The Importance of SEO and AI SEO for B2B Tech Companies

To succeed and grow, B2B technology companies need to be found. Before deciding which technology solutions and services they want to purchase, customers conduct research to better understand their pain points and explore options for overcoming their challenges. Much of this research is carried out online using targeted keyword search through a search engine. 

Search engine optimization (SEO) ensures that your company is being found using traditional search engines, especially Google. With SEO, your company increases rankings for keywords related to your offerings, driving more traffic to your website and other content while encouraging engagement that can convert prospects into customers. 

Currently, SEO is undergoing a major transformation in which more customer searches are being conducted using AI platforms, such as ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google Gemini, and Copilot. These AI-powered tools generate answers to customers’ questions directly from content. To keep up with the growing influence of AI SEO, B2B tech companies need to change their approach to content creation so they can benefit from both traditional and AI SEO. 

What is AI SEO

Artificial Intelligence Search Engine Optimization (AI SEO) leverages Machine Learning (ML), Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Large Language Models (LLMs) to understand customer intent and optimize content for search that is conducted through AI-driven platforms. 

AI SEO involves structuring content so that it appears in AI overviews, using semantic markup and schema, and tailoring content for LLMs, such as ChatGPT and Gemini. 

Also known as Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), this approach to search ensures your content surfaces in searches conducted using GenAI tools, virtual assistants, and voice search.  

The Stakes of AI SEO 

Research from McKinsey & Company shows what B2B tech companies stand to gain from AI SEO and what they may lose if they fail to adapt. McKinsey & Company found that 50% of customers are using AI-powered search tools and taking advantage of AI summaries. This percentage is expected to rise to 75% by 2028, reflecting the disruptive potential AI has in search. The increasing shift toward AI-powered search over the next few years could impact $750 billion in potential revenue. 

Companies that don’t optimize for AI risk losing visibility to consumers. If B2B tech companies continue to rely on traditional SEO, they could potentially lose anywhere from 20% to 50% of the search traffic generated by traditional search engines, according to McKinsey. 

While McKinsey discovered that 70% of potential customers use AI tools to conduct searches at the top of the funnel for awareness, AI platforms are used throughout the buyer’s journey. AI search can help consumers find products, compare features, and receive recommendations. 

How AI SEO Changes Content Strategy 

As AI SEO becomes an increasingly important force in search, B2B tech companies will need to embrace new content strategies. AI tools pull content directly from authoritative sources, so a key goal of content creation must be coming across as a trusted authority in B2B technology. 

Incorporating citations, quotations, and statistics helps to boost the authority of marketing content, increasing the chance that it will surface in Ai-generated responses to customer queries. 

When creating content for AI SEO, companies need to focus on semantic structure and schema markup. AI platforms use context to understand content instead of matching keywords. Schema markup provides the context for information that AI tools look for by explaining your content’s meaning and the relationships between concepts. 

Using topic clusters and adopting a conversational tone helps your content surface in AI-powered search. Presenting data in scannable formats, such as tables and bullet lists promotes understanding and engagement with complex information. 

Instead of focusing on keywords, your content should be optimized for long-tail keywords and conversational, natural language queries. Conversational queries conducted through voice search tend to be longer than typed searches. Content needs to focus on direct answers to questions. 

How AI SEO Transforms Search 

The rise of AI SEO means B2B tech companies need to think differently about how search is conducted. AI-generated answers and featured snippets have led to more zero-click searches in which customers get answers on the search results page without the need to visit a website. SparkToro found that, in 2024, 59% of searches were zero-click searches in which the searcher didn’t click on any of the results. 

Customers are also using voice search to research products and services using digital assistants on their smart devices, such as Alexa and Siri. To take advantage of voice search, companies need to emphasize natural, conversational language and answer “who, what, where, why, and how” questions. 

Why Traditional SEO Still Matters 

While AI SEO is disrupting search and content creation, companies shouldn’t abandon traditional SEO. Potential customers are still clicking on regular search results instead of relying entirely on AI overviews. Traditional SEO provides opportunities for prospects to click on your links, driving traffic to your website and offers. 

Organic traffic gained by traditional SEO has the power to encourage greater engagement and generate revenue. Users who click on organic links often want more information or are looking for products and services. When users click through to your product pages, they may convert to a customer. Visitors gained through organic search tend to spend more time on your website, look at more pages, and revisit more often, eventually becoming loyal customers.  

How to Embrace Both Traditional and AI SEO

Companies benefit from leveraging both traditional SEO and AI SEO to capture the most website traffic and support lead generation. Working with a marketing agency that focuses on both types of SEO will help your B2B tech company succeed and grow as the search landscape changes. 

At TSL, we have strengths in traditional SEO, having worked with B2B tech companies for over 25 years monitoring, managing, and developing SEO strategies that perform. We also focus on AI SEO, helping our B2B tech clients adapt their content to surface in AI-powered search. 

We can assess your current content to evaluate its visibility in AI-guided search. Based on the assessment, we build custom AI SEO roadmaps, create content that aligns with AI search best practices, and track performance so AI SEO can be adjusted as needed. 

Find out if your company is taking advantage of both traditional and AI SEO. Request a free B2B SEO Website Assessment from the experts at TSL Marketing.