Yearly Archives: 2023

Welcome to HubSpot Marketing News! Tap in for campaign deep dives, the latest marketing industry news, and tried-and-true insights from HubSpot’s media team. 

The beginning of January is like the Superbowl for fitness and wellness brands.

Year after year consumers set goals to form healthier habits in the new year and 2023 is no exception. According to Statista’s Top New Year’s Resolutions Survey, 52% of American adults want to exercise more, 50% hope to eat healthier, and 40% are looking to lose weight this year. 

You would think fitness brands would be going all-in to capitalize on this momentum, right? Well, upscale fitness chain Equinox had other plans.

On January 1, Equinox updated the company website and shared controversial social posts claiming the company “Doesn’t Speak January” and isn’t allowing new members to join during the month to prioritize those who are dedicated to fitness year-round.

The statement has been controversial, with some consumers criticizing the brand for shaming those at the beginning of their wellness journey and being exclusionary.

Reading through the tweet replies left me wondering: do we truly expect a company that charges upwards of $330 per month for membership dues to be the poster child for inclusivity?

New Year’s resolutions, especially those geared towards fitness, have a bad reputation because so few people achieve them. Many believe those who don’t achieve their resolutions fail because they aren’t motivated enough to stick with it when in reality it’s often because people don’t have the tools, resources, and support they need to make lasting changes.

As a consumer, frequent year-round gym-goer, and former fitness professional, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes and disagree with Equinox discouraging new members from joining in January.

As a marketer, I could see the messaging from Equinox did exactly what it intended to do — create a viral moment that got people talking (we know the brand is no stranger to controversy).

If the goal of a brand is to help people live healthier lives, forming the habit of exercise should be encouraged year-round especially when people feel motivated and excited to do so. But I would argue that isn’t the primary goal of Equinox.

Instead, the goal is to sell a lifestyle that prioritizes upscale experiences and social status, not accessible wellness solutions.

When exclusivity is part of a brand’s ethos, exclusive messaging may be disappointing but is ultimately on-brand. 

Marketing Snippets

The latest marketing news and strategy insights.

Image Source

How TikTok trends gave insight into the economic landscape of 2022.

Curious about ChatGPT? Here are five ways marketers can use AI to improve SEO.

TikTok rolls out a new feature to help users understand why they see certain videos on their For You Page.

Instagram Reels have become incredibly lucrative for some creators. 

Measure the effectiveness of your social media strategy using 2023 benchmarks.

Hiring trends for marketers: 15 essential stats from marketing leaders.

Twitter eases restrictions on cause-based and political advertisements.

Remember the “Tide Pod Challenge?” That horrendous time at the beginning of 2018 when adolescents filmed themselves ingesting laundry detergent?

While it was a funny (albeit dangerous) start to the new year, this small boost of infamy was a PR mess for the detergent brand in question, Tide, whose crisis communication team had to figure out how to respond to America’s teens swallowing their toxic product. Tide’s parent company, Procter & Gamble, was swift in their response, thanks in large part to their communication plan.

In this post, you’ll learn how to create an effective communication plan that prepares you and your company for any situation.

Communication plans can help you clarify the purpose of a product launch or new initiative and officially determine the messages you want to deliver to your intended audience(s).

Additionally, a communication plan can help your business during a time of crisis if a previous marketing message or business decision damages your reputation with internal stakeholders or customers.

If companies don’t have a communication plan, they’ll be unprepared when disaster strikes. It may be unlikely that your company will find teenagers eating your product for internet fame, but not so unlikely that you’ll never find yourself needing a procedure to effectively handle difficult situations.

Need a free, easy-to-use communication plan template? HubSpot has 12. Check out this toolkit for everything you need to build your own.

This is part of a template offered in the toolkit. For this particular template, the organization is separated into phases, a description of that phase, and who needs to complete that action.

Download These Templates for Free

Now that we’ve gone over how a communication plan can be helpful, let’s learn how to write one that will be effective.

1. Conduct an audit of your current communications materials.

Before sitting down to get rollin’ on your plan, you need to first decide where it’ll fit into your business. So it’s important you complete a “state of the union,” or an audit of the current climate of communications within your company. This can help you identify any problem areas.

For instance, let’s say you need to create a communications plan for a new product launch. To create your plan, you’ll first need to perform an audit to identify gaps in your current marketing approach.

After performing the audit, you might find there is a major gap in your marketing materials in which you rarely discuss a topic that aligns well with your new product. You’ll want to ensure this topic makes it into your communications plan.

To conduct an audit, you’ll need to carefully gather and interpret data on your current marketing plan performance and build a path forward based on those results. Additionally, you might consider hosting focus groups or sending surveys to your audience to find gaps in your current communications materials.

Of course, you’ll want to have the goal of your communications plan in-mind when conducting an audit. In the example above, noticing you’re lacking material on a certain subject only matters if your goal is to drive leads and conversions to a product that aligns with that subject.

For instance, if you’re launching a new email marketing tool and you notice you’re lacking content on Google Ads, this might not be relevant information for your communications plan. However, if you’re missing content on email marketing best practices, that’s important information you can use to tailor your communications plan appropriately.

2. Set SMART goals for your communications plan based on the results from your audit.

After your audit, you’ll want to lay out a few goals based on the data from the results. What do you want to achieve with this plan?

When in doubt, remember that your goals should be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-based.

For instance, if a small agency is writing a communications plan for its client, they might write a goal along these lines: “We plan to increase employment applications for our client by 25% over the course of one quarter.”

Alternatively, perhaps your HR team needs to write a communications plan to pitch designing a new growth matrix for individual contributors who don’t want to become managers.

If that’s the case, your HR team will need to identify specific goals they hope to achieve as a result of their plan, even if the results are less quantifiable — for instance, their goal might be to “increase employee retention rates by 10% over the next year” or even “increase employee satisfaction, as indicated by their next NPS scores.” They’ll need to pitch these goals to stakeholders to get leadership on-board.

Download Your Free SMART Goal Template

3. Identify the audience to whom you plan to deliver your communications plan.

Good communication starts with knowing and understanding your listener. In this case, if a crisis communication plan is for stakeholders, which one(s) are you writing for? Stakeholder examples include employees, investors, customers, local government officials, or media outlets.

If you’re writing for media outlets, a press release detailing your goals is a good idea for that audience. There should be a process for who will speak to the media outlets, an outline of what they will say, and an action plan put in place moving forward.

Alternatively, if your audience is your employees, you might want to create an up-to-date internal document for employees to refer to, as well as the contact information for the internal DRI if they have follow-up questions.

4. Outline and write your plan, keeping your audiences in-mind.

When you’re ready to outline and write your plan, it’s likely easiest if you start with a table or chart to identify the messages you need to promote, to whom you’re targeting those messages, and on which channel(s).

Once you’ve created a general outline, here’s how you’ll want to structure your communications plan (feel free to copy these sections into a Table of Contents for your own plan):

• Purpose (what is this communications plan for)
• Escalation Framework (including ‘first line of defense’ and ‘greater response team’)
• Roles and responsibilities of each employee
• Do’s and Don’ts
• How to maintain an effective response plan

(If you need help writing a communications plan, download our free, ready-to-use communications plan templates.)

When writing your communication plan, work with groups or representatives from your stakeholders to improve accuracy. Strategies should solve for goals or potential risks.

For instance, if you work for an agency aiming to promote a client’s product, a risk might be spending money on paid ads without a guaranteed ROI. To solve for that risk, the agency should detail different steps to ensure the ads are effective before going public.

5. Determine the channel(s) on which you need to deliver your messages.

The channels you choose to communicate with your audience depends on your message, and to whom you want to deliver that message. For instance, if you’re creating a communications plan for internal employees, you might send out your communications plan in a company-wide email, or use in-person team meetings to deliver your message.

Alternatively, if you’re communicating with customers, you might determine it’s best to communicate via an email newsletter, or via a press release.

Of course, the channel(s) you choose will depend on your goals, but it’s important as you’re writing your communication plan that you keep your distribution methods in-mind.

6. Decide which team members are responsible for delivering the message.

Once you determine your audience and channel(s) on which you’ll deliver your communications plan, figure out the DRI for delivering the message.

For instance, if your HR team is pitching a new growth matrix to leadership, you might ask your Director of HR to deliver the initial pitch in the first meeting. Once leadership is on-board, you might ask each HR representative to deliver one training session for each internal team to ensure every employee understands what’s changing internally, and why.

7. Estimate a timeline for how long each step should take.

You should have a ballpark estimate of how much time each step in executing your strategy will take. For instance, if your plan needs to go from the higher-ups down to the employees, it’s good to take into account how long going through the chain of command will take. It’s also smart to infer how long a media cycle will last.

For instance, for a minor slip-up on an ad campaign, the advertising agency might estimate the cycle for controlling the issue will take a month — including meeting with the client, stakeholders, and employees to discuss steps moving forward.

8. Measure the results of your plan after presenting to stakeholders, and determine successes and areas for improvement.

There’s always room for improvement. Measure the results of the plan after presenting it to stakeholders, and determine aspects that went well, and areas for improvement next time.

For instance, the ad agency might not have met its goal of increasing prospective applications by 25% within a quarter. They might rework their goals to give themselves more time or pivot their quarterly focus to fit those goals.

Alternatively, if you notice certain language in your communications plan evokes a level of stress or fear with internal stakeholders, consider how you can re-word next time to ensure your communications plan feels helpful, beneficial, and positive.

Some aspects of building a communication plan can be a “choose your own adventure” journey. The key is choosing aspects that best reflect what your business needs in times when effective communication is key. What do your stakeholders need to know, and how are you going to best communicate that?

Communication plans can get tricky, but writing an effective one will prove itself with its longevity. The following communication plans include analysis for stakeholders you’d respond to and the procedures for what to include in those communications.

1. Strategic Communication Plan

Bright Hub Project Management’s communication plan explains how, when, and why communication happens within its organization.

This example is great because it details how communication managers write crisis plans and acknowledges that sometimes the busy marketer or project manager takes on this responsibility.

Image Source

2. Project Communication Plan

Here’s an example of a Billing Upgrade Project from Simplicable. This communication plan maps out all the important meetings and documents needed for the project. As you can see, it also includes necessary sections including audience, goals, format, and DRI.

Image Source

3. Marketing Communication Plan

A marketing communication plan is essential for communicating to your target market, especially when launching new products or initiatives. This example from Smartsheet allows you to plan marketing communications strategies for customers, sales prospects, media partners, internal stakeholders, and events.

Image Source

4. Corporate Communication Plan

Corporate communication plans outline how organizations communicate internally and externally. This example from Smartsheet is a nine-step roadmap that includes space for a mission statement, executive summary, situation analysis, key messages, and more.

Image Source

5. Crisis Communication Plan

This communication checklist below, by Prezly, gives a great overview of the details of a crisis plan from beginning to end. It can be used as an effective guide when drafting a crisis management strategy.

Image Source

Communication Planning Tips

Communication planning can be tricky, so here are some extra tips to keep in mind to help your plan shine: when describing procedures for handling crises, include who the situation involves. This lets stakeholders envision decision-making processes.

Additionally, if you’re part of a larger company with a broad stakeholder list, it’s okay to split up target audiences for your plan.

For instance, maybe your audience is more than just “consumers.” Split stakeholder groups for easier comprehension and more distinct solutions.

Ultimately, your communications plan needs to clearly and succinctly provide necessary information to everyone involved in the business decision, product launch, or PR crises. Use the strategy mentioned above, as well as our communication plan templates, to ensure yours is as effective as possible.

Editor’s note: This post was originally published in September, 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

Asking “How is everyone?” at the beginning of every meeting isn’t always the best ice breaker to encourage team bonding. Sometimes, having a fun ice breaker game or activity can aid in that connection.

The best ice breakers have the power to strengthen coworker bonds, stimulate better brainstorming sessions, and create an atmosphere of inclusivity. To get the most value out of your team bonding moments, we’ve compiled a list of the best ice breaker activities and games for the workplace.

Next time you get together with your team, use one of these games instead of asking “How is everyone,” and you’re sure to hear some better, more insightful responses than “I’m good.”

Looking for a specific type of ice breaker? Jump to:

• Zoom Icebreakers
• Ice Breakers for Meetings
• Quick Ice Breakers
• Fun Ice Breaker Games
• Large Team Ice Breakers
• Ice Breaker Games for Small Groups
• Virtual Icebreakers for Dispersed Teams
• Would You Rather Ice Breakers

Zoom Icebreakers

1. Paint a Picture, Build a Story

Image Source

Best For: Virtual Fun

In this ice breaker, playoff your teammates’ artistry and create a scenario of their masterpieces. Gartic Phone gives you a short time frame to sketch photos based on other players’ prompts — and can result in some hilarious artwork.

The more nonsensical the prompt, the funnier the drawings become. You’ll also get brownie points if you save and share some of the funniest drawings and share them with the team on Slack afterward.

Instructions

• Go to https://garticphone.com.
• Enter a nickname and choose a character avatar.
• Click Start.
• Click the Invite button and share the link with your colleagues.
• When the game starts, everyone will be prompted to write a fun sentence.
• Everyone will receive someone else’s sentence and have the opportunity to draw it.
• Everyone will receive someone else’s drawing and then guess what the original sentence was.
• Enjoy the hilarious results!

2. Guess That Drawing

Best For: Virtual Fun

Drawasaurus is one of my favorite online drawing games to play with colleagues. Players get to choose from three random prompts to quickly interpret and draw their vision. Other players can score more points for identifying the word the fastest and take turns going until the timer goes out.

