Believe it or not, we are kicking off Season 4 of Misadventures in Marketing! In this first episode of the new season, co-hosts Steve Haney and Peter Farrago examine the fundamental shift occurring in B2B product discovery: what happens when AI agents, rather than human buyers, build the vendor shortlist? As potential customers move away from manual search engine research toward detailed prompts in large language models, the traditional SEO playbook of keywords and page clicks is quickly being replaced by Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). Peter breaks down this emerging dynamic into an "invisible RFP," where autonomous bots filter hundreds of potential solutions against strict criteria before a human sales team is ever engaged. To survive this algorithmic first cut, the hosts emphasize the critical framework of eligibility, fit, extractability, credibility, and consistency across digital footprints.

Surviving the bot-driven evaluation requires a deliberate strategy that combines machine-readable information with classic human-centric positioning. Steve and Peter discuss tactical approaches to visibility, including structuring web content into easily digested formats like Markdown, expanding detailed comparison pages and FAQs, and tracking citations across authoritative third-party sources like Reddit, G2, and Wikipedia. At the same time, they stress that as AI automates technical evaluations, traditional human elements—such as brand perception, emotional resonance, and empowering internal champions—become more vital than ever to close the deal. Ultimately, modern go-to-market teams must view the AI agent as a permanent new stakeholder on the buying committee, balancing technical precision for the bot with relationship-driven trust for the human decision-maker.

Also, don’t forget to check out AMA SF’s latest blog posts. Rinita Datta has a new post on LinkedIn AI slop, how to spot it, and what using it means for brand trust.

Rough Edges and Building Trust: B2B Marketing in the Age of AI Slop

https://www.amasf.org/blog/rough-edges-and-building-trust-b2b-marketing-in-the-age-of-ai-slop/

The American Marketing Association San Francisco Chapter presents Misadventures in Marketing, a podcast about high tech marketing in Silicon Valley, focusing primarily on marketing challenges in early stage technology startups. Hosts Peter Farago, a career high tech marketer and Steve Haney, a fractional GTM executive in tech, chat weekly about marketing practices in high tech, the latest martech product news, their experiences from the front lines, and interviews with their CMO friends and marketing colleagues.

Listen: https://mim.captivate.fm/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AMASanFrancisco/

X: https://x.com/AMASanFrancisco

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amasanfrancisco

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/amasf/

Hosts: Peter Farago and Steve Haney

Content Producer: Rinita Datta

Editing: Brian Douglas (Creative Comms)

Consulting Producer: JulieAnn Bornales

Marketing: Ian Robinson Lambert

We'd also like to thank our sponsor Workbox for their support of Misadventures in Marketing.

#startups, #hightech, #misadventuresinmarketing, #MiM, #marketing, #technologystartups, #SiliconValley, #CMO, #marketingstrategy, #innovation, #casestudies, #businesschallenges, #leadership, #companyculture, #techgiants, #CMO, #AMASF, #SiliconValley, #AI, #marketing, #SEO, #buyerbehavior, #generativeAI, #AIregulation, #AIinsales, #AItools, #AIstrategy, #AIandbusiness

00:00 Intro

03:17 Tech News (Apple iPhone Duo, AI Concerns)

10:55 AI Tips and Tricks (AI Bot Workflows and Shared Context Workflow

22:00 Five core pillars for generative engine optimization

27:22 Rethinking SEO

29:43 Why Brand Marketing Still Matters

34:07 Practical Steps for Marketers in the Age of AI

Buckle up, MiM-sters! Misadventures in Marketing is wrapping up our third season with a special guest. Episode 10, Job Search in the Age of AI, features Kate Sargent, an executive coach and recruiter, and founder of KJS Coaching and Consulting. Yours truly sat this one out, as my compelling co-host Peter Farago welcomed guest Kate to the show, where they explored career transitions and modern talent dynamics. Drawing on her own journey from retail store management to corporate recruiting, Kate explains why mastering corporate language and positioning transferable skills are essential for breaking through career barriers. She also breaks down how the current job market is being reshaped by AI integration, corporate role compression, and the growing necessity of fractional work.

To navigate these challenges, Kate advocates for an "aggressive kindness" coaching philosophy. She recommends you then accompany that with a strategic approach to networking that focuses on reciprocity, shared value, and leveraging loose connections. Whether you are pitching an interviewer using her "I to We to Company" storytelling framework or future-proofing your career with an advisory side hustle, this discussion offers actionable steps to articulate your true worth. Special thanks to Kate for giving us her time and do enjoy the show!

Also, don’t forget to check out AMA SF’s latest blog posts. Rinita Datta continues to turn out fantastic insights on topics every marketer should be up to speed on. Here is her latest, taking a fascinating look at community-driven marketing in the coolest of verticals: Yemini coffee shops!

