AI for B2B: What We Learned at AppliedAI 2025 with The Crew

What We Learned at the AppliedAI Conference: Practical AI for B2B eCommerce

By the B2B eCommerce Association

If there’s one thing the Applied AI for Distributors conference made clear, it’s this: artificial intelligence isn’t theoretical anymore. It’s tactical, tangible, and beginning to reshape how B2B companies manage everything from order workflows to content visibility.

The event, hosted by the Distribution Strategy Group, brought together a diverse group of vendors, practitioners, and strategists, many of them members of the B2BEA community, to explore how AI is (finally) being applied in ways that matter to distributors. And no, this wasn’t a hypefest about “changing the world.” It was much more practical.

Let’s break down a few key insights we pulled from the show.

1. AI Adoption Starts Where the Pain Is

The buzz wasn’t about some futuristic AI use case, it was about order automation.

The biggest crowds gathered around demonstrations of tools that help streamline everything from quote generation to order validation and invoicing. Sessions from vendors like Canva AI, Go Motivate, and Connexion showed how distributors are starting to digitize one of their most painful operational areas.

Instead of asking, “How do I transform the whole business with AI?”, attendees were asking, “Can this help my CSRs stop retyping every quote?”

That’s the kind of progress we can get behind.

2. The Shift to LLM-Optimized Content Is Already Here

One of the strongest takeaways came from Justin King, who reminded us that structuring content for large language models (LLMs) isn’t separate from SEO, it is SEO now.

Think about that.

If your content isn’t readable and useful for an LLM, it’s not helping your visibility on Google or in AI-powered search experiences. The game is no longer just about metadata and backlinks; it’s about clarity, structure, and domain expertise that an AI can “understand” and surface.

And yes, that means your product content needs to be better, more complete, and more strategically organized than ever before.

3. Conversational Commerce Is on the Horizon—for B2B, Too

It’s tempting to write off chatbots and AI assistants as B2C toys. But Jason Hein argued that conversational commerce is coming to B2B, whether we’re ready or not.

That doesn’t mean your customer will be placing forklift orders by talking to Siri next quarter. But it does mean that search behavior, expectations, and UX are trending toward more dynamic, AI-assisted interactions.

Distributors should be thinking now about what kind of product content, structure, and interfaces are required for a world where customers “ask” instead of “click.”

4. Visibility Is Shifting Beyond Google

Another insight worth underlining: your customers aren’t just searching on Google anymore. Forums like Reddit, Quora, and niche Q&A sites are increasingly where discovery starts.

Optimizing for these platforms, whether via structured content, FAQs, or long-form education—may be the next SEO frontier. Especially as AI models increasingly pull from those sources to inform answers.

5. It’s Still About Data (Surprise, Surprise)

Even with AI in the spotlight, one fundamental truth remains: your data still matters more than your software.

Vendors can promise automation all day long, but if your product data is messy, your pricing logic is outdated, or your ERP is a tangle of exceptions, AI will just automate the chaos. Jay Schneider put it bluntly: “You still need to have your data together.”

This might be the most consistent theme across every session: AI is a multiplier, not a fixer.

Final Thought: AI Is Here, But It’s Not Magic

What made the Applied AI conference worth your time wasn’t the tech. It was the mindset.

Practitioners came looking for real-world ways to solve real problems, and they found them. AI isn’t the finish line. It’s a toolset. And the distributors who start experimenting with narrow, high-impact applications will be the ones who win.

If you missed this year’s event, don’t worry, we’ll be unpacking more of these themes in upcoming podcast episodes, trainings, and, of course, the Customer Adoption Live event this fall.

Want to get ahead of the AI curve without the buzzwords? Join the B2BEA community. We’re keeping it practical.

Contact Jason, Sam, and Jay

Jason Hein

Sam Aldinger

Jay Schneider