Instructions

• Go to https://www.drawasaurus.org.
• Enter a nickname (don’t worry; this won’t automatically start a game).
• Click + Create a Room.
• Set the room as Private, choose a room name, set a simple password, and choose the number of max players.
• Share the link from the URL bar with your colleagues.
• The game will start once everyone designates themselves as Ready to Play.
• One by one, everyone will choose one word to draw, and the others will get to guess the word.
• The person who guesses correctly the quickest earns the most points. Enjoy!

3. Alphabet Brainstorm

Best For: Virtual Fun

Thinking off the top of your head is a lot harder said than done in Scattergories. The host of the game can choose from topics as broad as foods and countries or as weird as “Things Granny would say.”

Each round, the game will highlight a random letter of the alphabet and let players come up with any noun or phrase that starts with said letter. The best part — players can dispute answers amongst each other to take the win. This is a perfect icebreaker for your overly competitive colleagues.

Instructions

• Go to https://scattergoriesonline.net/new-game.xhtml.
• Choose the categories you’d like for the game, such as “Animals,” “Long words”, and “Things with tails.”
• Click Create new game.
• Choose the game letters (most will be pre-chosen), the number of players, and the number of rounds.
• Choose when a round ends (we recommend giving everyone 30 to 60 seconds).
• Under “Who can join,” click Invited friends.
• Click Create new game.
• Copy the link and share it with your colleagues.
• Everyone will have an allotted time to fill out several categories with words that start with a single letter.
• Play all the rounds and see which one of your colleagues has the most expanded vocabulary!

4. Show and Tell

Best For: Team Bonding

A rather straightforward ice breaker, team members can share an object they love over Zoom. Whether it’s a prized-collectible or an item that sparks nostalgia, there’s plenty of stories waiting to be told.

Instructions

• Let your team know ahead of time that you’ll be doing a show and tell.
• At the start of the meeting, give everyone 5 minutes to find the item that they’d like to show (Option: Have them turn their camera off).
• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• Have everyone popcorn to someone after they show their item, or go alphabetically.
• Enjoy seeing the eclectic items in your team members’ homes!

5. Bucket List

Best For: Team Bonding

Outside of the workplace, your teammates are people with aspirations and goals you wouldn’t know about from the average coffee chat. Have team members share some bucket list items they want to achieve in the future.

Not only can these be inspirational, but they also open the floor for team members to encourage one another to pursue their dreams, too. It’s a particularly uplifting team-bonding activity that will bring your team even closer together.

Instructions

• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• You or your teammate will share one bucket list item.
• Have everyone popcorn to someone after their turn, or go alphabetically.
• Enjoy!

6. Share the Love

Best For: Team Building

While dispersed teams may not have the chance to share a handshake or hug, you can still share the love amongst each other in this icebreaker. Say something lovely with another team member, and it could be anything you want as long as it’s respectful and in good judgment.

For each person that receives a kind message, they will be the next one to share a message to a member of the group who hasn’t received one — ensuring everyone gets an equal amount of praise. Shout them out for their helpfulness in a project, for the energy they bring to the team, or for their lovely smile.

Instructions

• Let your team know ahead of time that you’ll be doing this activity.
• We recommend pre-pairing teammates in a spreadsheet so everyone can come prepared with something to say.
• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• Have everyone popcorn to someone else after their turn, or go alphabetically.
• Enjoy!

7. Arts and Crafts

Image Source

Best For: Virtual Fun

Making something with your team can be a great opportunity to learn something new and keep decorative mementos in your space. Have everyone follow the same instructions to make a craft like simple origami, a drawing, or painting by a designated instructor in the Zoom call or YouTube tutorial.

Instructions

• Have everyone fill out an interest form for the event.
• Set a date and have folks RSVP so that you can more accurately calculate the price per person in the next step.
• Hire a Zoom arts and craft instructor from a business such as The Art Studio NY or KraftyLab. Alternatively, have a team member volunteer to teach, or find a YouTube video, which will be free.
• We recommend taking 30-60 minutes to complete this activity.
• At the end, have everyone show their work.
• Have fun!

8. What Do We Have in Common?

Best For: Team Bonding

This icebreaker is best suited for new hires who may feel more reserved as they virtually meet the team.

Find common ground and get the conversation going with your team members. Have a manager or team leader start the conversation by sharing something they have an interest in, like popular TV, music, foods, or whatever they love to get everyone thinking. Popcorn it over to the most enthusiastic team member with that same interest and have them share a new one.

Typical icebreaker questions can get people to say a sentence or two about the subject, but if you’re passionate about it, you’ll see more personality come out from the most unexpected colleagues in the call.

Instructions

• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• You or your teammate will share an interest, such as a TV show or hobby.
• Someone with that same interest should either drop a note in the chat or raise their hand.
• Their turn will begin, and they will share a new interest.
• Enjoy!

9. Name That Tune

Best For: Virtual Fun

Music brings people together, and you’d be surprised to learn how many of your coworkers are raving about the top trending song on TikTok or Spotify.

Take turns whistling, tapping, or even playing an instrument (if you gave one) to the tune of a popular song and have your teammates guess the name. Figure out who’s a fan of the classics by clapping and stomping to the rhythm of “We Will Rock You” by Queen, or do whatever it takes to help your colleagues recognize your favorite tunes.

Instructions

• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• You or your teammate will hum, whistle, sing, or tap the rhythm of your favorite song.
• Team members should drop their guess in the chat.
• The correct guesser gets the turn. If no one guesses correctly, popcorn your turn to someone else.
• Enjoy!

10. Themed Meetings

Image Source

Best For: Virtual Fun

Hosting themed meetings is the best icebreaker for the holiday season. Share a laugh and snap photos of you and your colleagues dressed up as elves with Zoom backgrounds at the North Pole, or in your spookiest costumes for Halloween.

Make sure your theme is chosen in good judgment. As some holidays have cultural ties, keep this icebreaker for more commercial holidays.

Instructions

• Let your team know ahead of time that you’ll be doing this activity.
• Share either what costume you’re wearing or something special about your ensemble (such as, “I’ve had this ugly sweater since 1999”).
• Have everyone popcorn to someone after their turn, or go alphabetically.
• Enjoy!

12. Guess the Childhood Photo

Best For: Team Bonding

In need of a wholesome icebreaker? In your next Zoom meeting, tell everyone to send the leader a cute (or hilarious) photo from their childhood and randomly throw them all into one slideshow.

When it’s complete, the leader will then share their screen and have the group guess which team member is in each photo. Try not to blush too hard when they get to yours.

Instructions

• Let your team know ahead of time that you’ll be doing this activity.
• Share the presentation a week prior to the meeting so team members can add their childhood photos.
• At the start of the meeting, share your screen.
• Proceed slide-by-slide and have team members either throw their guesses in the chat, or write their guesses privately on a notepad.
• At the end, have everyone share which slide belonged to them.
• Enjoy!

13. Zoom Photo Ops

Best For: Team Building

In this icebreaker, you’ll first want to ask everyone involved if they’re comfortable having their photos taken before the meeting begins (I know I’d like a heads up in case I was wearing an old band shirt instead of my usual business casual outfits.)

You can try to get everyone to make silly or scary faces, or even try to mimic the Brady Bunch title sequence. There are plenty of poses or facial expressions to capture, especially if you’ve got a kooky team to work with.

Instructions

• Let your team know ahead of time that you’ll be doing this activity.
• At the start of the meeting, give instructions for the pose team members should take (Silly? Spooky? There are many options!).
• Take a screenshot of the Zoom window.
• Share the photo via your team messaging app and pin it for posterity.
• Enjoy the memories!

14. Hobby Webinar

Best For: Virtual Fun

During weekly video chats, you can designate one coworker to teach the team how to engage in a hobby they’re good at — something you don’t need to be in-person to do.

This could range from showing how to do quick origami, do a magic trick, or even giving a pointer or two on couponing from your coworker who always keeps an eye out for the latest deals.

Instructions

• Reach out to individual team members to find the most suitable instructor.
• Alternatively, create a running spreadsheet with team members’ names and their hobbies.
• Manually choose an instructor for the upcoming meeting, or pick a name randomly using a tool like this one.
• If supplies are needed, let your team know ahead of time.
• Have the instructor lead the meeting from the start, ideally with a time limit on the activity.
• Enjoy!

Ice Breakers for Meetings

15. One Word

Best For: In-Person Team Building

The One Word ice breaker allows you to provide initial context into a meeting’s topic, and get everyone in the right mindset for discussion.

For instance, let’s say you’re leading a meeting on culture. Tell the groups to describe work culture, or your office culture in particular, in one word. Once they’ve shared with their groups, you can invite them to share their word with the entire room.

This game encourages everyone to think about a certain topic in smaller groups ahead of time, which could increase participation during the meeting.

Instructions

• Divide meeting participants into smaller groups.
• Tell them to think for a minute or two on the meeting’s topic.
• Have every one share with their group one word that describes the topic, then allow them to popcorn their turn.
• Enjoy the diverse responses!

16. Pop Quiz

Best For: Team Building

To successfully loosen everyone up and get them in the right mindset for a meeting, you might consider putting a short Pop Quiz on the board.

If your goal is simply to encourage team bonding, your quiz can be more fun — like, “Match the lyrics with this 80’s song.” However, you might also use the Pop Quiz as an opportunity to introduce participants to the meeting’s theme.

If you’re discussing company changes, for instance, maybe you’ll start by quizzing team members on company history facts (e.g. “What year was this company founded?”).

Instructions

• We recommend not letting your team members know about this activity ahead of time.
• If you’re on Zoom, post the question on the chat or share it via your screen. If the meeting is in-person, write it on the board.
• Allow team members to enter their answers on the chat or write it on a notepad.
• Whoever gets it right may get a small prize or bragging rights.
• Have fun!

17. Birth Map

Image Source

Best For: In-Person Team Bonding

This activity is short, but delightfully telling — you’ll find out where your team members were born without needing to ask and having everyone take a turn. You’ll create a physical map where your teammates can place a pin on their birthplace. As the map fills up with pins, people will learn about how diverse their teammates might be.

Instructions

• Place a map and a set of pins at the front of a large conference room before a big meeting.
• As people walk in, ask them to place a pin where they were born or raised.
• Allow some time at the end of the meeting for your colleagues to walk up and look more closely at the map.
• Save the map or take a picture.
• Enjoy the team keepsake!

18. Movie Pitch

Best For: In-Person or Virtual Fun

Perfect for larger groups and movie fanatics, this icebreaker is as crazy as you make it. Divide players into quads and give them 10 minutes to devise the plot of the next award-winning film. You can give them constraints by designating genres like horror, action, comedy, thriller, and more.

If your organization is meeting to brainstorm ideas for specific projects, go ahead and incorporate the topic into their movie pitch prompts to get the creative juices flowing.

Instructions

• Divide team members into groups.
• Have every group come up with a plot for the next blockbuster.
• Each group should get a turn to share, and they might even act out parts of the plot.
• Have fun!

19. Stretch Break

Best For: Team Wellness

Maybe the week has been busy for you and your team, or it’s going on your fourth meeting of the day. If this is the case, have everyone take a breather and stretch before the next big meeting begins.

Someone can either lead by example, showcasing some arm and back stretches, or just let everyone freestyle. You’d be surprised how a little movement can wake up and help people get work done.

Instructions

• Designate a team member ahead of time to lead the stretches (or lead them yourself).
• Take 5-10 minutes to go through a round of stretches.
• Enjoy the much-needed break!

20. Rose, Thorn, Bud

Best For: Team Building

In meetings, it can be hard to communicate or understand everyone’s perspective on a project unless everyone has the floor to say what’s on their mind. With the Rose, Thorn, Bud icebreaker, team members can quickly convey what’s on their mind by sharing three bits of information:

Rose: A recent positive happening like a personal highlight or win

Thorn: A challenge or roadblock they need support on

Bud: An idea for the future they’d like to share, or excitement for events in motion

Instructions

• Ensure you have the right team size for this activity. Less than 10 people would work best.
• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• Have everyone popcorn to someone else after their turn, or go alphabetically.
• Enjoy!

21. Frivolous Debate

Best For: In-Person or Virtual Fun

There’s nothing like some lighthearted banter to get everyone warmed up before a meeting.

For this icebreaker, everyone will debate a silly topic and chime in with an equally silly answer and reasoning. Make a statement like, “Cats are better than dogs,” and, “Summer is better than winter,” or let chaos ensue by declaring that pineapple belongs on pizza (because it does).

Instructions

• Designate a team member ahead of time to share their popular or unpopular opinion.
• Have everyone chime in one-by-one on whether they agree or disagree.
• Every team member should popcorn their turn, or you can go alphabetically.
• Have fun finding out who agrees with you (and who does not)!

Quick Ice Breakers

22. Would You Rather

Best For: Team Bonding

A classic game played at summer camps everywhere, “Would You Rather” is an excellent, quick ice breaker for the workplace. Next time you’re settling into a meeting or team bonding outing, take turns going around the table and asking each person a “Would You Rather” question.

Here are a few “Would You Rather” questions to get you started:

• Would you rather only have summer or winter for the rest of your life?
• Would you rather go on a hike or see a movie?
• Would you rather never use social media sites and apps again or never watch another movie or TV show?
• Would you rather have a horrible short-term memory or a horrible long-term memory?

