With the launch of the new AI solution, Breeze, HubSpot’s Inbound 2024 in Boston was a pivotal moment for marketers and sales professionals. The future of AI was no longer an abstract promise but a tangible reality transforming how businesses operate.
In this blog, co-written with a HubSpot Content Agent, I’ll discuss how AI presents both an opportunity and challenge and how HubSpot’s new Breeze will simplify your AI journey.
As anyone managing an organisation will tell you, AI adoption has its challenges. Many marketers and sales professionals grapple with understanding how AI works and how to integrate it into their company's secret sauce. Is it for real? Where is the value? As with all new technologies, a generation of companies are already making major strides in its adoption.
AI: Huge Opportunity or Dreaded Change?
Fact. For marketers and sales teams, AI offers the potential to revolutionise customer interactions, boost productivity, and enhance data-driven decision-making. It can transform the way companies engage with customers, support context, automate processes, and uncover insights.
However, despite these clear benefits, many professionals still hesitate to embrace AI. Many see significant challenges with adoption. Why?
Weak Understanding and Fear of the Unknown
One of the key hurdles to AI adoption is a fundamental lack of understanding. While AI has been around for years, terms like “machine learning” and “neural networks” can feel like buzzwords rather than actionable concepts. The question lingers: As a marketer or sales rep, can I truly implement AI tools in my day-to-day routine?
There is also a pervasive fear that AI will replace humans and take over their roles. This fear is largely unfounded. Rather than replacing human workers, AI is a tool that can augment human capabilities, allowing professionals to focus on more strategic and creative aspects of their jobs.
HubSpot introduced the new Breeze AI solution in Boston, USA at Inbound 2024.
Overcoming AI Adoption Challenges
To navigate the complexities of AI, companies need a structured approach that addresses these concerns and promotes a positive AI experience. Some key include:
1. Education and Training
The first step in overcoming AI adoption challenges is education. Marketing and sales teams need targeted training to understand how AI works and how it can be applied to their specific functions. AI needs to be demystified, and professionals need to be trained to confidently implement AI-driven tools in a structured, step-by-step manner.
2. Human-AI Collaboration
As mentioned, the future of AI in marketing and sales isn’t about replacing humans but enhancing their roles. AI excels at repetitive tasks, data analysis, and process automation, but human intuition, creativity, and emotional intelligence are irreplaceable. Successful AI adoption depends on fostering collaboration between AI tools and humans, allowing both to work together seamlessly.
3. Data Management and Enrichment
AI is only as good as the data it processes. For marketers and sales professionals, this means having access to clean, high-quality data. Many organizations struggle with fragmented or outdated data, which impacts AI’s effectiveness and quality. Companies must invest in robust data management practices.
4. Incremental AI Adoption
Instead of jumping into AI headfirst, organizations should adopt AI incrementally. Starting with small, manageable tasks — like using agents for sales prospecting context or repurposing content — allows teams to build confidence and experience. As people become more comfortable with AI tools, they can gradually scale their use to more complex areas.
5. Encouraging Curiosity
The future of AI is unpredictable, and no one knows what it can offer in a few years. However, by promoting curiosity and encouraging experimentation, companies can prepare their teams for the evolving AI landscape. Teams should be free to explore AI solutions, experiment with new tools, and learn from successes and failures.
HubSpot’s Breeze: A Comprehensive AI Solution That’s Easy to Use
Launched in Autumn 2024, let’s welcome HubSpot’s Breeze — it’s a complete AI-powered platform designed for the user, not the geek. Built into HubSpot’s Customer Platform, Breeze delivers ease, speed, and unification across marketing, sales, and service operations.
Breeze powers the entire HubSpot ecosystem, including the Smart CRM and Engagement Hubs, and provides customer-facing teams with the tools they need to boost productivity, scale growth, and gain actionable insights.
HubSpot's Customer Platform now has AI built in with Breeze
The new AI solution Breeze is structured around three core pillars:
1. Breeze Copilot
Breeze Copilot is your AI-powered assistant that helps with everyday tasks, such as drafting emails, creating content, and scheduling campaigns. It works across all areas of HubSpot, automating routine tasks so that professionals can focus on more high-level strategic work. This enables teams to work more efficiently without getting bogged down in time-consuming administrative tasks.
2. Breeze Agents
Breeze Agents are AI-powered experts that automate entire workflows. Whether it’s content marketing, sales prospecting, or customer service, these agents allow teams to scale their efforts while maintaining quality.
• The Breeze Social Media Agent analyses social performance and audience data to create optimized content for platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
• The Breeze Prospecting Agent develops personalized outreach strategies by researching target companies and contacts within the CRM.
• The Breeze Content Agent generates high-quality content, such as blogs and case studies, using your brand voice and CRM data.
By automating key tasks, Breeze Agents free up time for professionals to engage in more personalized, high-touch activities that drive growth.
3. Breeze Intelligence
Ai needs good data, so Breeze Intelligence enhances the HubSpot Smart CRM by enriching it with real-time insights from across the internet. This ensures that marketing and sales teams have access to the latest data on their contacts and companies, enabling more effective and targeted campaigns. By unifying data sources, Breeze Intelligence helps companies maintain one of the most powerful and comprehensive datasets available, driving better decision-making and go-to-market strategies.
The Future: Hybrid Teams of AI Agents and Humans
As AI adoption grows, the future of marketing and sales will increasingly involve hybrid teams where AI agents and human professionals work together. For instance, a Breeze Content Agent might generate content, while a human content strategist provides oversight and direction. In the Sales Hub, the Breeze Prospecting Agent can streamline outreach efforts, allowing salespeople to focus on relationship-building.
The key to success in this hybrid model lies in balancing automation with human creativity and expertise. AI can handle repetitive, data-driven tasks, but human workers are still essential for tasks that require emotional intelligence, critical thinking, and strategic planning.
Conclusions
For marketers and sales professionals, AI offers both potential challenges and unparalleled opportunities. Understanding how to effectively use AI can be daunting, but solutions like HubSpot’s Breeze make AI adoption easier and more accessible. By providing a user-friendly, integrated platform, Breeze empowers teams to leverage AI without the technical complexities that often accompany these tools.
AI has the potential to enhance productivity, streamline workflows, and drive growth, but it requires the right strategy and resources. With the right approach, businesses can unlock the full potential of AI and stay ahead in an increasingly competitive landscape.
Ready for the future of AI-powered marketing and sales?
It's time to take the first, big baby steps with HubSpot! Turn to a certified HubSpot partner like Hubit to help navigate the AI landscape and join the era of hybrid AI-human collaboration. Winning companies today are curious ones, and starting with AI is actually a lot of fun.
