AEO is the practice of optimizing your content so AI engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity recommend your brand. Here is everything you need to know to get started.
For the past two decades, SEO dominated digital marketing. Get your page to rank #1 on Google, and the traffic follows. But something fundamental has changed.
Buyers are no longer just Googling. They're asking ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. And these AI engines don't send users to a list of links — they provide a direct answer, often recommending specific brands.
If your brand isn't in that answer, you don't exist.
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is the practice of structuring your content so that AI engines recognize your brand as a credible, citable source when answering questions in your category.
Unlike traditional SEO, which focuses on keyword rankings, AEO focuses on:
According to a 2025 Gartner Digital Markets survey, 43% of B2B buyers use AI assistants to research software before visiting a vendor's website. By 2027, AI is projected to influence over 60% of B2B purchase decisions.
The brands getting cited in AI answers today are building a compounding advantage. Every mention trains AI models to associate your brand with the category.
| Factor | SEO | AEO |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | Rank #1 on Google | Be cited by AI engines |
| Key metric | Keyword position | [MentionShare score](/features/mentionshare) |
| Content format | Long-form articles | FAQ blocks + direct answers |
| Primary signals | Backlinks, authority | Citations, structured data |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Weekly |
TrueCite automates steps 1–3 and makes step 4 effortless. For a deeper look at how AEO compares to traditional search, read [AEO vs SEO](/blog/aeo-vs-seo). Ready to see where you stand? [Start tracking your AI visibility](/sign-up) — your first MentionShare scan takes 60 seconds.