AI’s rapid acceleration isn’t just reshaping B2B marketing workflows—it’s forcing organizations to rethink how decisions get made. That’s the premise behind ChatB2B, a new weekly podcast designed for B2B practitioners who want sharper clarity and stronger perspectives as the industry moves through a pivotal technological shift.

Hosted by Andrew Au, Co-CEO of Intercept and a recognized technology expert featured in Forbes, Bloomberg, BNN, and Business Insider, the show aims to cut through hype and focus on real operational change. Each episode features candid conversations with B2B marketing leaders who explain what’s working now, what’s noise, and how AI is altering campaigns, content creation, and go-to-market operations.

ChatB2B debuts with three conversations that reflect the breadth of AI’s influence across the B2B ecosystem:

Episode 1 — Mike Thibodeau, Google Cloud

Sales Enablement in the Era of AI: Are We in an AI Bubble?

Au and Thibodeau break down how AI is reshaping sales enablement, particularly as revenue teams face content overload and longer, more complex buyer journeys. The discussion explores whether AI is driving efficiency or inflating expectations—and what “enablement” will really mean in 2025 and beyond.

Episode 2 — Jonna Bell, Qualcomm

The New Partner Marketing Playbook

As channel programs become more content-heavy and resource-intensive, AI is changing how global partner teams operate. Bell explains how Qualcomm is personalizing content, simplifying workflows, and scaling partner support in ways traditional systems couldn’t handle.

Episode 3 — Josh Chiavaroli, Intel

What AI Really Means for Your Marketing Career

For marketers assessing their future skill sets, Chiavaroli offers a grounded perspective. Drawing on experience across OEM and silicon businesses—and teaching—he outlines which capabilities are rising in value and what responsibilities humans should continue to own, even in an AI-first environment.

With AI transforming everything from message orchestration to organizational decision-making, ChatB2B enters the market as a guide for practitioners still trying to make sense of this rapid evolution. Early episodes suggest a show focused not on theory, but on practical frameworks B2B leaders can apply immediately.

Klaviyo’s 2025 BFCM Report shows loyalty and AI personalization driving $3.8B in revenue as discounts fall and intentional shopping surges.

Klaviyo has released its 2025 BFCM Recap Report, and the results upend years of retail assumptions. Instead of aggressive markdowns fueling demand, this year’s record-setting performance was powered by repeat buyers, AI-driven personalization, and a more intentional shopper mindset.

Across Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, Klaviyo delivered 22.7 billion messages, a 25% year-over-year jump. Those interactions generated more than $3.8 billion in attributed revenue, cementing Klaviyo’s influence across BFCM. And while discounting across ecommerce declined 10% year-over-year, consumer spending actually climbed 11%, giving brands clear proof that trust beat promotions.

One of the most striking insights: one in every twenty dollars spent online in the US during BFCM originated from a Klaviyo-delivered experience. Health & Beauty and Apparel led growth, with 14% and 11% year-over-year increases.

Loyalty wasn’t just a talking point—it was the engine. Same-site sales rose 11% year-over-year, powered by a 13.5% surge from repeat customers. Brands leaned into VIP access, early drops, and personalized offers rather than broad, margin-cutting discounts. Shoppers responded by spending more time evaluating purchases too, with product views up 41%. Average selling price and order value increased as consumers deliberately bought from brands they trusted.

Discounts, meanwhile, played a supporting role. Daily markdowns never crossed the 30% threshold for Klaviyo brands, a notable shift from previous years. Brands offering the lightest discounts saw the fastest growth at 14% year-over-year. Only Home & Garden bucked the trend, as larger-ticket items still needed deeper cuts to move. Across most categories, restrained promotions didn’t dampen demand, underscoring how confidence in a brand can outweigh the appeal of a bargain.

Klaviyo CEO Andrew Bialecki said the data confirms a broader consumer shift: people want meaningful, relevant experiences—not transactional blasts. AI helped marketers meet that shift at scale, delivering smarter segmentation and personalized timing across every channel. Trust mixed with intelligent targeting turned out to be the winning formula.

AI’s impact extended well beyond message delivery. This BFCM, more than half of consumers planned to use AI assistants to compare products and identify deals. That behavior powered what Klaviyo calls “agentic commerce”—shopping journeys guided by automated research and curated suggestions. Brands met that moment with a 45% jump in AI-driven recommendations, driving a 71% spike in revenue tied to those messages.

Onsite behavior changed as well. Personalized pages built with Customer Hub brought together product recommendations, fit guidance, and even shipment tracking. Visitors who interacted with these pages viewed 2.4 more pages per session, signaling stronger purchase intent and deeper exploration.