Instructions

• Designate a team member ahead of time to share their “Would You Rather” question.
• Have everyone chime in one-by-one with their answer.
• Every team member should popcorn their turn, or you can proceed alphabetically.
• Enjoy!

23. Accomplishments Before 18

Best For: Team Bonding

Accomplishments Before 18 is an engaging and unique way to encourage team members to share fun or interesting stories with one another. Before a meeting, simply go around the room, and ask each person to share one accomplishment they had before they turned 18.

Undoubtedly you’ll get some of lesser importance, like “I bought a skateboard,” but you never know what hidden skills you might discover in your colleagues.

Instructions

• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• Have everyone chime in one-by-one with their answer.
• Every team member should popcorn their turn, or you can proceed alphabetically.
• Enjoy!

24. Two Truths and a Lie

Best For: Team Bonding

One of the more classic ice breakers in the list, Two Truths and a Lie can be used anywhere from family parties to company events.

For instance, I might say, “I once auditioned for the TV show Zoom. I have three brothers. I ziplined in Switzerland once.” Coworkers can take turns guessing which is the lie. (FYI, I have two brothers, not three, so that’s the lie. Unfortunately, I auditioned for Zoom.)

Two Truths and a Lie is a fun and engaging game, and more importantly, it can help your team learn facts about one another, so they can begin forming deeper bonds.

Instructions

• Ask each person to brainstorm three “facts” about themselves — two of the facts will be true, and one will be a lie.
• Have team members guess which is the lie.
• Whoever guesses correctly gets bragging rights.
• Enjoy!

25. The Handshake

Best For: In-Person Fun

One of the first ways you get to greet somebody in the workplace is with a handshake.

This ice breaker lets individuals ease up and have a little fun without a hassle. It’s simple — everyone will create a fun, creative handshake.

If you have more time on your hands, have the pairs split up after showing off their super cool shake and make even more creative ones with new partners. It’s hard to play these games without sharing a laugh, which is something we all could use in the workday.

Instructions

• Divide the group into pairs of two.
• Have them make the most creative handshake they can in a couple of minutes.
• If desired, have everyone rotate partners.
• Have fun!

26. Bad Joke Contest

Best For: In-Person or Virtual Fun

This icebreaker won’t take your team time at all to complete if you give them a heads up to prepare. In the Bad Joke Contest, you’ll have everyone recite the corniest joke they can muster and have everyone vote on who was the most cringeworthy.

Beware, some coworkers have impressively bad dad jokes saved up for these moments, so the competition will be fierce.

Instructions

• Let your team know ahead of time that you’ll be doing this activity.
• Start with a random team member or yourself.
• Have everyone popcorn to someone after they tell their joke, or go alphabetically.
• Have everyone vote on the corniest joke either via Zoom poll or by keeping tabs on a notepad.
• Don’t forget to laugh — or cringe!

The list continues below — read on to find fun icebreaker games, ice breakers for large teams, and more.

27. Tall Tales

This icebreaker game will have everyone thinking on their feet. In Tall Tales, each player will make up three sentences to add to a running story. The third sentence has to have a plot twist starting with, “Suddenly…” before rotating to the next.

Every player will have a chance to put their own spin on the budding story, and can even try to throw the next participant for a loop with a crazy situation.

28. Say Your Name Backwards

This game is pretty straightforward, or straight backward.

Every player will write their name on a slip of paper backward, fold it, and place it into a bowl. Once all the slips are collected, someone will draw one out of the bowl and read to the rest of the players what’s on the slip. Whoever can guess their coworker’s name correctly gains a point, and whoever has the most points at the end wins.

29. Jenga

Jenga is considered a classic game for a reason, and because it’s easy to play and put away. Have your team take turns pulling woodblocks out of your Jenga tower and share a laugh when it all comes toppling down.

30. Frown King or Queen

Make it a competition to see which of your team members has the gnarliest frown, and bestow upon them the title of Frown King or Queen. Bonus points if you actually go out of your way to make a paper crown.

You’d be surprised how hard it is to maintain a frown when surrounded by your favorite colleagues, not to mention how funny they’ll look during the game.

31. The Envelope Please!

In this icebreaker game, have everyone write 10 facts about themselves on paper and place them each into their own envelopes. The envelopes are to be shuffled and chosen once at a time by the leader to read aloud to the rest of the group.

The rest of the players will then guess the identity of the envelope in hand — but they must be confident in their answer as each player only has one chance to guess per envelope.

32. Random Talent Show

A talent show is one thing, but a random talent show is another. Have your coworkers take turns showing their cool party (or office) tricks. And let’s face it, you’ve been trying to find the right opportunity to show someone you could lick your elbow for a while now.

33. Celebrity Impressions

For this icebreaker game, the leader will tape a label to each player’s back with a celebrity or household name. Once that’s complete, every player will then ask each other yes or no questions about the traits, recent news, or talents of their celebrity label.

If a player can identify their own celebrity correctly, they can remove the label from their backs and continue mingling if they wish.

34. Quick Portrait Gallery

You don’t have to be Picasso to have take part in this icebreaker. The instructions are simple, every group member will be randomly assigned a different person to draw in a couple minutes. It’s a fun way to bond and share a giggle here and there over everyone’s work of art.

35. Sound Ball

Sound Ball is an imaginative icebreaker that gives everyone a chance to get moving and energized.

In this icebreaker, the leader holds an imaginary ball in their hand and “throws” it to other players, making whatever sound they think it would with that gesture. Whoever “catches” the ball next must repeat the sound made, then throw the ball to another person making their own unique sound. It sounds crazy, but it’s easy to get into the flow of it.

36. Beatboxing

This is probably one of the silliest icebreakers in this list, but it’s definitely worth trying for the fun of it all. Have one team member start making a noise you’d hear in a song like percussion and have others gradually add to the beat.

Who knows, if the beat sounds good enough you all could consider making an acapella group.

Large Team Ice Breakers

37. Charades

Charades is a game fit for large teams, both in-person and remote.

In this icebreaker, players need to communicate with team members to identify a noun of a certain category. Have everyone divide into two teams, and have one player at a time pantomime (act out) the subject for their own respective teammates. Whichever team gets the most points, wins.

38. Red Light, Green Light

I bet anyone who watched Squid Games in 2021 is familiar with this game, and if you haven’t, the rules are simple (and the stakes are much, much lower.)

The players in this icebreaker game will line up on one side of a room and a designated leader will be instructed to say either, “Red Light,” or, “Green Light”. Players in line are to try and walk to the other side of the room when the leader says, “Green Light”, but once the leader says, “Red Light”, everyone must freeze or be kicked out of the game.

39. Guess Who

Similar to Charades, Guess Who is a great icebreaker where you can mimic famous people — or even your coworkers.

Have someone write down well-known names on sheets of paper and then hand them off one at a time to a team member. They’ll have to act out the behaviors, facial expressions, or even the iconic “I’m flying” scene from Titanic.

40. Icebreaker Bingo

Icebreaker Bingo is a great way to bond with large teams because it can include as many people as you want.

You can use a free icebreaker bingo generator and personalize each of the squares on a subject you’re all discussing for the day, or for anything everyone can feel included.

41. Hot Take

For this icebreaker, everyone can take turns in sharing their hot takes and either bond with their coworkers who agree or debate their naysayers.

Of course, you want the topics to be fun and lighthearted, so keep them to topics that aren’t controversial and opt for statements like, “Cheese isn’t all that great.” if you’re a madman.

42. “Most Likely To ___”

Remember those high school superlatives? This is like that but a little less embarrassing. Have coworkers read through a list of “Most likely To” titles and assign them to one another. During the game, everyone can chime in or give reasons as to why someone deserves the title, and the group consensus will be the final decision.

It’s important to note that no two people will have more than one tile to ensure everyone is included.

43. Whisper Down the Lane

Whisper Down the Lane is an icebreaker game where team members form a larger circle and share a random message whispered into the ear of someone to their left. This game can get funny pretty quickly, as a whisper down the lane can get misinterpreted over and over again.

44. Simon Says

Simon Says is a game as old as time, but it never stops being fun. The leader of the group will instruct players to do an action beginning with the words, “Simon says…” like, “Simon says touch your knees,” or, “Simon says grab your elbow.” Whoever doesn’t do the actions proclaimed will be booted out of the game.

The real trick is for the leader to confuse players by giving fast Simon Says commands, then giving them a command without saying the keywords. This could work like, “Simon says touch your hips, Simon says hop on one foot, Simon says touch your nose — touch your ears!” Whoever does the action (like touching your ears) will be booted out of the game because it wasn’t a Simon says action.

45. Things in Common

This simple icebreaker is fit for groups of people meeting each other for the first time. All that has to be done is mingle with one another to find some things you have in common, and try to form groups based on those attributes. Bonus points if you can learn the names of those who you relate to, and brownie points if you can relay all their names when asked.

46. Team Jigsaw Puzzle Competition

For this game, you’ll need to prepare by purchasing two identical jigsaw puzzles. Divide your large group into teams of two and set a timer to see which group can work together to make the most progress on their respective puzzles.

47. Clump

Have team members walk around and mingle amongst themselves in a large, open space. The leader of the icebreaker will then yell out a random number under 10. Every person mingling will then have to quickly form a group in the size of the number called.

Gradually people will be made to exit the mingling space or find a seat until the last person standing wins.

Ice Breaker Games for Small Groups

48. Fun Questions

Asking fun questions is an easy and effective ice breaker game. To play, simply go around the room and have each person provide an answer to a fun question. The questions are up to you, but if you’re stuck, here are a few ideas:

• If you’re stranded on a desert island and have the option of bringing three items with you, what three items would they be?
• If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?
• What was the first concert you ever went to?
• If you could have any celebrity over for dinner, who would it be and why?

These questions serve two purposes — first, they allow your coworkers to get into a sillier, more creative mindset. Second, they encourage conversation on topics typically reserved for outside the office, which enables members of your team to get to know one another on a deeper level.

Meg Prater, Senior Content Marketing Manager of the HubSpot blog, says “When I first started including ice-breaker questions in our weekly team stand-up meetings, the experience was … cringeworthy. It felt like exactly what it was: organized fun. But we kept at it. I listened to feedback and tried to incorporate it into better ice breakers.”

She continued, “For example, some folks on our team don’t watch a lot of T.V. and felt a little excluded when we’d fall down a rabbit hole of shows we were binging. Keeping the ice breakers inclusive keeps everyone engaged. Now, our ice-breakers can take 15+ minutes to get through and yield some of our biggest laughs and revelations of the week.”

49. Personality Quiz

This ice breaker can promote team bonding, and it’s one of the easier options on the list. Simply choose a brief personality quiz on your phone or computer (if you’re stuck, here’s a list), and pull it up on a projector or send the link to everyone.

Once everyone has completed the personality assessment, have each colleague mention one thing they agree or disagree with from their results. This game allows your team members to gain a new perspective on their peers, and it’s also a fun and easy way to get an interesting conversation started.

50. Who is it?

Have everyone write a unique, strange, or unexpected fact about them on a piece of paper. Then, put the pieces of paper into a hat and mix them around. Pull from the hat and read each fact.

Allow the team to try and guess who wrote it. After they guess, ask the employee who wrote the fact to identify themselves and give any further context if necessary. This could be a great way to get to know surprising new things about your teammates.

51. Marshmallow Challenge

Tom Wujec, a business visualization expert, initially presented his Marshmallow Challenge at TED. To play, you simply divide your team into groups of four and give each group 20 sticks of spaghetti, one yard of tape, one yard of string, and a marshmallow. Whichever team can build the tallest structure, wins — the trick is, the marshmallow must be on top.

There are a few reasons this game works as both a great ice breaker and a team-building exercise. First, the most successful teams are the groups of people who don’t spend time competing for power.

The game forces your colleagues to work collaboratively when brainstorming potential solutions. Second, the Marshmallow Challenge encourages people to think quickly and offer alternative solutions when their initial idea fails.

With the Marshmallow Challenge, you can strengthen your team’s brainstorming and problem-solving skills, and your team can also have some fun. A win, win.

52. Scavenger Hunt

At HubSpot, we conduct a scavenger hunt for new hires on the first day of their training. It’s fun and encourages collaboration, but additionally, it can help employees learn their way around the office.

Fortunately, you can conduct a scavenger hunt for your team even if they’ve worked at your office for years.

Simply split up your team into groups, and give each group a shortlist of items to find — if you work in a smaller space, maybe you can hide some funny items around the office ahead of time. You might even provide an incentive for the winning team, like a $50 Amazon gift card.

A scavenger hunt is also an exceptional opportunity for cross-department interaction. Consider reaching out to managers from other departments and creating groups of employees who don’t often get to work together.

53. No Smiling

This game is simple and meant to energize your team. Get your colleagues in a circle and ask one volunteer to sit or stand in the middle. Tell the volunteer that they can not laugh or smile, regardless of what happens. Then have each other colleagues take turns telling the volunteer a work-appropriate joke.

The goal of the volunteer is to hear a joke from every colleague around the circle, while the goal of the other team members is to make the volunteer laugh.

This icebreaker can be helpful in new-employee or management training to lighten the pressure of starting a new job. It can also be helpful as a way of lightening the mood on teams that regularly deal with stressful projects or situations.

54. This is Better Than That

Aside from being a fun team activity, this might be a great energizer for sales employees or others that regularly pitch, market, and sell products.

