SaaS search has changed fast.

In 2024, you could still win with “rank on Google, get clicks, convert on site.”

In 2025, Google pushed AI Overviews and AI Mode harder. Users ask longer questions and follow-ups, and results often start with an AI summary.

Microsoft Copilot is also moving toward “answers with sources,” where it lifts parts of pages, not whole pages.

And Perplexity literally calls itself an “answer engine” that searches the web in real time and shows citations.

So SaaS teams now need three skills, not one:

• SEO (Search Engine Optimization): rank pages in search engines.

• AEO (Answer Engine Optimization): get your content selected as the direct answer.

• GEO (Generative Engine Optimization): get your brand included and cited inside AI-generated answers.

Let’s break the difference down in plain terms, then show how to build a system that works in 2026.

Quick definitions:

What is SEO?

SEO is the work of improving your site so search engines can crawl it, understand it, and rank it for searches that matter.

It’s still the base layer. If your site is weak on SEO, AEO and GEO are harder.

Google’s guidance stays consistent: create helpful, reliable content made for people, not content made to game rankings.

What is AEO?

AEO is optimizing content so platforms can provide your content as the direct answer, not just list your page as a link.

Think:

• featured snippets

• voice answers

• AI answer blocks

• “here’s the best answer” responses in chat-style search

What is GEO?

GEO is optimizing your presence so you show up inside generative AI results from tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Perplexity, and AI Overviews.

GEO is less about “rank #1.”
It’s more about “get cited and summarized correctly.”

SEO vs AEO vs GEO comparison table

The simplest way to think about it

• SEO is “Can people find you?”

• AEO is “Will the engine pick your exact answer?”

• GEO is “Will the AI include you and trust you enough to cite you?”

In 2026, SaaS marketing will need all three.

What changed in 2025 and why 2026 will be harsher

Google is training users to ask harder questions

Google says AI search experiences are leading to longer, more specific questions and more follow-ups.

That means:

• one blog post needs to cover the “first question” and the “follow-up questions”

• pages that only cover a shallow slice will get skipped

AI systems lift “chunks,” not pages

Microsoft says AI answers are built by parsing content into smaller structured pieces, then selecting the best pieces for the final answer.

So you need:

• tight headings

• clean blocks

• clear takeaways

Not 2,000 words of waffle.

AI search shows sources, so you need to be “source-worthy”

Copilot emphasizes showing where info comes from. Perplexity shows citations by default.

If you want to win GEO, you need:

• original claims backed by proof

• clean definitions

• specific numbers when possible

• content that other people are willing to reference

The SaaS playbook: how to build SEO + AEO + GEO together

Here’s the system we use at UnOptimised when we want content to do two things:

1. rank

2. convert

And now, in 2026:
3) get cited in AI answers

This is built on core SEO fundamentals (crawl, index, relevance, links) plus AI-answer formatting and authority engineering.

Part 1: SEO that still matters (and will not die)

1) Technical basics: make your site easy to read

If search engines struggle to crawl your pages, you lose before you start.

Quick checklist:

• clean internal linking

• indexable pages (no accidental noindex)

• fast enough performance

• proper canonical tags on duplicates

• sitemap that includes important pages

Also, do not hide important content behind tabs that might not render well for bots. Microsoft warns about hidden content and long walls of text hurting AI extraction.

2) Content that matches intent, not just keywords

Google’s people-first guidance is clear: make content that helps users, not content made to manipulate ranking systems.

For SaaS, “intent match” usually means you need these page types:

• comparison pages

• pricing pages

• use case pages

• integration pages

• problem pages (pain-led)

• “how to choose” pages

A blog post alone will not carry the funnel.

3) Links still matter, but linkable assets matter more

You still need backlinks. But “begging for links” is not a strategy.

Also, “Domain Rating” is not a Google metric. It’s an Ahrefs metric that reflects backlink profile strength.

So your job is to create assets people want to reference:

• original research

• benchmarks

• templates

• calculators

• comparison databases

• “best practices” checklists that are actually good

We will cover this under “interactive SEO mini-tools” later.

Part 2: AEO for SaaS (how to be the chosen answer)

AEO works when you write like you are helping someone who just asked a question out loud.

AEO is question-first and answer-first.

AEO structure that wins

For every post, include:

1) A 2-4 line direct answer near the top

The user should get value before they scroll.

2) H2s written as questions

Example:

• “What is GEO for SaaS?”

• “Is GEO different from SEO?”

• “How do I measure AI citations?”

3) Short blocks

Keep paragraphs short. Use bullets. Use mini examples.

4) A real FAQ section

And then mark it up with FAQ schema if it fits the page.

Google supports FAQ structured data (FAQPage) with guidelines.

Also add Article structured data to help search engines understand the page type.

Part 3: GEO for SaaS (how to win inside AI answers)

GEO is the “trust layer.”

Search Engine Land defines GEO as optimizing content to boost visibility in AI-driven search engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot, and AI Overviews.

GEO is mostly about 3 things

1) Being easy to cite

That means:

• clear definitions

• clean structure

• strong headings

• factual statements

• no fluff

2) Being safe to trust

Trust signals are not a footer badge.

Add:

• author info and credibility

• real examples

• screenshots and data

• precise “what this is” and “what this is not”

3) Being consistent across the web

If your site says one thing, your LinkedIn says another, and review sites say another, the model gets confused.

GEO needs alignment:

• site copy

• About page

• case studies

• social proof

• third-party profiles

The “UnOptimised” angle for SaaS teams

Most SaaS content fails because it tries to rank, not sell.

At UnOptimised, we care about one thing:

Traffic that turns into revenue.

That’s why we connect content strategy to CRO systems.

If you want the conversion side, read our related post:

“What CRO frameworks work best for AI B2B startups”

That post shows how we think about trust, proof, speed, and control on landing pages, which directly boosts AEO and GEO too.