Your buyers ask ChatGPT for shortlists before they ever visit your site.
You’ve probably watched it happen in your own funnel: demo requests mentioning an AI recommendation, form fills saying “found you through ChatGPT.”
Plenty of consultants will talk AI search strategy with you. Finding the person who writes content that earns those citations is harder because job boards say “content writer,” portfolios say “SEO,” and neither tells you who can do this specific work.
This list names seven writers who can, with evidence attached. Full disclosure: I’m one of them, ranked where I’d honestly place myself.
What does an AEO writer do differently from an SEO writer?
An AEO (answer engine optimization) writer produces content built to be cited by AI systems like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google’s AI Overviews when buyers ask for recommendations.
The skills start where good SEO writing starts, then extend further:
- Answer-first structure. Each section opens with a direct, extractable answer before expanding, because AI systems lift complete blocks rather than piecing together scattered paragraphs.
- Entity clarity. Products, categories, and claims get named precisely so models connect the content to the right brand.
- Citable specificity. Every claim carries a number, example, or source that an AI can quote with confidence. Vague content gets skipped.
- Comparison coverage. Buyers ask AI tools “X vs Y” and “best tool for [use case]” constantly, so AEO writers build content that answers those prompts head-on.
The stakes for SaaS specifically have moved fast.
BrightEdge tracking found B2B tech queries triggering AI Overviews jumped from 36% to 82% in a single year, and SparkToro’s 2026 study puts 68% of Google searches at zero clicks.
Content that only ranks now reaches a shrinking share of your buyers. I’ve written a full guide on optimizing content for AI search if you want the mechanics; this piece is about who to hire to do it.
If you’re searching for traditional search-first writers instead, my roundup of the best SEO content writers covers that ground.
How I picked these writers
Four criteria, applied to everyone, including me:
- Public thinking on AI search. A published process, framework, or body of work on the topic, beyond a services page that added “AEO” last quarter.
- Verifiable evidence. Citations, rankings, or client results I could check against live sources, screenshots, or third-party testimonials.
- SaaS depth. AI systems reward content that demonstrates subject-matter expertise, so every writer here works specifically in software.
- Structural skill in their public work. Their own articles show the extractable, answer-first writing they’d produce for you.
Best AEO writers at a glance
| Writer | Best for | Standout proof | Pricing |
| Kaleigh Moore | Enterprise AEO strategy + writing | Published AEO framework, LLM retrieval research | $0.80–$1.00/word, $3K/mo min |
| Nathan Ojaokomo | BOFU + product-led content with citations | 119 AI Overviews on one client article; 1.4K Copilot citations at DR 23 | Min $800/piece |
| Astley Cervania | Full content system + LLM visibility | Built the LLM page behind Rezi’s AI citations; 468% traffic growth | On request |
| Peace Akinwale | Comparison/alternatives pages | Published AEO process; AI content systems | On request |
| John Iwuozor | Cybersecurity/IT SaaS content | Active LLMO/AI search bylines at Progress | On request |
| Ayomide Joseph | Technical BOFU content | Forbes, Entrepreneur, Nutshell bylines | On request |
| Bright Afam | Product-led content | [Pending] | On request |
1. Kaleigh Moore
Best for: Enterprise and mid-market SaaS teams that want AEO strategy and writing from the same person.
Kaleigh has written for SaaS and ecommerce brands like Stripe, Shopify Plus, IBM, and Jasper since 2013, and she has repositioned her entire practice around AI search.
Her site now leads with “human-led AEO strategist for B2B SaaS,” and the substance backs the label: she conducts graduate research at Harvard on how LLMs retrieve information, and she has published her own AEO framework, the Source Signal Stack, which builds third-party expert signals into content so AI systems treat it as source material.
That combination of editorial pedigree and retrieval research is rare. Her limitation is access: a $3,000 monthly minimum and an enterprise client roster put her out of reach for most early-stage budgets.
Services: AEO/GEO content strategy, long-form content writing, editorial systems for AI-assisted teams, a weekly AI search newsletter.
Pricing: $0.80–$1.00 per word, with a $3,000/month minimum. Ghostwritten work carries a 20% premium.
2. Nathan Ojaokomo
Best for: B2B SaaS teams that want bottom-funnel content built to rank and get cited, without an agency retainer.