Ask your team to find four to seven items around the office and bring them to one room. These items could be something they use daily, like a pen or a chair. However, you should encourage them to find items that are more odd or unique. This will make the game more challenging.

Line the items up and split the group into sub-teams. Task each team with picking an item they would use to survive if stranded on a desert island.

Tell team members that they cannot pick more than one and must assume it is the only item they will have on that island. Allow the teams time to deliberate and then ask them to present the item they chose and why.

Virtual Icebreakers for Dispersed Teams

55. Choose Your Favorite

For this icebreaker, all you have to do is answer the question about your favorite things. You’ll ask your team to choose their favorite movie, song, T.V. show, etc. The question can change every week.

This icebreaker helps your team get to know each other even when they work remotely and can spark conversation on what everyone likes or dislikes.

56. Trivia Game

If you’re looking for a remote icebreaker that’s more of a game, and less discussion-based, you can host a trivia game.

Kahoot is a trivia platform you can use for free (hosts up to 10 people). To get started, all you’ll need to do is sign up for a free Kahoot account.

Then, you can choose a featured trivia game to play. To run this remotely, you’ll want to share your screen with your team. Everyone will need to have a separate device to use so they can enter the game and submit their answers.

57. Share an Embarrassing Photo

This is one of my favorite icebreakers because it’s a fun way to get to know your team. For this game, have everyone bring in an embarrassing photo and tell the story behind it.

Have your team members share their screen or send a file to the team leader to share with everyone.

To make this more interesting, you can have people guess whose photo it is before your team member shares their story. Doing this icebreaker is a great way to build connections remotely.

58. One Word Pulse Check

For this icebreaker, have everyone on your team go around and share a word or phrase that represents how they feel that day.

Christina Perricone, former Senior Content Marketing Manager on the HubSpot blog, says this is her favorite icebreaker.

“The person sharing gets to decide whether or not to elaborate, and everyone listens without response. The purpose of the exercise is to give people a chance to release and/or reveal emotional setbacks, obstacles, wins, highlights, or anything else that might be impacting how they show up to work that day. It provides a space for participants to bring their entire self to work and it gives the team context for how to support that team member that day,” Perricone adds.

59. Meet my Pet

Nothing fills a meeting with smiles like photos of colleagues’ furry friends. Take turns showing off the cutest pictures and videos of your pet.

For those who don’t have any, they can either make a joke pet (the infamous pet rock) or share a dream pet they would have.

60. Let’s Make a Mixtape

This icebreaker works by asking your coworkers to choose one of their favorite songs from a certain genre. Once everyone has their song in mind, have someone compile either a Youtube or Spotify playlist of everyone’s choices, and share the link with everyone in the group afterward.

Not only is it fun at the moment, but then everyone has the chance to discover new artists and tunes they haven’t heard of before.

61. Emoji Mood Guesser

With this icebreaker, you’d ask everyone in your team to drop the most accurate emojis of their current mood or state of mind in a chat box (assuming they’re using Zoom, Microsoft Teams, etc.) Everyone can guess what adjective someone is trying to convey, and can even share why if they want to.

Would You Rather Ice Breakers

62. Food Would You Rather Questions

You’d be surprised how passionate some of your coworkers can get over food. When asking “Would You Rather” questions, ask about various savory or sweet food staples and which they would prefer to eat forever.

Example: “Would you rather eat only cake forever or eat pasta forever?”

63. Travel Would You Rather Questions

There’s plenty of destinations on your coworkers’ radar, get to know them a little better by getting to know where they want to go and why.

Example: “Would you rather travel to only island destinations or mountainous destinations?”

64. Talent Would You Rather Questions

Explore more uncommon talents and see which your coworkers would like to have in this type of questionnaire.

Example: “Would you rather your special talent be opera singing or in playing the banjo?”

65. Super Hero Would You Rather Questions

There are hundreds of superheroes from Marvel and DC, and chances are your coworkers are familiar with them, too. Ask which hero they would like to be and why based on their stories or abilities.

Example: “Would you rather be Ironman or Captain America?”

66. Super Power Would You Rather Questions

On a similar note to heroes, find out what powers your coworkers would rather have and why. Bonus points if you ask them whether they’d label themselves as a hero or villain.

Example: “Would you rather have super speed or super strength?”

67. Sport Would You Rather Questions

Your coworkers may be involved in sports outside of work, and maybe they’re fans of different leagues and teams. Ask which sports they’d rather play and see which they’d prefer and why.

Example: “Would you rather play basketball for the rest of your life or football?”

68. Fashion Would You Rather Questions

Even if your coworkers aren’t tuned into NYFW, they’re sure to recognize some of the most popular clothing brands. Ask them which they’d prefer to dress in and why.

Example: “Would you rather wear only Louis Vuitton or Gucci?”

69. TV Would You Rather Questions

With tons of streaming services to choose from, your coworkers are bound to have some favorite TV shows. Ask questions like which shows they’d rather watch, or be a part of.

Example: “Would you rather be a cast member in Euphoria or Ozark?”

70. Movie Would You Rather Questions

Movie fanatics across any team or department will enjoy questions about them. Ask coworkers which genres they’d rather watch, or which they’d want to be in.

Example: “Would you rather be cast in a comedy movie or action movie?”

Break the Ice and Get to Business

Icebreaker activities can seem cringeworthy but are actually a great way to build trust within your team. We hope you found some good ice breakers to incorporate in your future meetings with our list of favorites. And even if you work remotely, team bonding is an important part of running a productive, effective team.

Editor’s note: This post was originally published in September 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

 

On any given day, most of our email inboxes are flooded with a barrage of automated email newsletters that do little else besides giving us another task to do on our commutes to work — namely, marking them all as unread without reading or unsubscribing altogether.

It may not seem like a good idea to add to all the noise. However, according to Constant Contact, the average ROI for email marketing is $42 for every $1 spent. Needless to say, email is an important component of a marketing strategy, and its success relies largely on how well you craft your email campaigns.

In this post, we’ll explore:

• What is an email marketing campaign?
• Effective Email Marketing Campaigns
• Best Email Marketing Campaign Examples
• How to Execute an Email Marketing Campaign

Let’s get started.

Email campaigns are an important part of inbound marketing, an ongoing process and philosophy coined by HubSpot where marketers meet buyers in whatever stage of the journey they’re in.

Inbound marketing acknowledges that not everyone is ready to buy from you at this exact moment. That’s why email is such an important channel.

Through email, you’re able to stay top-of-mind by providing communication to their personal inbox, and you can do it at scale with marketing automation software. It’s important that an email campaign’s recipients have opted in to receive this content and that each piece offers something valuable.

Effective Email Marketing Campaigns

An email marketing campaign is as effective as its ultimate goal. Here are some examples of different purposes your email campaign may set out to accomplish:

1. Traffic Generation Email Marketing Campaigns

One of the biggest benefits of email marketing? Getting click-throughs to pages on your website. Not only does this boost your referral traffic, but it also drives visitors who’ve already shown an interest in your business, making it more likely that they’ll act once they get to your site.

Overall, email is an effective promotion channel for the high-value content you create on your website. It can help you drive qualified traffic to your product pages, blog posts, and web pages, consequently boosting conversions.

2. Awareness Email Marketing Campaigns

Not everyone who opts into your email list is ready to make a purchasing decision. You can use email marketing to stay top of mind while providing the educational content that is most relevant to them.

Indeed, brand awareness email campaigns help you solve for your readers and also establish yourself as a leader in your industry. If subscribers hear more from you than they do from your competitors, they’re more likely to rely on you when they need more information on a topic — or when they need a certain product.

3. Lead Nurturing Email Marketing Campaigns

As you stay top of mind, you may also consider ways to identify the leads with the highest purchase intent and provide conversion-focused content that “nurtures” them toward a sale (or at least toward becoming sales-ready).

In these emails, you can be more up-front about wanting recipients to buy. You can include shopping-centric calls-to-action, such as “Shop now,” “Buy now,” and “Add to cart.” However, it’s essential for recipients to have shown strong purchase intent. Adding items to their cart or having a purchase history are both strong indicators.

(Tip: You can find out behavioral and purchasing data using your ecommerce tool, CRM, or CMS.)

If you target these emails to casual visitors or first-time subscribers, you may be rushing them and inadvertently discouraging them from buying from you.

4. Revenue Generation Email Marketing Campaigns

You can create email marketing campaigns for your existing customers to promote upsell and cross-sell opportunities. You can also create campaigns to capture a sales conversion from leads who are close to a purchasing decision.

One example might be creating “abandon cart” campaigns for recovering lost sales conversions; or, like in the example above, promoting a flash sale to get users to upgrade. These types of campaigns are best reserved for subscribers at the bottom of the conversion funnel. In other words, they have shown unquestionable purchase intent by either visiting a checkout page or booking a call with your sales team.

Effective email marketing campaigns need to be cleverly written to attract attention in busy inboxes, but the options are endless. Check out these 10 email marketing tips in 60 seconds:

Now that you know the most effective campaigns you can create, grab some inspiration from the masterful email marketing campaigns below.

Best Email Marketing Campaign Examples

If you’re reading this, you probably have an email address (or two, or three …). In fact, you’ve probably been sending and receiving emails for years, and you’ve definitely received some questionable deliveries in your inbox.

Whether they were unexpected, uninformative, or had a subject line tHaT wAs fOrmAtTeD liKe tHiS, we bet you didn’t hesitate to direct them towards the trash, right?

While email has managed to stand the test of time, many marketers have failed to update their strategies since its inception. So to ensure you’re sending modern emails that warrant some of your recipients’ precious time and attention, we’ve compiled a list of effective email examples to inspire your next campaign.

1. AutoTrader

Marketing Campaign: Email Preferences

Great companies are always evolving, and your customers expect to experience change. What they don’t expect (because too many companies haven’t lived up to this end of the bargain) is to be told about those changes.

That said, this email from AutoTrader serves as a refreshing change of pace. If you’re going to change the way you communicate with a lead or customer, give them clear, fair warning so, if they aren’t on board, they can make the necessary adjustments to keep their inbox clean.

Why It Works

It sets expectations for communication moving forward so that the buyer persona can choose what’s best for them. We also love the clear headline, clean design, and eye-catching call-to-action (“Stay subscribed”).

2. Netflix

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Engagement

More than half of US households subscribe to multiple streaming channels. With several platforms vying for our attention, brands like Netflix have gotten more targeted with its emails.

This email from Netflix provides a curated list of new shows the customer may be interested in based on their watch history. It’s skimmable with plenty of visuals supporting the new releases and provides a CTA that prompts you to watch the trailer. It aso uses Netflix’s familiar black-and-red design, so that the recipient feels like they’re scrolling through Netflix, demonstrating the importance of keeping branding consistent across all your messaging channels.

Why It Works

The CTAs in this email entice the user to stop what they’re doing and head over to Netflix to check out the new content. It also includes a “Top Picks for You” section that shows personalized recommendations for the user.

3. Lita Lewis Fitness

Marketing Campaign: Update

Have a new product or project in the works? It’s a good idea to let your subscribers know prior to the launch, especially if you’ve been away for a while.

Fitness expert and trainer Lita Lewis did just that in this email, where she reconnects with her subscribers and informs them about her upcoming app.

Why It Works

This email is personable and reads like you’re catching up with an old friend. Additionally, the “Join Now” CTA makes it easy for readers to sign up for the app and other updates.

4. Starbucks

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

Did you see that? Did you see it move? Pretty cool, right? This small bit of animation helps to separate this email from Starbucks from all of the immobile emails in its recipients’ inboxes. It also leverages exclusivity by framing the promotion as a benefit of having a Starbucks membership. Oftentimes, this type of positioning makes the recipient feel like they’re specially chosen, which encourages them to take advantage of the special opportunity they’ve been presented with.

At the bottom, the terms read, “This offer is exclusive to you and this Starbucks Rewards account and cannot be reproduced, transferred or used by anyone else.” What feels more exclusive than that? We love it.

Why It Works

Emails can get static, boring, and impersonal. This email subverts those expectations without going overboard. Its focus on exclusivity makes it an specially excellent addition to any inbox.

5. Venmo

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Re-Engagement Campaign

Venmo makes an effort to reengage lost users with this friendly, informational email. By highlighting their app’s most recent changes and benefits, the copy works to entice recipients to give the app another chance. It also discusses benefits that the recipient may not know about since the last time they used the service.

The email is brief, but packs enough information for the recipient to make an informed decision.

Why It Works

Small inclusions like the “Explore Venmo” CTA and the benefit-focused copy makes the content feel welcoming and less aggressive. We also love the branded imagery and engaging graphics.

6. Litmus

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

Here’s another great example of animation being used to create a more interesting email marketing design. Unlike static text, the swipe motion used to provide recipients with a look “under the hood” of their email tool is eye-catching and encourages you to take a deeper dive into the rest of the content. Not to mention the header does an excellent job of explicitly stating what this email is about.

Why It Works

The animation is subtle, and it’s executed in a way that serves to enhance the email’s body copy. Even better, it works well with the design of the email, creating a matching but contrasting focal point before the reader dives into the rest of the copy below.

7. Loft

Marketing Campaign: Email Preferences

This email from Loft aims to demonstrate their understanding of your crazy, mixed-value inbox. In an effort to provide you with emails that you actually want to open, Loft asks that their recipients update their preferences to help them deliver a more personalized experience. This customer-focused email is super effective in making the recipient feel like their likes, dislikes, and opinions actually matter.

