Because Perplexity gives a synthesized answer with sources instead of ten blue links to wade through.
The behavior shift:
B2B buyers are increasingly starting research in Perplexity, Claude, or ChatGPT instead of Google. Why? They get a synthesized answer immediately instead of clicking through 10 links to piece together the picture themselves.
What this means for vendors:
- Your content needs to be citable by AI, not just rankable by Google
- The first page of search results matters less than being THE source AI trusts
- Comparison content and specific answers outperform generic pages
How to check your visibility:
1. Search your category in Perplexity ("best AI consulting firms") 2. Look at the citations. Are you there? 3. Search competitor comparisons ("Company A vs Company B") 4. Check if your unique claims appear in responses
How to improve:
- Publish specific, structured answers to buying questions
- Use FAQ schema so AI can extract Q&A pairs
- Build topical authority in your niche
- Create comparison content (your solution vs alternatives)
The opportunity:
Perplexity is growing 40%+ month-over-month. The brands that figure out AEO now will own the channel when it's mainstream.