Answer engine optimisation
AEO agency: become the direct answer
An AEO agency structures what your business knows so that search engines and AI assistants can give it as the direct answer. We do this for UK businesses, in featured snippets, People also ask and Google's AI Overviews.
At a glance
- What it is for
- Being the answer shown when buyers ask a question you can answer
- You receive
- A question map and rewritten answer sections on your key pages
- Where it shows
- Featured snippets, People also ask and AI Overviews
- First programme
- 90 days, then month to month
What an AEO agency does
AEO stands for answer engine optimisation (answer engine optimization in US spelling). Answer engine optimisation services cover five things.
| Part | What you receive |
|---|---|
| Question map | The questions your buyers ask at each stage, drawn from People also ask, your Search Console queries and your prompt set. |
| Answer sections | Key pages rewritten so each question is a heading and the first sentence beneath it answers it. |
| Evidence | First-hand detail, dates and sources added, so the answer is worth quoting. |
| Structure | Headings, tables and lists where they help a reader, and structured data that matches what is on the page. |
| Authorship | A named author with a profile on every page that gives advice. |
We write for people first. Google says there is no need to break content into tiny pieces or to write in a special way for AI, so we do neither.1
AEO and GEO: how we use the two terms
The labels overlap, and even the AI assistants do not agree on them. On we asked four assistants how an AEO agency differs from a GEO agency. Perplexity treated AEO as the broader term. ChatGPT and Claude treated GEO as the broader term. Gemini split them by how the answer is produced. All four said the two overlap.
So here is how we use them.
Exhibit 1
| AEO | GEO | |
|---|---|---|
| Works on | Your own pages | The other websites assistants draw on |
| Aim | Your page is given as the answer | You are named and cited in the answer |
| Shows in | Featured snippets, People also ask, AI Overviews | ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, AI Overviews |
| You receive | A question map and rewritten answer sections | A source map and a record of placements |
Source for the assistants' answers: AI Search Ranking research, . One question, asked once of each assistant with web search on. Answers vary between runs.
Most clients need both. AEO comes first, because a page has to answer the question before anyone will cite it.
An answer section, before and after
This is the change we make most often.
Exhibit 2
The same section, rewritten
Before
Our onboarding journey
At our company we pride ourselves on a smooth onboarding experience, built around the needs of every customer.
After
How long does payroll software take to set up?
Most teams of under 50 people are set up within two weeks. The time depends on how many pay schedules you run and whether your past records need importing.
This page is built the same way. The first sentence under each heading answers it.
What to expect, and when
First programme: 90 days
-
Question map
Weeks 1 to 3
The questions are agreed, and we record who answers each one today.
-
Answer sections
Weeks 3 to 8
Your key pages are rewritten, with each change documented.
-
Evidence and authorship
Weeks 6 to 12
First-hand detail, sources and named authors are added.
-
Re-run and report
Every month
We check each question again and report what changed.
Then month to month
These weeks are typical, not fixed. Changes to your own pages show once they are recrawled. We will not promise that a given answer will be yours.
What we will not promise
A featured snippet or an AI Overview. Google decides what it shows. We promise the work, the method and the reporting.
More clicks from every answer. Some answers satisfy the reader on the results page. We report clicks and enquiries as well as appearances, so you see both.
Schema as a switch. Google says no special markup is needed for its AI features. We use structured data where it is accurate and useful, and not as a trick.1
How we measure it
For every question in the map we record who is shown as the answer today: in the featured snippet, in People also ask and in the AI Overview. The questions also sit in your set of 50 prompts, which we run in Google's AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Claude more than once, because answers change between runs. We read Google's own report on generative AI performance in your Search Console. Each month you see appearances beside your clicks and your enquiries.1
Terms, in plain words
- First programme
- 90 days. Long enough to audit, fix the foundations and measure the first change.
- After that
- Month to month. You can stop with 30 days' notice.
- Who owns the work
- You do. Everything we produce is yours, including your prompt set and its results.
- Fee
- Agreed in writing, with the scope, before any work starts.
- Who you deal with
- Our founders, who lead the work and have more than seven years in SEO.
Questions
What is an AEO agency?
An AEO agency structures a business's content so that search engines and AI assistants can give it as the direct answer to a question. The work is done on your own pages: the questions you answer, how plainly you answer them and the evidence behind them. AEO stands for answer engine optimisation, or answer engine optimization in US spelling.
Is AEO replacing SEO?
No. AEO is part of SEO. A page has to be crawled, indexed and trusted before it can be shown as an answer, and Google says its AI features run on its core ranking systems.1
How is AEO different from GEO?
As we use the terms, AEO works on your own pages so they can be given as the answer. GEO works on the other websites that AI assistants draw on, so that you are named and cited. The labels overlap, and most clients need both.
Does AEO still matter if fewer people click?
Yes, because the answer is what a buyer reads first. Being the source of it puts your name in front of them before any list of links. We report appearances, clicks and enquiries together so you can judge the value.
Do we need FAQ schema for AEO?
Not for Google's AI features. Google says no special markup is needed. We add structured data where it accurately describes what is on the page, and never as a substitute for a clear answer.1
How much do answer engine optimisation services cost?
We price after a discovery call and put the scope and fee in writing before work starts. None of the four UK AEO pages we read on published a price.
What do you need from us?
Read access to Search Console, someone who knows the subject to check our answers for accuracy, and a way to publish changes to your pages. We write the changes; your expert confirms they are right.
Related guides
Sources
- Google Search Central. Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search. Last updated . Opened .
Last updated
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