Why It Works

It centers the recipient’s needs with the slogan “Happy Inbox, Happy Life.” Paired with a low-friction CTA, the copy is simple and effective.

8. UncommonGoods

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

You’ve heard it a million times (and a few thousand of those times may have been from us): You should create a sense of urgency with your calls-to-action. That’s what makes a lead take action, right? Well, this email from UncommonGoods succeeds in creating a sense of urgency by focusing on the value of acting now.

Why It Works

Instead of saying, “Order your holiday gifts NOW!”, this email says, “Now’s your chance to grab this year’s gifts before they’re gone for good.” Why, don’t mind if I do. Thank you for reminding me before it’s too late — I don’t want to be in the dog house because my gift arrived after the holidays.

9. DAVIDsTEA

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Customer Delight

Confession: We have a serious email marketing crush on DAVIDsTEA. And they continue to deliver their lovable marketing in this cheeky email campaign that aims to humorously reengage customers. Every element from the header, to the image of the chipmunks, to the friendly copy work together to create a campaign that’s promotional without being pushy.

It’s also highly personalized, containing information about the recipient’s first day as a customer, most frequent tea purchases, and personalized tea profile (spoiler: this recipient would be a super zen herbal tea). This email is just as delightful as drinking the real thing.

Why It Works

This copy is bursting with friendly personality and tea jokes. The email is relatable and reads as though it comes from a friend, which helps earn a positive reaction.

10. Harpoon Brewery

Marketing Campaign: Customer Delight

My friends at Harpoon are so thoughtful, aren’t they? This simple, timely email really does feel like it’s coming from a friend, which is why it’s so effective. In an age of email automation, it’s easy for email campaigns to feel a little robotic. And while I’m certain that this email was, in fact, automated, it feels really human.

If you’re looking to strengthen the relationship you have with your existing customers, consider taking the time to set up a quick email like this to let them know you’re thinking of them.

Why It Works

Personalization: From the timing of the email (birthday) to the personalized salutation, this email was sent to the right person at the right time. I also love the image of the team, making this email feel even more personable.

11. Buoy

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

“We need your help.”

That’s quite powerful, wouldn’t you agree? Buoy, a company that creates water infusion products, combines urgency and our psychological need to be part of something to create an email headline that jumps off the page. This positioning is designed to lead people to act on their altruistic values, align their philanthropic goals with the company’s mission, and take action in a way that benefits them, the company, and the community the company aims to serve.

Why It Works

At the end of the day, people want to be part of something that’s bigger than themselves, and this email aims to motivate them to do so by watching a documentary and taking further action.

12. J.Crew Factory

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

For many of us, when it comes to wrapping gifts, the struggle is real. J.Crew Factory recognized this problem and then created this email to serve as a solution for those incapable of pulling off a Pinterest-esque wrap job: gift cards. The email offers up two different ways to pick up a gift card — in store or online — in an effort to avoid excluding anyone.

They’ve also included a map of the nearest store location at the end of the email to lower the purchasing barrier even further.

Why It Works

It combines humor with a low-stress, low-friction solution. We also love the image of a shoddily-wrapped gift, signaling how much easier it is to buy a gift card — no wrapping required. Plus, the green color of the background emphasizes that gift cards are a more environmentally friendly option.

13. charity: water

Marketing Campaign: Engagement

When people talk about email marketing, lots of them forget to mention transactional emails. These are the automated emails you get in your inbox after taking a certain action on a website. This could be anything from filling out a form to purchasing a product to updating you on the progress of your order. Often, these are plain text emails that marketers set and forget.

Well, charity: water took an alternate route. Once someone donates to a charity: water project, her money takes a long journey. Most charities don’t tell you about that journey at all, but charity: water uses automated emails to show donors how their money is making an impact over time. With the project timeline and accompanying table, you don’t even really need to read the email — you know immediately where you are in the whole process so you can move onto other things in your inbox.

Why It Works

It keeps the audience engaged and shows the impact that their actions have made on the organization in the effort of staying top-of-mind and increasing future participation.

14. Uber

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Engagement

The beauty of Uber’s emails is in their simplicity. Email subscribers are alerted to deals and promotions with emails like this one. We love how brief the initial description is, paired with a very clear CTA — perfect for subscribers who are quickly skimming the email.

For the people who want to learn more, the header is followed by a more detailed (but still pleasingly simple) list of benefits about booking an airport ride in advance.

We also love how consistent the design of Uber’s emails is with its brand. Like its app, website, social media photos, and other parts of the visual branding, the emails are represented by its black-and-white palette and custom font.

Why It Works

All communications and marketing assets tell a brand’s story — and brand consistency is one tactic Uber has nailed in order to gain brand loyalty. This email demonstrates the usual Uber colors and imagery, while making the value proposition clear.

15. TheSkimm

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Customer Delight

We love TheSkimm’s daily newsletter — especially its clean design and its short, punchy paragraphs. But newsletters aren’t TheSkimm’s only strength when it comes to email.

This subscriber engagement email rewards one of its subscribers for being subscribed for several years. It includes the date the recipient signed up, the number of mornings spent together, and even the number of minutes the user has spent reading the newsletter. Talk about a high level of personalization!

Emails triggered by milestones, like anniversaries and birthdays, are fun to get — who doesn’t like to celebrate a special occasion? The beauty of anniversary emails, in particular, is that they don’t require subscribers to input any extra data, and they can work for a variety of senders. Plus, the timeframe can be modified based on the business model.

Why It Works

The folks at TheSkimm took it a step further by presenting an offer to the recipient: They can have the chance to earn $1,000 if they refer other people to TheSkimm. The call-to-action has arrows pointing to it so that there’s no chance of missing it.

16. Mom and Dad Money

Marketing Campaign: Questionnaire

Think you know all about the people who are reading your marketing emails? How much of what you “know” about them is based on assumptions? The strongest buyer personas are based on insights you gather from your actual readership, through surveys, interviews, and so on — in addition to market research.

That’s exactly what Matt Becker of Mom and Dad Money does — and he does it very, very well.

Here’s an example of an email I once received from this brand. Design-wise, it’s nothing special — but that’s the point. It reads just like an email from a friend or colleague asking for a quick favor.

Why It Works

Not only was this initial email great, but his response to my answers was even better: Within a few days of responding to the questionnaire, I received a long and detailed personal email from Matt thanking me for filling out the questionnaire and offering a ton of helpful advice and links to resources specifically catered to my answers. I was very impressed by his business acumen, communication skills, and obvious dedication to his readers.

17. Birchbox

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

The subject line of this email from beauty product subscription service Birchbox got my colleague Pam Vaughan clicking. It read: “We Forgot Something in Your February Box!” Of course, if you read the email copy below, Birchbox didn’t actually forget to put that discount code in her box — but it was certainly a clever way to get her attention.

As it turned out, the discount code was actually a bonus promo for Rent the Runway, a dress rental company that likely fits the interest profile of most Birchbox customers — which certainly didn’t disappoint. That’s a great co-marketing partnership right there.

Why It Works

It gained her attention and delivered some unexpected delight. We also love how frills-free it is — the message is mostly text, making it feel like an email one would receive from a friend.

18. Postmates

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

I have to say, I’m a sucker for GIFs. They’re easy to consume, they catch your eye, and they have an emotional impact — like the fun GIF in one of Postmates’ emails that’s not only delightful to watch, but also makes you crave some delicious Chipotle.

You, too, can use animated GIFs in your marketing to show a fun header, draw people’s eyes to a certain part of the email, or display your products and services in action.

Why It Works

It centers the product in a fun, attractive way. Not only that, but it effectively catches the eye of the recipient, differentiating the message from others in their inbox.

19. Dropbox

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Re-Engagement

You might think it’d be hard to love an email from a company whose product you haven’t been using. But Dropbox found a way to make its “Try out one of our products!” email professional, polite, and actionable, thanks to an impossible-to-miss call-to-action and immediate links to template libraries.

Plus, the email remains short and sweet, to emphasize the message that Dropox didn’t want to intrude — it just wants to remind the recipient that Dropbox Paper exists, and why it could be helpful. When sending these types of emails, you might include an incentive for recipients to try out one of your specific products, like a limited-time coupon or a free trial.

Why It Works

It uses a grid layout that’s simple and user-friendly to demonstrate their product as a diverse solution. In this email, the recipient gets a glimpse of what they’re missing by not using Dropbox Paper — templates and documents they could begin customizing immediately.

20. Inside Design by InVision

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Newsletter

Every week, the folks at InVision send a roundup of their best blog content, their favorite design links from the week, and a new opportunity to win a free t-shirt. (Seriously. They give away a new design every week.) They also sometimes have fun survey questions where they crowdsource for their blog. For example, one week, they asked subscribers what they would do if the internet didn’t exist.

Why It Works

Not only is InVision’s newsletter a great mix of content, but I also love the nice balance between images and text, making it really easy to read and mobile-friendly — which is especially important, because its newsletters are so long. We like the clever copy on the call-to-action buttons, too.

21. Mob Kitchen

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Newsletter

I’ve been a huge fan of Mob Kitchen’s “Weekly Mob” newsletter for a while. The company sends a yummy recipe to my inbox every week. But I didn’t just include it because of its delicious recipes — I’m truly a fan of its emails.

I especially love the layout of Mob Kitchen’s emails. Each message features three distinct sections: one for the ingredients, one for the instructions, and one for additional recipes. That means you don’t have to go hunting to find the most interesting part of its blog posts — you know exactly where to look after an email or two.

In addition, it contains an attractive image of the recipe and a quote from one of Mob Kitchen’s staff members. I also love the “Tell Us What You Think” CTA at the bottom of the email.

Why It Works

The eye-catching imagery and user-friendly design make Mob Kitchen’s newsletter a winner, but we especially love the prompt to provide feedback about the content itself. Sometimes, the most valuable source of information isn’t an A/B test, but your own pool of subscribers.

22. Cuisinart

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Email Preferences

“Pssst…we have a question for you.” That was the subject line of this automated unsubscribe email from Cuisinart. We love the simple, guilt-free messaging here, from the endearing egg images to the great CTA button copy.

Not only is the design and copy here top-notch, but we applaud the folks at Cuisinart for sending automated unsubscribe emails in the first place. It’s smart to purge your subscriber lists of folks who aren’t opening your email lists, because low open rates can seriously hurt email deliverability.

Why It Works

The button copy is a pattern interrupt that will prompt the recipient to pause and think about which action they want to take: Customize their preferences or completely unsubscribe. Giving your subscribers this choice creates a delightful experience for those who’d like to opt in and those who’d like to opt out.

23. Paperless Post

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

When you think of “holiday email marketing,” your mind might jump straight to Christmas, but there are other holidays sprinkled throughout the rest of the year that you can create campaigns around. (Download these email marketing planning templates to keep yourself organized throughout the year.)

Take this email from Paperless Post, for example. I love the header: “Stop and smell the rosé” (in honor of National Rosé Day). Then, the subheader prompts the recipient to use Paperless Post to invite friends and colleagues for a drink.

Below this copy, the simple grid design is both easy to scan and quite visually appealing. Each button is a CTA in and of itself — click on any one of them, and you’ll be taken to a purchase page.

Why It Works

It earns a positive sentiment by prompting the recipient to do something they may have forgotten: Inviting colleagues out to enjoy a drink on a holiday that’s not too often celebrated. This provides a solution and allows the recipient to build camaraderie with their coworkers.

24. Luminary

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Engagement

I love on-demand podcast app Luminary’s “Find Your New Favorite” emails. I tend to listen to episodes from the same podcast instead of branching out to new ones. But Luminary wants me to discover (and subscribe to) all the other awesome content it has — and I probably wouldn’t without this encouragement.

I think this email also makes quite a brilliant use of responsive design. The colors are bright, and it’s not too hard to scroll and click — notice how each podcast row is large enough for me to hit with my thumbs. Also, the mobile email has features that make sense for recipients who are on their mobile device. Check out the CTA at the bottom of the email, for example: The “Browse Originals” button prompts the app to open on your phone.

Why It Works

As humans, we tend to crave personalized experiences. So when emails appear to be created especially for you, you feel special — you’re not just getting what everyone else is getting. You might even feel like the company sending you the email knows you in some way, and that it cares about your preferences and making you happy.

25. RCN

Marketing Campaign: Update

Internet providers and bad weather are natural enemies. You’d think telecommunications companies wouldn’t want to call attention to storm-induced power outages — the one thing that sets off customers’ impatience. Then, there’s RCN.

RCN, a cable and wireless internet service, turned this email marketing campaign into a weather forecast just for its customers. This “storm update” got the company out ahead of an event that threatened its service, while allowing its users to get the weather updates they need right from their Wi-Fi provider.

As you can see below, the email even advises personal safety — a nice touch of care to go with the promise of responsive service. At the bottom of the email, RCN also took the opportunity to highlight its social media channels, which the company appropriately uses to keep users informed of network outages.

Why It Works

It simply offers an update. No promoting, no selling. The recipient’s best interests are in mind, and they’re setting expectations for something that they may imminently care about.

26. Athletic Greens

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Newsletter

I’m a huge advocate of thought leadership. To me, some of the best companies gain customer loyalty by becoming the go-to source for expertise on a given topic. Athletic Greens — a company that sells green juice in a powder form — is that expert in the health and nutrition biz. How do I know? Just read their emails.

“Take it from the expert…” That’s what the subject line of this email campaign reads before citing interesting answers about the benefits of the product. It answers any questions a potential customer may have about why Athletic Greens works — and whether it’s worth adding to one’s  routine. At the end, it includes a direct quote from Athletic Green’s nutritionist.

