Master B2B Friday 15

This week, Andy and Brian bring on Master B2B's Chris Germann to talk about how AI is impacting practitioners' relationships with their system integrators. What were those companies providing that no longer need to be done by an outside firm? Where should manufacturers and distributors lean on SIs now for help? And Andy gives some advice to SIs: "If you haven't figured out how to make data a strategic weapon, you're going to fail."

Andy and Brian share some of their insights from a Master B2B Summit roundtable, where practitioners shared where they will spend the next dollar of their budget. Yes, execs talked about measuring the ROI of their investments and customer experience, but they also offered some surprising thoughts on where they plan to invest this year.

Andy and Brian spent the week with their B2C peers in Las Vegas at the Shoptalk event, and they came back with some fascinating insights into how B2B and B2C differ in their approach to eCommerce and 5 ways that they're actually more similar than they thought.

This week, Andy & Brian discuss whether all of the AI tools we're using at work are actually making us more productive or whether they're just increasing the output of maybe-just-slightly-better-than-average deliverables. And how can we avoid getting into the AI rabbit hole where we go to start one quick task and end up in a 2-hour conversation with an LLM?

This week, Andy and Brian share their key learnings from the 2026 Master B2B Mindshare Summit held this week in Chicago. Whether you were there - or just wish that you were - you'll get a taste of what participants learned at the event.

This week, Andy and Brian speak with Ntara's CEO, Andy Didyk about how organizations are working with their product data to ensure it's being discovered by LLMs. As Andy Didyk says in the interview, companies are finding that they have hidden data troves that are powering their AEO/GEO efforts. This episode is also a preview of a session that the three of them will lead at the Master B2B Mindshare Summit on the same topic. More info is available on the event website.

On the Friday 15, Andy & Brian talk to Optimizely's Trevor Pope about whether practitioners should think about AI initiatives in terms of their impact on costs or their impact on revenue. (You might be surprised to hear that it can be both...) Master B2B Summit Master B2B Forum

Andy and Brian are joined by eCommerce expert Howard Blumenthal to talk about how companies should think about the value of their AI initiatives. Howard lays out a useful set of questions for preparing for new AI projects: Are we looking at the right workflows for AI? Are we measuring the right things? Is our data ready? Do we have a governance plan? Plus, learn how B2B eCommerce leaders are approaching the 4 hottest AI categories. Learn more about the Master B2B Mindshare Summit

Andy and Brian are joined by Andy Goodfellow, SVP and Chief Technology Officer at Zoro, to discuss why there has historically been friction between the IT departments and eCommerce teams at so many companies. Goodfellow shares how Zoro turned this dynamic on its head by aligning everyone on a singular goal - creating value for the end customer. Plus, he gives some great advice about not confusing internal stakeholders with external customers. Join the Master B2B Forum Sign up for the Master B2B Summit

Andy and Brian talk with Rob Howl, the Vice President of Digital Products and Experience at HVAC parts distributor mSupply about how the company is approaching building out Answer Engine Optimization capabilities. Rob discussed the framework called EAT - Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness - and using that to guide how the company thinks about changing its approach to product information and landing pages. As he told Andy & Brian - "Your AEO strategy is only as good as your product data." We'll be discussing AEO strategies at the Master B2B Mindshare Summit on March 10 and 11 in Chicago.

Building trust with your customers was difficult before AI began hallucinating information about your products. So how can companies overcome that challenge? It comes down to transparency, consistency and honesty. Andy and Brian discuss best practices for bringing those traits to your organization.