The Bay Area’s community-driven marketing lesson, in coffee

https://www.amasf.org/blog/the-bay-areas-community-driven-marketing-lesson-in-coffee/

About Misadventures In Marketing

The American Marketing Association San Francisco Chapter presents Misadventures in Marketing, a podcast about high tech marketing in Silicon Valley, focusing primarily on marketing challenges in early stage technology startups. Hosts Peter Farago, a career high tech marketer and Steve Haney, a fractional GTM executive in tech, chat weekly about marketing practices in high tech, the latest martech product news, their experiences from the front lines, and interviews with their CMO friends and marketing colleagues.

Listen: https://mim.captivate.fm/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AMASanFrancisco/

X: https://x.com/AMASanFrancisco

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amasanfrancisco

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/amasf/

Hosts: Peter Farago and Steve Haney

Marketing: Ian Robinson Lambert

Editing: Brian Douglas (Creative Comms)

Consulting Producer: JulieAnn Bornales

Content Producer: Rinita Datta

We'd also like to thank our sponsor Workbox for their support of Misadventures in Marketing.

#startups, #hightech, #misadventuresinmarketing, #MiM, #marketing, #technologystartups, #SiliconValley, #CMO, #marketingstrategy, #innovation, #casestudies, #businesschallenges, #leadership, #companyculture, #techgiants, #CMO, #AMA, #SiliconValley, #careerdevelopment, #AIintheworkplace, #gigeconomy, #networking, #jobsearch, #leadershipcoaching

00:00 Intro: Ai Training and Part Time Marketing Jobs to Future Proof Your Career

01:41 Career Advancement Strategies

09:13 The Role of Business Mentors

13:01 Interview Tips to Conquer Imposter Syndrome

18:36 Why Consulting Services are Taking Over

25:17 LinkedIn Profile Strategies for a Down Market

27:59 Tips for Networking and Creating Connections

Welcome to Season 3, Episode 9 of Misadventures in Marketing: No Playbook? No Problem!

In this scintillating episode of Misadventures in Marketing, hosts Steve Haney and Peter Farago explore how start-up marketing teams deal with creating marketing playbooks that end up being relevant and executable for only a few months, given that AI is upending the landscape every few weeks. We begin the show with industry news, discussing Apple’s record-breaking quarterly revenue—driven by strong iPhone 17 sales and expanding hardware margins—and then analyze the U.S. Pentagon’s recent AI partnerships with major tech firms, highlighting Anthropic’s stance on keeping human judgment in the loop for defense technology. We also share practical workflows from our own daily use of AI, detailing how tools like Claude CoWork and custom MCP connectors can analyze sales call transcriptions from Gong or Fathom to quickly transform real customer insights into automated, high-quality blog posts and content.

But our main discussion focuses on the rapid shift away from static, long-term marketing plans in favor of continuous discovery and experimentation. Rather than treating messaging houses or positioning documents as fixed directives, modern marketing teams—especially within early-stage AI startups—must continuously refine their audience targeting, messaging, and category differentiation. Drawing insights from industry leaders like Aaron Levie and Reed Hastings, we emphasize that success today relies heavily on first-principles problem solving, sharp human judgment, and clear narrative design to cut through AI-generated noise and build real audience connections. It’s hard!

Also, don’t forget to check out AMA SF’s latest blog posts! Rinita Datta continues to turn out fantastic insights on topics every marketer should be up to speed on. Here is her latest, extending and extrapolating on a topic that we addressed on the podcast a few weeks ago:

What AI can’t replace on a marketing team

https://www.amasf.org/blog/what-ai-cant-replace/

The American Marketing Association San Francisco Chapter presents Misadventures in Marketing, a podcast about high tech marketing in Silicon Valley, focusing primarily on marketing challenges in early stage technology startups. Hosts Peter Farago, a career high tech marketer and Steve Haney, a fractional GTM executive in tech, chat weekly about marketing practices in high tech, the latest martech product news, their experiences from the front lines, and interviews with their CMO friends and marketing colleagues.

Listen: https://mim.captivate.fm/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AMASanFrancisco/

X: https://x.com/AMASanFrancisco

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amasanfrancisco

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/amasf/

Hosts: Peter Farago and Steve Haney

Marketing: Ian Robinson Lambert

Editing: Brian Douglas (Creative Comms)

Consulting Producer: JulieAnn Bornales

Content Producer: Rinita Datta

We'd also like to thank our sponsor Workbox for their support of Misadventures in Marketing.

#startups, #hightech, #misadventuresinmarketing, #MiM, #marketing, #technologystartups, #SiliconValley, #CMO, #marketingstrategy, #innovation, #casestudies, #businesschallenges, #leadership, #companyculture, #techgiants, #CMO, #AMA, #SiliconValley, #MarketingMagic, #StartupChaos, #AITechInsights, #MisadventuresInMarketing, #HighTechMarketing, #MarketingPlaybook