HubSpot's Senior Vice President of Marketing, Kieran Flanagan, has addressed recent claims circulating on LinkedIn regarding a significant drop in HubSpot's blog traffic, asserting that while the numbers weren't accurate, the trend is.

Per Flanagan: "Earlier this month, HubSpot found itself at the centre of an infamous LinkedIn maelstrom. You know, the kind where a big story breaks and everyone has a hot take. The story I’m talking about is HubSpot 'losing' all of its blog traffic. Not the kind of story a marketer wants to go viral for right?

"If you only take one thing away from this article it should be this: the numbers aren’t accurate, but the trend is. While we didn’t lose 80% of our blog traffic, we are seeing a decrease."

In response to the evolving digital landscape, HubSpot began preparing for potential disruptions in search traffic five years ago. The company has been focusing on diversifying its marketing channels, shifting from a reliance on search engines to a broader marketing distribution strategy. This strategic pivot included the acquisition of The Hustle, aimed at bolstering HubSpot's presence in influential channels such as YouTube, podcasts, and social media.

"Today, our podcast network, creator program and YouTube channels generate demand equivalent to our blogs, and are growing faster," said Flanagan.

In line with this strategy, HubSpot has pruned over 30,000 blog pages that were not contributing to conversions, focusing instead on content that aligns with revenue generation. "We’re not interested in traffic for traffic’s sake. Our entire content engine is ring fenced against revenue generation, with each channel rigorously measured against LTV and CAC," Flanagan explained.

The company has also integrated a custom "fit and intent" model to better align its content with audience needs, emphasising the importance of quality content in a shrinking search market. "The rules of the game have changed; Google no longer rewards volume and wants more relevance and depth," Flanagan said.

Flanagan also pointed out the impact of artificial intelligence on search traffic. The rise of no-click searches and AI-powered results is affecting traditional search traffic patterns. Despite these changes, HubSpot's traffic from large language models is on the rise, with significant growth in views from YouTube videos surfaced in AI search.

Transactional search traffic remains robust for HubSpot, with growth observed in keywords related to buying or taking action.

"For marketers, this requires a radical shift in thinking, focusing on influence rather than just clicks and traffic," said Flanagan. "Which brings me back to this; be wary of sweeping statements on the death of search, particularly those based on incomplete data. Dig deeper. The truth is in the details."