SmartBug on Tap

Welcome to SmartBug on Tap—your go-to podcast for actionable marketing insights, thought leadership, and expert strategies to elevate your brand’s success. Hosted by the team at SmartBug Media, each episode features engaging conversations with industry leaders and SmartBug experts, tackling topics from creative alignment and strategic planning to leveraging tools like HubSpot for enterprise success. Whether you’re a marketing leader, a strategist, or a HubSpot power user, this podcast delivers practical advice you can apply right away. Tune in for stories of innovation, best practices, and SmartBug’s unique approach to solving complex marketing challenges—served straight from the source.

Is It Time to Fire Your ATS? What HubSpot Can—and Can’t—Do for Staffing Firms 09/05/2025

Double Funnel, Double Trouble: Solving for Candidates and Clients in One CRM 08/29/2025

Double Funnel, Double Trouble: Solving for Candidates and Clients in One CRM Managing both candidates and clients in one CRM can feel impossible, but it doesn’t have to be. In this episode of SmartBug on Tap, host Alexandra Whitmore (VP of Sales at SmartBug) sits down with Sandy Moore (Senior Director of Account Strategy at SmartBug) to unpack why staffing firms struggle with “double funnel” operations and how HubSpot helps solve the chaos. You’ll learn: ✅ What the “double funnel” is and why it causes friction ✅ Common CRM mistakes staffing firms make with candidates vs. clients ✅ How legacy CRMs fall short in supporting both sides of the staffing equation ✅ Ways to structure HubSpot pipelines, objects, and dashboards for clarity ✅ Quick wins staffing leaders can implement this week ✅ Long-term shifts to prevent double funnel burnout If your CRM feels more like a data graveyard than a growth engine, it’s time for a reset. SmartBug has helped staffing firms of all sizes optimize HubSpot for recruiting and sales success—let’s do the same for you. Key Highlights: [02:10] What the “double funnel” is and why it creates friction for staffing firms [03:35] Common CRM mistakes when managing candidates and clients together [05:16] Why legacy CRMs often fail to support both funnels [07:26] How to design HubSpot pipelines for client acquisition and candidate placement [08:12] Best practices for keeping both funnels clean, connected, and collaborative [10:50] How recruiters, sales, and marketers can work in the same CRM without overlap [12:43] ATS vs. HubSpot: when to integrate and when to replace [14:20] Quick win: auditing your CRM to boost adoption and performance [15:26] Long-term fix: stopping duplicated efforts across teams [16:20] How SmartBug helps staffing firms optimize HubSpot for double funnels 👉 Alexandra: [email protected] 👉 Sandy: [email protected] 👉 Connect with our team here: https://www.smartbugmedia.com/contact-us /episode/index/show/smartbugontap/id/38024955

What Staffing Firms Get Wrong About CRM Strategy 08/28/2025

Second Brain Systems: How to Set Up Custom GPTs and Gems for Your Marketing Team 08/06/2025

Second Brain Systems: How to Set Up Custom GPTs and Gems for Your Marketing Team We’re diving into the concept of second brain systems—how to use custom GPTs (in ChatGPT) and Gems (in Gemini) to scale your marketing team’s productivity, eliminate repetitive tasks, and streamline onboarding, content creation, paid media, and more. You’ll learn: ✅ What a second brain is (and why marketers need one) ✅ How to build your own custom GPT or Gem ✅ What to feed your second brain to get great outputs ✅ Real SmartBug use cases ✅ Tips for maintenance, security, and future-proofing your setup Whether you're new to AI or a seasoned power user, you'll walk away with actionable tips to make AI work for your team—without replacing the human magic that makes your marketing shine. ⏱️ Key Highlights: 00:00 – Intro: Why second brains are changing how marketers work 03:10 – What is a second brain in marketing and AI? 05:00 – ChatGPT vs. Gemini: What makes a “second brain” different from on-the-fly prompting 07:50 – Eliminating information silos and dusty data 10:55 – ⚠️ AI Safety Disclaimer 11:00 – Step-by-step: How to build a custom Gem (Gemini) 14:15 – How to program user experiences into your Gem 16:00 – What kinds of data to include in your second brain 18:55 – How technical do you need to be? (Spoiler: Not at all!) 20:25 – SmartBug example: SME interview prep GPT 22:40 – Fun side note: Naming your GPTs 24:30 – Where second brains save time and increase quality 29:30 – Use cases beyond content: Paid media, reporting, onboarding 30:30 – What not to offload to AI 31:15 – Best practices and maintenance tips 34:50 – Who should “own” a shared Gem or GPT on your team? 36:40 – Common mistakes to avoid 38:00 – What’s next for second brain systems 40:15 – Skills marketers should start building now 42:55 – Final thoughts: Adding human connection back in 🔗 Want to connect or build your own second brain system? Reach out to Julia ([email protected]) or Rebecca ([email protected]) to chat. /episode/index/show/smartbugontap/id/37706090

