In this edition, we share news about a podcast episode on AI adoption in B2B marketing, a livestream recording on B2B marketing trends for 2026, and a LinkedIn post on how LinkedIn outreach has changed in early 2026.
B2B Marketing Leaders podcast: AI in B2B marketing with AWS, Amazon, Cast AI, and ModMed experts
In the new episode, Olga Bondareva, founder of ModumUp, talks with experts from enterprise companies about AI adoption in B2B marketing.
Guests include:
Sabari Sawant, Product Marketing Manager Kubernetes at Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Parth Raichur, Performance Marketing Manager at Amazon
Alexey Leybov, Director of Demand Generation at Cast AI
Madison Fujii, Digital Marketing Specialist II at ModMed
What they discussed:
- A practical approach to AI adoption, focusing on privacy, compliance, hallucination risks, and clear boundaries for human judgment
- How secure internal AI tools help protect sensitive data
- How AI saves time by automating drafts, research, data analysis, and repetitive marketing tasks
- Areas that need extra human review when using AI: pricing, customer case studies, and compliance-critical content
- Why authenticity matters more in a market full of AI-generated content
- The shift from traditional SEO to Answer Engine Optimization as buyers use tools like ChatGPT more often
- How to train teams to use AI effectively while keeping clear governance and quality standards
A practical conversation on how B2B teams can adopt AI responsibly, balancing efficiency with trust, governance, and the need for human insight in an AI-driven market.
B2B marketing leaders: 2026 Trends - a live online event
What's next for B2B marketers in 2026? Experts from Intel, Infor, and ModumUp shared their views during the January 21 livestream. One common theme: trust is becoming the most valuable resource in B2B, and AI is speeding up this shift, not solving it.
The event had 766 registrations from 51 countries and 82 peak live viewers.
Main points from speakers:
Olga Bondareva, Founder of ModumUp
As AI-generated content fills the market, traditional signals of expertise are losing their value. Buyers trust people more than brands. Communities matter in B2B: product-led communities work well with audiences already familiar with a product, while professional communities support ABM by creating meaningful, non-sales conversations. A company-owned community is a long-term GTM asset that generates inbound demand through trust.
Dina Habib O'Mara, Global Partner Marketing Executive at Intel Corporation
Most B2B buying decisions happen before engaging with sales teams. Shortlists are formed based on digital content and intent data, while buyer loyalty decreases in favor of relevance and ROI. The traditional MQL model is becoming outdated as B2B purchases are made by buying groups, not individuals.
Sanjay Kidambi, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Infor
AI adoption is moving from individual experimentation to formalized, agentic marketing operations built into data, content, and workflows. These agentic systems need a trusted golden record, a 360-degree view of accounts shared across marketing, sales, and service teams. AI-driven concierge experiences are replacing traditional website menus as the primary interface.
Watch the full recording here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqXpd8oM5ok
How LinkedIn outreach has changed in early 2026
Olga Bondareva, Founder of ModumUp, recently shared observations on how LinkedIn outreach strategies have shifted based on results from ModumUp agency projects.
What's changed:
- First message response rates have dropped: 10% is now normal (previously 30%+)
- Follow-up sequences matter more: 3-4 short follow-ups bring total response rates to 40-60%
- Follow-ups changed from longer, nurturing messages to short messages with clear questions
- Suggesting alternative communication channels helps secure contacts and build databases
- Returning to previous rejections after 2-3 months with updated proposals can generate additional leads
- ABM personalization should focus on specific business challenges rather than company compliments
- Networking-style messages can generate enterprise-level leads when sent by someone with a strong personal background
Read more in Olga's recent post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/olgabond_how-linkedin-outreach-has-changed-as-of-early-activity-7429521266375634944-r8WU
We hope these findings add value to your B2B strategy work. Feel free to share this newsletter with colleagues and friends who might find these resources useful.
Best regards,
The ModumUp team