Master B2B Friday 15

We're sharing the recent Webcast we hosted offering our B2B eCommerce predictions for the coming year.  Plus, we brought some special guests along to help us predict the future of hiring, analytics, CS, and much more!
Download a copy of the 2025 B2B eCommerce Predictions Report here.

We've surveyed B2B practitioners about their priorities for next year, and we wanted to share the results with you...
It's our last Friday 15 podcast of the year, and we can't wait to share more episodes with you in January.
Check out our upcoming events:
http://www.masterb2b.com

This week on the Friday 15, Andy & Brian discuss whether workers are afraid to be honest about their AI usage at work.  We've heard senior team members talk openly about how they're using AI to be more efficient, but are junior employees perceived as lazy if they use these new tools?

The Friday 15 crew is off for Thanksgiving, but we wanted to share our recent Un-Webinar where we discussed who should own Gen AI in the business?
In this Un-Webinar, Master B2B’s Andy Hoar & Brian Beck will debate whether ownership of this new technology belongs with the IT and Tech group or whether it should reside inside the business units.
We’ll hear hard-hitting debates about these questions:
If Generative AI is just a new technology, why wouldn’t ownership of it live with all other technologies?
If Gen AI is just an enabler, why wouldn’t it live with other tools like CRM, which typically are managed by business units?
Is Gen AI still too risky to live anywhere other than the IT group, which is tasked with being up-to-date on technology risks?
Does it really depend on how Gen AI is being used within the organization?  Aren’t there some use cases where IT would be the best steward and others where the business would be the best place for ownership?

Andy and Brian attended the B2B Online event in Orlando, and they'll catch you up on all the key themes they heard during the event.
They'll touch on AI, also on AI, and maybe even AI. But also tips on how to convince the CFO to invest in digital.

This week on the Friday 15, Andy & Brian talk about the advantages and disadvantages of B2B organizations taking a cost-centered approach to investment.  
While there are certainly benefits of focusing on cost (risk reduction, for example), when we polled our community 83% said that a cost-focused approach negatively impacted competitiveness.  How should companies balance the need for running a predictable business with the need to continue to invest in innovation?

With all the changes in how marketers track their digital marketing spend, we wanted to know how B2B marketers are dealing with this issue. In this episode, we speak with Dan Stepchew, the Digital Marketing Director at Zest Dental Solutions, about how he's shifting his digital spend and how he's changed how he tracks the efficacy of his campaigns.

This week on the Friday 15 podcast, Andy & Brian talk about how much channel conflict fears should impact your distribution strategy (in short, it shouldn't.)
They dig into 7 ways to sell direct while managing the conflicts:
- MAP and sales channel agreements
- Public vs private pricing (pricing exposed behind logins or inside custom catalogs)
- Assortment variations by channel
- Being mindful of who is selling
- Taking control in marketplace channels
- Provide digital assets and analytics to channel partners
- Channel monitoring and enforcement.

This week on the Friday 15 podcast...Andy & Brian discuss whether Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season more broadly drive sales in B2B.  Andy shares how the season is like the Super Bowl where even if your television network isn't showing the Super Bowl, it's going to impact you in one way or another.
That said, we hear from one practitioner who says that they've tried holiday promotions to no avail.

This week on the Friday 15, Andy & Brian talk about the marketing challenge B2B companies have with attracting younger workers, and some of the strategies that have worked.
“The issue is a messaging problem, it’s not a reality problem.  B2B offers many of the things that Gen Z is looking for - B2C talks about it, but B2B actually offers what this generation wants.”
They discuss how companies have tried advertising with NASCAR, building relationships with local colleges, winning "best place to work" awards and more...