On the table now
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52% of Distributors in ASA’s Survey Are Losing Business to Online Competitors. 25% Cite Digital Ordering as a Differentiator.
52% of distributors in the American Supply Association’s latest survey say they are losing business to online competitors. Only 25% name digital ordering tools as a way they stand apart.
Topics
Buyer behavior · AI & search · Channel & distribution · Pricing · Trade shows & brand · Budgets & benchmarks · Leadership
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Marketing Budgets Hold at 7.8% of Revenue in 2026. 15.3% of That Goes to AI.
Marketing budgets stand at 7.8% of company revenue in 2026, against 7.7% in 2025. Gartner calls that effectively flat. CMOs allocate an average of 15.3% of the marketing budget to AI initiatives.
Source: GartnerRead →: Marketing Budgets Hold at 7.8% of Revenue in 2026. 15.3% of That Goes to AI. -
Engineers Spend 62% of the Buying Process Researching Online. For 53%, Brand Familiarity Influenced the Last Purchase.
Engineers spend 62% of the buying process researching online. For 53% of technical buyers, brand familiarity influenced their most recent purchase. TREW Marketing and GlobalSpec released the 2026 State of Marketing to Engineers on March 25.
Source: TREW Marketing and GlobalSpecRead →: Engineers Spend 62% of the Buying Process Researching Online. For 53%, Brand Familiarity Influenced the Last Purchase. -
Manufacturing Day 2026: Five Numbers to Know Before You Open the Doors
On Friday, October 2, manufacturers across the country open their plants to students, parents and neighbors. For one day, the plant is the marketing department. Here is the reading list.
Source: The Manufacturing InstituteRead →: Manufacturing Day 2026: Five Numbers to Know Before You Open the Doors -
ISM’s Prices Index Jumps 6.8 Points to 77.9 as Manufacturing Expands for a Ninth Month
ISM’s Prices Index reached 77.9 in September, up 6.8 points from 71.1 in August. Raw materials prices have now risen for 24 straight months. The Institute for Supply Management released its September Manufacturing PMI Report on October 1.
Source: ISMRead →: ISM’s Prices Index Jumps 6.8 Points to 77.9 as Manufacturing Expands for a Ninth Month -
Grainger Tops the 2026 Big 50 at $17.9 Billion. Four Distributors Follow at $8 Billion or More.
W.W. Grainger tops the 2026 Big 50 of industrial distributors at $17.9 billion in revenue. Four more follow at $8 billion or above: Motion, Winsupply, Fastenal and Airgas. Industrial Distribution published its annual ranking on September 25.
Source: Industrial DistributionRead →: Grainger Tops the 2026 Big 50 at $17.9 Billion. Four Distributors Follow at $8 Billion or More. -
73% of B2B Buyers Will Now Place an Order Above $50,000 Online, Up From 59% in 2022
73% of B2B buyers are comfortable placing an order of more than $50,000 online, up from 59% in 2022. McKinsey’s 2026 Global B2B Pulse Survey of nearly 4,000 decision-makers in 13 countries finds buyers using an average of ten channels…
Source: McKinseyRead →: 73% of B2B Buyers Will Now Place an Order Above $50,000 Online, Up From 59% in 2022 -
B2B Buyers Spend 29% More With Suppliers That Get the Buying Experience Right
B2B buyers spend about 29% more with suppliers that deliver a consistently positive purchasing experience. Suppliers estimate they have lost 13% of bids to a negative one. Deloitte Digital surveyed 530 U.S. buyers and 530 U.S. suppliers; Digital Commerce 360…
Source: Digital Commerce 360Read →: B2B Buyers Spend 29% More With Suppliers That Get the Buying Experience Right -
The Typical B2B Purchase Now Involves 13 Insiders and 9 Outsiders
Forrester’s State of Business Buying, 2026 finds the typical buying decision now involves 13 internal stakeholders and nine external influencers. Procurement is a decision-maker in 53% of buying cycles. More than 60% of buyers run a trial before they commit.
Source: ForresterRead →: The Typical B2B Purchase Now Involves 13 Insiders and 9 Outsiders -
18% of Marketing Leaders Have Cut Roles to Automation. Gartner Sees the Bottom Rung Gone by 2030.
18% of marketing leaders have already eliminated roles because of automation. Gartner predicts that by 2030, AI will let the majority of high-performing marketing teams eliminate the traditional bottom rungs of the corporate ladder.
Source: GartnerRead →: 18% of Marketing Leaders Have Cut Roles to Automation. Gartner Sees the Bottom Rung Gone by 2030. -
Manufacturers Expect Sales Up 4.3% and Costs Up 5.0%. Prices Get Only 3.7%.
Manufacturers expect sales to rise 4.3% over the next 12 months, the fastest pace in four years. They expect input costs to rise 5.0% and their own prices only 3.7%, according to NAM’s Q3 2026 Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey.
Source: NAMRead →: Manufacturers Expect Sales Up 4.3% and Costs Up 5.0%. Prices Get Only 3.7%. -
IMTS 2026 Draws More Than 90,000 Registrants and a Record Floor Density
IMTS 2026 drew more than 90,000 registrants and 1,788 exhibiting companies, 400 of them new. Floor density reached 1.65, an all-time show record. AMT reports metalworking machinery orders of $4 billion through July, up 37%.
Source: AMTRead →: IMTS 2026 Draws More Than 90,000 Registrants and a Record Floor Density -
B2B Marketers Put AI First and Headcount Last in 2026 Budgets
Content Marketing Institute’s annual benchmark of 1,015 B2B marketers finds 45% plan to spend more on AI tools next year and 9% on people. Nearly all use AI already. Barely half say it made the work better.
Source: Content Marketing InstituteRead →: B2B Marketers Put AI First and Headcount Last in 2026 Budgets
The week at the table
The week’s articles in one email, every Friday.
Everything we shared that week, with the numbers and the links. One email a week and nothing else.
