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Ep 430

55% of buyers of a $10 playbook became paying users for Beehive, driving massive business value.

Kipp and Tyler Denk (Co-Founder and CEO of beehiiv) dive into how founder-led content, owned audiences, and strategic digital products can supercharge growth—even without massive scale. Learn more on the power of email as a direct, owned channel, building trust and community through transparency, and why even niche, high-intent audiences can unlock serious monetization and brand loyalty in the creator economy.

Mentions

• Tyler Denk https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-denk

• beehiiv https://www.beehiiv.com/

• Morning Brew https://morningbrewinc.com/

• Business Insider https://www.businessinsider.com/

• Cloudflare https://www.cloudflare.com/

• David Senra https://www.davidsenra.com/

• Loop: Outlearn. Outmarket. Outgrow. https://a.co/d/03y0GZHi

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Resource

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Free Guide to Build Your Personal AI Wiki: https://clickhubspot.com/fcmt

Ep. 425

You can create a second brain in 15 minutes and for free.

Kipp and Matt Wolfe (Future Tools) dive into how to build your own "second brain" using tools like Obsidian and Codex, so you can finally make use of all the information you’re gathering. Learn more on setting up a personal wiki to organize your knowledge, harnessing AI-powered agents to automate and interlink content, and turning your information hoarding into proactive recommendations and smarter business decisions.

Mentions

• Matt Wolfe https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-wolfe-30841712/

• Future Tools https://futuretools.io/

• Obsidian https://obsidian.md/

• Obsidian Web Clipper https://obsidian.md/clipper

• Codex https://openai.com/codex/

• Claude Code https://code.claude.com/docs/en/overview

• Cursor https://cursor.com/

• Andrej Karpathy https://karpathy.ai/

• Visual Studio Code https://code.visualstudio.com/

• Notion https://www.notion.com/

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Audit your AI Search Visibility with our free resource: https://clickhubspot.com/orjh

Ep. 428

93% of searches in Google’s new AI mode end without a single click—are your SEO dashboards lying to you?

Kipp dives into Google’s biggest search overhaul in 25 years and what it means for marketers and businesses. Learn more on why keyword ranking is dead, how AI-driven search is changing consumer behavior, and the three strategies you need to shift your marketing for the new era of AI-powered search.

Mentions

• Logan Kilpatrick https://x.com/OfficialLoganK

• Google I/O https://io.google/2026/

• ICODA https://icoda.io/

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Resource

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Ep. 427

Are Dhar Mann videos more therapeutic than talking to friends, family, or even a therapist?

Kipp, Kieran, and guest Dhar Mann (founder of Dhar Mann Studios), dive into how brands can unlock explosive growth and deep audience connection. Learn more about what it takes to move hearts and communities through storytelling, how to balance emotional connection versus gaming the platform algorithm, and the step-by-step HEART framework that transforms content into impact.

Mentions

• Dhar Mann https://www.youtube.com/@DharMann

• What Happens Next - The Dhar Mann Podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR9M5Nh-CftZxJZqfcNnIYw/featured

• Adobe Premiere https://www.adobe.com/products/premiere.html

• Loop: Outlearn. Outmarket. Outgrow https://a.co/d/0bliMe9t

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

We’re on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Free: Build an AI Data Analysis Agent in Codex https://clickhubspot.com/eqfk

Ep. 429

Is AI-powered data analysis light years away from replacing humans? 

Kipp and guest Sundas Khalid (data science and AI leader) dive into how agentic analytics is transforming data science, what human judgment still brings to the table, and how to master cutting-edge AI tools for your work.  Learn more on how to leverage Codex and other AI tools for real-world data analysis, the crucial mindset shifts and skills every data-driven professional needs, and why asking the right questions—and validating AI output—will set you apart in the age of agentic analytics.

Mentions

• Sundas Khalid https://www.youtube.com/sundaskhalid

• Codex https://openai.com/codex/

• Gemini https://gemini.google.com/

• Claude https://claude.ai/

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

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Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain!

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Get the Voice AI Prompt Pack for Marketers: https://clickhubspot.com/fd5a

Ep. 426

AI will give your brand an actual voice.

Kipp dives into the hottest trend in AI that not many are talking about—Voice AI—and how it’s set to revolutionize your brand’s customer experience. Learn more on why real-time voice is the new marketing channel you can’t afford to ignore, how foundational advances from OpenAI and Thinking Machines make AI conversations faster and more human than ever, and the steps every marketer should take to define, audit, and upgrade their brand’s voice in the age of AI.

Mentions

• GPT‑Realtime‑2 https://openai.com/index/advancing-voice-intelligence-with-new-models-in-the-api/

• Thinking Machines https://thinkingmachines.ai/

• Willow Voice https://willowvoice.com/

• ElevenLabs https://elevenlabs.io/

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Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

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Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain!