Why It Works

This email uses a professional’s expertise to sell the product, all while answering critical questions potential buyers may have before making a purchase.  

27. Her First $100K

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

This email marketing campaign crushes it, and for so many reasons.

While it is quite long, the list format works wonderfully in this email from financial education brand Her First $100K. First you’re drawn in with the testimonial at the top, then you’re presented with a list of reasons why you should join their Business Bootcamp — emphasizing the course is now 50% off.

Further down in the email, the details of the course are laid out, giving potential students a breakdown of what they can expect to learn. The language is friendly, succinct, and persuasive.

Why It Works

The email uses a friendly tone and a sense of urgency to entice customers to purchase the course. It harnesses the power of social proof to give an added layer of credibility.

28. Brooks Sports

Marketing Campaign: Engagement

When Desiree Linden won the Boston Marathon, she became the first American woman to win the race in more than 30 years. To her shoe and apparel sponsor, Brooks Sports, it was an opportunity to celebrate their long partnership together. The resulting email campaign focuses almost entirely on the Olympic marathoner’s amazing accomplishment.

Email campaigns like this one allow companies to demonstrate their loyalties and add value to the products their best users have chosen. Not pictured is a blue CTA button at the bottom of the email that reads, “See Desiree’s go-to gear.” What better products to call attention to than the stuff worn by one of America’s legends?

Why It Works

After Desiree’s victory, everyone knew her name. Brooks Sports struck while the iron was hot with a proud email that was sure to be opened and forwarded.

29. Etsy

Image Source

Marketing Campaign: Promotion

We love this email from Etsy. Not only is the design super eye-catching — without looking cluttered — but the home items are user-made. Etsy sells merchandise featuring designs from artists all over the world. This presents a golden opportunity to feature popular products across the Etsy community.

This example showcases creations by several Etsy shops. When those makers see Etsy featuring their content, they’ll be more likely to forward the email to friends and colleagues.

In addition to linking to different Etsy shops’ products, the email campaign includes a time-bound call-to-action (“Shop the final hours”) and multiple eye-catching discounts. For that reason, Etsy’s customers are likely to splurge — and open other emails in this campaign to find more ways to “Save on top faves.”

Why It Works

The email lets the items speak for themselves, showcasing them as art rather than products. We also love the cohesive aesthetic of the showcased Etsy shops.

30. Spotify

Image Source

Spotify is the king of personalization (Spotify Wrapped, anyone?), and this email is no exception. The subject line — “Olivia Rodrigo made you something special” — already entices clicks, because only fans of the artist received this email. The offer, which is to buy a cassette of the album, harkens to the nostalgic feelings highlighted by Olivia Rodrigo in her songs and by recent trends on TikTok and Instagram.

Why It Works

From the imagery to the call-to-action, this email is well-poised to generate purchases. We also love the color palette, which diverges from the Spotify branding only to highlight the colors from the album. That way, it feels like you’re receiving an email from Olivio Rodrigo’s team, not a third party.

These are just some of our favorite emails. Don’t just follow best practices when it comes to your marketing emails. Every email you send from your work email address also can be optimized to convert with a little planning.

Welcome to Breaking the Blueprint — a blog series that dives into the unique business challenges and opportunities of underrepresented business owners and entrepreneurs. Learn how they’ve grown or scaled their businesses, explored entrepreneurial ventures within their companies, or created side hustles, and how their stories can inspire and inform your own success.

Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities, originating from around 20 diverse countries, have a long history of exclusion, strict immigration laws, and discrimination. When immigrants, like my grandfather, from East and Southeast Asia made it into America in the 19th and 20th centuries, most of the available jobs were backbreaking labor.

When access to employment was slim, or wages were low, many newcomers relied on building small businesses to provide for their families. Those businesses have become deeply rooted in the day-to-day life of American society–restaurants, nail salons, doughnut shops, dry cleaners, spas, markets, and many others.

Still, obstacles have continued to exist. The National CAPACD analyzed federal and membership data on AAPI small businesses and noted gaps in access to funding, a recent rise in hate crimes, and language barriers. Despite these challenges, the U.S. Census Bureau has reported around 2 million AAPI-owned businesses across all industries, from entertainment, healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, real estate, tech, and more. Countless household names, like YouTube, DoorDash, Old Navy, Peloton, and Notion, were founded by Asian Americans.

Another roadblock that prevents entrepreneurs from growing successful companies is the need for more awareness of available resources. In this post, discover advice, organizations, and services that exist to meet the unique needs of AAPI business owners.

Learn From Successful AAPI Founders and Executives

Read books and articles or listen to podcasts, like this one featuring HubSpot’s CEO Yamini Rangan, to learn stories about how successful entrepreneurs have built and kept their enterprises afloat. They’ll have real-life lessons and perspectives to help you make the right decisions for your ventures.

I connected with a few AAPI founders whose companies have blossomed in the past couple of years. Here is some of their wisdom to encourage your success.

1. Don’t wait too long to start building your teams.

Sandro Roco, founder and CEO of Sanzo, says, “Don’t wait too long to start building the right team. Especially in a tight labor market, it takes time to find, recruit, hire, and onboard the right team members. And so if you wait too long, you’re actually behind. No brand or company that ever made it big did so with just the original founding team, and so it’s important to hire well.”

2. Fight for abundance.

Kim Pham, the co-founder of Omsom, says, “Fight for abundance. My sister and co-founder Vanessa and I fought deeply internalized scarcity from being daughters of Vietnamese refugees, and it pervades so much of our decision-making (especially in the early days) –– but to truly build the company of your dreams, you need to fight for that abundance and play to win. That means taking big swings and risks, but also choosing rest, joy, and celebration.”

3. Practice intention and mindfulness.

Lucia Tran, creative producer and founder of Her Studio, says, “Everything I do has to be more than just about creating photos and videos for companies. Otherwise, what are we doing but selling yet another product? There has to be intention and mindfulness in what we offer to the world – build equity in your company, care about the people you hire and the people you’re targeting, and work to bring joy to the world. I’m in the business of uplifting those who need a hand.”

4. Believe in yourself.

Steffi Lynn, illustrator, muralist, and founder of Have A Nice Day, says, “Believe in yourself, believe in what you’re doing, and keep going. Put yourself out there and be ready for anything that comes your way, because you never know what is available for you unless you try.”

Get Involved With Your National and Local Asian Chamber of Commerce

A Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit business network, not a government entity. Businesses, organizations, and individuals can become chamber members to advocate for economic development, job creation, community stability, and representation of their legislative agendas at local, state, and national levels.

In addition to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, there are local chambers across the country, including ones for minority communities. Becoming a member usually includes access to relationships with other businesses, discounts on services, a boost in visibility, and opportunities to have your voice heard.

Find the local Asian Chamber of Commerce in your city or state by searching the Chamber of Commerce Directory, and also check out the below organizations:

1. National Asian/Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship

(National ACE) is an organization that advocates for economic development and community building for the current and next generation of AAPI entrepreneurs. With relationships with Congress, the White House, and federal agencies, National ACE leads multiple initiatives that provide grants, training, events, and amplification of AAPI voices. You’ll read about a few of their programs in the following sections.

2. US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation

(USPAACC) is a nonprofit that serves as an educational and networking organization with a gateway to corporate and government contracts, suppliers, and Fortune 1000 companies. USPAACC’s programs include business matchmaking, leadership series, legislative advocacy, pitch competitions, conferences, and awards.

Grow Your Network and Sharpen Your Skills

The National CAPACD reported that AAPI business owners primarily rely on family and friends for advice and money.

Still, a critical step in business growth is broadening your network, accumulating more opportunities, and learning new skills. Attending events, signing up for workshops, and joining organizations can introduce you to people and resources that will make the entrepreneurial journey less lonely and mysterious. Here are some networks to consider:

• The National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development’s (National CAPACD) Small Business Program provides financial education, coaching, and peer technical assistance for AAPI entrepreneurs and small business owners to help them build credit and capital. The majority of the business owners the program serves are immigrants or refugees.
• ACE NextGen is a community of young AAPI entrepreneurs striving to have more leadership presence in America while feeling fulfilled and supported in their careers. Membership includes educational programming, conferences, retreats, and access to invite-only networking spaces in person and online. ACE NextGen members also have the opportunity to work with National ACE and Fortune 500 companies to impact business policies. 
• Gold House is best known for increasing the representation of API voices and faces in media and entertainment, but it also invests in Asian and Pacific Islander-founded companies. Its Futures Accelerator is a 12-week program with masterclasses, 1:1 advising, fund investments, fundraising support, and a community of start-up entrepreneurs. Gold House also hosts the Multicultural Leadership Coalition, a union of funds that helps place leaders from underrepresented communities on the Board of Directors and Advisory Boards of leading private companies.
• Asian Business Association educates its members on government policies on small businesses.It is active with several community organizations, public agencies, and corporations to represent the views of Asian American business owners. Members of the association are also encouraged to do business together, attend events, and recruit new talent by listing positions on ABA’s job board.
• The Asian American Pacific Islander Business Summit is a free virtual event hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Experts lead presentations, panels, and workshops across four tracks: Business Communication and Marketing, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Government Contract and Business Certification, and Small Business Financial Management and Investment Trends. In 2022, the summit will take place on November 13 and 14, with presentations in English and a few translation options.

Apply For Funding

Whether applying for grants and loans or securing funding from investors, having more capital will help speed up the process of acquiring the necessary components of running your business—for example, production, staff, and marketing.

• Gold House Ventures connects industry-changing entrepreneurs with investors to accelerate company growth.
• National ACE’s small business resource center provides virtual training on accessing capital, applying for grants, understanding government funding, marketing, and more. It also has a program called AAPISTRONG, which works with 100 of its affiliated Asian chambers of commerce to aid businesses negatively impacted by the pandemic, racial bias, and anti-AAPI hate.

Proudly Share Your Business and Be Easily Searchable

Some people are eager to support minority-owned businesses and often seek them out. Google launched the capability to add an “Asian-owned” attributeto business profiles, making it easy for customers to find businesses like yours using Google Maps and the search engine. When executing your traditional and digital marketing, feel free to affirm your AAPI roots.

There is space for your business to flourish, and an important step is seeking assistance from services and organizations created for that exact purpose. In time, these resources may help you build a strong business foundation for generations to come.

The creator economy is seeing a huge boom, and many marketers are looking for ways to use it in their campaigns. The most common way marketers leverage this new economy is by collaborating with creators to expand audience reach. But what should marketers look for when hiring creators?

In this article, the experts at HubSpot will explain what to look for when working with creators. The following information is perfect for marketers looking to collaborate with creators and creators trying to attract partnerships with brands.

5 Things to Look for When Hiring Creators

Here are five things businesses and brands look for when hiring content creators.

1. A Results-Driven Approach

“As a results-driven person, the first thing I care about is producing results, especially when working with creators,” said Brandon Huang, Partnerships Lead for the Creators Program. “I take a close look at all the quantitative metrics that I can regarding a creator: their reach, their engagement, how consistent they are with posting, and how consistent the results are on the content they create.”

Creators should regularly track their metrics to have concrete numbers to show potential brands and quantify their success. Some metrics creators should follow are:

• Traffic

• Conversions

• Impressions

• Click-through-rate (CTR)

• Engagement

Business owners should also be mindful of these metrics when scoping out creators to work with to get an accurate impression of whether the creator can help the brand achieve its goals.

“For example, with YouTube, you want to see consistency in views per video because it makes it easier to model out from a business perspective, and I, as a partner, have a better understanding of the results I’ll get from working with this creator over a longer span of time,” Huang said.

2. Great Work Ethic

“Work ethic is also important to me,” Huang told me. “Can I see the effort they are putting into creating content and marketing their content to reach new audiences?”

Huang said a creator’s work ethic could also be assessed by how they bring on the right resources or personnel to support their operations.

As he puts it, “The best creators understand how to delegate and create infrastructure around them, so they don’t have to do the marketing part if they don’t want to and truly focus solely on creating content.”

To ensure you’re hiring a strong content creator, you’ll want to ask creators about their processes. How do they juggle all the responsibilities of being a content creator? It’s critical that the content creators’ you speak with have a thoughtful response to that question.

3. Alignment

HubSpot’s Head of Creators Partnerships, Alanah Joseph, says audience alignment is essential when collaborating with any creator.

“When we reach out to a creator, we have a pretty good idea of the content they cover,” she said. “However, we’ll request additional data on their audience to better gauge how well our advertisement will resonate within the creator’s content.”

Joseph said creators could prove a collaboration will be effective by surveying their own audience or knowing their audience exceptionally well. Tip for creators: You can know your audience better by creating detailed buyer personas. You can also monitor audience feedback, comments, and engagement.

However, audience alignment isn’t the only factor to consider when hiring a creator..

“Culture and personality fit are also important factors to consider,” Huang said. “Since we are focused on building relationships, it’s not just about results … but also how easy it is to work with a creator.”

It’s essential to ensure the personalities, values, and ethics of both the brand and the creator align for a smooth collaboration because the goal is for that initial collaboration to become a beneficial long-term partnership for both parties.

“As a team player, I need to make sure that I’m bringing on creators that my colleagues will enjoy working with for 1-2+ years,” Huang said. “Even simple things like being responsive through communication, taking feedback well, and really reciprocating that they care about my goals just as much as their own goals — which I’m trying to help with — goes a long way. This is truly meant to be a partnership and not a singular transaction.”

