A Hot Topic As of Late: What is AEO?

So, what is AEO? AEO, for starters, is an abbreviation for Answer Engine Optimization. It’s evolving, and there are also other related terms like GEO, Generative Engine Optimization, and GSO, Generative Search Optimization. InGROK AI Chatbot summary, it refers to a strategy for preparing your content so that it is most likely to be featured in AI-driven answer search results. It suggests that providing specific answers to common questions in your content raises the odds that your content will be used by AI chatbots to answer people’s questions. What is involved in structuring more AI-friendly content includes:

  • Shorter, more specific paragraphs
  • Better, possibly question-oriented paragraph headings
  • Concise answer-to-question copy
  • Possibly including lists

These are methods believed to make it easier for AI Chatbots to understand and then provide the best answer information = using your content.

How Has Search Changed With A.I. and AEO?

What has historically been referred to as a SEARCH that delivers a list of links to the best answers as its RESULT, AI Chatbots tend to answer the question or search outright. At least AI typically leads with an answer it has aggregated from content (= from website pages) it crawls, and then from that it summarizes the best answer. That is the “best answer”, in theory; however, this ultimately depends on who is programming the AI Chatbot.

In some cases, the classic search result of links to good answers follows that AI summarized answer, and the answer itself will also list its sources, including links for those sources. The obvious goal is to be a source and a linked reference to that answer, but how this is all presented varies. Grok currently offers its answer, and then a link for if you are interested in the sources below that answer; whereas Google currently presents an “AI Overview” with sources, often linked sources, and then its traditional list of link results.

So, the evolving goal of a marketer is shifting some from classic SEO, “ranking #1” or to “be on the 1st page to get clicks”, to being quoted as the (or part of the) AI Chatbot’s answer. While this might generate zero-click experiences for those searching or asking the question, being a source or the source (usually offered in that answer result) is becoming a goal. And, like before, it may still lead to an interaction, to traffic and to a … lead.

What Are The Leading AI Chatbots or Platforms?

That A.I. Chatbot list includes:

  • Grok
  • Google AI Overviews (formerly SGE / AI Mode)
  • ChatGPT Search
  • Perplexity
  • Microsoft Copilot / Bing AI
  • Gemini
  • Claude
  • And then there are the ‘voice assistants’ such as Siri and Alexa

Is AEO The Evolution Of SEO? 

AEO may be the evolution of SEO, placing its focus on content or website pages that offer concise, accurate answers to specific questions. It’s a change from what has been keyword optimization in content for search engine result pages (SERPs); however, if that content is useful and can be used in an AI chatbot’s answer, it may already be perceived as valuable. And as with traditional SEO algorithms, AI programming is never going to fully reveal the signal priorities pursued by its code for a justified fear that it will be gamed by the cheaters and undermine answer results.

Hopefully, this helps one to better understand, but always go forth knowing that AI will always evolve. And being so, there is never going to be a silver bullet. Beware of those who promise one.