Hello again, we are back with another exciting Inbound 2019 session recap, the much awaited keynote of the year: The Brian-Dharmesh Spotlight!
Judging by the last year’s standards, the Brian & Dharmesh Keynote had set their bars quite high, and looks like they are ready to break boundaries yet again!
Enter Brian Halligan, CEO HubSpot, with his never ending charisma and style. The first ball he throws at the audience “DISRUPTION”.
A heavily UNDER-understood term, he says, we agree!
“Disruption is speeding up, not slowing down” – @HubSpot CEO Brian Halligan #INBOUND19 pic.twitter.com/e8Kbz83TD4
— ROBO Global (@ROBOGlobal) September 4, 2019
But who really are these disruptors? The technology companies bringing in great product innovations in the market? Technology disruptors, yes. These people stick with the “product-market fit”.
And then there are a whole new species of companies who focus on the experience-market fit, i.e., building great products, but with an even better experience. Brian calls them “Experience Disruptors”. (Another ball, we know!)
Incumbent vendors in B2C are quickly being replaced by a new species of companies that @bhalligan calls experience disruptors. pic.twitter.com/yHzPPmaeVW
— HubSpot (@HubSpot) September 4, 2019
These Experience-disruptors work hard to build friction-less companies that can keep their Flywheel running.
.@bhalligan
talking about “Experience Disrusptors” and what makes them different. And so the flywheel makes a comeback. Turns out, that’s how they are disrupting the traditional #B2B experience. That, and marketing like #B2C!Tune in now: https://t.co/SIPZ7RGTCS #INBOUND19 pic.twitter.com/DuT1oxz60t
— Niswey (@Niswey) September 4, 2019
Build friction-less companies to succeed in today’s market. Focus on customer experience #INBOUND19 @HubSpot pic.twitter.com/mon3P9x1ov
— Peter Berson (@pdberson) September 4, 2019
The byline – Focus on Customer Experience! Automate, automate, and automate.
And here comes the third ball…
“Automation without personalization is called spam” – @bhalligan at #INBOUND19 @INBOUND pic.twitter.com/aqoyeUeuu6
— Charlie Riley (@Charlieriley) September 4, 2019
So learn it from Netflix. Instead of just focusing on your personas, focus on your data as well. And then Personalize. It’s actually very simple for Netflix, “The more we use their products, the better their personalization is”.
Finally, remember to not just sell to your customers, but “Sell Through Your Customers”. For if you are a wannabe experience disruptor, you don’t just have to extract value, you have to ADD value.
To sum it all:
Five key plays from the experience disruptor’s playbook:
1. Get experience-market fit
2. Remove friction
3. Personalize
4. Sell through your customers
5. Attack your business model pic.twitter.com/8zSsntgVIH— HubSpot (@HubSpot) September 4, 2019
Now do you see one important observation from above? Nowhere does this playbook talk about AI, blockchain, or technology disruptions. Meaning? ANYONE can do this. So go ahead ladies, and gents, embrace your SUPERPOWER!
Next up, we had Dharmesh Shah, CTO HubSpot, enter in his usual “HubSpot Branded” T-shirt, claiming this doesn’t let him worry about his style sense, you know? Says he is here to talk about the personal and professional lessons he’s learned on his own journey to growing better — and the fears that came along with them.
Up next at #INBOUND19, @dharmesh is sharing the personal and professional lessons he’s learned on his own journey to growing better — and the fears that came along with them. pic.twitter.com/j1A1RuUxxc
— HubSpot (@HubSpot) September 4, 2019
Begins by talking about his 3 most personal, most relatable fears:
1 – Low Battery Warning
2 – Making Eye Contact
3 – Fear of Water
And then justifies the first with the second (introverts, we tell you)!
“The reason I fear the low battery sign is because without batteries, we lose our devices, and without our devices, the only thing we have is… each other. People.” @dharmesh on Personal vs Professional fears, aka B2C vs B2B fears #inbound2019
— LRW (@LRWonline) September 4, 2019
But his underlying statement all through is to face your fears. And he lays down the 5 key ones businesses need to face in order to grow better.
