SaaStr Podcast Episode 883: Introducing AEO (Agent Experience Optimization) and LLM Recommendation Audit Methods
SaaStr's episode 883 focuses on "Agent-Led Growth," introducing the concept of AEO (Agent Experience Optimization). Hosts Amelia and Jason share how to use first-party data to improve outbound effectiveness and demonstrate using Muse tools for unbiased cold-prompt testing of LLMs to assess brand visibility in AI recommendations (e.g., SaaStr mentioned 46 out of 50 times). This episode provides specific audit ideas and execution cases for readers interested in AI marketing automation.
SaaStr released podcast episode 883, titled "The AEO Playbook: How to Get Picked by Agents," on October 23, 2026, hosted by Amelia and Jason. The episode centers on "Agent-Led Growth," focusing on two directions: using AI agents to optimize Go-to-Market strategies, and ensuring your brand is picked by agents when users ask other AIs for category recommendations.
The show introduces a new concept called "AEO" (Agent Experience Optimization), aimed at making AI agents more likely to recommend specific brands. Amelia and Jason point out that facts beat opinions for AI, and publicly verifiable data works better than testimonials. They emphasize that pricing pages may matter more than homepages, and companies need to publish content for agents, not just humans.
To quantify AEO effectiveness, the episode presents a specific audit case: Amelia used Muse to cold-prompt over 10 LLMs with SaaStr-related questions without bias. Results showed SaaStr came up 46 out of 50 times, and Muse flagged exactly what to fix for the remaining 4. Additionally, the discussion covers how to use first-party data (customer history, ROI data) to improve AI outbound email quality, and competitor tracking as a primary outbound tactic workflow.