AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation).

What is AEO?

Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) is the practice of structuring content so that search engines and AI assistants can lift it as the direct answer to a question. The term grew up around featured snippets and voice search, and now covers answers in Google's AI Overviews, ChatGPT and similar tools. In practice it means clear questions, concise answers and pages that state facts plainly.

Why it matters

More prospects now get their answer before they reach a website. If a clinic's opening hours, a solicitor's fixed fee or a manufacturer's lead times are stated clearly on its own site, the answer engine has something reliable to quote, often with a link. If those facts are buried in a PDF or vague marketing copy, the engine quotes a competitor or a directory instead, and you lose an enquiry you never knew existed.

What good looks like

• Question-led headings Use the questions customers actually ask as headings. Answer each one in the first sentence or two beneath it.
• Facts stated plainly Write prices, service areas, timescales and credentials as text, where people and machines can both read them.
• One page per topic A dedicated page for each service or question beats one long page that tries to cover everything.
• Consistent details everywhere Your name, address, phone number and core claims should match across your site, Google Business Profile and directories.

What to do about it

Ask whoever answers your phone for the ten questions customers ask most. Search each one on Google and in an AI assistant, and note who gets quoted. Then check whether your site answers each question clearly, near the top of a relevant page, in plain words. Rewrite the weakest three this week. Keep answers specific: a price range, a timescale, a list of postcodes. Vague answers rarely get quoted by anyone.