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What are advertisers’ and publishers’ biggest challenges as they redesign their programmatic strategies around data protection legislation and other privacy changes?

Retail sales via online marketplaces are growing faster than overall ecommerce. As competition in the sector rises, brands and retailers must navigate the challenges of an increasingly complex landscape.

How can brands and retailers succeed in the new era of mobile-first ecommerce?

Delivery is a critical component of ecommerce fulfillment, but accessing this opportunity requires brands and retailers to navigate a complex set of options and find ways to meet rising consumer expectations.

Though still a small player at 0.1% of B2B ecommerce site sales, BigCommerce B2B sales are projected to grow an average 8.3% YoY from 2024 to 2026 and will hit $3.05 billion by 2026. Recommendations for B2B ecommerce buyers and sellers. Prioritize data accuracy and governance.

Meta AI’s voice assistant could power voice-activated B2B sales or retail tools, while its AR capabilities could open the door to immersive sales demos and brand experiences. Facial recognition could increase the volume and detail of user data available to Meta and brands and fuel deeper analytics and personalization.

The telehealth tie-ups can help drugmakers’ B2B sales efforts. UpScript alerts Pfizer which of its doctors wrote prescriptions. Pharma companies can use this data to target high-volume prescribers with marketing materials and clinical data on existing and new drugs. Our take: Drugmakers in the D2C telehealth market likely won’t be too worried about the report’s findings.

Williams-Sonoma is growing B2B sales (up 10% in Q2) while broadening its assortment of seasonal décor, textiles, and housewares. Strategic collaborations are helping pull in new customers and keep the brand fresh. The home improvement and furnishing industries are in transition. Retailers are betting on pro-driven demand, technology, and operational efficiency to weather housing weakness.

B2B marketers must be aligned with sales to drive revenue and business growth. This might seem a herculean task, but there are ways leaders can surmount relationship, communication, and data challenges and successfully align on shifts in B2B buying.

Regardless of changes in the market, marketers will always have to build their first-party data around the buyer’s information and behavior. Complete and accurate data on prospects and customers is essential to making sound decisions about accounts that sales and marketing should target together.

In supply-side roles at tech vendors, talent is scarce, especially in complex B2B sales positions that require nuanced expertise around multiparty, data-driven, programmatic inventory optimization and monetization. Retailers have enough talent to choose from but face challenges such as defining their broader strategy, roles, and ad tech platform integration.

Ten years after its establishment, Amazon Business is expanding its seller network and product selection to serve an 8 million global organization customer base, which has grown 33% from 6 million in 2023. Many of the capabilities that individual shoppers enjoy on Amazon’s B2C platform—broad selection, cost savings, and advanced technology—are being applied to its B2B marketplace to help organizations work smarter and more efficiently. As Amazon Business continues to innovate, it is poised to compete for more sales from companies seeking to save time and resources.

The news: Lowe’s is acquiring Foundation Building Materials (FBM) for approximately $8.8 billion. The North American distributor of interior building products generated roughly $6.5 billion in revenues in 2024 on a pro forma basis and operates more than 370 locations across the US and Canada, serving 40,000 Pro customers. Its business spans both new construction and repair/remodel applications. Our take: Lowe’s is playing the long game. By doubling down on Pro customers, the retailer is building a buffer against consumer caution and the frozen housing market. FBM’s scale positions Lowe’s to capture long-term share as construction rebounds, and the raised sales guidance signals confidence that its Pro-focused playbook is already delivering results. That stands in contrast to Home Depot, which recently fell short of both revenue and earnings expectations for the first time in a decade. While Home Depot has leaned into its Pro business as well, tariffs, elevated housing costs, and labor pressures are weighing on its results. Lowe’s acquisitions and investments could give it an edge in weathering near-term headwinds and winning share from contractors and builders who will be critical growth drivers over the next decade.