The process for updating the visual identity began with the creation of HubSpot’s new brand positioning. The Brand Marketing and Creative Teams partnered up to define our positioning in the larger market, and how we could best differentiate ourselves amongst competitors like Salesforce. The results were clear: the market was dull, sterile, and prioritized numbers over people. Disconnected CRM solutions made business software impersonal, and a drag to use. HubSpot shines brighter than our competitors as a vibrant, joyful, human-centered alternative. This ultimately became our north star:

In a sterile sea of blue CRMs, HubSpot is a vibrant and human brand.

Let’s be clear: our usage of the word refresh over rebrand is very intentional. Our goals were to upgrade the existing toolkit - not reinvent the entire system. Hopefully, the visuals look familiar, but elevated. This helped HubSpot maintain the brand recognition we’ve gained over the years, and lightens the burden of updating literally hundreds of thousands of assets. Both old and new could live in harmony while the company makes the transition.

To support this transition, we created hundreds of ready-to-use templates across Canva, Google Slides, video, and one-pagers, equipping teams with the tools they needed to bring the new look to life quickly and confidently. The result: seamless adoption and a consistently polished brand experience across every touchpoint.

To hone our differentiators, the team focused on increasing vibrancy - trading our soft palette for one that makes a bold statement. Additionally, core issues, such as poor contrast between certain shades, lack of accessibility, and underwhelming depth of neutral shades, have been redressed. The end result is an elevated palette that lives comfortably next to the old, lending flexibility to teams where immediate transition is not an option.

With typefaces, the team concentrated efforts on discovering a similar, but more functional replacement to Avenir Next. After rigorous technical testing, the team selected Lexend Deca to serve as our tried and true, legible sans serif. But we didn’t stop there. To lean into our differentiators, the team selected a more stylistic serif typeface, to add contrast and personality. We’re pleased to introduce Queens, a bold statement typeface, for limited use in large headers.

For shape language and illustration, the team pulled in inspiration from mid-century modern design, with a new vibrant and HubSpotty twist. Simple shapes and clean lines paired with vibrant and bold human expressions bring a visually striking art direction to replace HubSpot's former blobs and waves. The new direction is eye-catching and confident. It’s a modern direction with nods to classic and timeless design.

And where would we be without our customers? The brand refresh also updated our photography style to bring more unique, human expressions to our content. The team leaned into a direction that is simple but bold. Photos use rich and vibrant colors but monochromatically or with limited colors. In the end, it's the personalities, expressions, and diversity of the models that's the central feature.

Before

After

HubSpot Brand Refresh

Role: Creative Director

In 2022, HubSpot’s internal creative team embarked on a bold mission: to transform into a vibrant, joyful, and distinctly human brand amidst a landscape of sterile, blue corporate alternatives. Our comprehensive rebrand was a collaborative effort between brand strategists, designers, animators, web developers, and copywriters who reimagined HubSpot's identity from the ground up.

The initiative delivered a complete brand overhaul, beginning with new positioning and strategy that cascaded into refreshed a color palette, typography, shapes, and illustrations. Drawing inspiration from mid-century design principles, we embraced simple geometric forms and bold color choices while prioritizing function over unnecessary embellishment. This aesthetic perfectly embodied HubSpot's commitment to providing a clean, intuitive, fuss-free, and human-centered CRM experience.