Businesses should partner with content creators who approach the opportunity with a positive, cooperative, team-oriented attitude, and content creators should embody that attitude when working with brands.

“Good partners are good people,” Joseph said. “We genuinely enjoy working with and supporting creators. When a creator is friendly, willing to collaborate, and professional, we will find more opportunities to work with the creator or offer a long-term partnership.”

4. Unique Style

Content creators should bring their personal touch to any project because brands want a campaign to stand out and capture the audience’s attention.

“Editorial style and editing style are both important,” Huang said. “Do they align with HubSpot? There’s more flexibility here, but certainly, unique editing captures my attention, and incorporating humor is a really fun way to make educational/business content more exciting.”

5. Authenticity

Finally, authenticity is a critical component you’ll want to consider when hiring a creator.

As Joseph told me, “Authenticity is key. Authenticity builds trust, so when a creator brings their full selves to their content, their audience trusts them. This is important for a brand looking to run advertisements within the creator’s content. If the audience trusts the creator, they will be more likely to trust the creator’s recommendations.”

Whether you’re a brand looking for a creator or you’re a creator looking to partner with a business, hopefully these tips will help set you up for a successful business partnership in 2023 and beyond.

Sometimes, it’s not just what you post on TikTok but when you post.

If you’re looking to increase your presence on the app, or you’re leveraging it for the first time, it’s essential to know when your audience is active to get the most reach.

The HubSpot Blog surveyed 300+ marketers to uncover the best time to post on TikTok. Let’s take a closer look at the results.

Table of Contents

Best Days to Post on TikTok

Best Times to Post on TikTok

How to Find the Best Time to Post on TikTok For Your Business

Can you post too much on TikTok?

Best Days to Post on TikTok

The best days to post on TikTok are Saturday, Friday, and Sunday, in that order. The worst days are Monday and Tuesday.

Best Times to Post on TikTok

A quarter of marketers found the best time to post on TikTok is between 6-9 PM, followed by 3-6 PM and 12-3 PM.

Since TikTok is popular with the Gen Z crowd  — and they’re in school during the day — the morning and early afternoon “dead zone” makes sense.

So, if your audience skews younger, stay clear of these slow hours, and try posting later in the day.

How to Find the Best Time to Post on TikTok for Your Business

Our research pinpointed the best times and days to post on TikTok. However, this may be different for your audience depending on their location and activity. 

To get a better picture of when your audience is most active, try the following strategies: 

1. Check your audience analytics.

You can access a wealth of data about your audience and their behavior — including when they’re most active — under the Analytics tab.

To get there, you’ll need to log into your TikTok for Business account. Then, follow these steps:

1. Select the hamburger menu on the top right-hand corner of your profile page.

2. In the Settings and privacy menu, select Creator tools, then Analytics (as shown in the image below). If you haven’t yet enabled analytics, you’ll be prompted to turn it on.

Image Source

3. Then, you’ll see a dashboard with an overview of different metrics. To get more insights into your audience, select the Followers tab. From here, you should see your audience metrics, as shown in the image below.

Image Source

You’ll be able to see where your audiences are located and when they’re most active. Take note of this information, compare it to the data we found, and select a time frame that aligns with your audience’s presence.

2. Check your top performing TikToks.

One of the easiest ways to find an optimal posting time is by checking what has worked in the past.

Take a look at your TikToks that have performed above average. Were they posted later in the week? At the beginning? Did they gain traction during the morning, afternoon, or evening?

Use these insights to inform your posting schedule going forward. 

3. Don’t be afraid to experiment.

It’s important to note that testing different posting schedules is always worthwhile to figure out what works best.

For example, our data shows that 6-9 PM is the best posting window — and lets suppose your in-app analytics show your audience is most active on Fridays. You can run your own experiment where you post at different times on Fridays to see what generates the most engagement.

Can you post too much on TikTok?

Most marketers post on TikTok 4-6 times per week. However, as with many social media sites, it is possible to post too much and oversaturate your audiences.

It’s best to test out different options and come up with a strategy that aligns with your goals so that when you do post, you’re sharing content your audiences want to see and when they’re most likely to see it.

The average marketer spends almost a third of their time completing repetitive tasks. Marketers already have enough responsibilities — and can’t afford time mismanagement on busy work.

Marketers should spend their time driving company growth and visibility, — and in this post, we’ll give you our best tips and tools to help you minimize your time doing busy work and center your real priorities.

Busy work prevents marketers from focusing on the more important or urgent tasks like working on the next big campaign, strategizing, or content creation. Luckily, we know ways to cut down busy work so marketers can get back to productive projects.

Tips for Reducing Busy Work

1. Determine how you’ll prioritize your workload.

Chances are you have more than one type of deliverable if you’re a marketer. Take the time to analyze and prioritize which parts of your job duties are most important to least as a general framework.

Focus on the most critical or time-bound tasks first, making the busy work seem less tedious when you get to it and giving you designated time to address it.

Pro Tip: Avoid the myth of multitasking. Otherwise, you risk jumping from project to project without finishing notable work, thus extending the time spent on busy work.

2. Create a routine with daily to-do lists.

Making a to-do list is easy, but adhering to one is not. Marketers should carve out time at the beginning of their week to delegate daily tasks. It can promote better time management — something that often gets away from us when consumed by busy work.

You can also easily use many work management tools to create complex to-do lists. For example, one of my favorite tools is Asana.

Whether you prefer a list view or shuffling a digital dashboard, this tool can help marketers stuck on uncompleted busy work to cross them off and stay on track.

Pro Tip: Make your to-do lists actionable. Start your task titles with action words like “Design,” “Create,” or “Submit” to give you an at-a-glance insight into what’s on your plate.

3. Add focus time to reach goals on your calendar.

The average employee spends 28% of their time dealing with unwanted interruptions. Combine that with boring busy work, and your day might seem less promising.

We know you can’t avoid all interruptions all the time, but you can schedule blocks of time for uninterrupted work on your daily projects. For example, if you block out two-hour chunks on your calendar a day where you can work without interruptions, you’ll give yourself a chance to get meaningful work done. And to avoid falling back into busy work during those time frames, including the type of work delegated in the calendar description.

Online meeting scheduler tools also share this functionality, and HubSpot’s Meeting Tool can be an excellent place to start.

Pro Tip: Be reasonable with the time you allocate yourself. You still want team members or other stakeholders to be able to reach you when necessary.

4. Automate manual processes.

According to the Zapier How We Work Report, 74% of workers say they’d prefer to stay in their current position than pursue a new opportunity. That number increases to 90% for those who started using automation in the last 18 months.

Busy work is typically related to outdated systems or processes that could use marketing automation. These tools help you manage and triage marketing tasks without the time needed manually.

A tool that can help marketers to automate work processes is the HubSpot Marketing Automation functionality.

It’s a master tool that can help marketers set up email list autoresponders or build an innovative and complex network of rules designed to target specific users with the correct email, live chat, website experience, and more.

5. Learn when to ask your team for help.

When things get overwhelming, and you have more busy work than you can handle, there’s no shame in turning to your team for a lending hand. Asking for help can foster a collaborative work environment between coworkers and minimize the intimidation of taking on all the responsibility on your own.

Pro Tip: Be mindful of your coworker’s workload when you ask for help. You don’t want to come off as irresponsible to your leadership. And if you are having cyclical issues keeping up with busy work, then it may be in your best interest to talk with your manager about a reduced cadence.

Spend More of Your Day Marketing, Without All the Fuss

While marketers can’t get rid of all the data, reporting, and busy work from the job, we can change how we approach it. We hope you apply our tips to your routine to get you back on track and less overwhelmed with busy work.

This past year we’ve seen the effects of the pandemic in labor shortages, the Great Resignation, and signs of another recession — now’s the time to rethink recruitment and hiring strategy for 2023.

While we can’t predict the future, we can identify and interpret the biggest hiring trends we’ve seen emerging at the tail end of 2022. In this post, we’ll go through the most talked about topics that can improve your hiring strategy and get your business off to a great start.

Recruitment Strategy Trends

1. Economic uncertainties will affect hiring.

As a possible recession looms and inflation rises, candidates and employers can expect economic uncertainties to impact their ability to find work and hire in the coming year. Many industries are experiencing budget cuts amidst slowed economic growth and inflated pricing — and across all teams, especially hiring, have to rethink their approaches for 2023.

2. Candidates are looking for more competitive compensation.

Candidates are entering the new year expecting salaries that can sustain them as best as possible amidst inflation concerns. Recruiters should expect to negotiate between candidates with more than one offer on the table and provide offers that reflect their level of experience, education, and mindset.

3. Gen Z will be joining the workforce.

According to Forbes, Gen Z will make up 27% of the global workforce by 2025. The new wave of employees will come with a different set of workplace expectations and priorities than the generations before.

4. Employer branding will be more people-oriented.

Your brand identity is how candidates will perceive you at first glance. They’ll look at your company values and goals when they visit your website or landing page. Suppose your brand lacks an ethical or people-oriented motivator. In that case, it won’t appeal to the newer wave of job seekers — especially those driven by social responsibility.

5. More streamlined interview processes will be necessary.

54% of Gen Zers won’t complete an online job application if the hiring process is too long, antiquated, or complicated. Prioritizing a straightforward interview process, with proper communication through each step, will help recruiters reach talent while they’re still engaged.

6. Remote and hybrid work isn’t going away — it’s getting more popular.

The push for workplace flexibility will only become more popular in the new year. In 2022, there was a lot of controversy on whether in-office work was more productive, but on average, remote work productivity was higher than those in-person. Hiring managers should keep hybrid work or work-from-home as an option to attract top talent with varying priorities.

7. Incorporation of social media for recruitment.

Social media is a powerful hiring channel, and it works both ways. Candidates can digitally showcase their talents in more ways than job boards, while recruiters can post information about newly published jobs and opportunities in relevant online communities.

Candidates can learn about opportunities in more spaces and showcase their work experience for visibility. At the same time, recruiters can share job listings in online communities centered around their target demographic.

8. Data-centric recruitment is a priority.

When posting job listings, you want to use technology that targets suitable candidates with the skills and previous experience that your business needs without the manual hours to sift through each application. Resume screening that runs verifiable and accurate historical data can be a major tool to invest in to improve the quality of hire.

9. Businesses are increasing the use of AI and HR automation tools.

Hiring managers are looking to optimize their time better when scouting candidates. In fact, 67% of HR professionals believe that AI has many benefits and a positive impact on the recruitment process.

Streamlining your recruitment and interviewing process can reduce the time and labor needed to identify your top candidates and help them secure a job smoothly. Automatic resume vetting can reduce the time to hire.

10. Hiring for soft skills is on the rise.

Soft skills are quickly rising in importance to companies across the globe. The pandemic brought about a skills deficit and decreased the amount of business done in person. While this may not have hindered their ability to learn hard skills, candidates proficient in soft skills are becoming more scarce.

The top soft skills to look for in the foreseeable future are:

• Collaboration
• Problem-solving
• Communication

Employee Retention Trends

11. Talent pools are more relevant.

Today’s labor market is experiencing a skills deficit, and talent pools offer companies an effective way to address their labor needs. Offering current vacancies to pre-existing talent pools like intern alums or agency workers encourages talent retention and increases company loyalty.

12. Upskilling will lead to internal recruitment more often.

Companies should be trying to train up their employees for leadership positions. Not only is it more cost-effective than hiring externally, but you’ll reduce employee turnover by offering upward mobility. Candidates well-versed in your product, systems, and processes may already be sitting on ideas to innovate and improve your business.

13. More companies will look into rehiring former employees over new ones.

Remember to consider the benefit of a boomerang employee. Throughout the “Great Resignation,” one in four employees regret their decision to leave their company amidst quarantine. As businesses try to fill in pre-existing or new roles into the new year, make it a priority to reach out to former employees.

Diversity and Inclusion Trends

14. More emphasis on inclusive language.

Candidates want to apply to companies with clear values that will make them feel safe to be themselves. After all, you can only do your best work if you come as you are. Hiring teams will have to be more attentive in hiring automation tools and during interviewing to be respectful of more diverse pools of applicants.

While it may seem like a small detail, it could be a barrier that stops top talent from considering a position.

15. Salary transparency is becoming more critical.

Some states, like California or Colorado, have laws requiring employers to provide salary ranges in job listings. This is a massive shift from the typical guessing game that candidates play as they’re well into interviewing. Candidates don’t have time to start interviewing for multiple businesses only to be presented with an offer that isn’t near their expectations.

In addition, salary transparency also leads to more diverse candidates and more equitable pay for women, people of color, and other historically underpaid groups to gain fair wages.

What do hiring trends mean to your business?

Despite the uncertainty of 2022, hiring managers can adapt their strategies to find candidates to help your business succeed. We hope this post helps you boost your talent search and build the employee pool you need for the new year.

We all know “good boss energy” when we see it.

Maybe it’s the boss who begins each 1:1 by checking-in with you and ensuring you don’t feel too overwhelmed or stressed.

Or, perhaps it’s the boss who goes out of her way to find new growth opportunities for you, and is always your biggest champion.

If you’re a leader, it’s critical you demonstrate qualities related to good boss energy. But those qualities can be difficult to pin down — which is why I spoke with nine HubSpot leaders who were nominated by their direct reports as leaders with good boss energy.

