The B2B SaaS Marketing Blog

AEO in 2025: How to Get Ranked on ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini

by 

Dev Basu

Last updated: April 4th, 2025

Over the last two quarters, we’ve started working with enterprise B2B SaaS brands on a specific mandate. Growth marketers at these organizations have asked us, “How do we get ranked on ChatGPT?”. Others have been impacted by Google’s recent core updates where they’ve seen as much as 20-50% drops in traffic. 

You’re in the right place if you’re wondering some of the questions about your B2B SaaS company right now.

This question is popping up in our DM’s and marketing Slack channels everywhere.

The buzz is undeniable. But while everyone’s discussing Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) in theory, almost no one has a concrete, proven playbook for implementation. Marketers are scrambling for answers as their traditional SEO playbooks become increasingly outdated.

We’ve Been in the Trenches Since Day One

Since Perplexity’s launch in 2022, we’ve refined our Answer Engine Optimization methodology. When ChatGPT added browsing in March 2023, we immediately scaled operations, treating these platforms as primary acquisition channels.

Our AEO approach isn’t theoretical. Through testing with dozens of our B2B SaaS clients, the evidence is clear: strategic Answer Engine Optimization captures high-intent traffic that traditional SEO can’t reach.

AEO Rankings: The New Competitive Battlefield

Our research reveals a fascinating pattern. Let’s take a popular enterprise software category like FP&A software (financial planning & analysis). Suppose we’re working with Prophix and want to find out how well they are positioning in AEO (Answer Engine Optimzation).

Here’s how different FP&A solutions rank across AI platforms:

Notice something crucial? Prophix appears consistently but ranks lower than it should for its capabilities. This is the exact opportunity LLM SEO addresses.

What is AEO?

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is the strategic discipline of getting your brand, product, and key differentiators featured inside AI search tools like:

• ChatGPT
• Perplexity
• Claude
• Gemini
• And dozens of niche AI agents

While traditional SEO focuses on ranking in search results, AEO ensures you appear directly in the answers these LLM-powered tools provide users.

The RAISE Framework: Your Complete AEO System

Our battle-tested RAISE methodology consistently improves Answer Engine visibility:

R – Relevance Signals: Speak the Language of Answers

Last month, a mid-sized FP&A B2B SaaS company approached us with a problem: “We’re all over Google, but invisible in ChatGPT.” Their website was filled with beautiful marketing language that humans loved but AI completely ignored.

The issue became apparent when we ran a simple test. We asked ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity to recommend FP&A solutions for a mid-market manufacturing company. Their product never appeared—not even once.

Why? Because answer engines think in solutions, not superlatives.

When we rewrote their core pages to directly address specific scenarios rather than making vague claims about “transformation” and “innovation,” their visibility skyrocketed within three weeks.

❌ Ineffective: “Our platform empowers finance leaders with next-generation insights.”

✅ Effective: “Prophix is an FP&A platform that automates budget consolidation for mid-market companies, with native ERP integrations and AI-powered forecasting capabilities.”

This pattern repeats across every client we’ve worked with. Answer engines don’t care about your clever taglines—they care if you’re answering their users’ questions.

Key insight: Structure content like an expert directly answering questions. When you write like an answer, you become the answer.

A – Access Verification: Unlock Your Digital Doors

One enterprise client came to us baffled: “We’ve implemented our last SEO agency’s recommendations, but our visibility hasn’t improved at all.” After digging into their system, we discovered their security team had blocked all AI crawlers at the firewall level—the equivalent of locking your store and wondering why no customers came inside.

This happens more than you’d think. In our audit of 50 enterprise SaaS websites, 68% were inadvertently blocking at least one major AI crawler.

Step 1: Check server logs for these crawler signatures:

Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; GPTBot/1.0)
Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0)
Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; PerplexityBot/1.0)

Step 2: Fix these common AEO barriers immediately:

• Overly restrictive robots.txt (add explicit Allow directives)
• Security measures (whitelist AI crawlers in WAF configs)
• Progressive rendering issues (minimize JavaScript dependencies)

After implementing proper access protocols, our client saw their first-ever mentions in AI answers within days. Two weeks later, they appeared in 40% of targeted bottom-of-funnel queries.