Klaviyo Service matured into a conversion driver too. Apparel, beauty, swimwear, and athletic brands relied on the AI Customer Agent to handle fit questions, product guidance, and gifting decisions. By reducing uncertainty, brands converted more curious shoppers into confident buyers.

The channel mix also shifted. Mobile messaging surged as consumers bounced between screens and stores. Text revenue climbed 25% year-over-year as send volume grew 34%, boosted further by early RCS adoption. Across Klaviyo’s ecosystem, email and SMS generated 42% of total revenue—and rose to 43% on peak days. Even more compelling: customers receiving messages across both channels placed 11% more orders and viewed 71% more products.

For brands like Filson, the week wasn’t about volume alone. Zach Solomon, Director of Ecommerce and CRM, noted that BFCM is a chance to reinforce brand values while driving sales. With Klaviyo, Filson blended loyalty-driven access with intentional storytelling, treating each touchpoint as an opportunity to build trust—not just ring up a transaction.

Klaviyo’s report makes the takeaway clear. AI and loyalty are rewriting the rules of BFCM. As shoppers become more selective, brands that combine relevance, restraint, and personalization won’t just win Cyber Week—they’ll win the year.

Attentive reports its strongest Cyber Week ever, driving nearly $2B in revenue as AI-powered personalization boosts performance across SMS, email, and push.

Attentive has capped Cyber Week with its strongest performance to date, delivering nearly $2 billion in revenue for more than 8,000 brands. The AI-driven marketing platform pushed out 5.7 billion SMS, email, and push messages, marking a 46% jump in volume year-over-year—all while maintaining zero downtime during the industry’s most pressure-packed week.

The surge reflects a year of strategic expansion across enterprise clients, deeper investment in email and push, and significant platform optimization. In an ecosystem where reliability is non-negotiable, Attentive’s uninterrupted performance helped brands cut through the noise with targeted, transactional messaging.

Amit Jhawar, Attentive’s CEO, credits real-time intent understanding as the differentiator. AI enabled marketers to deliver tailored content at scale, turning billions of signals into moments of conversion. In a Cyber Week defined by shifting consumer patterns and constant competition, precision mattered more than promotion volume.

The numbers back it up. Brands using Attentive’s agentic AI grew twice as fast as those not using the technology. Smart segmentation and channel optimization ensured messages landed where customers were most likely to act. The result: higher engagement, fewer missed opportunities, and stronger omnichannel consistency.

Attentive’s CMO, Keri McGhee, says the winners this season were the brands that prioritized relevance over broad reach. AI stitched together individual preferences—timing, product interest, channel selection—and turned them into conversion-ready workflows. With consumer attention fragmented across every device, this level of responsiveness proved essential.

Omnichannel orchestration was another story driver. Record performance spanned every channel. SMS revenue rose 42%, while email climbed 29%, supported by a 4.7% increase in click-through rates and a 17% reduction in opt-outs. Even as inbox competition intensified, Attentive’s tooling helped brands sustain engagement without sacrificing consumer trust.

CTO Antonio Silveira underscores the achievement as a proof point for platform scalability. Many companies promise personalization at scale, but few deliver it during Black Friday–Cyber Monday, when message spikes and unpredictable demand can break even seasoned systems. Attentive’s stability under peak load signals its readiness for the next evolution of AI-powered marketing.

With AI now firmly embedded in the shopping experience, Cyber Week 2025 showed a clear shift: brands that adopted intelligent orchestration accelerated, while others played catch-up. Attentive is betting that the next retail cycle will deepen this divide as marketers push harder for efficiency, automation, and real-time personalization.

Category Communications, one of Canada’s emerging PR agencies, has promoted Rachael D’Amore to Vice President and Partner. The move marks a strategic leadership expansion as the firm positions itself as a top choice for changemakers across technology, real estate, and financial services.

The agency launched in 2024 and has been scaling at a notable pace. It has secured clients such as Clutch, Xanadu, Merchant Growth, Singlekey, and Nextdoor—an impressive lineup for a firm not yet two years old. Equally telling is the talent it continues to attract. Recent hires include veterans like former BetaKit and The Logic journalist Jessica Galang, along with communications professionals Rachel Caria and Kirstie Bowman. With these additions, the team now stands at 11.

D’Amore, who spent a decade in traditional journalism before shifting into PR, will continue shaping senior-level strategy while accelerating team development and business growth efforts. Her storytelling background gives the agency an edge in a market where narrative, credibility, and clarity increasingly separate standout brands from the noise.

She says joining the partnership alongside co-founders Chantel Cassar and Lauren Arnold is a milestone that reflects the agency’s ambition. Her focus remains on supporting innovators across Canada and strengthening the firm’s impact-driven approach.

