From Google’s AI Overviews to ChatGPT results, the way people find information online is changing fast. If you’ve been wondering what AEO is and how it compares to SEO, you’re not alone.
When talking about AI in search in August 2025, Google says, “Overall, total organic click volume from Google Search to websites has been relatively stable year-over-year.” However, a March 2025 Pew Research Center poll found that only 8% of users clicked on a link from the search results with an AI summary, compared to 15% of users clicking on a link when there were no AI summaries. Regardless of which is more accurate, users’ search behaviors are changing, but we can now target them more directly through answer engine optimization.
- What Is Answer Engine Optimization?
- Why Is Investing In AEO Important?
- How To Do AEO
- Answer Engine Optimization KPIs
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What Is Answer Engine Optimization?
Answer engine optimization (AEO) is the process of optimizing your content so it populates in AI-driven platforms like:
- Google’s AI Overviews
- Copilot
- ChatGPT
- Perplexity AI
Unlike SEO, which drives clicks through search listings, AEO focuses on being mentioned or cited in AI-generated answers.
The shift toward AI-assisted search means brands can no longer rely on search rankings alone. Think of AEO as optimizing for “answer visibility” rather than page visibility. If your expertise isn’t cited when someone asks an AI tool a question, you’ve effectively disappeared from that user’s customer journey. Businesses that take AEO seriously are positioning themselves as the trusted experts in their niche, making it harder for competitors to win attention in AI-powered search.
User behaviors are also changing. They are getting used to conversing with search engines or AI chatbots, relying more on answers in the results. When users type in a question with 10+ words, they are 53% more likely to get an AI Overview. The AI Overview occupies a significant amount of real estate on the SERP, so optimizing your content with answers to user queries will enhance your visibility and credibility.
AEO Vs. SEO
SEO and AEO are not competitors. They complement each other. SEO focuses on ranking in search engine results through keywords, backlinks, and technical health. AEO emphasizes credibility, semantic relevance, and citations in AI-generated responses.
The real overlap comes in content depth and authority. Content that satisfies SEO’s need for keyword optimization also feeds AI engines the semantic signals they use to generate answers. The difference is that AEO rewards content that’s not just relevant but also structured and verifiable. AI models draw on signals like schema markup, citations, and expert-level insights to decide whether your brand deserves to be surfaced. That’s why successful marketers are learning to write for both humans and machines simultaneously.
Why Is Investing In AEO Important Now?
Search behavior is evolving. More people are using voice assistants, AI chat tools, and Google’s AI-generated overviews to find answers instead of clicking through multiple links. That shift means fewer opportunities for traditional SERP traffic.
The urgency lies in the shrinking real estate of organic search. Google’s AI Overviews often summarize results without requiring a click, and third-party tools like Perplexity AI provide answers directly in-platform. If your brand isn’t included in these summaries, you risk being invisible to the audience you’re trying to reach. AEO ensures your expertise is not just published but actively retrieved by AI systems. That visibility translates into brand equity and authority, even in a world where clicks decline.
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How To Do AEO
Answer engine optimization is about giving both humans and AI clear, trustworthy answers. It requires anticipating how users phrase their questions, structuring content so machines can easily retrieve it, and making sure authority is visible across multiple platforms. Unlike SEO, which centers on rankings, AEO emphasizes answer accessibility. That means packaging expertise in concise yet authoritative ways, supported by schema and clear formatting. Done well, AEO positions your content as the reliable answer in AI overviews, chat tools, and voice assistants.
Optimize Content For Conversational Queries
Users often phrase queries as natural-language questions, especially in voice search. Using this blog as an example, instead of optimizing only for “AEO definition,” create content that answers, “What is answer engine optimization?” or “How do you do AEO?” This conversational approach improves chances of being featured in AI results.
AEO success often comes down to anticipating the follow-up questions. People Also Ask boxes and AI Overviews reveal the chain of queries users ask after the first answer. Building content that addresses those secondary questions signals to AI systems that your site offers depth and reliability, increasing the odds of multiple mentions in a single AI-generated response.
Structure Information For Easy Retrieval
Answer engines pull from well-structured content and concise answers. Use clear headings, short paragraphs, bullet points, and schema markup. This formatting helps AI extract accurate information quickly, increasing your brand’s visibility.
Structure isn’t just about formatting but also about understanding user intent. AI tools scan for the “answer” early in the text, often within the first 100–150 words. That means burying key insights in long introductions or burying definitions halfway down the page reduces your chances of inclusion. By combining schema, strong intros, and semantic clarity, you create content that’s “AI-friendly” without sacrificing human readability.
Align AEO With SEO Best Practices
Don’t abandon SEO! Strong technical SEO, keyword targeting, and backlinks still matter. Instead, layer AEO on top. For example, if you’re writing about evergreen content strategies, target both keywords and the questions users ask in AI platforms. This dual approach boosts discoverability.
Think of SEO as the foundation and AEO as the frame. Without crawlable, indexable, and authoritative content, AI systems may never surface your brand. And if you don’t optimize content for answer engines, your work may never translate into visibility. The intersection of the two, where search authority meets conversational clarity, is where the next phase of organic marketing will be won.
Discover more about how a business might use a blog for marketing impact.
Answer Engine Optimization KPIs
How do you measure AEO success? Traditional SEO metrics like traffic and rankings are still valuable, but AEO requires new signals:
- AI Overview mentions and People Also Ask placements
- Voice search visibility across assistants like Siri and Alexa
- Referral traffic from LLMs
At Augurian, we go a step further by measuring referral traffic directly from AI chatbots. Using a Looker Studio report, we can see the amount of traffic coming from platforms like ChatGPT and Copilot. This gives us clear visibility into how often our clients’ content is being cited or linked within AI-generated answers.
Answer engine optimization tools like SEMrush help track keyword positions, which now includes data on whether a site is appearing in AI Overviews. This allows us to see not just where a client ranks in traditional Google searches, but whether their content is being pulled into AI-driven results. It gives us another layer of insight into how effectively our AEO strategies are performing alongside SEO efforts.
Beyond these metrics, the most important measure is brand presence without a click. If your expertise consistently appears in AI-generated responses, you’re building authority that translates to long-term growth, even when it doesn’t result in an immediate visit. This mindset shift from “clicks to credibility” is essential for leaders measuring organic success in the age of AI search.
Augurian: Have Confidence In Your Organic SEO, AEO, And Content Marketing Agency
As the search landscape evolves, relying only on SEO tactics isn’t enough. Broad listicles and basic definition posts won’t cut it anymore. The future lies in building visibility across both traditional search engines and answer engines.
At Augurian, we help business and marketing leaders adapt with confidence. Our team integrates SEO and AEO strategies to ensure your brand is visible in organic listings, AI overviews, and conversational platforms alike.
Ready to evolve your brand’s organic discoverability? Partner with us to drive authority, visibility, and measurable growth. Explore our SEO services and content marketing services today!
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