Reply.io is a sales engagement platform founded in 2014, with teams spread across Ukraine and several European countries. Their product enables sales teams to automate their multi-channel prospecting sequences (email, LinkedIn, phone). An ultra-competitive market where online visibility is a survival factor.
In early 2025, Reply.io faced a common problem for B2B SaaS companies: stagnant organic traffic despite regular SEO investments. Competitors (Outreach, Salesloft, Apollo.io) dominated the SERPs and, more worryingly, were beginning to be systematically cited by LLMs while Reply.io remained largely absent.
Context: Reply.io before the AI strategy
Before adjusting their strategy, Reply.io had:
- An active blog with around 200 articles published over 4 years
- Stable organic traffic of around 120,000 visitors/month
- Decent SEO presence on "sales engagement" and "email automation" keywords
- No specific AI visibility strategy
- An estimated AI Visibility Score of 8% (cited in only 4 of the 50 target queries tested)
The main problem: existing content was generic, poorly structured for LLMs, and Reply.io did not appear in any comparisons or AI recommendations for high-intent queries such as "best sales engagement platform for SMBs" or "alternative to Outreach".
The initial diagnosis
| Criterion | Initial state | Identified problem |
|---|---|---|
| Blog content | 200 articles, poorly structured | No content hubs, no topical authority |
| Schema markup | Basic (Article only) | No FAQPage, no SoftwareApplication |
| Comparison pages | None | "vs" queries are the most cited by LLMs |
| Original data | A few reports | Not enough citable proprietary data |
| External mentions | Some reviews (G2, Capterra) | Absent from tech media and specialist blogs |
| LLMs.txt | Non-existent | No reference file for AI crawlers |
The strategy deployed
Reply.io deployed a 3-phase strategy over 8 months:
Phase 1 (Months 1-2): Technical foundations and restructuring.
- Full schema markup implementation:
SoftwareApplication,FAQPageon 40 pages, enrichedOrganization - Creation of LLMs.txt file with product description, use cases and differentiation
- Blog restructuring into content hubs: "Sales Engagement", "Cold Email", "LinkedIn Automation", "Sales Productivity"
- Audit and update of the 50 best-performing articles with fresh data and optimised H2/H3 structure
Phase 2 (Months 3-5): Strategic content creation.
- 12 "Reply.io vs [competitor]" pages with honest comparison tables, advantages AND disadvantages
- 8 in-depth guides (3,000+ words) on each use case ("Cold email for B2B SaaS", "Multi-channel prospecting for agencies")
- Publication of a quarterly "State of Sales Outreach" report with proprietary data extracted from their platform (open rates, response rates, benchmarks by sector)
- FAQ enriched with 50+ questions with detailed answers
Phase 3 (Months 6-8): Amplification and mentions.
- Guest posts in 8 European tech media outlets (SaaStock blog, EU-Startups, Tech.eu)
- Participation in 5 B2B podcasts
- Active contributions on Reddit (r/sales, r/startups) with substantive responses
- G2 and Capterra presence optimised with review responses and enriched content
As Oleg Campbell, VP Marketing of Reply.io, noted in an article for EU-Startups: "We realised that classical SEO and AI visibility are not two separate strategies but two sides of the same coin. Optimising for LLMs improved our classical SEO and vice versa."
Results in numbers
| Metric | Before (Q1 2025) | After (Q4 2025) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly organic traffic | 120,000 | 245,000 | +104% |
| AI Visibility Score | 8% | 42% | +425% |
| Queries cited by ChatGPT (out of 50) | 4 | 21 | +425% |
| Queries cited by Perplexity (out of 50) | 7 | 31 | +343% |
| MQLs generated by content | 320/month | 680/month | +113% |
| "vs" pages in Google top 3 | 0 | 8 | - |
| Tech media mentions | 3/quarter | 12/quarter | +300% |
The most impactful result: the "Reply.io vs [competitor]" pages became the main sources of qualified signups. When a user asks AI "what alternative to Outreach for an SME?", Reply.io appears systematically, with a link to its comparison page.
[Image: Graph showing Reply.io organic traffic over 8 months]
Lessons applicable to your business
1. Comparison pages are a massive lever. "vs" and "alternative to" queries are the most frequent on LLMs for B2B purchasing decisions. Create honest comparison pages for every major competitor.
2. Original data is irreplaceable. Reply.io's "State of Sales Outreach" report is cited by LLMs on every query about prospecting benchmarks. Publish your own data — it is unique and therefore preferred by AI.
3. Content structure matters as much as quality. Restructuring into content hubs had a measurable impact before any new content was created. Organise your existing content into thematic clusters.
4. Monitoring is essential. Reply.io measured its AI visibility from the start, which allowed them to quickly identify what was working and iterate.
5. SEO and AI visibility reinforce each other. Every AI visibility action (schema markup, content hubs, original data) also improved classical SEO.
These principles are applicable to any business. Consult our AI SEO guide for B2B SaaS and our topical authority guide for more depth.
[Image: Diagram of the Reply.io strategy in 3 phases]
FAQ — Reply.io case study
Did Reply.io use AISOS for this strategy?
This case study is based on public analysis of Reply.io's strategy. The principles described are those we recommend and apply at AISOS for our SaaS clients.
Are these results replicable for a smaller business?
Yes, the principles scale. An SME will not achieve the same volume, but growth rates can be similar or even higher due to less competition in more specific niches.
How many people worked on this strategy?
Based on available information, Reply.io's content team comprised 3 full-time people plus an SEO/AI consultant. For an SME, one part-time person plus AISOS support can produce proportional results.
Are "vs" pages not risky for brand image?
On the contrary, honest comparison pages build trust. Reply.io openly acknowledges the advantages of some competitors, which makes its own advantages more credible. Transparency is a trust signal for LLMs and users alike.
What was the ROI of this strategy?
With 680 monthly MQLs (versus 320 before), and an estimated 45% reduction in cost per MQL, the ROI is strongly positive. In B2B SaaS, each additional MQL generated by content has a marginal cost close to zero.
Conclusion
The Reply.io case perfectly illustrates the synergy between classical SEO and AI visibility. In 8 months, a structured strategy doubled organic traffic and multiplied AI visibility by 5. The levers are accessible to any business: comparison pages, content hubs, original data and strategic mentions.
Want similar results? Contact AISOS for a personalised audit and a strategy tailored to your market.
Other case studies: Generect x3 traffic | PPM Express 10M+ impressions | Outside The Box 30 AI mentions
