This blog looks at what we can expect in terms of B2B marketing trends in 2025. From organic traffic to influencer marketing, we cover the key areas in B2B marketing which face potential changes in 2025.
Google Search to ‘Profoundly Change’
Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, has stated that traditional search will ‘profoundly change’ in 2025 and beyond, and it’s fair to say that he probably has the world’s largest bank of data to support that statement. The takeaway is that Google Search is working very hard to make it much easier to find exactly what B2B marketers – and their clients’ customers – are searching for, no matter how tricky or tough the search query might be. I believe it would be foolish to bet against them succeeding.
The thinking is that, in a world increasingly awash with misinformation, Google wants to help people quickly find easy-to-understand, information that they can trust and do so in a way that makes the search experience even more like a discussion between trusted, highly knowledgeable friends or colleagues.
Of course, Google is going to do this with AI-enhanced tools that, in a way, throws down a virtual gauntlet to its competitors. Google Search will look to try to answer informational queries in a better way (e.g. which is the best 8-bit micro for my IoT sensor board) rather than just providing a set of links to suppliers.
All AI-driven marketing tools are all likely to remain standing throughout 2025, but some will stand taller than others… and some of them will continue to grow in stature and usefulness.
Organic traffic to B2B websites will begin to dissipate
And here again is the influence of AI. “Generative” AI that is.
The capabilities of Generative AI will not only impact B2B websites, but most websites of any persuasion. Those who try to try to make up the shortfall by using human beings to chase a broader range of SEO keywords will only fall further behind because Generative AI will simply outpace them.
Yes, Generative AI tends on balance to rank lower in SEO because of what it perceives to be lower quality than human-generated content, but humans looking for broader search terms will dilute the qualities Google values most in determining rankings, i.e., experience, expertise, authority and trust. As those qualities give way to smarter entries by Generative AI, human-populated websites will drift further down in the SEO rankings.
Pay-to-Play Trades
It’s been a running sore for publishers, B2B marketing agencies and their clients for more than a decade, and one that has become increasingly acute in Germany, but paying to have an article, opinion or thought-leadership piece published, similar to but different in form than a straight advertisement, will go from an uncomfortable but necessary way of gaining coverage to an unwelcome but largely unavoidable addition to the cost of doing business. It’s a pity because, along with the diminished credibility of the content goes the devaluation of the form of communications. Websites will be perceived as little more than purveyors of propaganda and content will be largely overlooked to go straight to the ordering page.
Well-written content and genuine news and product information deserve to be seen on their merits. By the same token, however, publishers deserve to make a living by providing a compelling, prestigious communication platform, and that costs money. Therefore, pay-to-play will become more the norm for B2B trades. It’s not far off being ubiquitous already, and companies that are reluctant to budget for advertising (which is fundamentally what pay-for-play is) will find it increasingly difficult to get seen.
The business press in B2B
With the trade press increasingly requiring payment for space rendered, B2B clients will look to shift their focus from the trade press to secure coverage in the more traditional business press.
This trend is due to the fact that business press publications often have better SEO than trade press, which makes them more compelling to clients who want to reach a wider audience through online searches. They know that their customers are now more likely to use Google to search for information rather than hope its next month’s theme in their favourite trade magazines.
I must, however, issue a word of caution. Yes, there is a perception of a declining readership of the trade press and, therefore, a declining trade press. There is an element of truth in that, but it is only true in some industries and in some countries. In many instances, the traditional trades are alive and, if not thriving, well enough to stay off the oxygen tank… so far.
But I digress.
The migration of B2B companies to the business press is being driven by the fact that many of them, especially IT companies, have a lot of money to spend. A few million pounds to splash around has long been a standard budget item for them, but not necessarily for small- to medium-sized businesses.
The difference isn’t necessarily the proportional budget ratio, it’s more to do with the fact that large IT (or similar) companies make products that are used by a large number of people, so they needn’t be quite as precise when they target their ad spend. On the other hand, smaller SME’s may make highly specialised products that are of interest only to a specific type of customer or market niche, so a significant portion of their big marketing spend (if they’re big spenders) is likely to be wasted. That’s why research is so important to them to give them a better chance of hitting what they’re aiming for. However, research costs money, too, and even the most carefully calculated budget can be misdirected.
For example, there is a belief that C-Suite occupants influence decisions for a much wider range of products and tend to get a disproportional amount of money spent on reaching them when, in fact, they hold far less sway than they are given credit for.
That’s not to say that the C-Suite isn’t influential for some B2B products. They often will for example, care about information and IT security, in which cases it makes sense for relevant vendors large or small to specifically target those execs. But for the most part individual mechanical or electrical components that comprise physical B2B products will never be discussed or considered at Board level, so companies in a specific technical niche could waste time and money chasing boardroom egos for a decision about buying their widget when the Board would find it difficult to care less.
It’s not necessarily wrong to go after C-Suite occupants, but if you want your investment in reaching the business press to pay off, you need to make sure that they are really the people who will influence the decision to choose your product or service.
