You’ve probably seen multiple articles and even ads for answer engine optimization (AEO). Just like your business needed to be prepared for mobile and voice search to rank highly in Google and Bing, now your online presence must be enhanced to be found in generative AI search. While there are a few popular answer engines available, the right optimization strategies will help across platforms, especially when combined with solid SEO basics. Let’s get into the specifics of why businesses need to focus on AEO.
The Importance of Answer Engine Optimization
With answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot and Grok growing in popularity, it’s important to optimize your website to increase your chances of showing up in answer engine results. There are two main ways to accomplish this, through answer engine optimization (AEO) and generative engine optimization (GEO). These practices do sound similar, and while both are part of a modern SEO strategy, they show up differently when consumers use AI-powered search.
Answer engines are an expansion of traditional search and voice search, where the process is more conversational and each question builds upon the last. AEO helps your website content become a direct answer to the queries entered. It keeps the conversation going by providing responses gleaned from content on your websites and social media.
On the other hand, GEO focuses on optimizing content to be used as a source in AI-generated responses. This means that pages with data about your business that appear in listings and directories should be prioritized. Recent studies show that consumers using answer engines consider contact information and hours of operation “very important.” This is especially true for “near me” searches. Yet it’s more than your contact information—think of GEO content as data that could be used as an authoritative citation in a paper or video.
Focusing on AEO and GEO increases the chances of your business being returned in AI Overviews, Google AI Mode, and other answer engine and voice search results.
The Top Two AEO Tactics for Local Business Success
Now that you have an idea of why keeping up with generative AI advances is important, we’ll discuss two practical tips to implement for your business to populate in answer engines.
Content Is Still the King
A key part of your business showing up in answer engine results starts with quality content writing. Web pages, landing pages and blogs with useful, relevant information and targeted keywords ensure that your business shows up in traditional and AI search.
Make sure to use proper heading tags and other on-page SEO basics to help AI robots find what they need when they scan your website.
Consistent Data Makes It Easier to Be Found
Whether it’s your “About Us” or “Contact” pages on your website, your hours of operation and location listed on social media and in directory listings, make sure your business name, address and phone number (NAP) data is consistent across all platforms.
Businesses with inconsistent data will not be returned in answer engine or voice searches. And for the market data or content that sets your business apart from the competition, having consistent experienced, expert, authoritative, trustworthy (EEAT) content builds trust among users, search and answer engines. This makes it more likely to be used as a source by AI.
Don’t forget that off-page and technical optimization also play their role in robots finding and parsing your data. The great news is that you do not have to tackle this alone! With all your other responsibilities, having a knowledgeable digital marketing agency on-hand is the best way to stay on top of all the rapid developments in AI search.
Hire a Top Answer Engine Optimization Service Today
When you’re ready to stay ahead of your competitors in AI search without having to keep up with all the fast-moving developments, trust the experienced marketing team at Rocks Digital. Call us at (214) 989-7549 or request a website evaluation today.
