When I interviewed email deliverability guy* Al Iverson, he told me that one problem with “Hey {First Name}” is “garbage in, garbage out.” I could sign up for a newsletter using my cat’s name, and I'd start hearing from sales reps who want to demo their product to Teddy Crumpets**. 

HubSpot’s VP of product marketing has a good workaround for this — and it involves making your content personal, not just personalized.

* not his actual title

** his actual name

|   Inside Scoop

The end of “Hey {First_Name}” — say hello to AI personalization strategies that convert  👋

by Rachel Leist

Remember the last time you got an email that started with “Hey {First_Name}” and immediately felt like deleting it? That visceral reaction isn't just about poor execution — it signals a fundamental shift in buyer expectations.

HubSpot research shows that 78% of customers expect more personalization in business interactions than ever before. Yet only 47% of business leaders say their customer service experiences are highly personalized.

You can no longer rely on old-school personalization tactics like adding basic customer details to a holiday card or making a generic comment like “I love what your company is doing” in your outreach.

Buyers want to feel like their favorite brand understands their underlying needs and motivations. And they’re doing business with those who prioritize deep connection. You know that “How did they know?” moment when you’re browsing Netflix and the algorithm picks your next binge-watch for you — and actually gets it right?

That’s the new personalization standard that buyers are holding your brand to. Your content should feel personal, not personalized.

|   What We're Reading

📈  The industry trends that every marketer should know: How B2B and B2C brands are using AI for content creation  

🗣️  Hey marketers! Consumer behaviors are shifting. Are you ready?  

✍🏻  HubSpot Media VP Jonathan Hunt on why your AI-generated content sounds like everybody else’s — and how to fix it  

|   Lingering Questions

Astute readers may have noted that we omitted Lingering Questions from Monday’s email. Our bad! Here’s the latest installation of our ongoing marketer-to-marketer Q&A series: 

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION

What's a creative hot take that will make a marketer second guess how they work with creatives? —Brandon Smithwrick, Founder, Content to Commas

THIS WEEK'S ANSWER

Alicia Mickes, Senior creative director, Magic: The Gathering: In my experience, the business side (i.e., product strategists, sales and marketing managers) bring in creative too late...often treating them as the shiny gift wrap around the product strategy — but in reality, the creative is the product strategy.

If you involve us only at the end, you’re not getting design, you’re just getting decoration. Every time you hand us a baked plan and ask us to “make it pop,” you’ve already cut the legs out from under what could have been a more powerful marketing campaign. 

Let creatives lead earlier! I always encourage working in groups: Have early holistic campaign development conversations with key stakeholders from media, strategy, product, and creative. The future of marketing is all about experiences where creative execution is indistinguishable from brand strategy. If you still think of creative as just “making things look good,” you’re never going to create an authentic experience for your consumer.

NEXT WEEK'S LINGERING QUESTION

Mickes asks: As marketing shifts from communication and storytelling to creating authentic cultural experiences, how are you or your company rethinking the role of creative?

This week's email was brought to you by Laura M. Browning. Story by Rachel Leist.

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