Short answer: SEO helps your pages rank in search results. AEO (answer engine optimisation) and GEO (generative engine optimisation) help your business get named and cited in the answers that AI tools write. The terms overlap and there is no formal standard, but the work shares one foundation: a technically sound site, clear answers and a reputation other people vouch for. We treat them as one plan, not two projects.
AEO, GEO and SEO at a glance
| Term | What it means | Where you show up | How you know it is working |
|---|---|---|---|
| SEO | Improving your pages so they rank in search results | Google and Bing results, Google Maps | Rankings, clicks and enquiries from search |
| AEO | Writing and structuring content so it can be lifted as a direct answer | Featured snippets, voice answers, AI answer boxes | Your page is quoted or linked for specific questions |
| GEO | Making your business easy for generative AI tools to find, understand and cite | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode | Mentions and citations across a fixed set of prompts, plus referral traffic and enquiries |
Agencies use AEO and GEO interchangeably. In this guide, AEO means the content and structure of your answers, and GEO means the wider job of being understood and cited by AI tools.
What SEO, AEO and GEO have in common
- They start with the customer’s question. Google and AI tools both try to give people the best answer, so content that explains something clearly, step by step, tends to help in both.
- Quality beats volume. Original detail, such as your prices as ranges, your service areas and real examples from your work, gives search engines and AI tools something they can’t get anywhere else.
- Structure helps. Clear headings, short answers up top, lists and FAQs make a page easier to read and to quote.
- Trust matters. Your location, your team, your credentials and genuine reviews all help people, and the systems that serve them, decide whether to rely on you.
Where they differ
- The outcome. SEO aims to win the click. GEO aims to put your business in the answer itself, which people may read without clicking.
- The measurement. SEO uses rankings, clicks and conversions. GEO uses a repeatable set of prompts: are you named, is it accurate, and which sources are cited?
- The sources. AI answers draw on more than your website. Reviews, directories, news and industry sites often feed them, so what others say about you counts.
- The stability. AI answers can change with the wording of the question, the tool, the location and the day. Treat results as a sample, not a fixed ranking.
Why this matters for local businesses
People now ask AI tools questions they used to type into Google: who to call for a blocked drain, how to dispose of green waste, which agency to hire. You can rank well on Google and still be missing from the answer. Getting both right gives you more ways to be found. SEO still does most of the work for local searches like “electrician Northern Beaches”, and AEO and GEO extend that into the answers people read before they ever visit a website.
What to do first
- Fix the SEO foundations. Make sure your site is crawlable, fast and mobile-friendly, and that your name, address, phone number, hours and services match everywhere they appear.
- List the questions customers ask. Aim for 20. Ask each one in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google, and note who gets named and which sources are cited.
- Answer those questions on your site. Give each service or question its own page. Lead with a two or three sentence answer, then add the detail: price ranges, service areas, process and FAQs.
- Add structured data that matches what the page says. LocalBusiness or Organization, Service and, where it is genuine, FAQ markup help machines read the page. Markup does not guarantee a citation.
- Build corroboration. Genuine reviews, accurate directory listings and mentions on industry sites give AI tools more than one place to confirm who you are.
- Measure monthly. Re-run the same prompts, and watch referral traffic from AI tools in GA4 and the enquiries that follow.
Frequently asked questions
Is GEO replacing SEO?
No. Search results still send most local customers, and AI tools sit alongside them. The two share the same foundations, so don’t stop one to start the other.
Can anyone guarantee my business will be mentioned by ChatGPT?
No. The tools decide what to say and their answers change. What you can do is make your business easy to find, understand and verify, and then measure what happens. Be wary of any agency that promises a mention.
Do I need an llms.txt file?
It is a proposed convention, not a requirement, and we wouldn’t expect it to change results on its own. Clear pages and good third-party coverage matter more.
How long does it take?
Fixing foundations and publishing answer pages can be done in weeks. Changes in how AI tools describe you usually build over months, and they vary by tool. Paid channels such as Google Ads or ChatGPT Ads can produce enquiries sooner.
Where to go next
- See how we help with answer engine optimisation.
- Run our free AI readiness check to see what ChatGPT, Gemini and Google’s AI can see on your site.
- Read what GEO is and how we audit your brand’s presence in ChatGPT and Perplexity.
- See examples of how businesses in different industries get recommended by AI, or our indicative pricing.
This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by our team before publishing.