Win Q4 with HubSpot Sales Hub

HubSpot

In the fiercely competitive B2B software market, cleverly outsmarting the competition wins over simply outspending them. Few understand this better than HubSpot, a challenger brand that seized the opportunity to leverage its underdog agility to redefine what quality B2B social looks like through the lens of its Q4 Sales Hub campaign.

The Campaign

Q4 Will Never Be The Same Again | HubSpot Sales Hub Commercial

The Team

Bryna Corcoran

Director, Head of Global Social Media, HubSpot

With 17+ years in brand and social media marketing, I lead HubSpot’s Global Brand Social Media team, driving cultural relevance and engagement for the leading CRM platform.

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Amy Marino

Sr. Director, Global Head of Brand Marketing, HubSpot

Amy Marino is HubSpot’s Global Head of Brand Marketing, overseeing brand governance, advertising, partnerships, and more. Previously, she led social media and marketing at American Express and represented a diverse talent roster.

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Sunil Desai

VP, Brand Marketing, HubSpot

Multi-disciplined brand marketing and communications leader in the consumer, technology, and lifestyle categories. Experience in launching new products and companies, managing distributed and cross-functional teams, developing business plans, analyzing data, directing content creation and distribution, establishing partnerships, and identifying and executing opportunities for corporate growth and global brand awareness. Passionate about entrepreneurship and supporting businesses in all stages of development, from start-ups to Fortune 500 leaders.

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Chi Thukral

Social Media Manager, HubSpot

Forbes 30 under 30 and Webby Nominated social media marketer with 9 years of experience across various industries, creating content and strategies that connect global audiences. Currently leading social media at HubSpot.

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Reece Callaway

Social Media Coordinator, HubSpot

One of the biggest things that makes me passionate about marketing, is getting to the core about who a brand is and what they stand for. Every brand wants to have their own personal impact on the world. My goal is to get that message out to as many potential consumers as possible in the most effective and ethical way possible through digital marketing, social media, and SEO.

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Erin McCool

Social Media Analyst, HubSpot

I am a data-driven brand marketer currently working at HubSpot! As a Marketing Manager of Social Strategy and Analytics, I own end-to-end reporting, allowing the data to tell a story and guide our next strategic initiative.I am a data-driven brand marketer currently working at HubSpot! As a Marketing Manager of Social Strategy and Analytics, I own end-to-end reporting, allowing the data to tell a story and guide our next strategic initiative.

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Describe the brief or inspiration behind your campaign? What was your team tasked with?

HubSpot understands that sales teams and leaders face immense pressure to deliver results for their businesses and hit end-of-year Q4 goals. With the economic headwinds corporations faced in 2023, the pressure on sales teams during Q4 was greater than ever. Adding to this challenge, the tools available to ‘help’ sales teams are often clunky and present a mixed bag of siloed information, making it even harder for them to close deals and drive revenue easily.

THE CHALLENGE: How can HubSpot capture this target’s attention and make Sales Hub—our marquee sales software—stand out in an iconic, unique way, especially in social media? We tapped into a shared passion area: sports. We knew sales teams—like their favorite sports teams—live for the thrill of the 4th quarter, which led to this insight sparking a 360° campaign: “Win Q4 With HubSpot Sales Hub,” with social media at the heart of our always-on, organic approach.

The campaign’s success reinforced the importance of starting with a strong, audience-centric insight. Understanding that sales teams thrive on the pressure of Q4 allowed us to connect on a deeper emotional level, making our content more resonant and impactful.
HubSpot Team

Our ability to quickly adapt and seize unexpected opportunities, like the guerrilla stunt with Alex Lieberman, highlighted the importance of staying agile. Flexibility in execution can lead to standout moments that amplify the campaign’s reach and effectiveness.
HubSpot Team

Close collaboration across teams was crucial. Regular communication and feedback ensured that everyone was aligned, enabling us to deliver a cohesive and on-brand campaign. It also underscored the value of involving different perspectives early and often.
HubSpot Team

This project shattered the notion that B2B marketing has to be dull. By infusing humor, cultural relevance, and social-first content into our approach, we proved that creativity can make B2B work engaging and memorable.
HubSpot Team

Maintaining a consistent tone and visual identity across all touchpoints ensured that our campaign felt unified and on-brand, from the first social post to the final stunt.
HubSpot Team

The campaign demonstrated how powerful social media can be as a platform for B2B brands. By leaning into social-native formats and language, we were able to drive record-high engagement and expand our brand’s reach in meaningful ways.
HubSpot Team

Walk us through your process. What steps did you take to bring your idea to life?

