AEO and GEO, explained: how to get your brand cited by AI

For twenty years, getting found meant ranking on Google. Your customer typed a query, scanned ten blue links, and clicked. That still happens. But more and more of them now ask ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity, or read the AI Overview at the top of Google, and never click at all.

In that world, the question isn't just where do you rank? It's are you the brand the answer names? That's what AEO and GEO are about.

SEO, AEO and GEO: what's the difference?

• SEO (search engine optimisation) gets your pages ranked in the classic results.
• AEO (answer engine optimisation) gets your content chosen as the answer: featured snippets, voice answers and AI Overviews.
• GEO (generative engine optimisation) gets your brand mentioned and cited by AI assistants when they write an answer from scratch.

They aren't rivals. Good SEO is still the foundation: AI tools lean heavily on pages that search engines already trust. AEO and GEO are the layers on top that make your content easy to quote.

“If an AI can't explain what you do in one clear sentence, it won't recommend you to anyone.”

Five steps to get cited by AI

1. Answer the real questions. List what customers actually ask before they buy, then answer each one plainly in the first two sentences of a section.
2. Say who you are, consistently. Use the same name, description, location and services on your website, Google Business Profile, LinkedIn and directories.
3. Structure your pages. Clear headings, short paragraphs, lists and FAQ sections are far easier for AI to lift and quote.
4. Add structured data. Organisation, FAQ and article markup tell machines exactly what each page is about.
5. Earn mentions elsewhere. Reviews, press, partner sites and industry lists are how AI decides you're worth naming.

What to measure

Rankings alone won't tell you the whole story any more. Alongside traffic and positions, track how often your brand appears when you ask AI tools your customers' questions, and whether it's described accurately.

Want to know how your brand shows up in AI answers today? Book a brand audit and we'll show you where the blur is.