The co-founders point to her leadership over the past year as a catalyst for the agency’s upward trajectory. From overseeing flagship accounts to mentoring rising talent, D’Amore has played a central role in shaping Category Communications’ model—one that blends newsroom instincts with PR execution.

With rapid growth, a sharpening client mix, and a leadership team built on editorial and strategic depth, the agency is positioning itself as a competitive force in Canada’s evolving communications landscape.

Postmedia Network Inc. has introduced Tails Told, a digital platform designed to help pet owners honour the animals that shaped their lives. The launch expands Postmedia’s growing portfolio of consumer-facing storytelling tools and builds on the success of Lives Told, the company’s biography service.

Tails Told converts personal memories into polished digital tributes. Users can submit photos and stories, and Postmedia’s team turns them into crafted narratives that capture each pet’s personality. The concept feels familiar to anyone who has seen the rise of digital memorial platforms, yet it stands out because of its focus on pets and its use of narrative craft rather than automated templates.

Aleya MacFayden, Vice President of Product Innovation & Partnerships at Postmedia Elevate, says the platform offers a direct way for people to celebrate the animals that shaped their daily lives. The service aims to make remembrance less overwhelming and more accessible for families who want something lasting but simple.

The launch comes with a charitable component. Postmedia will donate ten per cent of all Tails Told stories sold in Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia to the provincial SPCAs. The timing matters, as the winter months typically strain shelter resources. The move offers a way for the platform to contribute beyond engagement metrics and early adoption.

Tails Told also supports gifting. For the holiday season, the company expects stories to become an option for pet lovers searching for something more meaningful than a typical pet accessory or treat. With digital storytelling gaining momentum across consumer categories, Postmedia is positioning Tails Told as both a keepsake creator and a marketing channel with emotional depth.

The platform is available now at TailsTold.com.

The fitness certification market just gained a serious new contender. The International Personal Trainer Academy (IPTA) has officially launched its NCCA-accredited Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) and Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS) programs—two offerings aimed at shaking up an industry long criticized for high costs, uneven quality, and outdated study tools.

For aspiring trainers and nutrition coaches, this is a notable moment. Accreditation from the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) remains the gold standard across health and fitness careers. By pairing that credibility with lower costs and more modern learning tools, IPTA is positioning itself as an accessible alternative to legacy certification providers.

Ben Rose, CEO of IPTA, says the new programs were designed to lower the barriers to entry that block many qualified learners. According to him, too many accredited CPT options today are “either too expensive or lack effective study resources.” IPTA aims to counter that trend with science-driven materials, free textbooks, and online exam access—all without upfront commitments. The goal is simple: make legitimate certification easier to obtain without sacrificing academic rigor.

Both the CPT and CNS programs share a common framework. They include NCCA accreditation, unlimited exam retakes, and lifetime access to course materials and continuing education. Students also receive a job placement guarantee, signaling that IPTA intends to support graduates long after the exam is passed. For a credentialing market where support often ends at certification day, this is a meaningful shift.

Industry watchers have taken notice. Tyler Read, founder of PTPioneer.com and a respected voice on fitness certifications, called IPTA’s arrival “a major step forward for new trainers.” He notes that affordable, accredited programs with strong study materials are hard to find, and IPTA’s model introduces competitive pressure that could reshape how certification providers serve learners.

The early response from graduates is equally telling. In a Trustpilot review, alumna Maya Wolthuis described IPTA as “life-changing,” crediting the program for giving her the confidence and knowledge needed to land a job at her dream gym. Testimonials like this highlight the real-world impact certification programs can have when they mix accessible pricing with strong educational design.

The timing of IPTA’s launch also aligns with the broader evolution of the wellness industry. Consumer demand for evidence-based training and nutrition support continues to rise. Gyms, digital fitness platforms, and health-tech companies increasingly prefer NCCA-accredited professionals who understand exercise science, behavior change, and nutrition fundamentals. As a result, pathways that help new trainers develop credible, practical skills—without financial strain—may become essential to meeting market demand.

With these programs, IPTA steps into a crowded but shifting landscape. Established players like NASM, ACE, and ISSA hold significant market share, yet their premium pricing structures often limit access. IPTA’s hybrid model of accreditation, affordability, and lifetime learning could appeal to the next generation of fitness professionals looking for flexibility and long-term support.

The real test will be adoption at scale. If learners gravitate toward IPTA—and early indicators suggest they might—the certification market could see a wave of modernization driven by transparency, accessible learning, and student-first policies. For now, the academy’s NCCA-accredited CPT and CNS programs mark a promising expansion of options, particularly for those seeking a credible start in fitness and nutrition careers without the financial burden.

AppLovin is heading to the UBS Global Technology and AI Conference, signaling renewed momentum behind its rapidly expanding AI-driven marketing platform. The company will participate in a fireside chat on December 2, 2025, where executives are expected to discuss growth strategy, product innovation, and the rising influence of AI in performance marketing.