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Get the Winning AEO Playbook: https://clickhubspot.com/oksd

Ep. 424

“I can't go a single second without someone asking me what the heck answer engine optimization is.”

Kipp and Kieran have Beeri Amiel (Product at HubSpot and founder of XFunnel) and Aja Frost (Sr. Director of Global Growth and Paid at HubSpot) dive into the launch and demo of HubSpot's brand new AEO tool, built to track your visibility in answer engines and help you win the next evolution of search. Learn more on building your AEO strategy, measuring share of voice and sentiment, and using actionable insights to drive results your boss will love.

Mentions

• Aja Frost https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajafrost/

• Beeri Amiel https://www.linkedin.com/in/beeri-amiel/

• HubSpot AEO Portal https://clickhubspot.com/aeo

• Dell https://www.dell.com/en-us

• HP https://www.hp.com/us-en/home.html

• Lenovo https://www.lenovo.com/

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

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Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain!

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Grab our Claude Code Skill to find a unique content angle: https://clickhubspot.com/lhdv

Ep. 423

There’s one Claude skill that will separate you from the other AI content.

Kipp and Kieran dive into how AI content creation is broken—and how you can use the “Opposite Start” framework to break out of the red ocean of repetitive ideas and truly stand out. Learn more on why most marketers use AI the wrong way, how to find blue ocean ideas by inverting mainstream narratives, and practical strategies to turn AI into an ideation powerhouse—not just a content machine.

Mentions

• Claude https://claude.ai/

• Perplexity https://www.perplexity.ai/

• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

We’re on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Get our Guide to Rank #1 on Google in 2026: https://clickhubspot.com/lmfv

Ep. 422

How can you differentiate valuable content from generic AI-generated slop?

Kipp dives into how to create non-commodity content that AI and your competitors can't replicate, giving you an edge in the new search-driven world. Learn more on the crucial differences between commodity and non-commodity content, the six key checkpoints every marketer should hit (like proprietary evidence, expert takes, and a real point of view), and how to use a free grader tool to level up your blog, landing pages, and newsletters for better rankings and more traffic.

Mentions

• Barry Schwartz https://x.com/rustybrick

• Danny Sullivan https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannysullivan

• Dharmesh Shah https://www.linkedin.com/in/dharmesh

• Brian Halligan https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianhalligan

• Claude https://claude.ai/

• Perplexity https://www.perplexity.ai/

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Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

We’re on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed

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Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain!

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Get the most out of AI with our free AI ROI Scorecard: https://clickhubspot.com/epkj

Ep. 421

What if your team burned through your entire AI budget in just six months?

Kipp and Kieran dive into the wild world of “token maxxing”—the new Silicon Valley trend of spending as much as possible on AI tokens without clear outcomes. Learn more on why AI token usage is skyrocketing, the difference between “token maxxing” and “outcome maxxing,” and powerful frameworks every marketing leader can use to turn AI spend into real business growth.

Mentions

• Nvidia https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/

• All In Podcast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwW8GKwHB3I

• Claude https://claude.ai/

• Perplexity https://www.perplexity.ai/

• Manus https://manus.im/

• Gemini https://gemini.google.com/

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

We’re on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed

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Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain!

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.

Start a free trial of HubSpot's new AEO tool: https://clickhubspot.com/wdlc

Ep. 420

In AI search,, relevancy matters more than authority.

Kipp, Kieran, Beeri Amiel (Product at HubSpot and founder of XFunnel), and guest Sam Parr (Host of My First Million) dive into how AI-driven answer engines are disrupting traditional SEO and what marketers must do to adapt. Learn more on how AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) is changing the rules of search, why citation and content relevance matter more than authority, and what tools and tactics you can implement to succeed in the new era of AI search.

Mentions

• Sam Parr https://www.linkedin.com/in/parrsam

• My First Million https://www.mfmpod.com/

• Hampton https://joinhampton.com/

• The Hustle https://thehustle.co/

• Beeri Amiel https://www.linkedin.com/in/beeri-amiel

• XFunnel https://www.xfunnel.ai/

• HubSpot AEO Portal https://clickhubspot.com/aeo

• Ahrefs https://ahrefs.com/

• Google Search Console https://search.google.com/search-console/about

Get our guide to build your own Custom GPT: https://clickhubspot.com/customgpt

Resource

• [Free] Steal our favorite AI Prompts featured on the show! Grab them here: https://clickhubspot.com/aip

We’re on Social Media! Follow us for everyday marketing wisdom straight to your feed

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Thank you for tuning into Marketing Against The Grain!

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Host Links:

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‘Marketing Against The Grain’ is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by Hubspot Media // Produced by Darren Clarke.