Everything is digital. We research products, shop for clothes and groceries, pay bills, take classes and even see doctors through digital platforms – the world is connected.
This means that virtually every business has (or should have) an online presence – which also means intense competition when trying to appear in Google and other online searches.
Search engine optimization (SEO) has been the gold standard of getting your business seen online.
But as technology has rapidly expanded, so has the way that users get the information they’re looking for on the web. Enter AEO, or more formally known as answer engine optimization.
What is AEO?
We can all picture it. You go to your search engine of choice and type in the question you want answered. With the strike of the enter key, suddenly the screen is filled with the information you’re looking for, and you never have to click a thing.
That is AEO. Unlike SEO, AEO doesn’t focus on providing clickable links to drive traffic. Instead, AEO attempts to situate content so that popular AI-powered resources will cite it as an expert on the subject. The goal is to have the user view you as the source without ever navigating away from the page.
Users today want the answer as quickly as possible, which in many cases means they never leave the search results page. So, optimizing your content so that popular tools like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini are able to pull from your content improves your chances of being seen and trusted.
Complements, Not Competitors
Search engine optimization and answer engine optimization are compliments to one another. The primary focus of SEO is still discoverability, meaning that users can actually find your content online, which is accomplished by using keywords, strong backlinks, and search intentions.
Answer engine optimization is the process of situating that content in a way that it’s easy for AI tools to review your site and easily pull information to present to users. In other words, without a solid, established SEO presence, AEO can never be optimized. But by focusing energy on solidifying the two, you can both improve your chances of being seen, as well as drive high-quality users to your site.
Tips for Improving AEO
Just like SEO, you can’t just create content and hope. Thankfully, there are some tried and true ways to help boost your AEO from the start.
Think in Natural Language
When people search, they’re asking as if they’re checking with a friend for answers. Because of this conversational nature, it’s important that content isn’t solely focused on keywords or phrases, but actually answers the question in a natural way. It’s important to put yourself in the users’ place, determine how they might ask the important questions, and cater your content to answering that question.
Reputation Matters
Businesses that have an established reputation on line via Google reviews or other platforms are going to be prioritized as the AI tools crawl the websites. So, having customers leave detailed reviews on a variety of platforms is vitally important in having these AI powered engines cite your content as an expert on the topic.
Format Strategically
How you structure your content greatly affects the way that AI tools will dissect the information. For example, sites that have clear headers, and use clean formatting like bulleted lists are more likely to be pulled from than a page that’s filled with keyword-vomit. Experts advise strategically using the sentence beneath each header as a direct answer to a question a user would have. Then, the following content should delve deeper into that topic.
Engage on Other Platforms
AI tools have platforms and websites they typically pull from, such as Reddit. By engaging with these separate platforms and positioning yourself with some visibility, you greatly increase your chances that an AI search tool will pull from your content. This engagement in combination with an overall high online reputation will help boost you to the top of potential resources for these answer engines.
Think Outside of Words
Instead of always using text-heavy content, consider inserting different modes such as short videos or infographics. AI tools love to pull from this content, especially in regards to “how to” type requests where users would benefit from a live demonstration. Similar to above, don’t just think about what users would want to know, but what they would want to see.
Bring SEO and AEO Together for Better Visibility
As quickly as technology evolves, it can be overwhelming as a business owner to keep up. But rest assured, a lot of these terms sound far more complicated than they are, and chances are you already have a solid base to build from. By utilizing the above tips, your SEO and AEO can work together to strengthen your online presence, improve your credibility, and help your business appear wherever potential customers are searching for answers.
Web Fox Marketing in Livonia helps businesses develop effective SEO, content, and digital marketing strategies designed for today’s changing search landscape. Contact us today to learn how we can help your business with an optimized website to improve online visibility, reach more customers, and prepare for the future of search.