The session begins at 10:55 a.m. MT in Scottsdale, Arizona, and will be livestreamed through AppLovin’s investor relations site, with a replay available afterward. For investors and marketers following the company’s evolution, the event offers a timely window into how AppLovin is positioning itself amid escalating competition in AI-powered adtech.

The appearance comes as AppLovin continues refining its suite of AI and software tools designed to help businesses reach, monetize, and scale global audiences. The company has built one of the industry’s most comprehensive platforms, connecting app developers and brands to high-quality users through predictive models, optimized bidding, and real-time decisioning. Its technology stack has become increasingly central to growth strategies across gaming, entertainment, retail, and mobile-first businesses.

AppLovin’s presence at the UBS event underscores a broader trend in the advertising and app monetization space: AI is now the core engine powering customer acquisition and revenue optimization. Adtech players that can automate audience discovery, cut inefficient spend, and deliver measurable return are scaling quickly. Investors will be watching how AppLovin plans to sustain its momentum as the sector matures and AI standards evolve.

The conference also arrives during a period of consolidation in the marketing technology landscape, with platforms racing to combine data, distribution, and machine intelligence into unified growth engines. For AppLovin, which has spent years refining its end-to-end software suite, this is an opportunity to reinforce its leadership narrative—and clarify where the next phase of innovation will come from.

A deeper look at AppLovin’s recent strategy suggests the company is leaning into three themes: precision targeting through AI, deeper analytics for revenue optimization, and global audience expansion. These pillars continue to resonate with developers and enterprises seeking scalable, automated, and performance-driven solutions in a fragmented mobile ecosystem.

With AI transforming every step of the user-acquisition funnel, AppLovin’s visibility at high-profile events like UBS’s technology summit signals that the company intends to remain a defining player in the next wave of marketing automation.

Cinema advertising just secured a bigger seat at the performance table. National CineMedia (NCM), the largest cinema advertising network in the US, has partnered with TransUnion to plug theatrical exposure data directly into TransUnion’s cross-platform attribution engine. The move brings cinema into the same measurement ecosystem as digital, CTV, social, and linear channels—an overdue shift in an industry obsessed with outcomes.

TransUnion’s attribution platform, built on an identity graph that covers 98% of US adults, is widely used by brands across retail, entertainment, automotive, and financial services. It measures media lift, deduplicates audiences across channels, and uncovers real-world incremental impact. By adding NCM’s NCMx dataset—an intelligence layer built from moviegoing behavior—the platform can now quantify exactly how cinema affects conversion, reach, and brand engagement.

The integration effectively turns the theater screen into a fully accountable performance channel. Advertisers can see what cinema impressions deliver, how they stack up against other formats, and how theatrical storytelling influences downstream actions such as site visits, purchases, and app engagement. In a crowded attribution market, the big screen is finally measurable at the same resolution as the small ones.

Manu Singh, NCM’s Chief Data & Innovation Officer, framed the move as the next evolution of cinema’s performance credibility. He noted that while theaters have long excelled at immersive storytelling, they haven’t always been measured with the precision of digital channels. By folding NCMx data into TransUnion’s system, the company is reinforcing cinema’s role as both a brand-building and revenue-driving channel.

The integration offers several measurable gains for advertisers:

• Cross-Channel Clarity: Cinema’s contribution sits alongside digital, CTV, and linear within one unified attribution model.

• Incremental Lift Validation: Brands can quantify conversions influenced by theatrical exposure.

• Sequenced Engagement: Identity continuity allows marketers to reach audiences at the theater and re-engage them across channels.

• Efficiency at Scale: TransUnion’s deduplication capabilities reduce wasted impressions.

• ROI Proof: Cinema’s impact becomes fully comparable with other performance-marketing channels.

For TransUnion, adding cinema data expands the granularity of cross-channel analysis. Mike Finnerty, SVP of Marketing Solutions Services, emphasized that a holistic view of campaign performance is becoming indispensable. More channels in the measurement framework mean higher confidence in optimization decisions.

The announcement also builds on NCM’s growing suite of data-led tools, including Boost, Boomerang, and Bullseye. These products already enable audience targeting, localized creative, in-theater activation, and moviegoer retargeting. Attribution integration adds the missing link—proof of impact.

The timing is noteworthy. As marketers face increasing pressure to justify spend, previously unmeasured channels will either evolve or lose budget priority. With this integration, cinema not only keeps its place in the media mix but becomes harder to overlook. The big screen now brings big data to match.

And for an industry racing toward omnichannel intelligence, this partnership pushes cinema into a new era—one where measurable outcomes matter as much as blockbuster storytelling.