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Biggest B2B Trends of Q4 - Anchor Group Podcast | Episode: 26

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Podcast Transcript:

Michael (00:00)
Hi everybody, thank you for joining episode 26 of the Anchor Group Podcast. Today we're going to be talking with somebody from Anchor Group's team — Sam Galvin. Sam manages all of the e-commerce projects here at Anchor Group, so we're going to be able to pick his brain and see what he thinks about some of the most recent trends in B2B e-commerce as we round out the end of the year. Stay tuned — this is going to be a good one.

Sam, thanks for joining the Anchor Group Podcast today. We're happy to have you on.

Sam (01:00)
It's great to be here, Michael. Super excited to chat with you.

Michael (01:04)
Before we really take a deep dive into some of the trends in B2B e-commerce toward the tail end of 2025, let's get a bit of background on who you are — your role at Anchor Group and how long you've been in that role.

Sam (01:20)
Absolutely. My name is Sam Galvin, and I’m the team lead here at Anchor Group for our e-commerce department, specifically around project management of our e-commerce projects. I’ve been the team lead for about a year and at Anchor Group for about three years total.

My role is really the oversight and delivery of all the different e-commerce projects we do — whether that’s in SuiteCommerce off of NetSuite, BigCommerce, or even Shopify. We work in a lot of different areas, and what my team does is ensure that when you’re putting together a new website or migrating websites, we get you from point A to point B — which is a great new site that meets your requirements.

I manage a team of project managers who do just that. Excited to talk more about what we’re seeing and what I do day to day.

Michael (02:22)
Fantastic, thank you for sharing that. Hopefully that paints a picture for the audience as to who you are and your role here at Anchor Group.

Before we dive into trends, I’ve got a quick question about what you just mentioned. What does a successful e-commerce implementation or project look like — whether it’s a migration or a full-scale implementation of a net-new website for a company? At Anchor Group, how do we measure success, and what does a successful project look like?

Sam (02:53)
There are a lot of different areas to talk about. Projects can be long, large, and complex. What we really look for at Anchor Group is making sure that we’re keeping people on budget, on timeline, and converting in a way that ensures we’re not just giving them a product and saying, “Have a good day.”

We want to make sure that long term, the website is actually generating revenue, sales, and even more clicks into their general company profile. We want to see long-term success for these websites.

Within the project cycle, we focus mainly on the development of anything custom, the migration of data — getting into the weeds of those things — and managing that through various processes. Ultimately, what we care about is making sure your company gets the website it needs and can start generating more revenue based on that e-commerce site.

Michael (04:10)
Well put. I know you have quite a few projects in flight right now, so let’s get into some of the trends you’ve been seeing. You’ve got a pulse on every project in the e-commerce space that comes through Anchor Group’s doors, so I figured you’d be the perfect person to talk about trends throughout 2025 and as we round the final turn into Q4 — some of the hottest topics people are bringing up on calls or that project managers are hearing again and again.

What are some of the trends you’ve seen throughout the year or are seeing toward the tail end of the year?

Sam (04:42)
As I’m managing, I get oversight into all these projects, and we work with companies across the board — from university bookstores to massive manufacturers, B2B to B2C. We kind of do it all.

I think B2B is a really interesting area to drill into and double tap on because it’s not an emerging field, but it feels that way with everything new going on — whether that’s AI or companies utilizing websites more. We all know the B2C craze and the quick wins there, but I think it’s the foundational industries — the businesses that maybe seem boring, selling paper or manufacturing goods — that are really the pillars of our economy.

It’s cool to see those companies catching up to advancements in technology.

Michael (06:08)
That’s a good way to put it — the pillars of the economy are starting to ride the wave of technological improvement. It’s an interesting shift to see.

Sam (06:21)
For sure. I don’t mean that as an insult — it’s just that those industries often take a little longer to adapt. But that’s changing fast.

The biggest trend I’m seeing, especially within our field, is the desire for a one-stop shop for B2B customers. Our clients want to be able to do everything they need in one place — which helps them cut costs on their end by minimizing how many vendors or systems they have to manage.

The goal is to automate everything — from paying invoices and responding to quotes to generating new sales orders. Right now, a lot of companies’ systems are messy. They’ve pieced things together over the years just to get something to work.

The trend we’re seeing now is a clean slate: consolidating into one or maybe two systems that let them clearly understand their data and deliver the right information to their customers. To start there, that’s really the trend I’m seeing — the desire for a one-stop shop.

Michael (08:03)
Some people might think, “Haven’t businesses always wanted a one-stop shop?” Sure, companies have talked about that for years — three, five, maybe ten years ago. But I think with the dawn of AI, that idea has taken on a new meaning artificial intelligence, of course—but what does that mean for B2B companies? I think a lot of them kind of look at AI through rose-colored glasses and think about automation, but also about process improvement as a whole. The dawn of AI has given B2B merchants a refreshed perspective, where they now see more importance in streamlining the business. For many, that means bringing everything into one portal, like you were explaining, Sam.

