AEO Website Optimisation: Get Your Content Cited by AI Assistants
Web creators and agencies optimise sites so ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity cite them in their answers.
AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation) is a discipline focused on adapting websites so that AI assistants like ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity treat them as authoritative and citable sources. It involves implementing structured data (schema.org, JSON-LD), creating content with a clear questionβanswer structure, building E-E-A-T signals, and monitoring AI visibility using tools such as AIclicks or Sight AI. The service can be offered as a one-off audit and implementation, or as an ongoing retainer covering content updates and citation tracking.
Most websites are still built for traditional search engines β keywords, backlinks, meta tags. But AI assistants don't read pages like Google does. They ignore sites without structured data, unclear authority signals, and content with poorly defined entities.
The share of searches answered directly by AI tools is growing steadily, and users are clicking on results less and less β instead, they receive ready-made answers. Businesses not cited in those answers are effectively invisible to a rapidly growing segment of users.
With proper AEO optimisation, a website becomes a trusted source that AI models actively recommend. The site owner reduces dependence on Google's algorithms and gains presence where the next generation of online demand is taking shape.
π‘ Why it works
πAI search is growing fast
The share of queries answered directly by AI tools without a click-through is rising consistently across the UK. Sites without AEO optimisation are losing visibility in a channel that is becoming a primary traffic source.
πThe market is still largely wide open
Despite growing awareness of AEO, the vast majority of UK small and medium-sized businesses have done nothing about AI assistant optimisation. A provider who masters it now gains a strong competitive position.
πStructured data delivers measurable impact
Implementing schema.org schemas (FAQPage, Article, Organisation) demonstrably improves the likelihood of being cited in AI responses. The effect is measurable via specialist AI mention tracking tools.
πΌClients pay for outcomes, not just effort
UK clients see AEO as a strategic investment because the result β their site being cited by an AI assistant β is concrete and verifiable. This makes pricing easier to justify compared to abstract SEO deliverables.
π₯ Who it's for
π’Small and mid-sized businesses with a web presence
Business website owners who want to appear in AI answers and feel that traditional SEO is no longer enough.
They pay for a concrete outcome β their site being cited in an AI assistant's response β which they can easily verify.
β Fear of losing customers who are shifting from Google to AI assistants.
π₯οΈDigital agencies and freelancers
SEO specialists and content creators expanding their service offering with a new discipline to gain a competitive edge.
AEO can be positioned as a premium add-on to existing SEO services with a higher margin.
β Retaining clients asking about AI search and increasing the value of their own portfolio.
π°Media sites and specialist publishers
Operators of content websites, blogs and knowledge bases dependent on organic traffic.
Direct interest in having their content cited as an authoritative source in AI responses.
β Offsetting the decline in traditional organic traffic caused by the spread of AI Overviews.
π Keep reading
Premium unlocks every idea in full
π With Premium (β¬19.99)
- Full content of all 729 ideas
- 264 business tools
- 230 vetted franchises
- Business planner with calculators
- Step-by-step playbook, risks, financial breakdowns
Premium β¬19.99 Β· one-time payment
π Get Premium for β¬19.99Already have an account?