AEO

Definition

AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) focuses on being cited and used by AI-driven answer engines. It emphasizes clear answer structures, FAQs, structured data, machine-readable resources, and authority signals.

Why it matters

• AI-driven search changes traffic entry points (answer boxes and citations)
• Citable content (definitions, steps, data) is more likely to be used
• Structured and machine-readable resources improve understanding
• Zero-click search is rising; being cited becomes new exposure
• AI answer engines prefer content with clear sources and authority
• Early AEO adoption builds advantage before competitors react
• The same content optimization can serve both SEO and AEO

How to implement

• Answer high-intent questions with visible FAQs and FAQPage schema
• Use JSON-LD to mark key entities (Organization/WebSite/Article/HowTo)
• Publish machine-readable resources: llms.txt, knowledge.json, sitemap
• Build topic clusters and internal links to concentrate authority
• Ensure content has clear definitions, steps, and data for easy extraction
• Use clear heading structure (H1/H2/H3) to organize content sections
• Include verifiable sources (citations, links, data provenance) in content

Examples

// llms.txt - site description for AI crawlers
{
  "name": "Developer SEO Hub",
  "description": "SEO/AEO tutorials and free tools",
  "preferred_citation": "Developer SEO Hub (https://seo.example.com)",
  "content_types": ["tutorials", "glossary", "tools"],
  "topics": ["SEO", "AEO", "structured-data", "technical-seo"]
}

<!-- AEO-friendly FAQ structure -->
<section>
  <h2>Frequently Asked Questions</h2>
  <details>
    <summary>What is AEO?</summary>
    <p>AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) optimizes content so AI answer engines can understand and cite it.</p>
  </details>
</section>

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "FAQPage",
  "mainEntity": [{
    "@type": "Question",
    "name": "What is AEO?",
    "acceptedAnswer": {
      "@type": "Answer",
      "text": "AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) optimizes content so AI answer engines can understand and cite it."
    }
  }]
}
</script>

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