What’s getting too much hype in B2B e-commerce — and what’s flying under the radar that deserves way more attention?
At the Master B2B Mindshare Summit, Brian Beck and Andy Hoar ran table-topic discussions asking senior B2B e-commerce execs to call out what’s overhyped and underhyped. The results were revealing — and AI landed on BOTH lists. In this episode, they’re joined by Jared Blank, Master B2B’s producer, who facilitated the discussion and shares the most surprising moments.
Overhyped:
🔻 Gen AI as a time-saver : “AI allows us to go from 9-to-5 to 24/7”
🔻 AI finishing the job: “AI gets you 50-90% faster, but the last 10% is the challenge”
🔻 Launching your own marketplace: reality has set in on the effort required
Underhyped:
🔺 Product data: “the oil that lubricates everything else”
🔺 AEO (Answer Engine Optimization): now arguably as important as SEO
🔺 Payment terms: instant B2B credit is transformative but underadopted
🔺 Digital self-service: “younger buyers don’t want to talk to anyone”
The AI paradox: At the summit tables, if someone said AI was overhyped, everyone agreed. If the next person said it was underhyped, everyone agreed with that too. As Jared observed: “AI is whatever you want it to be.”
FAQ
Q: What did B2B executives say is overhyped right now? A: Three things stood out. First, generative AI as a time-saver — while AI creates efficiency on specific tasks, people are filling freed-up time with more work. One attendee captured it perfectly: “AI allows us to go from 9-to-5 to 24/7.” Another noted that “AI can get you 50 to 90% faster than ever, but the challenge is that last 10%.” Second, the idea that AI can finish the job independently — humans are still needed at the beginning and definitely at the end. Third, launching your own marketplace — a trend from two or three years ago that has faded as companies recognize the enormous operational effort required beyond just the technology.
Q: What did B2B executives say is underhyped? A: Four areas consistently came up. Product data was number one — described as “the oil that lubricates everything else.” AEO (answer engine optimization) was second, now arguably as important as or more important than traditional SEO, having moved remarkably fast in just the past year. Payment terms was third — B2B credit approval that used to take weeks of paperwork can now happen instantly through companies like Credit Key and TreviPay, yet adoption remains surprisingly low. Finally, digital self-service was called out as still underhyped because “younger buyers don’t want to talk to anyone” — and basic capabilities like order tracking still aren’t there for many B2B companies.
Q: How can AI be both overhyped and underhyped at the same time? A: This was the most fascinating finding from the summit. As Jared Blank observed, if someone at the table started by saying AI was overhyped, everyone agreed. Then if the next person said it was underhyped, everyone agreed with that too. “AI is whatever you want it to be — like that picture where it’s either a witch or a horse depending on how you see it.” Andy Hoar offered a framework: “For people who appreciate and understand the value of AI, it’s underhyped. For people who don’t really understand or appreciate the value, it’s overhyped.” It also depends on organizational context — if you can freely experiment, AI feels underhyped; if your company is putting the brakes on from a security standpoint, it feels overhyped.
Q: Is the B2B marketplace trend dead? A: Not dead, but the hype has faded significantly. Companies like Schneider Electric have successfully launched marketplaces, but the reality of the effort required has set in. Andy Hoar argued that marketplaces are best positioned for large manufacturers with critical mass and destination-site potential, and least viable for small distributors. Brian Beck pushed back slightly, arguing that the distributor model naturally benefits from more inventory. Both agreed the bigger issue isn’t the business model but the operational commitment — you need to recruit suppliers, manage fulfillment, control the experience, and essentially run a sales operation alongside the technology.
Q: Why do the “basics” keep showing up as underhyped year after year? A: This was a key insight from Jared Blank. Despite four years of Master B2B summits that have consistently identified product data, self-service, and similar fundamentals as critical, they keep appearing as “underhyped.” As Jared asked: “Has there been no improvement?” Andy Hoar compared it to defense in sports — it always needs to be better, no matter how good it gets. He also noted that Amazon’s innovation primarily consists of small incremental improvements, like reducing a process from 18 steps to 12 — blocking and tackling that isn’t sexy enough for a press release but compounds into massive competitive advantage.
Q: Why wasn’t e-commerce platform selection discussed much at the summit? A: Jared Blank noted that across two days, he didn’t have or overhear a single conversation about e-commerce platforms — a topic that used to dominate B2B discussions. The reason: if you’ve replatformed in the past 7-10 years, you likely have something that works well enough to improve upon rather than rip out. There’s limited appetite for multi-year implementations when the technology landscape changes so rapidly. As Andy Hoar pointed out, ChatGPT launched just three and a half years ago — who can predict what the world looks like in three to five years? Companies aren’t willing to make long-term investments that lock them in.
Q: What was the breaking news about the attacks on Sam Altman? A: Shortly after the previous Friday 15 episode discussed AI’s growing societal tensions, Molotov cocktails were thrown at Sam Altman’s home over the weekend. The hosts connected it to broader trends: 55% of Americans believe AI will do more harm than good (up from 44% last year), 70% think AI will lead to fewer jobs, and only 5% believe AI development represents their interests. Andy Hoar predicted this will become a major political issue, noting a potential realignment where blue-collar workers who are unaffected by AI may embrace it, while suburban white-collar workers whose jobs are threatened become anti-AI.