I write comparison pages, alternatives roundups, and buying guides for B2B SaaS companies, and the work shows up in AI answers.
An article I wrote for Vimeo ranks #1 for its target keyword and has triggered 119 AI Overviews, driving 3.4K monthly visits. A piece for Zapier on authenticator apps ranks in the top 3, gets cited in ChatGPT and AI Overviews, and ranks for 668 keywords at $36K/year in traffic value. A Taboola article ranks #1, with citations in both ChatGPT and AI Overviews, at $48K/year in value.
Another proof point is this site. It runs at DR 23, a fraction of the authority most cited domains carry, and still appears in 78 AI Overviews across 20 pages, with 1.4K citations in Microsoft Copilot over the past six months.
Getting cited without domain authority means the content structure is doing the work, and that structure is the skill you’re hiring.
The honest limitation: I’m one person. If you want 10 articles a week or link building and digital PR bundled in, an agency is a better fit.
Services: Bottom-funnel articles (comparisons, alternatives, best-of lists), product-led SEO content, content refreshes for posts losing ground to AI answers.
Pricing: Starts from $800 per piece. Reach out here.
3. Astley Cervania
Best for: Product-led SaaS teams that want the whole system installed: content, site architecture, and LLM visibility, with a strategist staying on to run it.
Astley built the organic growth engine at Rezi, an AI resume builder, and the receipts are unusually well documented.
Organic traffic grew 468% in four months (from 9,900 to 56,300), organic signups rose 750%, and the company surpassed 4 million users, with search as its top acquisition channel.
The AEO-specific proof comes from his manager’s own words: Astley set Rezi’s “AI-proofing” content standards and built its dedicated LLM info page, “which is now part of how Rezi gets cited by AI systems.”
His services page lists AI search optimization (AEO, GEO, LLMs) alongside content and site architecture, and he documents his methods in public case studies.
Services: SEO and content strategy, AI search optimization, content and site architecture, articles, case studies, and founder-led LinkedIn content.
Pricing: Available on request.
4. Peace Akinwale
Best for: SaaS teams that live on comparison and alternatives pages and want them built for AI extraction.
Peace is a B2B SaaS writer who specializes in exactly the content types AI assistants lean on when buyers ask for shortlists: comparisons, alternative pages, and how-to guides.
He has published his full AEO process for optimizing B2B SaaS content for answer engines, which means you can read his methodology before you ever pay him.
He also works as an AI content engineer, building automated systems for style-guide enforcement and editing workflows. For a lean team, that means he can improve how your content operation runs, beyond the articles he delivers.
His public proof leans on process and published thinking more than named-client citation numbers, which is the honest gap between him and the writers above.
Services: Comparison and alternatives pages, how-to guides, AEO content optimization, AI content systems for marketing teams.
Pricing: Available on request.
5. John Iwuozor
Best for: Cybersecurity and IT SaaS companies that need technically credible content on AI search topics.
John writes for cybersecurity and B2B SaaS brands with bylines at Forbes Advisor, Techopedia, eSecurity Planet, Tripwire, and Progress.
He’s publishing on the AI search topic right now, with recent Progress pieces covering LLMO, its relation to GEO and AEO, and how retrieval grounding reduces AI hallucination. A writer who can explain retrieval mechanics understands what makes content retrievable.
His technical range suits categories where a generalist gets exposed fast: security, IT infrastructure, and developer-adjacent tools. If your product sits outside those spaces, other writers on this list are a more natural fit.
Services: Long-form technical content, cybersecurity and IT SaaS articles, content strategy.
Pricing: Available on request.
6. Ayomide Joseph
Best for: Technical SaaS (cybersecurity, MarTech) teams that want bottom-funnel content built to shorten sales cycles.
Ayomide is a B2B SaaS writer and strategist whose positioning is unapologetically commercial: BOFU content that turns evaluation-stage readers into demos. His bylines include Forbes, Entrepreneur, and Nutshell, and his testimonials repeat the same themes: deep research, technical material made readable, and reliable delivery.
He doesn’t market AEO as a named service, so what you’re hiring is a skill set that travels well into AI search rather than a declared methodology: structured writing, data-backed claims, and buyer-intent coverage in the technical categories where credibility decides citations.
Services: BOFU content (comparisons, alternatives, use-case pages), content strategy, technical SaaS articles.
