INBOUND 2024 Takeaways: Storytelling Rules All
At Greenough Communications, we focus on the brand above all else. And with the continued collaboration between PR and marketing, attending HubSpot's INBOUND conference isn’t just a box-ticking exercise for us—it’s integral to our continued success. Our Head of Brand Marketing, Jessika Parry, and Director of Brand Marketing and Communications, Grace Bonacum, spent three days immersed in workshops, absorbing the latest insights on everything from making your emails pop to navigating Google’s new AI summaries.
One thing stood out time and time again: storytelling is the future of marketing. No matter how clever your tactics or how sharp your marketing campaigns, customers—whether B2B or B2C—crave something more. They want to hear the story behind your brand and understand the impact of what you offer. While AI has its advantages, it’s clear that audiences are searching for authentic, human-centric content that resonates on a deeper level.
Luckily, at Greenough, we know a thing or two about telling stories that make impactful moments! Below are the top takeaways from INBOUND 2024 that will help you harness the power of narrative to drive your marketing strategy…
1. “Atomize” Big Rock Content to Maximize Its Reach
It takes 13 pieces of content and touch points before a prospect will take action. If you’ve invested the time and effort to develop a comprehensive piece of content, like a webinar or e-book, don’t let it fade into the background after one use. Instead, "atomize" your content to make it work across multiple channels:
- Repurpose content into bite-sized pieces such as statistics cards for social media, blog posts highlighting key takeaways, contributed articles for industry publications, or leadership posts from your CEO.
- Create ads that support various stages of the funnel on LinkedIn to attract new prospects while reinforcing your brand’s authority across diverse touchpoints.
2. Optimize for Impact Across Platforms
Each platform has its own quirks, so be sure your campaigns are tailored to suit their specific dynamics. Optimizing for the right platform can make or break your marketing efforts:
- Fine-tune targeting—new targeting options, particularly on LinkedIn, allow you to reach your ideal audience through interest and skill-based criteria.
- Leverage platform-specific tricks to avoid missing out on potential engagement and conversions, ensuring your campaigns are structured for success.
3. Embrace a Test-and-Learn Approach
Gone are the days of setting up a campaign and letting it run its course. Today’s landscape demands constant attention, refinement, and real-time adjustments:
- Track performance metrics continuously—both organic and paid—and refine your approach based on the results.
- Full funnel strategy is essential. Since 90% of your addressable audience isn’t ready to convert right away, use each stage of the buyer’s journey to understand what sparks engagement. Structure your ads and messaging accordingly to keep them moving through the funnel.
4. Email’s Challenges Ahead—But Solutions Exist
Email marketing is facing an uphill battle in the coming months, but with the right strategies, you can stay ahead of the curve:
- Personalize your sender information to increase open rates. Studies show that emails from a brand plus an industry designation boost open rates by 17%, while using a first name and brand can increase them by 24%.
- Beware of AI filters. Just like spam or promotional filters, Apple’s upcoming AI filters will push AI-generated content to secondary inboxes. Avoid trigger words that signal AI usage to stay out of these filters.
5. Creative + Storytelling are Your Most Powerful Tools
In today’s marketing ecosystem, creativity and storytelling are your biggest levers for success. Consider these stats: 71% of ads on LinkedIn produce 0% growth, and over 85% of activity on LinkedIn happens on mobile devices. Optimizing your creative content is essential:
- Ensure your creative assets are context-aware, unified, emotive, relatable, on-brand, and scroll-stopping. Brands see an 11% increase in CTR when taking up more space with their creative assets—hello, vertical images!
- Thought leadership ads, which highlight individual leaders within your company, are an area to explore. These ads tap into that “person-to-person” connection that storytelling so effectively nurtures.
6. The Future of Search Requires You to Skate to Where the Puck is Going
Your content and SEO strategy may still work today, but not for long. The introduction to conversational AI is changing consumer behavior—and the reality is that AI doesn’t need to be 100% accurate for humans to turn to it. Why? Humans tend to choose the lazier option and direct, conversational answers will win:
- Search behavior is changing, and the conversational future feels like a trusted expert or friend.
- Start diversifying your content to capture things Google AI Overviews can’t do. Think calculators, tools, templates, checklists, and videos. Video strategy is going to take off in our AI-first future.
Facts Tell but Stories Sell: Why Storytelling is the Key to Brand Success
Storytelling is no longer just a nice-to-have—it’s the driving force behind successful marketing in today’s saturated landscape. Whether you’re B2B or B2C, weaving a compelling narrative that resonates with your audience will elevate your brand, increase engagement, and improve campaign performance.
Want to learn more about how storytelling can ground and guide your brand strategy? Contact us today to discover how we can help you craft narratives that captivate your audience and drive results. Let’s make moments together!
What our clients say
Ameresco
Leila Dillon, SVP, Corporate Marketing and Communications
It's clear that the Greenough Communications team has a deep understanding of the clean tech and climate transition spaces. Within the first month of working together, they were able to land interviews with The Washington Post, The New York Times and Canary Media, just to name a few! Since working together, we've seen our media coverage and quality increase significantly across the board. We value Greenough's partnership are looking forward to our continued work together.
Boston Micro Fabrication
Laura Galloway, Marketing Director
As a small marketing team, having an agency partner that feels like a true extension of my team is invaluable. The Greenough Communications team is professional, responsive and has taken the time to understand our business, putting our brand in front of the customers who matter for our growth. I’ve been very happy with our first year of partnership and look forward to future success.
Acrolinx
Mariana Just, Vice President, Marketing
We started working with Greenough Communications over a year ago, and it's been a fantastic journey. They really understand who we are at Acrolinx and what we want to say. Their ability to amplify our message in a crowded AI space has been impressive, delivering solid media results in the outlets that matter, securing the AI Breakthrough Award, and boosting our executive team's social media presence. As we continue our partnership, we're excited about expanding our reach and market presence, building upon our refreshed positioning and messaging with Greenough's expertise guiding us every step of the way.
IQE
Steven Curwood, Director of Corporate Marketing
At IQE, one of our goals is to demystify the vital role compound semiconductors play in the industry and the future of innovation. As we aim to broaden our brand's reach in the U.S. market, finding an agency that understands our technology and the intricacies of our work is crucial. Greenough Communications stood out as that agency from the start. In the short time we've worked together, they've already validated our choice with opportunities in key media, including CNBC, NPR, and the U.S. trade media that will move the needle for our brand and message. There's much ahead for us, and we're excited to have the Greenough team by our side.
Arbella Insurance
John Donohue, CEO
Our Greenough team has excelled in learning our business and our challenges and has been extremely effective in developing and executing a PR strategy that helps drive our success.
Wolters Kluwer Health
André Rebelo, Global Marketing Communications & Public Relations
Our Greenough team has been a strategic asset in sustaining targeted growth in our PR and external communications. The team really operates like an extension of our internal team, aligned and effective. They've deftly balanced the needs of multiple sub-groups' objectives and needs, getting great results in the publications our customers read.
GlobalFoundries
Laurie Kelly, Chief Communications Officer
Greenough Communications has been more than just a PR agency for us at GlobalFoundries; they've been true partners. From navigating our IPO to driving impactful education campaigns like the one leading up to the passage of the CHIPS Act, they've been instrumental in showing the world our leadership role in this new technology era. Their knack for building connections with the industry and our team, including our executives, has been impressive. Every year, we throw new challenges their way, and they keep delivering. As we move ahead together, we're excited to keep pushing the boundaries, sharpening our brand narrative, and taking our brand awareness to the next level.
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