The Level #134

< 6 min

Happy Saturday —

Something happened in a conversation last month that I can't stop thinking about.

A VP of Operations told me she was looking for a fractional COO to help restructure her company. She didn't ask her network. She didn't scroll LinkedIn. She opened Claude and typed: "Who are the best fractional COOs for mid-market B2B SaaS companies in the US, and why?"

Three names came back.
She booked calls with all three.
Hired one within two weeks.

Not a single one of those three people was someone she'd seen on LinkedIn. None of them were referrals. They were simply the names AI surfaced because their positioning, their content, and their proof of results were structured in a way that made them findable.

If you've been following along on LinkedIn this week, you've seen me talking about why engagement no longer equals pipeline and how the discovery landscape for consultants has fundamentally shifted. Here's what I didn't have room to say there.

This Week’s Shift: From Engagement → Discoverability

We are in the middle of a structural shift in how B2B buyers find and evaluate experts. And most consultants are completely unprepared for it.

The data is stark. 73% of B2B buying groups now use AI tools during their research phase. Gartner projects traditional search volume will drop 25% by end of this year as users move to AI-first discovery. LinkedIn's organic reach has dropped 63% for creators who haven't adapted to the Interest Graph algorithm.

What this means in practice: the "post regularly, grow your network, wait for referrals" model that built most consulting practices over the last decade is breaking down. Not slowly. Quickly.

The consultants who are thriving right now share three things.

First, they have a NAMED methodology – not just "I help companies with strategy," but a specific, branded framework that AI can identify and recommend.

Second, they have a proof layer of specific results with real numbers published across multiple platforms.

Third, they treat visibility as a system – a weekly operating rhythm – not something they do when the pipeline gets thin.

The difference between these consultants and everyone else isn't talent or expertise. It's architecture. They've built their positioning and content to be discoverable by the new tools buyers actually use.

Here's your next step

Here's the diagnostic question I want you to sit with this week.

If your ideal client asked AI to recommend an expert in your space, would your name come up? And if it did – would the description be accurate?

If the answer is no, or you're genuinely not sure, here are three things you can do this week.

→ Name your core methodology. Give your process a specific, memorable name. Document it on your website and use it consistently in your content. "The [Your Name] Method for [Specific Outcome]" is a fine starting point.

→ Publish one case study with real numbers. Not a vague testimonial. A specific before-and-after with the outcome quantified. Put it on your website, reference it in a LinkedIn post, include it in your newsletter.

→ Audit your LinkedIn profile. Does it read like a resume – or like a clear statement of who you help, what outcome you deliver, and why you're the one to deliver it? If it reads like a CV, it's invisible to both the Interest Graph and AI search.

Why This Matters

The consultants who do this work now – who restructure their positioning and visibility for how buyers actually find help in 2026 – won't just survive this shift, but actually thrive.

The ones who wait will keep posting into feeds that don't convert and wondering why the referrals slowed down.

I know which group I'd rather be in. And I suspect you do too. Hit reply and tell me: did you try asking AI to recommend an expert in your space? What came back? Everything goes back to my personal inbox.

Until next week,

 - Amanda

P.S.   Next week I'm going deeper on productizing your expertise – turning what you know into something that scales without requiring more of your time. If you know a consultant who needs to hear this week's message, forward this their way. They'll thank you. :)

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