The way I think about B2B companies, or the industry as a whole—especially manufacturing companies bringing their operations online—is like a freight train. It takes a little bit to get going, but once the whole train’s moving, a lot of weight is behind that momentum. And going back to what you mentioned earlier, we’re seeing that shift in the market. That train’s really starting to pick up speed now.

Sam (09:38)
Jumping off that, Michael, I think it’s fascinating how extremes push the norm. I remember when I started out, I was working with Salesforce quite a bit. In my day to day, I was using Salesforce, but I never heard anyone mention it outside of work. Then the dawn of AI came, and suddenly I’m watching a football game, and Matthew McConaughey is telling me about AI for Salesforce.

Michael (10:05)
Good old Matthew McConaughey. That’s right.

Sam (10:07)
Yeah—where did that come from? No one ever talked about Salesforce, and now here we are. Those buzzwords get people, especially in higher management, to start thinking, “Man, AI and Salesforce are the thing—I’m five steps behind.”

Michael (10:22)
So are you saying those advertisements are working?

Sam (10:26)
I’m saying they might be. I don’t have the data to back it up, but I wouldn’t be surprised.

Michael (10:28)
I’ve seen those commercials too, and if you’ve watched football in the past few months, you probably have as well. I did wonder why they picked him, but honestly, he does a pretty good job.

Sam (10:37)
It’s a good ad. If you can get Matthew McConaughey on any commercial, it doesn’t really matter what the content is—that’s a win. But I do think that kind of marketing is moving the needle.

To the point of what I called an “extreme,” I don’t think AI itself is extreme, but I also don’t think it’s necessary for every B2B company. It can be a great tool, but there are already tools we’ve used for years that can accomplish the same thing—often in a more robust and simple way that’s tried and true compared to the newer AI solutions we’re seeing right now.

Michael (11:24)
That’s an interesting take. Let’s get into that. What tools are you seeing companies use throughout the year? And what tools are companies currently asking for in projects that maybe they weren’t asking for a year or two ago when you started at Anchor Group?

Sam (11:43)
It’s leaning more toward automating features that remove manual work. The best example is sales reps and quotes. This isn’t a new idea, but the way we’re thinking about it is changing.

If I’m a sales rep, I have to call the client, enter the information into a system—whether I’m writing it down or inputting it into an ERP—then generate a quote, get it approved by my manager, and so on. There are a lot of steps involved just to get a sale across the line.

What we’re seeing now is the desire to automate these processes to save the sales rep time, allowing them to do more outbound work and increase ROI on their workload. That’s a simple example, but it paints a clear picture.

What we’re really seeing is a tighter pairing between back-end systems and e-commerce platforms. That’s been a major focus in the projects we work on. Shopify is putting more money into their B2B platform, BigCommerce is pushing their B2B edition, and SuiteCommerce has been doing it for a while—it’s less flashy but works like a charm.

Companies are starting to ask, “How can I make my back-end processes more automated so what my customer sees is always true and nearly instant?” That’s where AI and automation start to intersect—you could use AI for that, but it’s not always necessary when solid, proven tools already exist.

Michael (13:35)
Sometimes I’d agree that’s a good starting point. One request I’ve heard a few times recently is from B2B companies that want quotes or POs automatically entered into a single portal. They’re asking for AI to review that document, synthesize the data, and then either build a quote or create an order from it.

That’s one area where automation already exists, but when it comes to truly understanding a unique document that doesn’t fit a strict template, that’s more challenging. That’s where a true AI agent could actually help—solving pinch points or bottlenecks within processes to streamline automation overall.

Right now, the investment to implement that kind of solution might not be totally worth it yet, but I think in due time—looking into 2026—we’ll start seeing true AI agents help build on top of existing automation to remove even more manual touchpoints.

Sam (15:49)
I want to tap on that, because what you said there is key. I’m not suggesting people shouldn’t use AI—the possibilities are limitless, and it’s an exciting time to be in development because we get to experiment with these tools.

But many companies don’t yet have the fundamentals in place to even start doing things like that. They’ll say, “I want to build an AI app that automates my quoting process,” but when you look at their e-commerce store, it’s not set up well enough to handle that. It would cost absurd amounts of money just to get it ready.

So again, those “extremes” are pushing the norm. People want to be on the cutting edge and make progress with AI, which is great—but that also means getting the basics right first. And that’s a good place to be.

Michael (16:49)
Sam, all that’s really insightful. Thanks for hopping on the podcast today and sharing your thoughts on B2B e-commerce trends in 2025, and what that might mean as we look toward 2026. I think we’re both hopeful that AI will have a real, positive impact on B2B businesses—helping those that haven’t yet jumped onboard to modernize and streamline their tech stacks.

Thanks for joining, Sam, and thanks to everyone for listening to this episode of the Anchor Group Podcast. If you have questions, feel free to drop them in the comments below—whether you’re watching on YouTube or streaming on Spotify. You can also reach out to us via email.

Until next time, keep on chasing greatness. We’ll see you in the next episode.

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