Agentic Commerce
AI Is Changing Software Buying
AI assistants have quietly become the new top of funnel for software evaluation. This is how buying is shifting — and why vendor visibility matters more than ever.
The shift in buying behavior
For two decades, software evaluation started with a search engine and a review site. That pattern is changing. Buyers now open an AI assistant, describe their situation, and expect a shortlist. They arrive at vendor websites already primed by the assistant's summary.
ChatGPT as a research surface
ChatGPT is used for category summaries, vendor comparisons, RFP drafting, integration questions, and objection handling. Vendors it mentions get repeat exposure across many buyers; vendors it does not mention are absent from the buyer's mental shortlist.
Gemini and Google's AI answers
Google's AI answers increasingly synthesize vendor lists directly in the search interface. This compresses the top of funnel: the classic ten blue links are replaced by a curated summary, and being cited in that summary becomes the new SEO.
AI-assisted buying journeys
A typical modern B2B buying journey looks something like this: define the problem with the AI, shortlist vendors with the AI, ask the AI to compare 2-3 of them, then visit websites and demo the finalists. Each of these steps privileges vendors the AI knows well.
Where this is heading
- AI answers will increasingly cite specific product pages, pricing pages, and documentation.
- Agentic buyers will begin to compare and even transact on behalf of humans (ACO territory).
- Vendors with strong GEO and ACO signals will benefit disproportionately.
- Categories will consolidate around the vendors AI models learn to trust.
Why vendor visibility matters
The vendors who show up in the AI's shortlist earn compounding advantage: more mentions, more citations, more training exposure. Vendors who do not show up are increasingly invisible — regardless of product quality — because the buyer never learns they exist.
Summary
- AI assistants are the new top of funnel for software buyers.
- Being cited by the assistant is now a distribution channel.
- GEO Readiness and AI Visibility are the two levers vendors can pull directly.
- The trend accelerates as agents move from research to action.
Frequently asked questions
- Are review sites still relevant?
- Yes, but their role is shifting. AI assistants often synthesize review content, so a strong review presence indirectly improves AI Visibility — but it no longer stands on its own.
- Do AI assistants replace SEO?
- They augment it. Traditional SEO still drives direct traffic; GEO and AI Visibility drive the growing share of buyers who research through AI first.
- Which categories are most affected?
- Categories with many similar vendors — ecommerce SaaS, personalization, loyalty, subscription, search, reviews — are where AI compression matters most.
- How can a vendor react without rebuilding their site?
- Start with the highest-leverage changes: schema markup, clearer product page facts, category-defining content, and consistent brand/category language. These improvements compound.
See it applied to a real vendor
CommerceSpy generates a structured intelligence report for any commerce technology company in minutes.
Start free analysisRelated resources
AI Visibility
What is AI Visibility?
How AI Visibility works, why it is now a distribution channel for software vendors, and how to measure and improve it.
Read articleGEO Readiness
What is GEO Readiness?
A clear definition of GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), how it differs from SEO, and what commerce technology vendors should optimize first.
Read articleAI Commerce Optimization
What is AI Commerce Optimization (ACO)?
A working definition of AI Commerce Optimization, why it matters as agentic commerce emerges, and how CommerceSpy scores ACO Readiness.
Read article