AI is now the First Product Comparison

A growing share of B2B buyers no longer begin vendor research on category pages, review sites, or even traditional search. They are starting inside AI answer engines, asking direct questions about use cases, integrations, security, pricing models, and which platforms are best for their environment. Those answers function like a first demo, a competitor comparison grid, and a peer recommendation all at once. By the time a prospect reaches your website, they often already have a shortlist in mind, and AI played a role in forming it.

Why This Matters Now

AI is shaping vendor shortlists today, and the companies that act first will define the narrative.

B2B technology markets are tightening rapidly: crowded categories, shorter evaluation cycles, and buyers conducting more self-serve research with fewer human touchpoints. At the same time, AI answer engines are shaping shortlists before prospects ever reach your site, and those engines often rely on whatever narrative is easiest to find and repeat across the web. If your positioning is inconsistent, your integration story is unclear, or your proof is scattered, AI may summarize you in ways that create friction, lower confidence, or exclude you entirely.

That is why Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is becoming a new core go-to-market discipline. It shows how AI engines talk about your brand today and gives you a measurable plan to improve what buyers see next, before competitors lock in the advantage.

• See the high-intent buyer questions that drive vendor selection and how AI engines answer them about your company.
• Understand what is influencing the story (sources, citations, and gaps that shape visibility and sentiment).
• Take action with a GEO roadmap that connects content, authority, messaging, and website readiness to pipeline outcomes.