Summary3 min read

Podcast Summary: Voices of Search // “Changing One Common B2B GTM Assumption About Discovery”

Host: Jordan Cooney
Guest: Tim Sanders, Chief Innovation Officer at G2
Date: February 11, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Jordan Cooney sits down with Tim Sanders, Chief Innovation Officer at G2, to discuss the seismic shifts happening in B2B software discovery and buyer behavior. Sanders reveals how the transition from traditional search engines to AI-powered “answer engines” is disrupting familiar SEO strategies. The episode focuses on busting a major Go-To-Market (GTM) assumption: that "keywords" and "prompts" are essentially the same when, in fact, they now represent dramatically different user behaviors and market realities.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Central Assumption: Keywords vs. Prompts

Tim Sanders immediately reframes a core SEO belief:

"That keywords are the same thing as prompts." (01:26 - Tim Sanders)
Keywords have traditionally guided how marketers optimize content and purchase ads, but Sanders warns that the era of direct, typed keywords is giving way to a new era of voice and prompt-driven discovery in AI environments.

2. The “Prompt Problem” in AI Search

Sanders elaborates on the disconnect:

"The use of keywords will no longer be a reflection of how people in an answer engine environment prompt AI." (01:31 - Tim Sanders)
Real-world prompt data—such as what people ask in ChatGPT or other LLMs—is diverging from conventional search behavior.
Example: People are increasingly using tools like Willow V (a “voice keyboard”) to structure search queries vocally—which yields more nuanced, task-oriented prompts rather than short, keyword-based searches.

3. Case Study: “Voice Keyboard” vs. “AI Voice Dictation”

Market misalignment revealed through prompt data:
- A major software competitor insisted on using “AI Voice Dictation” and bought related keywords.
- Yet, prompt panel data from tools like Scrunch indicated that target users (especially IT professionals) never use “AI Voice Dictation”; instead, they overwhelmingly say “Voice Keyboard.”
"We go get the prompt data and... all the IT people that would lead to adoption across the enterprise... strictly call it Voice keyboard. So there’s tremendous misalignment." (03:38 - Tim Sanders)
Early adopters—especially tech-savvy IT professionals—aren’t using Google as their primary discovery tool. They rely instead on conversational prompting in AI tools and new interfaces.

4. The Consequences of Relying on Legacy SEO Tactics

Companies fixated on “classic” keywords risk:
- Missing their real audience as language shifts to prompts in answer engines.
- Creating “false positives”—believing they are capturing the market by ranking on familiar terms, while users have moved on to new vocabularies and platforms.
"...You're going to think you're doing better than you are on your share because of course you're going to win that which you engineer for." (03:38 - Tim Sanders)
Sanders warns that over-reliance on outdated keyword frameworks produces a “self-fulfilling” but misleading sense of success.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On the paradigm shift in buyer behavior:

"All the voice IT, all the IT cool kids, they never use Google. So you’re not going to see it in AdWords, in the keyword research, you’re going to miss it." (03:38 - Tim Sanders)
On operationalizing SEO for the new era:

"...If you rely too much on keywords and SEO, you're going to miss the mark." (03:38 - Tim Sanders)
On the importance of 'prompt data':

"When you go get the prompt data... you’ll see such misalignment between how a person asks for a solution." (01:31 - Tim Sanders)

Timestamps for Key Segments

00:44 – Introduction and main theme: G2’s role in buyer behavior data
01:26 – Sanders’ big GTM assumption to change: “Keywords are the same thing as prompts”
01:31–03:38 – Breakdown of prompt data vs. keyword data, with “Voice Keyboard” case study
03:38–04:34 – Consequences for B2B marketers and risk of false positives
04:34 – Closing remarks and contact information

Episode Takeaways

AI-powered “answer engines” are changing how B2B buyers discover solutions—language and approach are fundamentally shifting from keywords to prompts.
Legacy SEO strategies now risk missing the real signals from data, especially among early adopters who have leapfrogged traditional search engines for new prompt-driven tools.
To win in the new GTM landscape, marketers must adapt their content strategies, using prompt data and real user language—not just keywords.

For further resources, visit G2’s site or connect with Tim Sanders directly. And remember, as Jordan wraps: "The answers are always in the data."

