Marketing Against The Grain: The AI Stack That Makes Our Product Marketing 10x Faster

Released on July 10, 2025, by HubSpot Media

In this insightful episode of Marketing Against The Grain, hosts Kieran Flanagan and Kip Bodnar delve deep into the transformative impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on product marketing. Featuring Rachel Lies, HubSpot’s Product Marketing Leader, the discussion unpacks how AI tools can exponentially enhance product positioning, storytelling, and competitive intelligence, enabling marketers to achieve world-class results swiftly.

1. Introduction to Product Marketing and AI Integration

Kieran Flanagan kicks off the episode by highlighting the critical role of product marketing, especially in the age of AI. He introduces Rachel Lies, who emphasizes the essence of product marketing:

“Product marketing is really, at the simplest level, telling people what your product does, why it's important, how it will help the customer, and also doing that consistently across channels.”
(02:06)

Rachel underscores the necessity of maintaining a unified message across diverse channels, particularly as content proliferation and multiple platforms make consistency increasingly challenging.

2. Essential AI Use Cases for Product Marketing

Rachel outlines several pivotal AI use cases that have revolutionized HubSpot’s product marketing strategies:

a. Building Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs)

By leveraging AI models like Claude and ChatGPT, Rachel explains how HubSpot creates comprehensive ICPs by integrating internal data (e.g., customer interviews, research decks) with external insights. This process ensures a nuanced understanding of target audiences.

“If you're just getting started... you will have a pretty robust, like, ideal customer profile and Persona pretty quickly. Right. That'll be way better than what most people have.”
(04:57)

b. Content Refinement and Personalization

AI tools assist in refining content to resonate more effectively with customers. Rachel shares her practice of using custom GPTs to evaluate and enhance marketing materials based on customer feedback.

“What would you specifically change? What would you keep? And so that not only improves the content, but it also teaches me the simple things that I need to be including when speaking to the customer.”
(05:23)

c. Competitive Intelligence with NotebookLM

HubSpot employs NotebookLM to manage competitive intelligence, enabling sales teams to access detailed battle cards and competitive insights seamlessly. This tool allows for real-time responses during sales calls, enhancing the effectiveness of sales pitches.

“We have a ton of market research... you're on a call with a prospect who is concerned that they won't grow with HubSpot. What should I say? And that's going to come back with what to respond with.”
(15:00)

d. AI-Powered Customer Interviews at Scale

Rachel introduces Outset, an AI-driven platform that conducts customer interviews at scale. This tool automates the interviewing process, allowing the team to gather extensive customer insights without the logistical constraints of traditional methods.

“We are getting great data at scale. So it's been really, really great for the team.”
(27:38)

e. Creating Tailored Product Pages for Micro Audiences

The hosts discuss the innovative approach of using AI to create personalized product pages targeting micro audiences derived from specific customer pain points. This strategy leverages AI to dynamically generate content that speaks directly to individual company needs, significantly boosting conversion rates.

“This is gonna be the whole thing. The whole thing is going to be understanding that pain that the Swift company has and then activating it on a personal webpage, a personal ad, personal email...”
(34:22)

3. Tools and Technologies in Focus

The conversation highlights several AI tools integral to HubSpot’s product marketing:

• Claude: Used extensively for creating and updating positioning documents based on comprehensive data inputs.
• ChatGPT: Increasingly utilized alongside Claude for specific AI-driven tasks.
• NotebookLM: Facilitates competitive intelligence and provides sales teams with instant access to crucial information.
• Outset: Automates large-scale customer interviews, accelerating data collection and analysis.
• Genspark: Assists in transforming AI-generated responses into dynamic presentations and slides.

Rachel also praises her team’s efforts in organizing data to maintain flexibility across different AI platforms, ensuring the most effective tool is used for each task.

“I just can't imagine my life without it.”
(37:22)

4. Insights and Impact of AI on Product Marketing

The episode underscores the profound efficiency and effectiveness AI brings to product marketing:

• Speed and Scalability: AI drastically reduces the time needed to create and refine marketing materials, enabling rapid iteration and scalability.
• Personalization at Scale: Marketers can now offer highly personalized experiences to individual customers, enhancing engagement and conversion rates.
• Enhanced Competitive Edge: With tools like NotebookLM, teams can stay ahead of competitors by accessing and utilizing up-to-date competitive intelligence.
• Operational Efficiency: Automating customer interviews and content refinement frees up valuable time for marketers to focus on strategic initiatives.

Kieran and Kip emphasize that the integration of AI in product marketing is not just an advantage but a necessity in today’s fast-paced market landscape.

5. Conclusion and Takeaways

As the episode wraps up, Rachel encourages product marketers to embrace AI tools wholeheartedly:

“If you're a product marketer, you absolutely, absolutely have to spend time using these tools. Find the time lock off your calendar. You get deep into them. It will make you so much better at your job and allow you to do so much more than you ever thought was possible.”
(37:22)

Kieran and Kip echo this sentiment, highlighting that AI-driven product marketing not only enhances efficiency but also enables a level of personalization and precision previously unattainable. They hint at future episodes that will delve deeper into tailored AI strategies, promising listeners even more actionable insights.

Key Quotes:

• Rachel Lies: “Product marketing... telling people what your product does, why it's important...” (02:06)

• Kieran Flanagan: “You can actually have real conversations with your customers... train an AI model to act like a customer.” (05:45)

• Kip Bodnar: “There is a version of that. Companies are able to build synthetic versions of your customer...” (23:30)

• Rachel Lies: “Try to find your unlock. I found my unlock and then it led to all these other things...” (37:22)

This episode of Marketing Against The Grain offers a comprehensive look into the future of product marketing, showcasing how AI is not just a supplementary tool but a fundamental component driving innovation and efficiency. Marketers looking to stay ahead would be well-advised to heed Rachel Lies’ advice and integrate these AI strategies into their workflows.