Finally, be aware that, in 2025, your business press campaign might just fail, not because pursuing the business press is wrong, but because many B2B companies are not in a position to create pitches that resonate with business press journalists. You must have a highly compelling story to tell, or news to share, and many B2B companies simply do not. The 10th anniversary of your name change from Joe’s Garage to Jim’s Garage is no doubt terribly exciting for you and your mechanics, but outside of the relevant trade press, the “news” of the name change is of no interest to anyone but Jim, and Jim’s mother.
Moreover, some C-Suite execs will not or cannot invest the amount of money needed to make a business press campaign successful. Why? Because it’s a lot more work to get a similar level of coverage in the business press than it is in the trade press, and if you want more work done, you have to be prepared to pay for it. Many are not.
Influencer marketing
The inexorable rise of influence peddling will continue, but in 2025 that rise is more likely to resemble a massive jump in terms of B2B marketing as those who decide to “influence” professionally, or just make it a bit of a side hustle, grows (ahem) “by leaps and bounds”. B2B marketing has traditionally been resistant to the use of influencers, but that prejudice will continue to wear down in 2025 as the incentive money available from brands steadily finds way into the hands of B2B marketers who are prepared to take that road. It will be interesting to see how that plays out during the year. Will more and more B2B marketers jump on the influencer bandwagon, or will those wheels begin to wobble next year?
Podcasters will break out of their pods
During 2025, forecasters are predicting that the number of regular podcast listeners will reach a half billion, and that level of success is getting the attention of B2B companies.
However, the smart money says that podcasts will become far less niche and be increasingly embraced by the mainstream. Napier has long championed podcasting and regularly produces and distributes its own topical programming. In doing so, Napier podcast producers speak with a lot of other B2B podcasters to exchange ideas and learn about best practices. One striking finding is that even B2B brands that achieve, for example, only 50 downloads per podcast, still feel they are very worthwhile exercises because the content engages senior executives to get involved, which is precisely the audience they want to reach. It’s a cliché, but as with most cliches’, it carries whisper of truth – it’s not the quantity of podcast listeners, it’s the quality. And it’s still far less expensive to create content that 50 people download than it is to send a sales rep to deliver the message to 50 people in person on the chance that they might listen.
The age-old question: Are trade shows dying or reviving?
For 2025, the answer to the trade show question is an easy one. There will continue to be a resurgence in both live event and trade show attendance. Many observers used COVID as an excuse to plunge a virtual knife into the heart of traditional trade shows, confidently predicting their demise.
However, major shows like CES and Electronica have seen a substantial increases in attendance recently, with CES attracting around 240,000 visitors in 2024 and Electronica seeing a 33 percent increase in visitors compared to pre-COVID numbers. The desire is clearly still there.
Also, events like Embedded World in Germany have now expanded to host a North American version to reflect the growing demand for such in-person events. Even press conferences are making a comeback.
The bottom line is – the majority of people still prefer to deal with people. Looking someone in the eye, in person, will always tell you a lot more than looking someone in the eye across a two-dimensional laptop screen. And today, you can’t be 100% sure the face staring back at you from the screen is an actual person anyway.
Martech will be on the march
The availability of clever new marketing technology (“martech”) – especially technology specifically designed to assist B2B marketers – has grown exponentially in recent years and shows no signs of abating in 2025. There are now so many potential avenues to travel it can be challenging to determine which one is your business’s yellow brick road, and therein lies the conundrum. Is there one path to success, or many?
Some of the trends expected to inform the near future of martech include:
- The ubiquitous presence of AI and machine learning, with AI-powered chatbots, content creation, and personalisation destined to become even more prevalent.
- Predictive analytics models will map customer journeys and enable brands to predict customer needs and deliver precise resolutions.
- The automation of many tasks will become a critical component to staying competitive as marketing activities become more complex.
- Augmented and virtual reality will be more frequently used.
- Ethical and sustainable martech will be scrutinised by both B2B and B2C consumers for environmentally sensitive compliance through 2025 and beyond.
- The rediscovery and resurgence of the still highly effective use of email marketing is expected to continue in 2025.
Account-based Marketing will lose its lustre
The allure of account-based Marketing or “ABM”, the darling of the B2B marketing world in recent years, will see its crown slip in 2025. ABM ,once considered a clever and effective innovation, is no longer either of those things. ABM is now seen a “table stakes” component that is required just to get in the B2B marketing game. Although it is useful, it no longer has the cache it once did, so proclaiming its effectiveness – and your expertise in it as a selling point to a prospective client – is unlikely to turn anyone’s head in any direction but down in 2025.
AI will become an adult
AI has matured fast. Very fast. It was born, learned to walk and speak, and raced through harrowing puberty in record time. It is now more than ready to borrow dad’s car and take its best friend, machine learning, for a spin.
But will it slow down in time?
The truth is, “maybe.” Even though AI will continue to profoundly change the B2B marketing mix, the pace of that change and the keen interest in it are showing signs of slowing as users and potential implementers cautiously start pumping the brakes. AI is certainly not going to stop spreading—far from it—but it is likely to do so slightly less quickly.
Users have come to understand where the success and benefits of AI lie and where it still needs to improve.
The question remains what will AI achieve in 2025, and how can it evolve to support marketers further?
Ask us this time next year, as we take what we learned from 2025 and look to 2026.
