G2U Webinar Recap: Reviews for the AI Buyer

The world of B2B software discovery is rapidly evolving, with Artificial Intelligence and Large Language Models (LLMs) taking center stage. 

G2 recently hosted a "Mini Masterclass: Reviews for the AI Buyer" webinar, featuring Ross Briggs, VP of Buyer Experience, and Tracey Landstrom, Director of Customer Success. This session centered around critical findings from the 2025 Buyer Behavior Report and offered actionable strategies for businesses to thrive in this new AI-powered era.

If you missed the webinar, you’re in luck! We’re covering everything Ross and Tracey discussed, including how to turn reviews from customers into fuel.

Key findings from our 2025 Buyer Behavior Report

The 2025 Buyer Behavior Report, by G2's VP of Research Insights Tim Sanders, highlights a significant shift in how businesses research software. While traditional sources like Google and software review sites remain important, AI Search is rapidly gaining traction across all company sizes and industries. 

In fact, for companies with more than 5,000 employees, AI Search is now a more relied-upon source than peers or colleagues, Google, software review sites, market research firms, and vendor sites.

While it used to be Google as the number one resource for all answers, AI Search has become a much larger component for how buyers are conducting research, and we’re seeing this most evident in larger organizations who are striving to do more with less and looking for efficient solutions to help them do specific kinds of research. 

When it comes to influencing vendor shortlisting, GenAI Chatbots are emerging as a notable source, following peer review sites and vendor sites. This highlights the growing importance of AI in the early stages of the buying journey as people look for options.

Essentially, they’re the new number one source of info as buyers establish their short list. 

The new front door: Large Language Models

AI and LLMs are fundamentally reshaping B2B software discovery. B2B buyers are increasingly relying on reviews, which are now being surfaced by AI. This shift means that while click-through rates on traditional search engines are down, engagement rates are up. AI is becoming the new front door for B2B product research.

This new landscape also introduces "Generative Engine Optimization" (GEO), a new set of KPIs for marketers. Beyond winning the click from an SEO standpoint, the goal is now to win the answer, through GEO. 

Key GEO metrics include brand mentions and sentiment, mentions on highly cited websites, testimonials and reviews, consensus across various sources, user forums, and link citations. Conversational prompts are the new keywords, indicating a move towards more natural language queries.

The G2 advantage: reviews that rank

G2 stands out as a leading source for generative AI searches related to software comparisons, surpassing other software marketplaces. This is all thanks to G2 reviews being a top data source for LLM visibility in B2B software. G2's website is designed with SEO at its core, and this success extends to GEO.

Our syndication partners amplify the "consensus signal”. G2 reviews are syndicated to major software marketplaces worldwide, like AWS Marketplace and CDW, leading to broad reach and visibility. 

And based on data from Profound, G2 is the number one source for genAI search of software comparisons, beating out platforms like Reddit, Gartner, Forbes, and more.

Turn feedback into fuel

Thanks to AI and LLMs, the recency and ongoing relevance of review data is more important than it’s ever been.

Large Language Models strive to provide the most current and accurate information, directly surfacing insights from platforms like G2. This means that outdated reviews can diminish the perceived value and trustworthiness of a software solution when surfaced by AI search, potentially impacting your presence on crucial shortlists. 

This means that maintaining a fresh and robust collection of user feedback is no longer just good practice, it's essential for optimizing your visibility and influence in AI-driven discovery.

At G2, we recognize this critical need and offer innovative solutions to help businesses not only generate new reviews but also keep their existing feedback up-to-date and impactful, minimizing perceived barriers and effort associated with review asks.

G2 offers services to help businesses actively manage their review generation strategies. A "Review Refresh Campaign" allows companies to re-engage past reviewers and encourage them to update their existing G2 reviews, with or without incentives. This is particularly useful for businesses with a large number of older reviews to get updated feedback.

G2 is also innovating with new AI-powered review collection methods:

• Voice Reviews (beta): Offers a low-friction way to capture deeper software feedback.
• AI-Assisted Review Collection via Calls and Meetings (alpha): Transforms call transcripts into high-quality, pre-filled reviews ready for sharing, approval, and publishing on G2.
• AI-Led Custom Research (paid beta): Provides actionable insights through AI-led interviews tailored to specific company needs, industries, buyers, or users.

You can find more details surrounding these new G2 innovations and sign up for these beta program here.

Lifecycle-driven review strategies

To ensure you’re driving a steady drum beat of fresh reviews, and staying relevant to LLMs, review asks should be an ongoing process integrated throughout the customer lifecycle. Instead of only asking your most ardent advocates or only after a renewal, businesses should automate review requests and embed them into various customer touchpoints.

Key opportunities for review generation throughout the customer lifecycle include:

• Onboarding: Collect reviews when customers are most engaged.
• Support Tickets: Leverage CSAT feedback after a successful support interaction to prompt a review.
• First Business Reviews / In-Person Meetings: Ask for a review after celebrating wins and discussing new strategies.
• NPS/CSAT Feedback: Use the opportunity after a customer submits an NPS score to ask for more detailed feedback in a review.
• Contract Renewal: Renewal indicates customers are actively using and engaged with your products, and is a good time to prompt a review.

G2 provides tools to help drive more reviews per month with personalized prompts across websites, emails, and in-app experiences. Developing a multi-pronged approach to review generation, including automated collection, quarterly campaigns, and sales competitions, will ensure continuous growth in key categories.

Fueling discovery with AI-ready reviews

The B2B software buying journey is undergoing a significant transformation driven by AI and LLMs. Reviews are more critical than ever, serving as a primary source of information for AI-powered search. 

By understanding the new buyer behavior, leveraging platforms like G2 that prioritize AI visibility, and implementing robust, lifecycle-driven review generation strategies, businesses can effectively navigate this evolving landscape and ensure their solutions are discovered and chosen by the AI buyer.

Already a G2 customer and ready to take review generation to the next level? Take our Review Gen certification to make it official, and let the bragging rights begin.

Not a G2 customer? Learn more about review generation by booking a demo.