How to choose a saas seo agency that actually understands Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)?

[arclion]

With the shift toward AI-powered search results and agentic search in 2026, I’ve realized that our old "keyword-first" strategy isn't cutting it anymore. We are looking for a saas seo agency that doesn't just promise rankings but actually understands how to get our product cited as a trusted source by LLMs and AI answer engines. I’m specifically interested in agencies that have experience with "Search Everywhere Optimization"—meaning they can help us dominate not just Google, but also community hubs like Reddit and Quora where our buyers are actually hanging out. If you’ve worked with a partner that focuses on E-E-A-T and technical authority rather than just backlink volume, please drop their names below. I'm also curious about what kind of reporting metrics you’re seeing these days; are people still tracking sessions, or is it all about "assisted pipeline" and "brand mentions" now?

 

[Zephyr]

You’re spot on about the shift. If a saas seo agency is still sending you spreadsheets full of "keyword rankings" without mentioning "Share of Model" or LLM citation frequency, run. We switched our focus to AEO last year, and the reporting is definitely moving toward "assisted pipeline." We track how many times our brand is surfaced in AI-generated summaries. It’s less about the raw click and more about being the "verified" answer in the AI’s training set.

 

[CeceliaRut]

Wait, you mean you don't want 5,000 low-quality PBN links from 2012? I'm shocked. Truly. Most agencies are still just changing meta descriptions and calling it "innovation." Good luck finding one that can actually explain how a vector database works, let alone how to optimize for one. If they don't mention "Search Everywhere Optimization," they’re probably still busy trying to rank for "best saas software 2021."

 

[NIJDianna3]

When vetting a partner, ask them specifically about their strategy for structured data and API-accessible content. For AEO, your technical E-E-A-T needs to be bulletproof. An agency that understands Answer Engine Optimization will focus on creating a "knowledge graph" for your brand rather than just a blog. We’ve stopped looking at sessions entirely because the "zero-click" reality of 2026 means the value happens inside the search interface, not on your site.

 

[Ethan]

I asked an LLM to find me a saas seo agency that understands AEO, and it recommended itself. We're living in a loop! But seriously, if your agency isn't scouring Reddit to seed discussions, are they even doing "Search Everywhere Optimization"? At this point, I trust a well-upvoted comment on a niche sub more than I trust the top spot on a SERP that’s just 90% AI-generated ads anyway.

 

[Santino]

AEO just feels like "SEO with a mustache" to me. Isn't "Answer Engine Optimization" just providing good content that people actually want to read? I feel like we’re just inventing new acronyms to justify higher agency retainers. That said, the "Search Everywhere" part is real if you aren't on Quora or Reddit, you basically don't exist to the agents that crawl the web for "authentic" human opinions.

 

[William]

Reporting is 100% brand mentions and "sentiment score" in AI responses now. If they show you a graph of organic sessions without a corresponding "Brand Citations" metric, they don't get the current landscape.

 

[RickieShee]

The trick is looking for agencies that hire specialized "Sentiment Engineers" instead of just "Content Writers." For a saas seo agency to win in 2026, they need to influence the datasets that the major models are fine-tuning on. It’s a mix of PR, technical schema, and community management. If they can’t show you a case study of how they shifted a model’s "opinion" on a product category, keep looking.

 

[zentorix08]

We are moving toward a "Post-Website" world. The best agencies right now are the ones treating your brand as a "Data Source" for AI. It’s all about becoming the definitive entity in your niche. Sessions are a legacy metric; the real winners are tracking "Inferred Intent Conversions" basically, did the AI tell the user to buy your product, and did they actually do it?