AI-influenced search behavior prompts push for smarter B2B purchase journeys

B2B marketers face a fundamental shift in how buyers search for information, as generative AI tools transform traditional search-to-click pathways into AI-curated, conversational experiences. According to Forrester’s recent research, 89% of B2B buyers now use AI tools throughout their purchase journey, creating an urgent need for content strategies that prioritize AI visibility, demonstrate genuine expertise, and align with evolved buyer expectations. This transformation demands that marketing teams abandon outdated digital playbooks or risk becoming invisible in the AI-curated information landscape.

The big picture: B2B buying behavior has fundamentally changed as buyers increasingly rely on AI tools rather than traditional search-to-click journeys to gather information.

• Buyers now use natural language questions to receive instant, AI-curated answers through tools like Perplexity, ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini at every stage of the purchase process.
• Information gathering has become multi-channel, with buyers simultaneously consulting AI tools, vendor websites, social media, user reviews, and industry resources.
• This shift calls into question traditional marketing metrics like keyword rankings and page views that no longer reflect actual buyer behavior.

Why this matters: Clinging to outdated content strategies actively undermines marketing effectiveness as high-quality content gets filtered, summarized, or bypassed entirely by AI intermediaries.

• Without content that’s crawlable and structured for AI interpretation, companies will lose visibility in AI-curated responses where conversations increasingly occur.
• Content lacking sufficient depth, nuance, or expertise signals gets filtered out or flattened into generic responses by AI systems.
• Today’s more informed and skeptical buyers expect content that helps them understand complex problems, compare solutions, and build internal consensus.

The challenges: Legacy KPIs, familiar workflows, and pressure for immediate results reinforce outdated digital marketing habits that no longer match buyer behavior.

• Marketing teams continue optimizing for metrics like keyword rankings and page views despite their diminishing relevance.
• Traditional click-based reporting fails to capture how buyers interact with content through AI intermediaries.
• The linear search model where buyers type queries, scan results pages, and click through to vendor content has fundamentally broken down.

What’s next: Content visibility now operates under new rules with higher stakes as buyers gather insights from multiple sources before reaching vendor websites.

• To remain visible and credible, content must meet buyers where they are, earn trust quickly, and demonstrate depth of expertise.
• Content strategies need to prioritize AI discoverability alongside traditional optimization techniques.
• Marketing teams should develop new frameworks for measuring content effectiveness in an AI-intermediated buying environment.