Key insight: The most compelling content means nothing if AI can’t access it. Open your digital doors before worrying about what’s inside.

I – Information Density: Build Your AI Vocabulary

This principle became strikingly clear when working with competing products in the same category. One client consistently ranked in AI responses while their competitor, with more backlinks, domain authority, and SEO visibility, remained absent.

The difference? Information density.

The successful client systematically embedded a rich ecosystem of related terms, concepts, and specific use cases throughout their content. Their pages weren’t just longer—they were contextually richer.

For Prophix and similar FP&A tools, this means deliberately weaving in:

• “Financial planning & analysis software”
• “Cash flow forecasting and budget variance analysis”
• “Integrations with Sage, Microsoft Dynamics, and NetSuite”
• “Use cases for manufacturing financial modeling”
• “Alternatives to Oracle Planning and Anaplan”
• “SOC2 compliance and enterprise security features”
• “KPIs like working capital ratio, DSO, and cash conversion cycle”

Key insight: Answer engines build associative networks. The richer your contextual signals, the more likely you’ll be pulled into relevant conversations.

S – Source Authority: Cultivate Your Digital Reputation

The most significant AEO success we’ve witnessed came from a cybersecurity company where we invested heavily in third-party validation and Digital PR while our team concurrently worked on their website’s product page, blog, and comparison page content.

They secured coverage in Gartner reports, industry publications, and professional forums. They methodically built profiles on review platforms, contributed to open discussions, and established a presence in every corner of their digital ecosystem.

When they finally launched their product pages, the answer engines already “knew” them as legitimate players because they had encountered the brand through trusted sources.

In the specific example for Prophix for prompts associated with finding FP&A tools, the authority checklist includes:

• Gartner Magic Quadrants and Forrester Wave reports
• G2 and Capterra with verified customer reviews
• Finance community forums on Reddit and Quora
• Publications like CFO.com and Financial Management
• Industry analyst reports and case studies
• Partner ecosystem marketplaces

Our data shows that brands appearing in at least 5 authority sources see 2.7x higher mention rates in AI answers compared to those relying primarily on their own websites.

Key insight: Answer engines trust established sources more than your claims about yourself. Build your reputation network before expecting AI recognition.

E – Engagement Feedback: Create Your Own Virtuous Cycle

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of AEO is how user behavior influences future results—a dimension traditional SEO simply doesn’t have.

We discovered this accidentally when a client’s sales team began regularly using ChatGPT to compare their product with competitors during calls. Within weeks, their specific comparison points began appearing in general AI responses about their category.

We’ve since formalized this into a deliberate strategy, creating “engagement campaigns” where employees, customers, and partners systematically prompt AI systems with questions where your brand deserves to be featured:

• “What’s the best financial planning tool for manufacturing companies?”
• “Compare Prophix vs Planful vs Workday Adaptive”
• “Which FP&A tools integrate best with NetSuite?”

When combined with ensuring your content is accessible and relevant, these engagement loops create a compounding effect. One enterprise client saw their AEO visibility increase 4x after implementing a structured engagement program with just 30 participants.

Key insight: Answer engines learn from human feedback loops. Strategic prompting creates visibility momentum over time.

AEO Intelligence: Reverse Engineer Success

Perplexity reveals its sources, providing a window into effective Answer Engine Optimization. Search “best financial forecasting tools for mid-market” and analyze which sources appear. Is it a Gartner report? A specialist blog? A comparison site? Mirror what works.

The AEO Mandate: Act Now or Become Invisible

Let’s be clear: if your team views Answer Engine Optimization as experimental, you’re already losing deals you don’t know exist.

Anyone doing “comprehensive SEO” without AEO strategies is missing the boat. Internal teams waiting for “more data” before implementing Answer Engine Optimization are surrendering market position daily.

By Q1 2026, answer engines will influence 10-20% of all B2B software purchase decisions. The AEO visibility battle isn’t approaching—it’s already determining winners and losers.

The RAISE framework delivers measurable Answer Engine Optimization results today. Implement it now or explain to your board why competitors are capturing your market through channels you ignored.

The question isn’t whether AEO matters—it’s whether you’ll capitalize on it before your window closes.