Ideation
Our social approach wasn't just about amplifying the brand campaign or TV spot; it was about transforming the brand campaign's messaging into social-first content that sparked real emotional connections with our target audience. Week after week throughout the campaign, the team delivered relatable, authentic content that resonated with Q4 struggles, sales quota momentum, Sales Hub product education, and “IYKYK” sales team humor. Perfect comedic timing and trend-jacking showed that our HubSpot social team understood both modern social marketing tactics and how to authentically speak the language of sales teams. By speaking directly to their individual needs and interests and showing up in social-native formats they would recognize, we were able to drive record-high engagement, shares, and impressions. All Culminating in a Reactive Social Stunt: The social campaign culminated in a first-ever guerrilla stunt, showcasing fast-moving agility and social listening prowess, which generated 5.3MM impressions for the brand. It all began with a post on “X” from Alex Lieberman – a prominent B2B influencer and co-founder of Morning Brew: HubSpot wasn't the only company interested in partnering with Alex, but our pitch resonated most with him. Despite the tight 4-day lead time, the HubSpot team quickly mobilized to create head-to-toe bright orange costumes for Alex and his crew, ensuring they'd be easily spotted in a sea of Michigan Blue and Washington Purple. To further amplify engagement and encourage participation, HubSpot and Alex devised a 'Where's Waldo?'-inspired contest. Fans were encouraged to #HubSpot the orange, take a picture or video, and post it on social media for a chance to win a cash prize. In the lead-up to the event, Alex documented the story's development on LinkedIn and X, sharing last-minute logistical hurdles, soliciting ideas from his community, and finally revealing the gamified strategy for in-game participation. The stunt even garnered a FREE 3-second organic airtime slot on ESPN thanks to their eye-catching HubSpot orange attire. The campaign also trended on X during the game’s 4th quarter, seamlessly reinforcing the core theme of the Q4 Sales Hub campaign. Our combined social content surrounding the opportunity became the most engaging of HubSpot's entire Q4/Sales Hub campaign, generating awareness even among those unfamiliar with HubSpot or the NCAA game. Impact and Beyond: This bold approach resulted in HubSpot’s social posts often going viral week after week, and the content created for the campaign became HubSpot's most successful organic content—ever. More importantly, it shattered the perception that B2B social is stuffy and boring. And proved something HubSpot knew all along: B2B software buyers and users crave humor, memes, and relatable community connection in social, just like everyone else.

What was the business challenge of your project, and why was it important to solve it now?

Challenges
The business challenge was to raise awareness of HubSpot’s new Sales Hub, expanding the brand’s leadership from marketing automation and CRM to a solution that unifies marketing and sales teams. The goal was to demonstrate how Sales Hub helps these teams collaborate more efficiently through shared customer data, making the solution highly relevant in a business environment where seamless integration between marketing and sales is essential for growth and success. Solving this challenge was crucial to position HubSpot as a comprehensive platform for both teams.

Describe your process for creating award winning B2B work. How is creativity at the center of how you work?

B2B Creativity
Creating award-winning B2B work requires a process deeply rooted in creativity and a keen understanding of the audience’s needs and behaviors. At the heart of our approach is the ability to transform traditional B2B messaging into something that not only resonates with our audience but also stands out in a crowded market.

How did the final product meet or exceed your expectations? What results did you see?

Execution
Our bold approach resulted in HubSpot’s social posts often going viral week after week, and the content created for the campaign became HubSpot's most successful organic content—ever. More importantly, it shattered the perception that B2B social is stuffy and boring. And proved something HubSpot knew all along: B2B software buyers and users crave humor, memes, and relatable community connection in social, just like everyone else. Key outcomes included over 200K new social followers, 4.65M+ organic impressions, and 5.34M+ total impressions from the NCAA x Alex Lieberman stunt. The campaign achieved record-high engagement rates, a 21% year-over-year increase in search volume, and a notable +9pt rise in sales association for HubSpot.

To keep the project true to the idea and on-brand from start to finish, we focused on alignment, teamwork, and staying true to our creative vision.
Bryna Corcoran, Director, Head of Global Social Media, HubSpot

Are you making great B2B work? Enter the Webby Awards.

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Alex x HubSpotted NCAA Stunt Social Content

"I Got $40,000 Worth Of National Championship Tickets For 'Free' " From Morning Brew

Did you utilize LinkedIn in executing this project? What role does LinkedIn play in your greater B2B marketing strategy?

This campaign gained strong organic traction on LinkedIn, with much of our content going viral and receiving significant coverage from thought leaders and influencers on the platform, especially when we partnered up with Alex Lieberman of Morning Brew.

What does being recognized by the Webby Awards mean for you and your collaborators?

Being recognized by the Webby Awards is a huge honor for us because it highlights the impact our work has on internet culture and digital marketing. The Webbys are known for celebrating creativity and innovation, so this award shows that our approach is not just effective, but also cutting-edge. For our team, this recognition is incredibly meaningful. It validates our hard work and creative risks, showing that we’re not just meeting industry standards—we’re setting them. It also gives our campaign a special spotlight, positioning it as a trendsetter in how brands connect with people online.