What Is AEO? Getting Your Business Quoted by ChatGPT and AI Overviews
AEO, answer engine optimisation, is about making a website easy for AI systems to read, trust, and quote directly when someone asks a question the business could answer.
The concrete things that help
Building an AI-citable site
Add FAQ schema
One of the clearest signals an AI system can lift a direct Q&A from.
Add Organization/LocalBusiness schema
Gives AI tools a structured, trustworthy fact-base to work from.
Write direct answers
Specific answers to specific questions in the actual page content, not marketing language.
Add an llms.txt file
A plain-English summary aimed specifically at AI crawlers.
Keep the About page genuine
Transparent, factual information an AI tool can quote with confidence.
- FAQ schema (FAQPage structured data): one of the clearest, most direct signals an AI system can lift a Q&A from
- Organization/LocalBusiness schema: gives AI tools a structured, trustworthy fact-base about the business
- Clear, direct answers to specific questions in the actual page content, not just marketing language
- An llms.txt file: an emerging plain-English summary aimed specifically at AI crawlers
- A genuine About page and transparent business information
Why this is worth doing now rather than later
Almost no small local businesses have done any of this yet, which means the ones who do are disproportionately likely to be the ones AI tools cite, simply because there's so little well-structured competition for these signals right now. That gap won't stay open forever.
The mindset shift
Write content the way you'd answer the question if someone asked you directly, out loud: clear, specific, no fluff. That's exactly the shape AI systems are built to lift and quote.
Related reading FAQ schema in more depth, what is GEO and our FAQ.
Thinking about your own website or getting more from the one you've got?
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