Fireside Chat: Navigating AI, Zero-Click Search, and the New Marketing Reality

We brought together two leaders who sit right at the intersection of all this change: Kim Johnston, former VP Revenue Marketing at Flexential — one of the most sophisticated data-driven teams in B2B — and Surj Gish, Managing Director at ROI·DNA.

What unfolded was an honest, energizing conversation about what’s changing, what isn’t, and how today’s highest-performing teams are navigating the chaos with clarity.

AI Is Reshaping Both Sides of the Table

Marketers aren’t the only ones adopting AI. Prospects are too — from the way they research vendors to the tools filtering the emails we send.

Kim highlighted the double-edged dynamic:

• AI is making marketing teams faster and more efficient
• But AI is also reshaping how buyers discover, consume, and filter information

Her take: AI isn’t replacing marketers — it’s expanding their reach. The differentiator now is judgment. Tools can scale execution; humans still own the thinking that moves pipeline.

Do More With Less… But Do It Smartly

One underrated upside of AI-assisted platforms like 6sense? Precision.

Kim shared that Flexential was able to 5x their audience reach, triple message delivery, and reduce media spend — reinvesting the savings into net-new segments.

Surj added that this shift demands stronger strategic muscles inside teams:

“AI gives you more arms — but you still need a well-developed brain directing the work.”

The Return of Classical Marketing (Thanks, Zero-Click Search)

AI overviews and LLM-powered answers are rewriting the role of SEO. Impressions skyrocket. Clicks drop. Conversions hold steady.

So what happened to the middle?

For teams like Flexential — the ones who’ve invested in strong content and strong technical foundations — they’re holding their ground better than most. But Kim put it perfectly:

“SEO is moving back up-funnel. It’s shifting from pure demand capture to brand and education again.”

In other words: what’s old is new again. Zero-click environments are forcing marketers to rethink their mix, activate new channels, and relearn how brand feeds pipeline.

The Constant: Maniacal Focus on the Customer

One of the most memorable lines from Kim: “What hasn’t changed is a maniacal focus on understanding your customer.”

Target behaviors shift. Channels shift. The mix changes. But the best marketers stay locked in on who they’re selling to and why they buy.

Her 18-month deal example illustrated it perfectly: even when external pressures created hesitation, marketing kept feeding the journey. Not pushing harder — evolving messaging to match the moment. Staying relevant. Staying present.

Where We Go From Here: Curiosity, Bravery, and Better Interpretation

Both Surj and Kim landed on the same truth — the future belongs to marketers who:

1. Stay deeply curious

Why something worked matters more than the fact that it did.

2. Experiment boldly

A/B testing isn’t just ads anymore — it’s channels, mixes, content formats, and messaging for new buyer behaviors.

3. Master early indicators

Impressions, quality of visitation, buying-cycle movement — not just bookings.

4. Make calls confidently

Ambiguity is the new normal. Waiting for perfect data means missing the moment.

5. Collaborate relentlessly

Internal teams + agency partners. Shared patterns = sharper strategy.

Final Word

Marketing isn’t crock-pot cooking — it’s barbecue. You don’t set it and walk away. You watch the heat. You adjust constantly. You stay curious, stay close, and stay human.

That’s how the best teams navigate relentless change — not by reacting to it, but by interpreting it, adapting with intention, and keeping maniacal focus on the buyer.