This week on the roundup: reviews and throwbacks, event reminders, the future of e-commerce, business all-stars, stakeholder buy-ins, project series, marketing strategies, confusion, economic diversification, milestones, heavy lifting, mentoring, close support, buying property, manual classification, snapshots, community growth, and more!

But first, here are the IPBN Highlights of the week:

We continued with our review of the first six months of 2026 with a review of our networking MMMs: Building meaningful business relationships is at the heart of the IPBN, and earlier this year we were delighted to host successful Member Meet Member networking events in the Algarve, Dublin and Cascais. You can find out all about it here. And here. 

We reminded everyone of our upcoming hybrid event, "If AI Doesn't Recommend You, Who Will?" which took place Wednesday, 22 July, from 3hto 4h30, at the UAlg TEC Campus in Faro and online, in partnership with IPBN member Flow Productions. You were many to attend and learn about how AI is changing the way customers discover, evaluate, and choose businesses—and organisations that aren't prepared risk becoming invisible in this new era of search. 

And now,,,

IPBN Partner Digital Business Ireland shared, "In just seven weeks, Digital Velocity will bring together the innovators, platforms and business leaders shaping the future of e-commerce, AI and online growth, with a programme designed to deliver practical ideas you can take back to your business the very next day. Expect practical insights from e-commerce leaders and people building, scaling and transforming businesses every day. For more information, click here and you can download the programme here."

IPBN member Tara Elzingre had the honour of joining the All-Star Forum All-Ireland Business Foundation for the accreditation ceremony! She posted, "Thrilled to be an accredited business all-star. I was inspired having attended the Entrepreneur Summit. To be recognised amongst so many incredible businesses is very empowering."

IPBN Board member Rachel Milne shared, "Most of us spend more time influencing than managing. Whether you're leading projects, working across departments or trying to gain stakeholder buy-in, the ability to influence without relying on authority is one of the most valuable power skills you can develop. Read more here about three reminders from a recent session I delivered."

IPBN member Ronan Holohan was delighted to have designed and delivered a series of projects over the last year for his clients MHL Hotel Collection at Hilton Charlemont, saying, "Working to deliver a concept of the public spaces on top of the 112 bedroom extension also earlier this year bringing it all together!"

IPBN member Carlos Justino didn't go to Albufeira to talk about AI. He said, "I went to talk about what AI has already changed in the way people discover, evaluate, and choose companies. The buyer has changed faster than most marketing strategies. Today he researches alone, compares options, looks for evidence and forms an opinion before agreeing to talk to someone in sales. And there is an idea that I wanted to make very clear: Being found is no longer enough. It is necessary to be understood, recommended and chosen."

This was the object of our event in partnership with Carlos and Flow productions last Wednesday at the UAlg TEC Campus. 

IPBN member Barbara Monohan posted, "Confusion is costing you customers. Not bad reviews. Not wrong pricing. Not a product or service that doesn't work. CONFUSION. Humans default to easy. When your messaging is unclear, your offer requires too much thinking, or the path to buying is complicated, people walk away. Not because they don't like you. Because the effort isn't worth it in their minds. Good branding doesn't just make you look good. It removes the mental load from your audience. It makes choosing you feel obvious."

IPBN member Invest Porto wrote, "New economic vision for Porto. At the latest edition of the AEP Foundation’s Conversations with the Mayor series, Porto Mayor Pedro Duarte highlighted the importance of economic diversification, high value-added sectors and innovation as key drivers of the city’s competitiveness. Strategic initiatives such as the PITCH projects and the future Porto Economic and Business District were highlighted as important pillars in building a more innovative, competitive and resilient economic ecosystem. Read more about here."

IPBN member TIRECHECK – TireCheck has reached another major milestone: Its Software Update Management System (SUMS) has been officially certified by SGS-TÜV Saar GmbH according to the international ISO 24089:2023 standard! Read here what this certification means for our OEM partners.

IPBN member Clear Strategy shared, "Let Kerbi take care of the heavy lifting, so you can focus on growth. Looking to see how Kerbi can transform your Metadata-Driven Data Processing?" Read more here.

IPBN member Elaine Godley posted, "I've never called myself a Coach. I am a Mentor. What's the difference? To put it simply: A coach helps you find your own way. A mentor gives you the map because they have already been there." Read more about it here.

IPBN member LAZER shared, "The Internet may be digital, but the support must remain human. At Lazer, when you need help, you talk to real people, a 100% local team, close to the community and ready to find the best solution. No robots. No automatic replies. Just personal, simple and close support. Talk to a neighbour, not a robot."

IPBN member Vicky Rodrigues from Teresa Patrico & Associados wrote, "Buying a property may require more due diligence than ever before. The new rules for real estate transactions underscore the importance of verifying the property’s zoning status before signing a contract. Learn about the key impacts in this week’s TPA newsletter."

IPBN member Salmon wrote, "Manual classification doesn't just take time. It also creates inconsistency. A rule-based approach means every transaction is classified the same way, every time. The result is cleaner data, faster reconciliation and fewer exceptions to investigate. Small changes like this can make a big difference to treasury operations. Learn more here."

IPBN member Invoke Creative Agency shared a snapshot of some of their June content delivered for their clients: "From content creation and campaign delivery to brand storytelling and social media strategy, it's been another busy month across our client portfolio. Swipe through for our June recap."

IPBN member IDEA Spaces posted, "Over the last 12 years, we've witnessed thousands of connections, collaborations, friendships and businesses grow within our community. In this interview with Jornal Económico, our Business Developer, Jacinta Barreto, shares his perspective on the evolution of coworking, the rise of flexible work and why community has become one of the most valuable assets for companies today." Read the full interview here.