B2B Connect 2025 Recap: What B2B Self-Serve Actually Looks Like in the Field

Just got back from my first trip to California—San Diego for #B2BConnect2025.

Two packed days of sessions, and what stood out most wasn’t the tech or trends. It was the real talk from operators, marketers, and sales leaders trying to modernize how B2B actually works.

I spoke on two panels that hit close to home. Here’s what I shared from the trenches.

Self-Serve Isn’t a Feature. It’s a Sales Strategy.

On Monday, I joined folks from Deloitte Digital Midmarket , PCNA , CP Skin Health Group th and Schneider Electric to talk about B2B self-serve.

I kept it blunt: If self-serve is just a checkbox on your roadmap, you're missing the point.

We rolled out a self-service platform back in 2019 when I was Lumen / Sonepar Canada —and adoption grew 20 to 30% per month. But the real unlock was giving our sales team visibility. We are creating sales accounts in the portal so reps could see what their customers were doing.

That one change:

  • Cut the number of avoidable support tickets

  • Reduced onboarding time for new reps

  • Let us scale back field sales support calls significantly

Most companies talk about empowering customers. We realized you also need to empower your sales team to trust what digital is doing.

Sales and Marketing: Still Not Speaking the Same Language

Tuesday’s town hall focused on sales-marketing alignment, hosted by BigCommerce.

One story I shared: We built what we thought was a great digital brochure. The sales team ignored it.

Why? It was too long. Too complicated. Didn’t reflect how they actually sell.

That moment forced us to stop creating content for sales and start creating content with them. We now:

  • Ask reps what they actually need in the field

  • Track engagement with PDFs, forms, and assets through our CRM

  • Reformat content based on rep feedback (sometimes that means ditching the fancy design for a simple image or quote)

When reps feel like it’s their tool—not marketing’s—they start using it.

The Real Barrier: Internal Trust

Across both panels, the same challenge came up: channel conflict.

Sales teams still feel threatened by eCom. They see it as competition. And it’s often because we haven’t done the work to show them how digital supports—not replaces—their role.

If you want adoption, give them:

  • Access to the same insights your eCom team sees

  • CRM data showing how content drives leads

  • Clear incentives tied to digital engagement

Change doesn’t come from features. It comes from trust.

Final Thought

The modern B2B buyer isn’t waiting for your strategy to catch up. They’re already acting like B2C customers—self-researching, comparing prices, expecting personalization and speed.

We don’t need buzzwords or a “transformation.” We need fewer blockers and more visibility.

#B2BConnect2025 #B2BCommerce #SalesEnablement #SelfServe #eCommerce #Manufacturing #Distribution #MarketingStrategy #b2beCommerce