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AEO for CMOs: Lessons Learned and Where Search Might Be Going In 2026
Three B2B marketing leaders share CMO-level frameworks for navigating AI-driven discovery, AEO strategy, and what to focus on in the next 90 days.
There’s been a lot of discussion over the last year about AI and the impact it will have on B2B buying because of AI search, aka AEO.
AI is influencing how buyers learn about your brand. Before talking to anyone at your company, your potential customers are learning about your products from ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity.
This has created a whole new game for SEO; we’re now in the world of AEO and a lot of brand perception is being shaped outside of channels marketers directly control.
So what’s a CMO to do? Where should you invest? What changes need to be made to the current playbook? How is this any different than traditional SEO?
That’s what we’ll cover on this month’s Exit Five Live, hosted by Dave Gerhardt and a group of three B2B marketing leaders that have lessons in navigating this shift from the past year.
This discussion is about how discovery is changing, where traditional SEO still works, where it clearly falls short, and how CMOs should guide their teams (without overreacting or chasing the hype).
You will learn:
- How to think about AEO at the leadership level
- What to focus on in the next 90 days
- The risks of ignoring AI-driven discovery
- How to gauge AEO maturity, from basic visibility to real authority
This session is brought to you by Webflow.
Speakers
Clare Schmitt — VP, Marketing & Communications, Piedmont Global
Dave Gerhardt — Founder, Exit Five
Dave Steer — CMO, Webflow
Marcy Comer — CMO, EagleView
Frequently Asked Questions
How is AI changing how B2B buyers research vendors?
Buyers are increasingly learning about products from tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity before ever talking to anyone at the company — meaning a growing share of brand perception is shaped outside channels marketers directly control.
How is AEO different from traditional SEO?
The session covers where traditional SEO still works, where it clearly falls short in an AI-search world, and what changes need to be made to the existing playbook as a result.
What should a CMO focus on in the next 90 days for AEO?
This is a specific topic covered in the session — practical near-term priorities rather than a long-term abstract strategy.
How do you gauge how mature your organization’s AEO efforts are?
The session covers a maturity framework running from basic visibility in AI search up to real authority, so leaders can place their own org on that spectrum.
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