The Library of Minds HubSpot Co-Founder Brian Halligan: How Culture Scales Faster Than Code and Built a $20B Company
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Nov 14, 2025 
Brian Halligan, co-founder of HubSpot and pioneer of inbound marketing, shares insights on building a $20B company rooted in company culture and customer value. He discusses the impact of AI on marketing, strategies for reducing churn, and the importance of a strong community in scaling a brand. Brian also reveals how lessons from the Grateful Dead shaped HubSpot's approach to customer engagement and emphasizes the significance of leadership in category creation. Tune in for an engaging exploration of innovation and culture!
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Build The Category By Being The Case Study
- HubSpot proved inbound by being its own best case study and watching peers succeed with the same approach.
- That real-world evidence gave founders conviction to evangelize the category aggressively.
Create An Enemy And Evangelize Relentlessly
- Create a clear enemy to define your category and use brute force evangelism through content, events, and books.
- Invest heavily in writing, speaking, and conferences to force adoption of the new category name.
Failed Category Experiments After Inbound
- HubSpot tried to create multiple categories after inbound and mostly failed despite using the same playbook.
- Brian concedes they 'caught lightning in a bottle' once and couldn't reliably repeat that success.
