The B2B software market is splitting in two. In a year when Salesforce is down 18% and Asana is off 31%, Palantir is up 165%. The difference? Mission-critical focus and AI-native positioning.

So what does that signal for the rest of SaaS?

Three shifts, backed by market performance:

Horizontal isn’t enough anymore
Generic platforms are under pressure. Buyers want solutions tuned to their vertical, workflow, and regulatory context. Not “one tool fits all.”

AI-native is outperforming AI-added
Palantir didn’t bolt AI onto a legacy stack. They built with it from the start. That’s a signal to SaaS founders: AI should be infrastructure, not a feature.

Mission-critical wins in uncertain times
Palantir’s focus on defense, intelligence, and regulated sectors gives it resilience. B2B buyers are betting on tools that feel essential, not optional.

This is a vertical SaaS moment. If your product doesn’t feel essential—by sector, function, or outcome—you’re in the danger zone.

The next wave of growth will be built on specificity, not scale.

We’ve got room for one more brand strategy project in July. Is your team the right fit?

Your product’s strong. Your pipeline’s steady. But your message? Still not pulling its weight.

In B2B, clarity converts. Confusion kills.

If you’re heading into a rebrand, new site, or GTM push—and your story’s still fuzzy—let’s sharpen it.

AI agents are moving from theory to workflow. The newest generation isn’t just summarizing calls—they’re checking pipeline health, flagging deal risks, and guiding next steps inside the tools your team already uses.

The shift?
From generic assistants to embedded operators purpose-built for revenue.

1. Audit your GTM ops flows
Where are reps stuck in manual loops—like forecasting, pipeline reviews, onboarding, or follow-ups? These are prime targets for AI augmentation.

2. Build or borrow a lightweight agent
Use no-code tools or CRM-native builders to create an agent that triggers reminders, flags risk, or consolidates next steps. The best ones don’t live in a dashboard—they live in the work.

3. Track impact, not novelty
Measure time saved, deal acceleration, or lift in forecast accuracy. Adoption follows utility—not hype.

The most effective agents are built on real behavior data, not CRM guesswork. If your sales motion still relies on self-reported fields, you’ll struggle to make AI actionable.

In the AI-first era, you should be aiming higher than a chatbot. Launch a revenue operator. One that fits your motion, earns trust, and actually helps close.

To shake off its dusty reputation and reconnect with C-level buyers, SunGard went all in on a high-drama metaphor: surviving the zombie apocalypse.

The pilot campaign targeted just 56 late-stage CIOs with a two-part direct mail drop:

Step 1: A shadow box with a USB marked Zombie Apocalypse Preparedness Agency. Inside? A personalized video message: “If you’re watching this, you’ve made it farther than most…”—complete with bunker sounds and distant groans.

Step 2: A zombie survival backpack filled with silly string ("zombie repellent"), movie tickets, and a copy of How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse.

Reps walked into meetings to find the kits on the CIO’s desk. They weren’t just noticed, they were remembered.

It didn’t stop there. The team adapted the assets into campaigns for:

This didn’t work because it was fun. It worked because it was targeted, well-crafted, and emotionally intelligent.

Don’t just aim for clever, aim for clever that connects.

Read about more innovative B2B campaigns

AI use at work has nearly doubled in two years—but usefulness hasn’t caught up. Gallup’s latest research shows that while 44% of employees say their organization is integrating AI, only 16% strongly agree the tools actually help them do their job.

So what’s holding AI back from being a force multiplier?

Three things, backed by data:

Leaders aren’t leading
Only 22% of employees say their company has a clear AI plan. That gap between rollout and readiness is where most value gets lost.

Context beats access
Skepticism plummets after real use. Just 13% of non-users believe AI improves customer interactions. But among users? 68% say it does. Adoption follows relevance.

White-collar surge, front-line stall
Frequent AI use has jumped in tech, finance, and professional services—but flatlined among front-line workers. Without clear use cases across roles, AI becomes a siloed advantage.

If you want AI to scale, stop showcasing the tech and start proving the value. Strategy and enablement aren’t extras. They’re the unlocks.

Halfway through the year, digital channels are more crowded, expectations are higher, and pressure is mounting. If your brand, demand, and ops motions aren’t aligned, no campaign—AI-powered or not—is going to deliver sustainable growth.

We help B2B teams rethink the full system:

Not in theory decks. Not in one-off stunts. But right where it counts—inside workflows, inside messaging, inside how the business actually operates. The new bar isn’t innovation for its own sake.

When value’s built in, it shows up where pipeline gets built.

—Adam