HubSpot’s State of Marketing 2025 report highlights major shifts in marketing strategies, AI adoption, content trends, and consumer expectations. To save you time, we’ve created a marketing cheat sheet that answers questions like: How can businesses leverage Hubspot’s insights to enhance engagement and drive sales?
Let’s dive into the state of marketing cheat sheet and key takeaways from the report.
The Top Five Marketing Strategies in 2025
Marketers are prioritizing the following strategies to maximize reach and engagement:
- User-Generated Content (UGC): Consumers trust peer-generated content. Retailers can encourage customers to share reviews, photos, and videos to build trust and engagement.
- Brand-Led Content: 92% of marketers are increasing investments in brand awareness. All digital platforms should include brand storytelling elements such as mission statements, behind-the-scenes content, and customer testimonials.
- AI-Powered Marketing: AI is no longer optional. Retailers can use AI to generate dynamic product descriptions, auto-personalize recommendations, and enhance search functionality within digital catalogs.
- Social Commerce & DMs: Social media is becoming an e-commerce powerhouse. Users are looking for value-led, authentic, and visual content.
- AI-Driven Reporting & ROI Analysis: Marketers leverage AI tools to analyse and optimise campaigns. Retailers need to ensure their data does not live in silos and that they regularly check the quality of it to ensure bad quality data does not creep in.
Source: Hubspot State of Marketing 2025
Biggest Challenges Marketers Face in 2025
While the opportunities are vast, marketers also face significant challenges:
- Consumer Trust & Data Privacy: With tighter regulations and increasing consumer concerns, retailers must ensure their website, lead forms and digital catalogs clearly communicate data privacy policies.
- Data Quality Issues: AI-powered marketing requires high-quality data. Retailers should use tools like dynamic content to ensure accurate product details, pricing, and availability in their digital catalogs.
- Privacy Regulations Limiting Access to Data: The phasing out of third-party cookies forces brands to rely on first-party data. Retailers should collect customer preferences through opt-ins and engagement tracking across platforms.
Trend 1: Visual Storytelling Takes Over Text-Heavy Content
Visual storytelling is the perfect way to bring your brand and product to your customers wherever they are. Just think about how Nike does it—rather than simply listing product specs, they create visually compelling campaigns featuring athletes in action, showcasing their gear in real-world, aspirational scenarios.
Sephora is another great example of how visual storytelling brings products to life. They use makeup tutorials, influencer collaborations, and step-by-step guides to show customers how to use their products in real-life scenarios. By embedding tutorial videos within digital catalogs, retailers can help customers visualize how products fit into their daily routines, increasing confidence and conversion rates.
Short-form video and high-impact visuals are outperforming text-heavy content.
The report highlights that:
- Short-form video (30%) and images (29%) deliver the highest ROI
- Live streaming (22%) and user-generated content (18%) are gaining traction
- Text-heavy content like long-form blogs is losing effectiveness
Retailers should prioritize high-quality product images, interactive galleries, and embedded videos on all platforms to enhance experiences and drive sales. Video content in digital catalogs is especially important as this is where consumers are mostly discovering your brand for the first time, interacting with new product lines, and exploring your product range.
Trends 2: AI Learning & Upskilling: Go All in on AI
It’s hard to believe that it’s been over two years since ChatGPT came barreling into our lives. Back then, gaining access felt like winning the lottery—servers were overwhelmed, and most of us were stuck on a waitlist, eagerly waiting for our turn.
Fast forward to 2025, and we’ve adapted to an entirely new world where we constantly ask, “Is this AI or is this real?” Along the way, we’ve gained access to an explosion of AI platforms, ranging from the astonishingly smart to the downright quirky.
For marketers, the advancements have been groundbreaking. We now have tools capable of creating entire videos from a single line of text. Platforms like Canva have integrated AI to simplify and supercharge design processes. Even localization—a previously expensive and complex task—has been revolutionized by AI-powered translation tools, making it more affordable and accessible.
This evolution has changed how we work and opened doors to creativity and efficiency on a scale we never imagined.
Key AI applications for retailers include:
- AI-Generated Content: Retailers can use AI to create automated product descriptions, captions, and headlines within their digital catalogs.
- AI-Powered Chatbots: Chatbots can provide real-time assistance, guiding customers through digital catalogs and answering queries instantly.
