HubSpot Introduces the Loop: A New Playbook for Growth in the AI Era

The creators of Inbound Marketing are giving marketers a new way to reach customers when AI has changed everything: Loop Marketing

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Here’s the hard truth for marketers: the funnel isn’t flowing.

Today, 60% of Google searches end without a click.* Brands are losing website traffic as buyers get answers right in search from AI Overviews, or LLMs like ChatGPT or Perplexity.

Not to mention, customer attention is scattered across YouTube, TikTok, Reddit, podcasts, and platforms that didn’t exist five years ago. What used to come down to SEO and blog content is now much more complicated.

As the pioneers of Inbound Marketing, the playbook that has helped businesses attract customers since the early days of the internet, we think marketers need a new way to grow.

That’s why today, we’re introducing the Loop, a new approach to driving growth in the AI era.

“The old funnel assumed customers would come to you. They visit your website, read your blog, and convert on your terms. But when 60% of searches never leave Google and AI is answering questions before prospects even click, that playbook is broken,” said Kipp Bodnar, Chief Marketing Officer at HubSpot. “The Loop is fundamentally different. It meets customers everywhere they are, uses AI to personalize each message at scale, and turns every interaction to a learning opportunity that makes the Loop stronger. Teams using the Loop will turn AI into their competitive advantage.”

What is the Loop?

The Loop is the new playbook for growth in the AI era.

It’s dynamic. Unlike traditional marketing that moved prospects from awareness to consideration to decision in a straight line, the Loop is always learning and evolving.

It relies on hybrid teams of humans and AI working together. Each doing what they do best–with human creativity and AI efficiency.

The Loop still remains true to the principles that made Inbound work–educating customers, creating value, and building relationships. But we’ve adapted these principles to a world where buyers are everywhere except your website, where AI answers questions before buyers click, and where personalization at scale is essential.

The Loop has four stages: Express, Tailor, Amplify and Evolve.

Here is how marketers can bring the Loop to life with HubSpot. We call this Loop Marketing:

1. Express: Define your taste, tone, and point of view before bringing in AI. Your brand identity and deep customer understanding are what separates great content from generic content. Use Breeze Assistant and HubSpot Connectors for ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini to analyze your high-value customers and create a brand Style Guide that speaks to them. Then bring it to life with Marketing Studio**—give it one campaign idea and it maps out your full strategy across channels.
2. Tailor: Use AI to make messaging personal, contextual, and relevant at scale. Leverage unified customer data—everything from CRM records to call transcripts to website behavior from the Smart CRM and Data Hub—to craft personal messages to prospects. Use Marketing Hub features like Segments** to build audiences based on intent signals, Personalization** to tailor landing pages to their needs, and AI-Powered Email** to make email marketing personal.
3. Amplify: Diversify content across channels to meet buyers where they are. Show up not just where buyers spend time—TikTok, Reddit, podcasts—but where AI provides answers. Use the AI Engine Optimization (AEO) Strategy tool** to maximize visibility in LLMs, and deploy the Breeze Customer Agent on high-intent pages to answer questions instantly.
4. Evolve: Iterate quickly and effectively with AI. Instead of six-month campaigns, use AI to measure, predict, and adapt in real time. Use Email Engagement Optimization to predict engagement before sending. Run rapid experiments and continuously refine strategy based on live performance data, making every loop better than the last.

When humans and AI work together in the Loop, businesses launch campaigns in days instead of months, create deeper connections with messages that feel personally crafted, lower acquisition costs through smarter targeting, and continuously improve as AI learns from every interaction.

Visit hubspot.com/loop-marketing to get the playbook and start driving growth with your hybrid human-AI team.

*SparkToro’s 2024 Zero Click Search Study
**These features are currently in beta