SEO is Dead. AEO is in.

These days, AEO is all the rage.

Funnily enough, I looked back through my blog archive and found this post that I wrote in July 2024 about Answer Engine Optimization. Yes! I had the foresight back then to write about it. That is what led me to asking my Linkedin audience on their search habits. Thank you to all those who made a contribution. Of course, my Linkedin audience is by no means reflective of the wider group of ChatGPT users. (they would probably err more on the AI-friendly side) because that’s why they would choose to follow me.

In July 2024, I polled my network.

Six months later (Jan 2025), I asked my network again.

Is there a BIG shift? No. But it is definitely shifting.  

In less than a year we’ve seen noticeable drops in Google’s dominance and big rises in AI tool usage. Look at this chart below. Every other search engine traffic is dropping, and ChatGPT is picking it up. A big loss is Wikipedia, where we all used to go to double check answers.

If marketers don’t adapt, there is a risk of losing visibility even if you rank highly in traditional search. On the flip side, if you’re early and optimized for AI-discoverability, you can use this time to stand out as an under-discovered brand. This goes for channels, websites, blogs, any footprint on the internet.

The other day, I was searching for a video that would explain to me how DTSS (Digital Transaction Security Standard) would change as we start to use AI agents for shopping. And for whatever reason, ChatGPT directed me to a Youtube video with no views, that belonged to a channel with very little subscribers, but did have the correct answer. Basically, it directed me to a far off corner of the internet.

This would rarely happen if I searched within the Youtube app, as videos from larger accounts would surface and populate my search results. So why did ChatGPT send me there? Because my query was also extremely niche. The answer engine picked up that this forlorn YouTube video had my answer. That was a YouTube video, but the same can be said for websites – only as long as it actually answered a query correctly.

Alright, now that we have that out of the way, how can you show up in an answer engine?

Here’s a good acronym to use:

S.H.O.W. Framework

S – Structure for AnswersAnswer questions directly using Q&A format, short paragraphs, and clear headings.

H – Human LanguageWrite naturally, the way people ask in ChatGPT or voice search, and include FAQs.

O – Openly TrustworthyShow author info, cite sources, and keep timestamps current so AIs trust your content.

W – Web-Ready SchemaUse FAQ, HowTo, and Article schema in JSON-LD format. Update often, interlink pages, and end with clear takeaways.

Let’s go through each one.

S – Structure for Answers

·      Add a FAQ. The first step is to add a FAQ, with common questions and succinct answers. Okay speaking of questions, here’s the big question: what should be your questions and answers?! We have to try to find out what your prospective customer is asking. What are they wondering that your brand or product can answer? Use tools like Google’s “People Also Ask”, AnswerThePublic, SEMrush’s Keyword Magic (Questions filter), Moz’s Keyword Explorer, or ChatGPT itself to find the exact questions your audience asks. These should be long-tail, natural-language queries (e.g. “how to fix leaky faucet” instead of “leaky faucet”)

·      Use question headings. Write your section headers (H2/H3) as actual questions or natural-language queries that match user questions. For example, use “What is an answer engine?” rather than “Answer Engines” as a heading. This signals AI to match your content to user queries.

·      Provide a concise answer first. Immediately under each question heading, give a brief (40–60 word) direct answer. Put the core answer in the first paragraph or sentence so machines (and readers) can extract it quickly. Then expand with details, examples, and data. This front-loading of answers mimics how AI chatbots expect content.

·      Use bullet lists, tables, and short paragraphs. Break information into clear, scannable chunks. Bulleted or numbered lists are especially AI-friendly and user-friendly. For example, an AI answer might present features or steps as a list. Keeping paragraphs to 3–5 sentences and using plain language helps natural-language models parse your text.

H – Human Language

·      Write conversationally and clearly. Use simple, natural language. Imagine explaining the answer to a friend: AI models (and voice assistants) prefer plain speech. Avoid jargon or overly complex sentences. Where possible, write in active voice and at a reading level that’s easy to parse.

·       Include semantic cues and related terms. Sprinkle in synonyms, related concepts, and explanatory examples to give context. For instance, if writing about “technical SEO audits,” also mention related terms like “crawlability,” “site speed,” “indexability,” etc. This helps AI understand the topic’s scope.

O – Openly Trustworthy

·       Demonstrate Trustworthiness LLMs favor content that shows real expertise and sources. Cite authoritative stats or studies (e.g. “According to a recent research report…”), include author bios with credentials, and share unique insights or first-party data. A study found that adding quotations and statistics can boost AI citation rates by over 40%. Long-form guides, case studies, or original research (even small surveys) can make your content stand out to AI as high-quality.

• Keep content up to date. AI models (especially up-to-date ones) prioritize recent information. Update articles with new data or industry changes, and display a “last updated” date. A study found 95% of ChatGPT citations come from content published or updated within the last 10 months, and pages with visible update dates get ~1.8× more citations. Use schema (dateModified) to flag freshness to machines.  

W – Web-Ready Schema

• Use JSON-LD schema. This part may get a little technical. And if you don’t handle your backend website, you’ll have to get permission from the person who does.

• Add structured data (using JSON-LD format) to label your content’s meaning. For example, wrap each FAQ item with FAQPage, each how-to with HowTo, and your articles with Article or BlogPosting schema. Proper schema tells answer engines exactly what each content block represents, making it easy to surface as a direct answer.  

• Monitor AI-specific metrics. In addition to traffic and rankings, track metrics like featured snippet impressions, “People also ask” clicks, and any AI-assistant referrals. Tools like Google Search Console can show queries where you appear in position zero (featured snippet) or FAQ results. If you notice high impressions but low clicks on a query, it often means your content is being used as a direct answer.  

Together they spell S-H-O-W! (Clever, right?)

Alright hope you got all that. If not, below is the tl;dr version:

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) Checklist

Optimize your site for direct answers and AI-driven results with these key steps:

1. Identify target questions – Research the common questions your audience asks (e.g. via Google’s People Also Ask, Search Console queries, AnswerThePublic) to align content with real user queries

2. Format content for answers – Structure pages in a clear Q&A format: use the question as a heading (H2/H3) and provide a concise, direct answer (around 40–60 words) immediately below, then add any necessary details or lists for clarity

3. Implement structured data – Add relevant schema markup (FAQPage for Q&As, HowTo for guides, Article for blog posts, etc.) to help search engines and AI understand and feature your answers in rich results or voice responses

4. Write for AI readability – Use simple, conversational language and short, fact-focused paragraphs with clear headings, making it easy for AI models to parse your content and extract key facts for answers

5. Maintain technical SEO – Ensure your site is technically sound: it should be mobile-friendly and fast-loading, with proper XML sitemaps and no crawler blockers, so search engines can easily access and index your answer content

6. Monitor AI visibility – Track how often your content is used in answer results (e.g. featured snippets, voice assistant answers, or citations in AI outputs) and monitor related traffic or engagement. Use tools like Search Console and specialized AI visibility trackers to measure your AEO success and refine your strategy

Good luck!

As always, if you have questions or have an AEO project, just reply to this email and I’ll see what I can do!

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Hello! I’m Sharon Gai, a keynote speaker on AI and its effects on work.