- Automated Personalization: AI tailors content to individual users based on behavior, increasing engagement and conversions.
Leveraging AI is a skill that needs constant upkeep. With new platforms being released weekly and current platforms being updated daily, marketing teams need to ensure they are upskilling and learning how to get the most out of what is available.
Above is an example of how using AI incorrectly can go very badly: count the fingers. Source – Digivate.
Trend 3: Using Content to Meet Consumers Where They Are
Audiences want to connect with brands that are present where they are. Consumers spend significant time online—reading, listening, and watching content. Over time, they build trust with creators and brands they resonate with.
Discovery commerce is playing a huge role in shaping consumer behavior. People are increasingly discovering products in non-traditional ways, like through social media feeds, influencer recommendations, and algorithm-driven suggestions, rather than actively searching for them. Retailers should optimize their digital catalogs to fit into this landscape by making them easily shareable, mobile-friendly, and visually engaging to capture attention in these discovery-driven environments.
Consumers demand value-driven and authentic content. The trends shaping 2025 include:
- Authenticity over Salesy Messaging: Consumers prefer brands that align with their values. Digital catalogs should highlight ethical sourcing, sustainability efforts, and community involvement.
- AI-Powered Insights: AI is being used to predict consumer behavior. Retailers can use AI-driven recommendations to personalize digital catalog experiences.
- Presence on Preferred Platforms: Brands must be present on social media where their audiences actively engage. Retailers should optimize digital catalogs for seamless mobile and social media sharing.
To address this consumer demand, retailers need to expand and diversify their marketing tools – for example, rather than relying on static digital catalogs as mere product listings, they should transform them into interactive, immersive, and shoppable experiences that drive engagement and conversions. Additionally, leveraging innovative shopping and conversion channels is crucial for reaching customers where they spend their time. Shoppable media presents a strong opportunity, especially on leading social platforms like Instagram and TikTok, which continue to drive high levels of consumer engagement.
Trend 4: A Content-Rich, Social-Driven Future
Social media remains a dominant marketing channel, and in 2025, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube will continue to be key platforms for both B2B and B2C brands. B2B marketers are increasing their investment in LinkedIn, while B2C marketers focus more on TikTok, aligning with how shoppers research and discover new products personally and professionally.
Marketers must stay agile, keeping up with evolving trends to ensure their social strategies remain effective.
The top platforms for 2025 are:
- Facebook (19%) & Instagram (18%) remain strong for both B2B and B2C marketing.
- YouTube (11%) & TikTok (8%) are driving video-first engagement.
- LinkedIn (14%) continues to dominate B2B marketing.
Retailers must ensure their digital catalogs are shareable across these platforms, with embedded video content, easy navigation, and mobile-first design to align with changing consumer behaviors and discovery patterns.
Trend 5: The Power of Personalized Experiences
Personalization has been repeated many times as a trend, so much so that it’s more accurate to say it’s now a marketing must-have rather than just a trend.
Consumers expect tailored experiences; they want to feel as though the brand is talking directly to them. According to the HubSpot report:
- 96% of marketers confirm that personalized experiences increase sales.
- AI-driven personalization boosts email conversion rates by 82%.
- According to Salesforce, customers increasingly feel disconnected — 61% believe they’re often treated like numbers rather than individuals.
- McKinsey reports that 71% of customers expect personalized experiences, with 76% expressing frustration when they don’t receive them.
How Businesses Can Start Implementing Personalization
Getting started with personalization doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Businesses can begin by:
- Leveraging First-Party Data
- Segmenting Audiences
- Dynamic Digital Catalogs
- Personalized Email Campaigns
- AI Chatbots & Virtual Assistants
Wrapping up the Hubspot Marketing Cheat Sheet
From AI-powered personalization and social commerce to the dominance of visual storytelling, these trends are shaping how brands engage with consumers. Digital catalogs are no longer just product listings; they are dynamic, immersive experiences that must be optimized for discovery commerce, mobile engagement, and AI-driven personalization.
For retailers, this means embracing technology, refining content strategies, and ensuring their digital catalogs are interactive, shareable, and tailored to individual customer needs. The brands that thrive in 2025 will understand their audience, use data intelligently, and create seamless, engaging experiences across every touchpoint. Now is the time to innovate—so take these insights, apply them to your strategy, and lead the way in the future of digital commerce.