The Enterprise Attribution Problem: What’s Working, What’s Not, and What to Do About It 07/31/2025

AI Meets the Pen: How Writers Are Embracing AI Without Losing Their Voice 07/16/2025

Enterprise-Grade Integrations: How to Make HubSpot Play Nice with Everything 06/27/2025

AI Broke the SERP: Here’s How Enterprise Teams Can Still Win with HubSpot 06/11/2025

Making HubSpot Work Better by Understanding How People Work Best 05/29/2025

From Guesswork to Greatness: Paid Media in the AI Era 05/22/2025

How HubSpot Can Help AgeTech Companies Scale Faster and Retain Customers 05/13/2025

HubSpot and Salesforce: How to Integrate and When to Migrate 05/13/2025

HubSpot and Salesforce: How to Integrate and When to Migrate Today we're tackling one of the biggest questions B2B companies face: Should you keep both HubSpot and Salesforce connected—or is it time to fully switch? Join Casey Peddicord, Senior Director of Channel Sales at SmartBug, and Alex Bisaillon (a.k.a. “Biz”), Solution Architect at SmartBug, as they break down how to decide between integrating and migrating, based on real-world experience helping companies align their revenue tech stacks. 🎤 Speakers Casey Peddicord (Host) Senior Director of Channel Sales at SmartBug [email protected] Alex Bisaillon (Guest) Solution Architect at SmartBug [email protected] 📚 What You’ll Learn ✅ When to integrate Salesforce and HubSpot—and how to do it right ✅ When it makes more sense to fully migrate from Salesforce to HubSpot ✅ How to avoid common integration traps that lead to reporting gaps and sales friction ✅ The truth about Salesforce complexity vs. HubSpot usability ✅ How to identify the true source of truth in your CRM ecosystem ✅ What your team needs to prepare before making a platform switch 💡 Key Highlights and Moments [00:14] Welcome and why this integration/migration debate matters now [02:00] Most common reasons companies integrate HubSpot and Salesforce [03:42] What makes a HubSpot/Salesforce integration actually successful [05:30] Signs your integration isn’t working as intended [07:29] Choosing the right source of truth (and why it matters for reporting) [09:09] Red flags that it’s time to consider migrating off Salesforce [12:47] Getting stakeholder buy-in for a big move to HubSpot [14:24] How to execute a successful phased migration strategy [22:44] Top migration tips from hundreds of real-world client projects [28:55] What to look for in a migration partner (and red flags to avoid) 📣 Thinking about migrating off Salesforce or improving your integration? We’ve helped hundreds of companies build clean, scalable integrations—or fully transition from Salesforce to HubSpot. If you’re exploring either path, we’d love to talk. 👉 Contact SmartBug: https://www.smartbugmedia.com/contact-us 👉 Contact Casey: [email protected] 👉 Contact Biz: [email protected] 🔔 Subscribe to our channel and turn on notifications to keep learning how to get more out of your HubSpot investment with expert-level strategies and platform tips. 💬 Are you currently juggling Salesforce and HubSpot? Tell us what’s working (or what’s not!) in the comments. 👇 #HubSpotCRM #SalesforceIntegration #HubSpotMigration #SmartBugMedia #CRMStrategy #RevOps #B2BMarketing #SalesEnablement #MarketingOperations #HubSpotExperts #RevenueTechStack #SalesforceToHubSpot #PlatformStrategy /episode/index/show/smartbugontap/id/36681250