How B2B Marketers Are Actually Using AI at Work with Jess Lytle
Timestamps are as accurate as they can be but may be slightly off. We encourage you to listen to the full context.
Podcast Summary
In this episode, Dave Gerhardt sits down with Jess Lytle, Head of Marketing at Exit Five, for an in-depth conversation about how AI is transforming B2B marketing roles and strategies. The discussion covers Jess's unique path to joining Exit Five through a webinar demonstration, her evolution from demand generation to AI expertise, and practical insights on implementing AI tools in marketing workflows. (06:14)
- Main Theme: The conversation explores the reality of AI adoption in marketing teams, moving beyond basic chatbot usage to sophisticated workflow integration, with emphasis on creating original content and leveraging tools like NotebookLM for competitive advantage.
Speakers
Dave Gerhardt
Dave is the founder of Exit Five and author of "Founder Brand." He previously served as a CMO and has built Exit Five into a leading B2B marketing community with nearly 5,000 members. Dave is known for his expertise in founder-led marketing and building authentic brand voices in the B2B space.
Jess Lytle
Jess Lytle is the Head of Marketing at Exit Five, joining the company in September after being discovered through a webinar demonstration. She has 14 years of experience in tech marketing, previously working in demand generation at SaaS companies. Jess teaches marketing analytics at FIU and writes "The Prompt," a newsletter focused on AI applications in marketing, making her a recognized expert in AI-powered marketing strategies.
Key Takeaways
AI is Moving from "Thinking" to "Doing" in Marketing
Most marketing teams are currently using AI tools like ChatGPT for ideation and copy help, but the next evolution involves AI agents that actually execute work. (00:18) Jess explains that while everyone has adopted basic AI usage, there's a significant gap between using AI to think versus using it to perform actual marketing tasks. Tools like Optimizely's Opel platform allow marketers to deploy autonomous agents that create web pages, optimize campaigns, and generate reports without manual intervention.
Practical Example: Instead of manually creating landing pages for each audience segment, AI agents can automatically generate, test, and optimize pages while checking for brand compliance and accessibility issues.
Original Content Becomes Your Competitive Moat in an AI-Saturated World
With 75% of online content now generated by AI, original data, real experience, and expert insights are becoming the primary differentiators for brands. (18:28) Jess emphasizes that AI-generated content commoditizes information, making human expertise and original research more valuable than ever. Companies that invest in creating net-new information and sharing authentic experiences will stand out in search results and AI platforms.
Practical Example: Rather than publishing generic industry content, companies should conduct their own research, share behind-the-scenes processes, and provide expert commentary that only they can offer based on their unique position in the market.
NotebookLM Transforms Knowledge Management for Marketing Teams
NotebookLM allows marketers to upload up to 300 sources (documents, videos, audio) and query them without hallucination issues common in other AI tools. (29:16) Jess demonstrates how this tool revolutionizes onboarding, research, and content creation by creating a searchable knowledge base from company documents, sales calls, and competitive intelligence.
Practical Example: A product marketer can upload all product documentation, competitive analysis, and customer interview transcripts into one notebook, then query specific information for campaign development without manually searching through dozens of files.
Hybrid Marketing Roles Are Emerging Through AI Capabilities
AI tools are enabling marketers to perform tasks traditionally requiring designers, developers, or analysts, creating "hybrid operators" who can execute across multiple disciplines. (24:23) Jess built ROI calculators using Lovable that previously required $20,000 and months of development time, demonstrating how AI removes traditional role boundaries in marketing.
Practical Example: A content marketer can now create interactive tools, design graphics, analyze data, and build landing pages within the same day, eliminating dependencies on other departments and accelerating campaign execution.
SEO Remains Critical Despite AI Search Growth
Data from Graphite shows that clicks on traditional Google search results remain relatively flat (within 5%), contradicting predictions that AI search would kill SEO. (37:59) However, the strategy should layer AEO (AI Engine Optimization) on top of existing SEO efforts rather than replacing them entirely. Early-stage companies can benefit from AEO through PR mentions that get picked up by AI platforms.
Practical Example: A Series A company should maintain their content marketing and SEO foundation while also optimizing for AI search results, ensuring their expertise gets cited when relevant queries appear in ChatGPT or Claude responses.
Statistics & Facts
- 75% of content on the internet is now not written by humans, according to industry data referenced by Jess. (18:45) This statistic highlights the saturation of AI-generated content and emphasizes why original, human-created content becomes more valuable.
- Clicks on Google's traditional blue links are relatively flat, declining only about 5% despite the rise of AI search, according to Graphite's research report. (37:59) This data contradicts predictions that AI search would immediately kill traditional SEO.
- LLMs (Large Language Models) are growing at 100% year-over-year, showing rapid adoption of AI search tools. (40:52) This growth rate suggests the landscape could change significantly within six months.
