Account based marketing (ABM) and generative engine optimisation (GEO) might feel like two different worlds – one rooted in outbound orchestration, the other in AI-powered inbound discovery. But maybe they are more alike than they seem.
Both are grounded in one principle: relevance to the right buyer, at the right moment.
As AI search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude begin shaping B2B buying journeys earlier than ever, it’s time to rethink how ABM and GEO can work together – not in parallel, but in concert.
ABM and GEO share the same DNA
ABM is about going deep, not broad. You tailor your messaging, content, and channels to a defined set of target accounts – and within them, the key decision-makers and influencers.
Our enterprise B2B approach to AI search works the same way. But instead of targeting people with ads and outreach, you’re targeting the prompts those people are putting into AI assistants.
Done right, GEO becomes the passive twin of ABM – shaping buyer perceptions before your first outbound email is ever opened.
Your key accounts are using AI – you just can’t see it
Let’s say you’re targeting legal teams at mid sized SaaS companies as part of an ABM campaign for your CLM software.
You might run ads. You might push content. You might trigger outbound SDR sequences.
But what if the buyer journey started a week earlier – in a conversation with ChatGPT?
“What CLM tools are best for mid-sized SaaS companies with lean legal teams and basic Salesforce integration needs?”
If your brand shows up in the answer, you may already be winning the perception battle.
If it doesn’t, you’ve already lost ground and you’ll never see it in your attribution data.
This is the new B2B dark funnel – and it’s where GEO lives.
From account lists to prompt matrices
At FirstMotion, we don’t just help clients run GEO campaigns – we help them consider how AI search is playing a role across the length of the B2B buyer journey. If a client has a ABM program underway, we use that data to help shape our AI SEO strategy.
Here’s how:
- Start with your ABM ICPs – who are you targeting, what industries, what job roles?
- Map their buyer personas – especially for high-value decision-makers and influencers.
- Define their journey stages – we typically use:
- Problem identification
- Solution exploration
- Requirements building
- Supplier evaluation
- Create prompt matrices – what questions might those buyers ask at each stage?
This prompt matrix becomes the connective tissue between ABM and GEO.
Luckily, at FirstMotion we have ContextualJourney™ – our own AI SEO audience intelligence platform that helps us to enrich company information, understand buyer pain points, goals and triggers, and to therefore build a unique understanding of what prompts B2B buyers might be using across their purchase journey.
Track AI prompt visibility as an ABM signal
Using AI visibility tools like Peec AI, we can track:
- Is your brand being mentioned in AI answers for prompts aligned to your ABM accounts?
- Are competitors being surfaced instead?
- What sources are the AI tools citing?
Whilst we don’t know exactly what prompts ABM accounts are using, we think there is value in considering the generative search intent layer that inevitably is sitting over your ABM strategy.
GEO improves ABM targeting and messaging
The insights from prompt mining and source analysis aren’t just for SEO or content teams.
They can directly improve:
- Sales messaging – align with buyer language and objections uncovered in prompts
- Ad copy – reflect the specific pain points buyers are asking AI about
- Landing pages – structure content in ways LLMs can parse and reference
- Content strategy– fill in prompt gaps and citation opportunities
If you’re running ABM for your enterprise B2B brand and you’re not yet thinking about how AI search is influencing your buyers, we think it’s time to start.
We’re not saying GEO replaces ABM – we’re saying it makes sense to consider how the two can align, given your buyers inside your ABM accounts are turning to AI tools for advice and decision support.