Weekly ABM/ABX Insights - Technically Savvy Marketers Are Gaining an Edge in the AI Search Era
- NextGen ABM
- May 11
- 5 min read
Edition #37 | Published May 12, 2025
🚀 The Pulse: Must-Know AI x ABM Industry News
We read the latest AI x ABM News so you don’t have to.
Why Technically Savvy Marketers Are Gaining an Edge in the AI Search Era? AI is transforming online search and shattering old playbooks. 80% of users resolve 40% of their searches without a single click, according to WSJ. That means SEO alone isn’t enough. You need Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) and AI Optimization (AIO) to stay seen.
Companies like Intuit, Mailchimp are already optimizing for AI crawlers, not humans, prioritizing page speed, structure, and content legibility for machines.
Meanwhile, 60% of the U.S. B2B marketers are doubling down on AI tools and social media ads, shifting budgets away from legacy tactics.
And in a trend that’s critical for ABM leaders, Forrester forecasts that over half of $1M+ B2B deals will close via digital self-serve channels in 2025. This raises the bar for personalized, data-driven ABM motions, because when buyers are in-market, you want to be their top-of-mind choice.
HubSpot's MCP Launch is another must-watch (see it in their co-founder/CTO's words): by adopting Model Context Protocol (MCP). To Hubspot’s CTO’s point, the real magic in B2B marketing is when you combine tools from multiple MCP servers to accomplish higher-level goals, e.g. you want to get strategic advice on your pipeline data by querying your CRM in natural language.
"Analyze our sales pipeline, identify deals that haven't moved in 30 days, and suggest next steps for each based on the last conversation notes."
This is a game changer that not many companies yet realize. Stay tuned for an in-depth follow-up analysis on how this will redefine GTM workflows.
🎙 Voices of Influence: Insights from Industry Icons
Mike Pastore (MarTech’s Editorial Director)’s Insights from the State of Martech 2025 is a clarion call for B2B leaders: your marketing team needs to become more technical. The ability to work across open, interoperable platforms and integrate with cloud-native data layers is now foundational. Most importantly, AI's real power lies in unstructured data, from transcripts to Slack messages, and it’s up to marketers to harness that.
💬 My Take: How to Become Technically Savvy Marketers in the AI Search Era?
If you're still organizing your GTM ops around a classic funnel, you're missing the shift. Here's what I’d suggest to help your team get ahead:
Start by inventorying and mapping all your data sources and signals, like intent data, product usage, CRM activity, conversational intelligence, and more. This foundational step helps you understand where your insights live and how they connect. Then, work cross-functionally—especially with engineering and IT—to ensure those signals are accessible and actionable across your GTM stack.
Next, elevate AI literacy across your marketing team. This doesn't mean turning your marketers into prompt engineers, it means helping them understand how GenAI can support strategic, data-driven decisions and automate operational inefficiencies. That’s how you build real ROI into your org’s AI investment.
And finally, foster peer-driven learning. Encourage your team to follow and engage with leading voices in the AI and B2B marketing space. The best insights often come from practitioners actively experimenting with the same challenges you’re trying to solve.
🔦 Case Study: How ChatGPT Search Reshapes the B2B Buyer’s Journey
In this week’s featured case study, we simulated a full B2B buyer’s journey using ChatGPT Search, from pain-point discovery to shortlisting and final decision.
📊 See my full simulation and takeaways published on Martech.
Key Takeaways:
Conversational Search Dynamics: ChatGPT Search offers context-aware, conversational responses, enabling buyers to obtain tailored information quickly, reducing reliance on traditional search engines.
Accelerated Decision-Making: With up to 90% of B2B buyers already utilizing generative AI tools, the buying cycle is becoming more efficient, allowing for faster vendor comparisons and selections.
Implications for Marketers: This shift necessitates that marketing teams enhance their technical acumen, focusing on optimizing content for AI-driven search platforms to maintain visibility and influence in the buyer's journey.
🔥 What’s Trending: Hot Picks from Web This Week
Threads hits 350M MAUs, adding video ads aimed at digital-native founders.
B2B SaaS is shifting post-sales engagement to Slack, Teams, and Discord over email. (Growth Unhinged)
Marketers at Meta are using LLMs to mine customer feedback for product and messaging insights, another unstructured data goldmine.
🚀 Notable Funding Rounds in AI-Powered GTM Startups
Landbase raised $12.5M to launch GTM-1 Omni, an AI engine integrating go-to-market workflows across sales tools. Early tests: 7x higher conversion.
AirOps closed a $15.5M Series A to scale AI-led growth ops. Think data orchestration + content generation in one platform.
🛠 Martech Spotlight: Cool Tools & Innovations
Clay + Google Slides: Auto-generate personalized decks using CRM + intent data. Huge for ABM personalization at scale.
Blooming: Chain image, text, and video AI models to create campaign content fast. Your AI copilot for the next ABM campaign.
CreatorMatch Extension: Track performance of your posts + competitor benchmarking.
📚 Knowledge Vault: Must-Read Resources
Run an Intent-led ABM strategy? How to Do Keyword Research for Each Buyer Stage
Leverage Real-Time Intent Data for 15% lift in conversion
Integrate ABM Across the Full Funnel with cross-functional teams
⚡ Execution Tips & Tricks for ABM Success
This week’s tips were embedded throughout the piece — especially under "My Take" and "State of Martech."
🎤 ABM Insider: Must-Attend Events
From MQLs to Buying Groups — May 20, 11am PT — Featuring Forrester Principal Analyst Amy Hawthorne
Southbound x AI Deep Dive: May 22, 10am PT — A tactical look at GenAI in GTM.
Inside the C-Suite:The Top 5 GTM Metrics that CXOs Use to Drive Growth - On Demand
💬 Quote of the Week
“Your company’s top execs are key to everyday LinkedIn success.”
- Jim Habig, Ex-VP of LinkedIn Marketing
"Model Context Protocol (MCP) sounds like something from a sci-fi movie, but in reality, it's a simple idea: let AI talk to your favorite tools using a standard language they all understand."
- Dharmesh Shah, CTO and Co-founder, HubSpot
"Sales isn’t about pitching a product—it’s about solving a problem. The sooner reps understand that, the better they can navigate both small and large deals."
- Nelson Fernandes, Sales Coach, Big Leaps
All content in this newsletter was curated and edited by Océane Li—not AI 🤖
🧠 Ready to revamp your strategy? Check out our past editions or let’s chat.
🎯 Until next time—stay bold, stay targeted.
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