Whether it is labelled as Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO), Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), or simply AI Search Visibility, the rapid user adoption of AI engines has opened up a new opportunity for businesses to appear in front of customers at exactly the right moment.
Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) is the practice of optimising your brand and website so that it is understood, retrieved, and recommended by artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google’s AI Overview.
When someone asks ChatGPT ‘Who can help me with AI optimisation?’ or seeks more information on Claude about AI search visibility, a good AEO strategy helps surface your brand in these answers.
Brand AI Visibility is tracked over time and across these systems to measure how often your brand is mentioned in industry-related AI responses. Good AI optimisation does not happen just on your website, but across socials, Reddit, YouTube, review sites and all across the web.
Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) should build on existing SEO efforts. The two disciplines are complementary and rely on many of the same tactics. Nonetheless, here are some key points to help differentiate SEO and Generative Engine Optimisation.
| At A Glance | SEO Search Engine Optimisation | AEO Answer Engine Optimisation |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Goal | Rank in search results and attract clicks. | Earn mentions and citations in AI answers. |
| Audience | People browsing search results. | People asking AI tools questions. |
| Success Measures | Rankings, organic traffic and conversions. | AI mentions, citations and referral conversions. |
| Content Approach | Useful pages that match search intent. | Direct answers supported by clear evidence. |
| Optimisation Focus | Technical SEO, relevant content and authority. | Answer clarity, structure and credibility. |
| Combined role | Build your organic search presence. | Extend your visibility into AI answers. |
AI engines are here to stay and continue becoming more and more prevalent as part of our daily use and information-seeking routines. AI visibility is yet another opportunity to get in front of your target audience at the right time, when they are seeking solutions and products you provide.
When an AI engine cites your brand as a source, it positions your company as a trusted, authoritative expert in your industry.
Generative engine optimisation can also positively impact your conversion rate. Data suggests that traffic coming from an AI source tends to convert at a much higher rate than other more traditional channels. Chat-based users visit with more context, having already compared alternatives, and thus are ready for action.
We are happy to answer any questions regarding your existing AI search visibility and explain how our AEO agency can help your business.
Executing a Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) strategy that actually has a positive impact is by no means easy. Moreover, picking the best AI optimisation company to work with isn’t as straightforward as one might think either, and you may find some very useful answers here.
The very first thing is to check your current AI Visibility standing or score. There are several AI search visibility tools like HubSpot, Ubersuggest, Ahrefs, and others out in the market to help you do just that.
Next up, you should dig deeper into current AI citations in your industry. Figure out what’s driving AI answers in terms of content, source channels, and which competitors are getting mentioned instead of you, and why.
Structuring and writing content for the exact purpose of AI optimisation means keeping answers direct and short, followed by headings and subheadings that break content down into digestible sections even if taken out of context.
A key component of Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is also off-site authority and mentions. That essentially means your brand is being positively mentioned across external platforms like Reddit, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Quora.
Technical formatting and schema markup must be correctly implemented to give AI crawlers explicit data signals.
HubSpot AEO is great for marketers already in the HubSpot ecosystem. It tracks mentions and citations across the biggest AI engines and offers actionable recommendations.
Traditional tracking powerhouses like Semrush and Ahrefs have also expanded their suites to offer AI search visibility tracking and AI optimisation suggestions.
If you are on a tight budget, tools like Ubersuggest are a great start for AI visibility analysis and monitoring.
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