AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)
The practice of structuring content so that AI engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Google's AI Overviews cite or recommend your business by name.
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is the discipline of optimizing your business's online presence for AI assistants that synthesize answers from a small set of sources, rather than displaying a list of links. Key tactics include comprehensive schema markup, citation-ready content blocks, FAQ libraries, and entity-building across trusted third-party sources. For home service contractors in Kansas City, AEO is becoming a primary distribution channel as AI Overviews and ChatGPT increasingly handle local-buyer queries.
AI search engines have a higher inclusion threshold than traditional Google search — they cite 1-3 businesses instead of 10. Being invisible to AI search means losing a growing share of buyer queries entirely.
When a Kansas City homeowner asks ChatGPT 'who's the best seamless gutter installer near me,' AEO is what makes your business the answer instead of a competitor's.
GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
A specific subset of AEO focused on optimizing for generative AI engines like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity.
LLMO (Large Language Model Optimization)
The technical-leaning name for optimizing content so Large Language Models (LLMs) like GPT-4, Claude, and Gemini cite your business.
Schema Markup (Structured Data, JSON-LD)
Code added to a website that explicitly tells search engines and AI engines what the page is about.
E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness)
Google's framework for evaluating content quality based on the author's real-world experience, demonstrated expertise, third-party authority, and overall trust.
FAQPage Schema
A type of schema markup that tells search engines a page contains a list of frequently asked questions and their answers.
Ready to see what a quarter with Iron Pine looks like?
Book a free 15-minute audit. We'll pull your GBP, search rankings, and ad data live on the call and show you the three highest-leverage moves we'd make in the first 30 days.
- No long contracts
- ·
- Plain-English reporting
- ·
- You own everything we build