Here, we’ll dive into how those leaders believe they foster good boss energy in their roles — and how you can, too.

Act Like a Leader, Think Like a Leader: Data from 500+ Marketing Executives on How to Get Ahead in 2023

What is “Good Boss Energy”?

Before we dive into HubSpot leaders’ tips for embodying good boss energy … Let’s cover what it is.

The term was started by HubSpot’s Social team as an opportunity to introduce positivity when it comes to discussing corporate culture on social media.

Leslie Green, HubSpot’s Managing Editor of Brand Social, told me, “#CorporateTok is the internet’s favorite work vent venue. But to grow better, you have to do things differently. When we entered TikTok, we saw a huge opportunity to flip the script on corporate negativity and celebrate all things ‘good work’ and ‘good leadership’ by introducing ‘Good Boss Energy.'”

She continues, “Good Boss Energy is our Culture Code in action. HubSpot’s culture is driven by a shared passion for our mission and metrics. It is a culture of amazing, growth-minded people whose values include using good judgement and solving for the customer. Good Boss Energy highlights the importance of authenticity in leadership and having HEART (being Humble, Empathetic, Adaptable, Remarkable, and Transparent.)”

To launch the campaign, HubSpot’s Social team leveraged creators of all sizes — including TikTok superstars Rod and Natalie — to fill the For You Page with inspiring and educational #GoodBossEnergy videos.

As Green puts it, “By creating our very own Good Boss Energy ambassadors, we filled #CorporateTok with much-needed positivity, established HubSpot as our audience’s growth soulmate, and demonstrated how growing better can start with you. The water cooler really is half full when you have Good Boss Energy around!”

Next, let’s dive into how you can display Good Boss Energy — including both authenticity and HEART — in the workplace.

How to Give Off Good Boss Energy, According to 9 HubSpot Leaders

1. Having good boss energy means having good people energy.

Resa Gooding, a Principal Manager on the Customer Success team, told me that she started off her week with two of her direct reports resigning.

Admittedly, this made her question whether she was, in fact, giving off “good boss energy”. If she was, why would those employees leave?

“I was tempted to berate myself and ask, ‘What did I do wrong? Why are they leaving me? Was I such a bad manager?'” Gooding told me.

However, she realized her direct reports weren’t leaving her … They were leaving their jobs. As she puts it, “Sometimes, circumstances happen and life has a different calling for you. And it’s okay to answer that call. That is growth and progress — learning to move out of your comfort zone and get uncomfortable again.”

She adds, “Both individuals were very smart and good at what they did, and I believe my role was to help them work on other aspects of themselves that would empower them to become risk-takers.”

Good boss energy means helping your employees learn and grow. It’s vital as a leader you look for ways to develop each employee’s strengths — and if, in the end, those strengths take them in new career directions, that’s okay, too.

Gooding says, “In the end I consider my ‘good boss energy’ to be really a translation of ‘good PEOPLE energy’. We need to remember that whether you are a boss or individual contributor, our purpose should be to leave everyone we come into contact with better off than when we met them.”

2. Having good boss energy requires you to listen well.

Kyle Denhoff, Director of Marketing for HubSpot’s Media team, believes that being a great listener helps him give off good boss energy.

He told me, “I pride myself on this. My mother is a clinical social worker and she taught me how to listen to people and truly understand how they see the world. While many leaders have skills and experience to direct the team, the best leaders listen first.”

He adds, “You’ll want to meet with team members 1:1 and ask thoughtful questions. Get to know them as a person, and try to understand their pain points and motivations. Be an active listener and ask follow-up questions. You’ll also want to help your team members see the wider context by connecting the dots for them — It will help them understand how they contribute to the larger goal. Once you have this skill, you will notice that your team members trust you more.”

Listening is ultimately a vital skill for building any good workplace relationship. We’ve all been in situations where we’ve felt our managers aren’t truly listening, and it can come across like they don’t care about our progress, our challenges, or even us as people.

Irina Rosenblit, Senior Director of Partner Success, agrees that listening well is a major component of good boss energy. As she puts it, “Being a good boss is hard. It requires a lot of intentionality in the way you approach problems, team members, and communication. For example, to help a team member truly feel heard you need to listen without interrupting and then repeat back what you understood to make sure you’re on the same page.”

Rosenblit adds, “I also find it valuable to be vulnerable and acknowledge what body language you’re observing or if you’re picking up on things not being said as a way of opening the door for team members to be more open with their reservations.”

Practicing active listening takes time, but it’s easier if you limit distractions during 1:1s. Close all tabs on your screen besides Zoom, and take handwritten notes if it helps you concentrate on your direct reports, rather than the emails in your inbox or the other tasks on your to-do list.

3. To have good boss energy, show empathy.

Customer Onboarding Specialist Manager Rory Kelly believes that having good boss energy is actually very simple … As long as you demonstrate empathy.

As he puts it, “We’re naturally social and empathetic creatures and that must translate to the workplace … it’s probably one of the most important environments to actually ‘be human’, considering we spend most of our lives in this space and with other people.”

He continues, “As a leader, I try to just be human — which means meeting people where they are, considering an issue from their perspective, taking a genuine interest in them, and understanding their ambitions, goals, and even what causes them anxiety or stress. Empathy is something you can’t fake. If you want to give off good boss energy, you need to look in the mirror every morning and ask yourself, ‘Do I care about my team because I have to, or because I want to?’ The correct answer is because you want to — with that mindset, you can build truly outstanding teams.”

Empathy is a vital component of leadership success — in fact, a recent survey found that 80% of CEOs believe empathy is a key driver of success, as it builds trust, prevents a toxic workplace, and helps increase employee retention and engagement.

Katie Walsh, HubSpot’s Sales Director, agrees that empathy is critical. She says, “You need to step outside of the numbers and the data and remember it’s all about your people. If you genuinely care about your people, they feel it and appreciate it. Then, as a leader, you can lean into that emotion to ignite a fire within your people to help them achieve what they once thought was impossible.”

It’s a misconception that strong leaders shouldn’t be too compassionate towards their employees for fear of being seen as ‘weak’. Instead, empathy and compassion can help your team members feel valued, which is vital for ensuring they perform to the best of their abilities.

4. Being a good boss requires you — sometimes — to entertain the possibility that you might not be one.

Humility is a core principle of good leadership. Humility leads to a more authentic leadership style, which can help your direct reports connect with you and trust you more.

Principal Manager, Mid-Market Sales, Raleigh Dugal told me, “Being a good boss probably starts with entertaining the possibility that you might not be one. I’m leading a relatively large number of direct reports at any given time who are all going through their own individual stressors and celebrations, trials, successes, failures, and the appropriate (or not so appropriate) emotions that accompany them.”

He continues, “Trying to be mindful of where people are coming from during any given engagement is crucial — maybe they had a tough day and aren’t ready to hear any feedback today, maybe they really need to just vent about stuff not even related to work. Or maybe they need a deep dive on a problem they’ve been trying to solve for weeks and you need to sideline less urgent items.”

To demonstrate humility as a leader, you might:

• Ask for help from your peers
• Admit your mistakes or when you don’t know the answer to something
• Encourage new ideas and alternative perspectives from your team
• Show your enthusiasm and support for each team member
• Take accountability when issues arise

Dugal adds, “If you operate under the assumption that you won’t always, or even often, get everything right, that’s going to support a professional environment built on trust that gets as much as possible right, as often as possible.”

Additionally, being a good leader means fostering your employees’ growth and helping them scale-up on their strengths.

Dugal says, “The biggest yardstick I measure myself against is how my direct reports are developing. Are they overcoming obstacles, taking on new challenges, and growing in places that are going to help them reach achievements that motivate them on a weekly, monthly, and yearly basis. How am I keeping those lines on my deliverables to the organization at large? If all of that is reconciled, everything falls into place for everyone.”

5. To demonstrate good boss energy, test out strategies that help them feel challenged and empowered, like “voluntelling”.

Holly Park, Principal Manager of Customer Onboarding, told me, “Of all the strategies I employ as a manager to release this potential, the one that comes up most often from former team members is my ability to ‘voluntell’ them for special assignments. Apparently, I have a way of volunteering my team members for a stretch project that feels both empowering and challenging. It is in that discomfort that my team members grow.”

She continues, “How do I go about matching team member potential to opportunity? I keep a very short list of skills and ambitions of my direct reports and even their direct reports. That way, when I hear of an opportunity, I can do the matching in my head. The key to this is to match someone to something that is novel but still leans into their skillset. Then, when you hand it to them, express your confidence in their abilities and why this is an opportunity for them. After that, continue to offer support. As one mentor told me ‘get good at delegating and not abdicating responsibility’.”

In other words: Looking out for new opportunities for your employees to grow isn’t the same as handing them tasks from your to-do list that you don’t want to do. It’s about being thoughtful and intentional about identifying their areas for improvement, and then finding projects that help them flex that muscle.

6. To exude good boss energy, be authentic.

Paul Weston, Senior Director of Product for HubSpot’s Service Hub, believes that authenticity is the key to being a good leader.

He says, “Don’t we all have imposter syndrome from time-to-time? I’m at my best when I’m just being myself, not overthinking or ‘acting’ like a leader. In that sense, authenticity is key. I think that people appreciate that realness, positivity, and reliability. Over time, this leads to trust and psychological safety as relationships grow.”

Weston adds, “My team knows that I’m always available to work through hard problems together, and willing to get my hands dirty. Even when work gets busy, I make room for async catch ups, quick Zoom calls, or a whiteboard session. This also helps me to stay plugged in and shows through actions how important the work actually is. The truth is that building great relationships takes time and a lot of behind-the-scenes hard work. Throughout it all, it’s important to lead with humility, clear expectations, and positive ‘we’ve got this’ energy.”

7. To give off good boss energy, be direct.

Kyle Denhoff told me that one of the most important components of a strong leader is someone who can be direct with his or her team.

He told me, “Whether it is positive or constructive feedback, it’s always best to be direct. Give people feedback in the moment. Help them understand the ‘why’ behind the feedback. If you would like to see a change in behavior or output, coach them by setting clear expectations.”

He adds, “Everyone wants to succeed and they appreciate when you help them move forward. I personally like to coach people by showing them ‘what good looks like’ — provide them with an industry example or show them something you have done in the past. Side-by-side is best.”

Being direct and offering constructive feedback can feel challenging, but it’s one of the most important traits of a strong leader and will ultimately help your team members continue to feel engaged and challenged in the workplace.

8. To give off good boss energy, check-in with your team’s well-being.

At the beginning of each 1:1, my manager starts with, “So, how are you feeling this week?”

I love this question. My answer — whether it be stressed, productive, overwhelmed, or excited — can help inform my manager on what I need from her, and can give some context on how best to coach me.

Similarly, Alanah Joseph, HubSpot’s Head of Creator Partnerships, believes it’s vital to allow her direct reports to make mistakes and be human, and she sees it as her responsibility to give them (and herself) plenty of grace.

As she puts it, “Being a ‘good boss’ has never been my goal. Instead, it results from a lot of self-work and my daily practice of giving myself grace. In battling my own perfectionism, I’ve heightened my self-awareness around my own humanness. I am allowed to my mistakes. Bad days are never ideal, but everyone has them. Learning curves are exciting because you’re developing new skills, but inevitably you will fail along the way.”

She adds, “The best thing I can do for my team is to be transparent and afford them the grace that I give to myself. My gut feeling is that if you ask your team to do their best, but provide a safe environment for people to be human, you will end up with a high-performing team. So far it’s worked for me.”

For Joseph, this includes starting each of her weekly team meetings with “Red light, green light,” as a wellness check. Green light means you’re doing great, feeling motivated, and ready to tackle the week. Yellow light means you’re close to bandwidth or you need additional support. Red light means for whatever reason (no need to disclose), you can’t do your full workload that week.

Joseph says, “When a team member calls a red light, the rest of the team splits up their work. We very rarely have red lights, but it’s important to me that I afford my team the opportunity to be transparent and authentic. We’re just human.”

What “Good Boss Energy” Means to HubSpotters

When I was collecting submissions on which HubSpot leaders’ exemplify “good boss energy”, I also got some fantastic responses from HubSpotters on why their manager had good boss energy.

For instance, Megan Scott, a Mid-Market Growth Specialist, recommended her manager Raleigh Dugal because, as she puts it, “There was one point when I felt like I was being high maintenance on his already packed calendar. He reminded me that out of all his responsibilities, helping me succeed was his top priority.”

Similarly, Principal Customer Onboarding Specialist, Bridget Donelson, says:

“Amanda Volk is my manager and she is amazing! She has super good boss energy. Examples of her awesome boss energy:

• Always being available for me to ask a question and NEVER dropping the ball.
• Commenting back to me on a Sunday night when I say I will be late to start on Monday.
• Having my back 100% and bolstering my confidence when I am experiencing imposter syndrome.
• Being able to be myself with her and bring all of my energy!
• Doing a psych safety check in weekly and increasing her 1:1s with me when I was having a rough time.
• Always asking about my kids and husband (caring about me as a person)
• Offering constructive feedback and helping me create a plan for growth and development in my role mastery.  Plus, being able to admit to my weaker areas without worries of negative repercussions!
• celebrating my achievements with me and posting recognition in our team channel.”

Ultimately, giving off good boss energy takes time, effort, and intentionality to do effectively, but it pays off by inspiring your team to take bigger risks, encouraging them to be more engaged and excited about the work at-hand, and letting them know they can feel comfortable being honest with you when mistakes arise.