Your Buyers Stopped Googling: Here's Where They Went

"A majority of the B2B buyer journey is invisible to marketers. What's changed over the years is where the invisible part happens. Buyers used to disappear into Google searches, peer conversations and industry events. Now they disappear into LLMs. They are asking ChatGPT or Claude to compare vendors, explain solutions and build shortlists. Those answers shape purchasing decisions before your sales team gets a phone call."

"If your content is not structured for an LLM to cite, you are not deprioritized. You are excluded from the consideration set entirely. This is not theoretical. I am tracking LLM referral traffic in our analytics right now, and it is increasing month over month. The buyers arriving through these channels are higher quality than any paid campaign I have ever run because they already got the answer to their question and chose to learn more."

"Marketing is two functions wearing the same title: corporate marketing and growth marketing. Corporate marketing keeps the lights on. Website, brand, content, design, credibility. You need it the same way you need a front door to your office. You cannot calculate the ROI of having a front door. You just know that without one, nobody can walk in."

"Growth marketing drives pipeline. Campaigns, SDR programs, demand generation, events. Every dollar is trackable. Every lead is attributable. I have made it mandatory for anyone entering a deal into our CRM to attach a campaign or source. No exceptions. The result is clean multi-touch attribution once a prospect deanonymizes themselves."

A large portion of the B2B buyer journey is not visible to marketers. Buyers previously disappeared into search, peer conversations, and industry events, but now they disappear into LLMs that answer questions, compare vendors, explain solutions, and generate shortlists. These LLM-shaped answers influence purchasing decisions before sales outreach. Content must be structured so an LLM can cite it; otherwise the vendor can be excluded from the consideration set. LLM referral traffic is increasing and brings higher-quality buyers because they already received answers and choose to learn more. Marketing is presented as two distinct functions: corporate marketing builds credibility and visibility, while growth marketing drives pipeline with trackable, attributable dollars.

Read at Forbes