AI assistants are increasingly shaping which software vendors buyers discover, how they compare them and which brands make the shortlist before a company website ever enters the journey.
In fact, 1 in 5 ChatGPT conversations carry commercial intent today.
But appearing in an AI-generated answer does not guarantee that a buyer will continue considering the brand.
Userlytics and Sage followed 60 prospective buyers across the United States, United Kingdom and France as they used their preferred AI assistants to research finance and accounting software. We then observed what happened when they visited vendor websites to verify the recommendations they had received.
The findings reveal a new handoff in the B2B buyer journey and a changing role for the SaaS website.
Download the whitepaper to discover how AI visibility, website clarity and buyer trust now work together to determine which brands move forward.
Get the complete research by filling out the form.
AI Is Changing the B2B Software Buying Journey
For years, the B2B software journey followed a familiar path. A buyer identified a need, searched for potential solutions and visited vendor websites to compare products and build a shortlist.
That sequence is changing.
According to Forrester, 94% of business buyers report using AI during the buying process. Instead of opening several search results and assembling the answer themselves, buyers can now describe their company, requirements and constraints in a single prompt.
An AI assistant can respond with vendor recommendations, product comparisons, perceived strengths and weaknesses, and even estimates of what each option might cost.
By the time the buyer reaches a vendor website, the brand may already have been introduced and evaluated by a system the company does not control.
The Website Has Not Disappeared, Its Job Has Changed
The website is no longer always the first touchpoint. Increasingly, it is where an AI-shaped impression is confirmed, clarified or challenged.
Most AI visibility research examines whether a brand appears in an AI-generated answer. This study goes further by observing what buyers do with that information.
Participants began with a realistic software-purchasing scenario, conducted their research using their preferred AI tools and wrote their prompts in their own words. They then visited vendor websites to verify what the AI had told them and decide which products deserved continued consideration.
The research followed the journey from the first prompt to website verification, revealing where confidence increased, where uncertainty emerged and what ultimately influenced the shortlist.
AI can open the path into consideration. The website determines whether that consideration strengthens, stalls or ends.
What You Will Learn
Download the whitepaper to explore:
- How AI is changing software discovery, comparison and shortlisting.
- The difference between appearing in an AI-generated answer and influencing a buyer’s decision.
- What happens when buyers compare AI-generated claims with the vendor website.
- Why missing pricing information can create an “AI Tax” that weakens buyer trust.
- How product architecture can help or hinder AI in routing buyers to the right solution.
- Why product fit and website friction differed across the markets observed.
- What the SaaS website needs to do when it is no longer the first touchpoint.
- How Sage is approaching Generative Engine Optimization across teams and markets.
- A practical playbook for strengthening AI visibility, trust and conversion.
UX Research at a Glance
The study included 60 prospective buyers, with 20 participants in each of three markets: the United States, United Kingdom and France.
Participants used their own AI accounts and preferred AI assistants to research finance and accounting software. The research then followed them onto vendor websites to understand how effectively each site confirmed, clarified or challenged the impression created by AI.
Userlytics also applied a proprietary AI Readiness framework covering six dimensions of the journey, from discoverability and information completeness to buyer confidence and journey continuity.
Who Should Read This Whitepaper?
This research is designed for B2B SaaS marketing leaders, brand and communications teams, content and product marketers, SEO and GEO specialists, website owners, UX researchers, product managers and digital-experience teams.
If your organization is exploring how it appears in Gen AI engines, this whitepaper provides a buyer-centered view of what AI visibility means today, how buyers verify vendors, and what makes or breaks trust in the journey.