Is AI becoming an oligopoly? Apple just paid Google $1 BILLION for AI technology, admitting Apple Intelligence failed. This changes everything for B2B commerce. In this episode of Master B2B Friday 15, Brian Beck and Andy Hoar break down the emerging AI oligopoly and what it means for B2B e-commerce leaders. KEY TOPICS COVERED: Apple's $1B deal with Google for Gemini AI (and why it matters) The Protocol Wars: OpenAI's ACP vs. Google's Universal Commerce Protocol Why only 3-5 foundation AI models will survive The $3 trillion infrastructure investment battle How ChatGPT (68% market share) and Google Gemini (18%) dominate Market share shifts: Traditional Google search (78%) vs. ChatGPT queries (17%) What B2B companies must do NOW to prepare for AEO (AI Engine Optimization) Why B2B may have an advantage over B2C in the AI era

We're joined by Kevin Stone, Senior Vice President of Technology & Procurement at Motion Industries, to talk about how AI has changed the hiring process. While it's gotten way easier to create the perfect resume when applying for a job, it's gotten equally more challenging for hiring managers to figure out whether what's on a resume actually represents a candidate's experience. Kevin walks us through how he vets candidates and what he's learned about hiring in this new era. Notes: Master B2B Mindshare Summit Master B2B Forum

Andy and Brian are joined by Adrienne Hartman, EVP of Marketing at Safety & Regulatory Compliance company JJ Keller, to discuss how to align your sales and marketing teams, and what tools they need to ensure this alignment is a success.

Our final podcast of the year! This week Andy & Brian talk about the biggest stories of the year: Was everyone wrong about tariffs? Nobody getting hired, nobody getting fired? Disruption in the Search market because of AI... Thanks to everyone for listening! We hope to see you at the Master B2B Mindshare Summit in March: https://events.masterb2b.com/events/summit

Andy and Brian debate whether Google's recent resurgence in the AI race can continue, and whether there are any historical parallels we can look at to make some guesses about how this all plays out. Plus, is OpenAI the new Netscape? Visit us at MasterB2B.com.

We're sharing a recording of our recent Webcast where we revealed our B2B eCommerce predictions for 2026. Learn what we think is going to happen with product search, Amazon Business, AI customer service and more. Plus, we bring in special guests to tell us where they think we're right - and wrong - about the future. Get the Predictions report here.

For brands selling on Amazon, channel conflict and brand control are still a huge issue. That's why we recently had an onstage debate at B2B Online in Atlanta to figure out which method of selling on Amazon - 1p or 3p - is the best option for a manufacturer. As a reminder, 1p is a wholesale model and 3p is a retail model. In this recap, we discuss: - Which option is the best approach for channel control - what you sell, what you charge, how it's presented? - Which selling method is preferable from an operational/fulfillment perspective? - Which is superior from a financial perspective? Also mentioned: Master B2B Forum Master B2B Nexus

Andy and Brian spent the week in Seattle at the Amazon Business Reshape conference getting a deep dive into Amazon Business. Today on the Friday 15, they chat with Natalia Montuori, a Director at Amazon Business, about AI buying assistants, direct delivery, business advertising and more.

It's 2025, so shouldn't every company have an eCommerce website? Not so, says Schneider Electric's Anthony Locke. Anthony says that companies have to consider what they are uniquely good at, and what their distribution partners are uniquely good at, and then decide whether they should have an eCommerce presence. And the answer for multi-billion dollar Schneider Electric was that they should not sell online and instead should focus on supporting their distribution partners.

This week on the Friday 15, Andy & Brian talk with Gireesh Sahukar, a longtime software executive and eCommerce practitioner about what software buyers REALLY need to ask their potential vendors about their products. Here's a hint - you don't just want a list of product features that they say meets your needs...and why executive churn may not be a bad sign. The Paradigm B2B eCombine Master B2B Nexus

This week, Andy and Brian return from hosting Master B2B executive roundtables across the country and share how practitioners are making the pitch to their CIO, CFO and CEO to fund their eCommerce initiatives. And the answer is simple - "say it's an AI initiative." Andy shared a story from one roundtable participant who made a pitch for a software investment to his CFO and the CFO responded, "Are you sure this isn't an AI tool? (wink wink)" knowing that every AI investment was being approved internally.