By Aleksey Klempner, CTO.LA · Last updated: October 20, 2026
AEO vs SEO vs GEO
| SEO | AEO / GEO | |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | Rank a link on a results page | Be named or cited inside an AI answer |
| Where it shows | Search results | ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews |
| What helps | Relevance, links, technical health | The same foundations, plus direct answers, structured data, clear entities and third-party mentions |
AEO doesn't replace SEO. Answer engines still read the open web, so a site that is hard to crawl or vague about what it does is hard to cite.
What we found when we tested ourselves
We track our own site with a fixed panel: 12 questions asked in 4 AI engines, 48 answers per run. We count a "hit" only when CTO.LA is named in the answer text.
- Questions about our brand were answered well: 11 of 12 answers named us on Oct 16, 2026, and 9 of 9 on the Oct 19 re-run (3 engines; the 4th asked us to sign up, so those cells are n/a). On Oct 16 that 4th engine was used signed in, not logged out.
- Topic questions (AI website audits, agentic commerce, e-commerce CTO help) named us in 0 of 24 answers on Oct 16 and 0 of 18 on Oct 19.
- On the e-commerce question, two engines listed our page as a source in both runs (three on Oct 16), but none named us in the answer.
Lesson: being known for your name is not the same as being cited for your topic. Topic pages need direct answers and outside mentions. Full method and results →
AEO checklist
- Let answer engines in. Check robots.txt allows the search crawlers of the engines you care about. Don't hide key content behind scripts or logins.
- Answer first. Put a 40–60 word answer to the page's main question right under the H1.
- Add structured data. Organization, Article, FAQPage and HowTo markup, matching what's visible on the page.
- Name the author and date. A real byline and a visible "last updated" date.
- Keep facts consistent. Same company name, location and founding year everywhere, on your site and off it.
- Earn mentions where engines look. Directories, lists and publications that AI answers already cite.
- Measure with a fixed panel. Same questions, same engines, same method, re-run on a schedule.
For Los Angeles businesses
AI answers change with location. Neither of our runs was confirmed as located in LA, and local results from runs outside LA may differ, so we treat those cells as unconfirmed until they're re-checked from LA. If you sell locally, test the questions your LA customers actually ask.
FAQ
What's the difference between AEO, SEO and GEO?
SEO aims to rank links in search results. AEO and GEO aim to get your business named or cited inside AI answers. AEO and GEO mean roughly the same thing, and both build on good SEO.
How do I get my business cited by ChatGPT?
To get cited by ChatGPT, make your pages crawlable, answer the question directly near the top, add structured data, keep your facts consistent, and get mentioned on sites ChatGPT already uses as sources.
How do I rank in Google AI Overviews?
There's no separate switch for Google AI Overviews. They draw on pages Google already indexes, so solid SEO, direct answers and accurate structured data are the starting point.
Does llms.txt help?
No major engine has confirmed it uses llms.txt. It's cheap to add and unlikely to hurt, but don't expect it to change results on its own.
Should I block AI crawlers?
If you want to be cited in AI answers, don't block the search crawlers those engines use. You can still choose separately whether to allow crawling for model training.
How do I measure AEO?
Pick a fixed set of questions, ask them in the same engines the same way, and record whether you're named or cited. Re-run on a schedule and compare like with like.
Do I need an agency for AEO?
Not always. Many fixes are basic site hygiene your team can do. Outside help is useful when you need a measurement panel, technical changes or an off-site mention plan.
Further reading: the research paper that introduced GEO (arXiv 2311.09735) · GEO for e-commerce in 2026 · AI visibility audits for e-commerce · What an AI Visibility Audit Can't Tell You
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