" to you), and giving back to communities. And despite all that success, a humble confidence is better than an ego.

Molly Rigatti

"While automation and all of the tech are sexy and trendy… most people wanted to talk about making human connections so they can do great work for their teams and their customers."

Also, Molly presented Solution Selling: The Mindset, The Processes, The Results at INBOUND23 and there are her resources!

Molly Rigatti taking the Deep Dive stage for her Solution Selling presentation

Bonus: See the takeaways that were in real-time. 

As an #INBOUND23 correspondent, I got to share a lot of my thoughts in real time. Which I do anyway. But this helped with amplification!