Pricing: Available on request.
7. Bright Afam
Best for: SaaS teams investing in product-led content that builds topical authority.
Bright is a B2B SaaS content writer focused on product-led content: articles in which the product demonstrates itself within the piece rather than waiting for the CTA. Product-led content carries a quiet AEO advantage because AI systems learn what your product does from how consistently your content connects it to the problems it solves.
Services: Product-led articles, topical authority content, B2B SaaS blog content.
Pricing: Available on request.
Do you need a writer, an agency, or a tool?
A writer fits when you own the strategy and need someone to produce content that earns citations.
If you’re missing the strategy layer too, or you want digital PR and technical implementation bundled in, look at my breakdown of the best AI SEO agencies for B2B SaaS instead; those engagements run $5,000 to $25,000 a month and cover ground no solo writer can.
If your gap is measurement rather than production, an AI visibility tool tracks your citations without creating anything.
The budget usually decides between the first two. I’ve written a more detailed comparison of the agency vs. freelancer trade-off if you’re seriously weighing them.
How to test an AEO writer before committing
Commission one paid article before any retainer, then run three checks on the draft:
- Does every major section open with an extractable answer? Thirty to eighty words that stand alone if an AI lifts them. Sections that wind up at the point fail the test.
- Does every claim carry a citable specificity? A number, a named example, a source. Count the claims in one section and check how many are unsupported.
- Can the writer explain their structure? Ask why they ordered the sections the way they did. An AEO writer provides reasoning for queries and extraction. A writer working from habit gives you “it flowed better.”
For a longer-horizon check, run the article’s target question through ChatGPT and Perplexity a few weeks after it’s published and see whether the piece or the brand gets picked up.
Citations take time to accrue, so treat this as a signal rather than a verdict. My guide to evaluating a freelance writer covers the general vetting layer, and the same trial-project logic I recommend for hiring an SEO consultant applies here: a small paid project first, then a retainer.
How much do AEO writers cost?
Expect experienced writers in this space to price per word, per article, or per month.
Kaleigh’s rates ($0.80 to $1.00 per word, with a $3,000 monthly minimum) are at the premium end of freelance pricing and provide a fair ceiling for planning.
Established SaaS writers below that tier commonly land in the mid-hundreds to low thousands per article, depending on depth, research load, and whether strategy is included. My full breakdown of content writer rates covers the ranges in detail.
For context, the AEO agencies quote $5,000 to $25,000 a month. A strong writer at $2,000 to $4,000 a month covers the production layer of that work, which is why the writer route makes sense for teams that already know what to publish.
FAQs about the best AEO writers
What is an AEO writer?
An AEO writer creates content structured for citation by AI systems like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews when buyers ask questions in your category. The craft combines SEO fundamentals with answer-first structure, entity clarity, and citable specificity.
Is an AEO writer different from a GEO writer?
The terms overlap heavily. AEO usually refers to optimizing for direct-answer surfaces like AI Overviews and featured snippets, while GEO covers building citation presence across LLMs broadly. Good writers treat both as one job, and you’ll see the labels used interchangeably.
How much does an AEO writer cost?
Premium freelance rates run $0.80 to $1.00 per word or roughly $3,000+ monthly minimums. Experienced writers below that tier typically charge in the mid-hundreds to low thousands per article. Agencies doing the same work charge $5,000 to $25,000 a month.
Can my current SEO writer do AEO?
Sometimes. Run the three-check test above on their next draft: answer-first sections, citable claims, and structural reasoning. A strong SEO writer often passes with a brief adjustment. A writer who can’t explain their structure won’t get there with a new acronym.
If you’d rather hand this work off now
I’m Nathan, a freelance content writer for B2B SaaS companies.
If you’re reading this, you probably have a backlog of high-intent topics nobody has time to write, content that gets traffic but never turns into leads, or pressure from above to show up in AI Overviews without a clear plan.
That’s the work I do:
- I write bottom-funnel articles. Comparison pages, alternatives roundups, and best-of lists that talk to buyers who are already evaluating options.
- I make product-led SEO content. Your product is woven through the article itself, so the reader sees it working before they reach the CTA.
- I refresh underperforming content. Posts that rank but don’t convert, or pages that lost traffic when search intent moved.