There are 5 fears that you need to face in order to #GrowBetter:
1. Fear of Commitment
2. Fear of Differences
3. Fear of Change
4. Fear of Disappointing
5. Fear of Inferiority pic.twitter.com/zKItFgkemB— HubSpot (@HubSpot) September 4, 2019
Dharmesh highlights how most businesses like HubSpot face the “fear of commitment” when deciding who their target market should be.
Here’s the thumb rule:
What you really need to fear is not commitments, but “uninspired choices”, which will make it difficult for your business to grow.
Second fear, Fear of Differences, but that really shouldn’t be a fear after all. Dharmesh regrets how HubSpot was too little focused on diversity in its early years.
You need a mix of personalities, people who are different, in your business.
“Being different is not just OK, it’s better.” Thought on #diversity by @dharmesh Co-Founder and CTO of #Hubspot at #INBOUND19 #betterwithdiversity #inclusion pic.twitter.com/0V6sAc5mi0
— Mikah Sellers (@mikahsellers) September 4, 2019
And if you didn’t think about it when you started your business, the next best time is NOW.
Hearing @dharmesh say “the best time to start diversity is when you start something, but the next best is now” makes me prouder than I can say in words ❤️ pic.twitter.com/X6NQblzfH2
— katie burke (@katieburkie) September 4, 2019
Moving to the next fear: FEAR of CHANGE.
Fear #3: Fear of Change. Remote workers. Technology. Data analytics in accounting industry. Advisory services. It’s a new world… time to embrace it! @BDOAlliance @INBOUND @HubSpot #INBOUND19 pic.twitter.com/AgRbMuYurF
— Hollinden (@hollinden) September 4, 2019
The purpose of a corporation has drastically changed from “delivering shareholders value” to commitment towards creating value to customers, employees and shareholders. You need to attract and retain people in your organization, so build your culture accordingly, and evolve with time.
One important aspect of this is “Flexibility”.
Future of Work = fn (flexibility)
This includes the geographic, schedule as well as method flexibility. So if you are open to having a remote team, Congratulations! You have a flexible environment. You allow your team to work in their “Pajamas”! And did you know that this was directly proportional to SUCCESS? We didn’t either!
As a 100% remote company we couldn’t agree more with @hubspot founder, @dharmesh.
“Remote workers are people too!”
And we love the #pajamaprinciple ??#INBOUND19 @INBOUND pic.twitter.com/sTJwMsvRJe
— LeadG2 (@LeadG2) September 4, 2019
Finally we have the last two fears.
Fear #4: Fear of Disappointing. Fear #5: Fear of Inferiority. Face your fears! But, never be fearful of earning your clients’ trust. @INBOUND @HubSpot #INBOUND19 pic.twitter.com/dq1Wrcq2KL
— Hollinden (@hollinden) September 4, 2019
But instead of these, here’s what you should actually have.
That sorted, Dharmesh took us back to his third fear. Remember his fear of water?
Turns out he finally faced it, with the help of his son!
What we learn:
Seemingly overwhelming fears can be managed by taking small steps. Magic happens when you face your fears. @dharmesh #INBOUND19 pic.twitter.com/V3i4TgCnn1
— Melissa Norby (@msnorby) September 4, 2019
So if you are in a similar situation, facing any of the overwhelming fears in the way of your business growth, there’s just one thing you got to do: DUNK YOUR HEAD!
“Just dunk your head” – the best advice I’ve ever heard! Life changing prez by @dharmesh ???#INBOUND19 pic.twitter.com/z8RKf1eeW6
— Steven Schrenk (@DesigninStone) September 4, 2019
Do it again, and again, and again. Face your fears, one step at a time.
That’s all folks! We hope you had an amazing time reading the recap as we had summing it for you. And before you close this window, WE ARE AT INBOUND. If you are too, say hi to @abhinavsahai or @sumaep. We will be happy to chat!
