This metric is costing you money

Summary

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MarTech Podcast™ // "This metric is costing you money"

Host: Benjamin Shapiro
Guest: Blu Bowen, Research Principal at G2
Date: October 14, 2025

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Overview

This episode dives into the pitfalls of relying on vanity metrics—particularly marketing attribution metrics—and the evolving landscape of B2B buyer behavior shaped by AI and new analytic tools. Guest Blu Bowen, research principal at G2, highlights how traditional approaches to attribution fail in today’s multi-touch, AI-driven buying journeys and suggests practical solutions and tool recommendations for modern marketers.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Vanity Metric Costing Marketers: Attribution

[01:15–01:38]

• Attribution as a Problematic Metric:
  • Benjamin Shapiro opens by asking Blu Bowen about the most misleading vanity metric celebrated by marketing leaders.
  • Blu immediately identifies attribution:

    "There's too many touch points in the buying cycle today, buying journey today, first touch, last touch. It's not insightful enough and not really indicative of, of the reason why."
    (Blu Bowen, 01:38)

2. The Complexity of the Modern Buying Journey

[01:38–02:07]

• Challenges of Single-Point Attribution:

  • Old models (first/last click) fail to capture nuanced, multi-step journeys.
  • Over-relying on one data point misrepresents the true customer path.

• The Need for Holistic Visibility:

  • Blu explains that marketers should aim for "as much visibility into the entire process as possible."
  • He recommends leveraging AI-enabled tools (AEO/GEO) to uncover where brands appear in large language models (LLMs) and mapping out all touch points leading to conversion.

  "Rather than identifying one data point, rely on multiple."
  (Blu Bowen, 02:07)

3. Solutions and Tools for Modern Marketing Measurement

[02:07–03:24]

• Leveraging Advanced Tools:

  • Blu highlights the importance of tools designed for enhanced journey analysis.
  • Mentions collaboration with Profound, a leading AEO solution, and notes the rapid growth of this tech segment (over 60 tools in G2's AEO category).

  "It's really kind of a blossoming space. Go check out G2's AEO category for a list of all 60 of them. But Profound is one that I've seen and kind of worked with that's kind of top of the list right now."
  (Blu Bowen, 02:55)

• Navigating the Overabundance of Tools:

  • Benjamin jokes about the paradox of needing AI to select AI tools:

    "You're probably just going to use chat GPT to figure out which one's the best. You should also make sure you're asking them to go to G2 and figure out what has the best results as well."
    (Benjamin Shapiro, 03:24)

4. Takeaway for Marketing & Sales Leaders

[03:24–03:44]

• Siloed metrics and narrow attribution models leave valuable insights on the table and can cost real money through misallocation of spend and missed opportunities.
• The shift is toward using robust, AI-powered, multi-touch analytics for true visibility and smarter business decisions.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Attribution:

  "There's too many touch points in the buying cycle today, buying journey today, first touch, last touch. It's not insightful enough and not really indicative of, of the reason why."
  (Blu Bowen, 01:38)

• On Holistic Measurement:

  "Rather than identifying one data point, rely on multiple."
  (Blu Bowen, 02:07)

• On the Tool Landscape:

  "Go check out G2's AEO category for a list of all 60 of them. But Profound is one that I've seen and, and kind of worked with that's kind of top of the list right now."
  (Blu Bowen, 02:55)

• On Navigating Tech Overload:

  "You're probably just going to use chat GPT to figure out which one's the best."
  (Benjamin Shapiro, 03:24)

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• [01:15] – Introduction of Blu Bowen & Main Episode Theme
• [01:38] – Why Attribution is a Vanity Metric
• [02:07] – How to Gain Holistic Visibility Over the Buyer Journey
• [02:55] – Tools for Superior Go-To-Market Analytics (Profound and G2’s AEO Category)
• [03:24] – The Challenge of Navigating Tool Overload

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Conclusion

This episode of the MarTech Podcast challenges conventional thinking around marketing attribution, warning that rigid reliance on it can actually cost money. Blu Bowen encourages modern marketers to embrace AI-powered, multi-point analytics—and provides guidance on finding the right tools—to more accurately measure the complexity of today's buyer’s journey. The lighthearted tone, expert commentary, and actionable advice make this a must-listen for anyone invested in smarter, tech-driven marketing.