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Transcript9 lines

[00:00]
Narrator
The Voices of Search Podcast is a proud member of the I Hear Everything Podcast Network. Looking to launch or scale your podcast, I Hear Everything delivers podcast production, growth and monetization solutions that transform your words into profit. Ready to give your brand a voice? Then visit iheareverything.com welcome to the Voices of Search Podcast. A member of the I Hear Everything Podcast Network, ready to expedite your company's organic growth efforts. Sit back, relax, and get ready for your daily dose of search engine optimization wisdom. Here's today's host of the Voices of Search podcast, Jordan Cooney.
[00:45]
Jordan Cooney
I'm Jordan Cooney, and joining me today is Tim Sanders, Chief innovation officer at G2, home to one of the largest data sets on real B2B buyer behavior. G2 serves over 100 million software buyers annually and sees firsthand how enterprise research habits are shifting not gradually, but rapidly. Today, Tim will unpack what G2 data reveals about how buyers are using AI search, why traditional SEO no longer guarantees discovery, and what companies need to do to win in this new era of geo. If you could change one common B2B go to market assumption about the whole new AI discovery world, what would that be?
[01:27]
Tim Sanders
That keywords are the same thing as prompts.
[01:29]
Jordan Cooney
Oh, tell me more, tell me more. That is so powerful.
[01:32]
Tim Sanders
It's a huge prompt problem, right? So the use of keywords will no longer be a reflection of how people in an answer engine environment prompt AI. And if you go to providers like Scrunch who actually have panel data people's prompts, you'll see such misalignment between how a person asks for a solution. Like, let me give you an example. Recently I adopted Willow V. It's it's what the cool kids call voice keyboards. So I just click function, I say the thing, it's perfectly structured, it goes out. I don't type. I'm three times more productive. It's bigger for me than chat GPT.
[02:09]
Sponsor Voice
Time for a one minute break to hear from our sponsor, Pre Visible. So you're looking for SEO help and you got a couple of options. You could start replying to spam from agencies that claim they can get you to rank number one on Google. You can pay an hourly rate for a consultant who will inevitably nickel and dime you with hourly charges. Or you can work with a cookie cutter agency to quickly launch a strategy less project with low success rate. None of those sound very good now do they? Well, that's where Pre Visible's integrated consulting model comes in. Pre Visible draws From a collective 40 years of SEO and digital marketing experience to unlock your organic growth opportunities. They build custom solutions that combine strategy, technical expertise, content and reporting to effectively operationalize SEO for your business. Pre Physical's four stage approach ensures that your SEO programs thrive by starting off with a strategy first approach. Then they support you in your efforts to create quality content, help you identify technical issues, and most importantly, they'll work with your cross functional teams to integrate your SEO strategies to make sure that your SEO budget actually drives results, not just your agency's bottom line. So join brands like Yelp, eBay, Canva, Atlassian Square, all who rely on the SEO consultants at Pre Visible. For more information go to Pre Visible IO that's Pre Visible P R E V I S I B L E I O.
[03:38]
Tim Sanders
But when we talk to one of their big competitors, the competitors like, nope. We call it AI Voice dictation and they just stick with it. And then they go in and they look at dictation and buy all the keywords and everything and then we go get the prompt data and everybody in the icp, which would be all the IT people that would lead to all the adoption across the enterprise. They strictly call it Voice keyboard. So there's a tremendous misalignment. By the way, all the voice it, all the IT cool kids, they never use Google. So you're not going to see it in AdWords, in the keyword research, you're going to miss it. So the problem is like all the early adopters have moved to ChatGPT and they find their own way of talking about a thing in the prompt world that may not show up in the key world word. If you rely too much on keywords and aeo, you're going to miss the mark. And worst of, worst of all, you're going to create false positives where because you're using the way you talk about it and the keywords you're focused on, you're going to think you're doing better than you are on your share because of course you're going to win that which you engineer for. So that's one thing I like to change.
[04:35]
Jordan Cooney
Okay, and that wraps up this episode of the Voices of Search podcast. Huge thank you to Tim Sanders, Chief innovation officer at G2 for joining us. If you'd like to contact Tim, you can find a link to his LinkedIn profile in our show Notes, or you can find it on voicesofsearch.com you can also visit his personal website, Tim Sanders.com if you haven't subscribed yet or would like a daily stream of SEO and content marketing knowledge in your podcast feed. Hit the subscribe button in your podcast app or on YouTube and we'll be in your feed next week. Okay, that's all for today, but until next time, remember, the answers are always in the data.
[05:16]
Sam
Sam.