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Transcript

[A]

The Martech Podcast is a proud member of the I Hear Everything Podcast Network. Looking to launch or scale your podcast, I Hear Everything delivers podcast production, growth and monetization solutions that transform your words into profit. Ready to give your brand a voice? Then visit iheareverything.com.

[B]

From advertising to software as a service to data across all of our programs and clients, we've seen a 55 to 65% open rate. Getting brands authentically integrated into content performs.

[C]

Better than TV advertising.

[B]

Typical lifespan of an article is about 24 to 36 hours. We're reaching out to the right person with the right message and a clear call to action. Then it's just a matter of timing.

[A]

Welcome to the Martech Podcast, a member of the I Hear Everything Podcast network. In this podcast, you'll hear the stories of world class marketers that used technology to drive business results and achieve career success. Here's a host of the Martech Podcast, Benjamin Shapiro.

[B]

I'm Benjamin Shapiro and joining me today is Blu Bowen, the research principal at G2, the world's largest software marketplace where companies build reputation and drive growth. And today Blue will share how AI is rewriting B2B buyer behavior and what sales leaders must do to adapt. Okay, what's the most misleading vanity metric you've seen marketing leaders celebrate?

[C]

I would say attribution. There's too many touch points in the buying cycle today, buying journey today, first touch, last touch. It's not insightful enough and not really indicative of, of the reason why.

[B]

So what's the solution? Hey, we're, we're, we're taking credit for this channel and that channel Attribution is this thing that we've fully mastered. It's all last click. It's all first click. It's. Mmm. Is there a solution that's actually helping marketers get a better sense of what's actually driving results?

[C]

I would say trying to get as much visibility into the entire process as possible. So whether that's using an AEO or GEO tool to identify where you're showing up in LLMs and also having kind of a new approach, a holistic one to be, you know, it says this is last touch. Say this blog is converting exceptionally well. You know, what were the other touch points in that journey and perhaps that we're seeing that when they have the same three touch points, that's more likely to kind of convert. So rather than identifying one data point, rely on multiple.

[B]

I'm going to play on your, your G2 experience because I assume that you know every bit of data that's on the platform. You mentioned AEO and G O tools. Who's doing a good job with the monitoring and what are some of the tools that, that you or G2 thinks are best in class?

[C]

There's a lot of them out there. You know, I don't want to identify all the best ones, but I would say we have a partnership with Profound, which is a leading tool as well. And, and there's a lot of. I think there's over like 60 already. So it's really kind of a blossoming space. Go check out G2's AEO category for a list of all 60 of them. But Profound is one that I've seen and, and kind of worked with that's kind of top of the list right now.

[B]

It's a great example of, you know, LLMs and how the go to market process is changing is figuring out which tools you can use to evaluate your go to market. You have to sort through 60 of them. You're probably just going to use chat GPT to figure out which one's the best. You should also make sure you're asking them to go to G2 and figure out what has the best results as well. All right, that wraps up this episode of the Martech podcast. Thanks to Blue Bowen, the research principal at G2, for joining us. If you'd like to contact Blu, you could find a link to his LinkedIn profile in our show notes or on martechpod.com or you could visit his website, which is g2.com. If you haven't subscribed yet and you want a daily stream of marketing and technology knowledge in your podcast feed, hit the subscribe button in your podcast app or follow us on YouTube and we'll be back in your feed every week. All right, that's it for today, but until next time, my advice is to just focus on keeping your customers happy.

[A]

Thanks for listening to the Martech podcast and I hear everything. Production. Looking to launch or scale a podcast like this one for your brand? Then visit iheareverything. Com.