An operations director in Ohio opens ChatGPT and types: "Which companies supply industrial floor scrubbers in the Midwest, and who offers service contracts?"
Three companies get named. Yours isn't one of them.
You'd never know. There's no search console for it, no click data and no impression count. Someone was looking for exactly what you do, an AI told them who to call, and you weren't part of the conversation.
That's the problem Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) addresses. It doesn't replace SEO. It adds a layer on top of it that most of your competitors haven't thought about yet.
What Is Answer Engine Optimisation?
Traditional SEO helps you rank in a list of search results. When someone searches "construction CRM", you want to be on page one so they click through to your site.
AEO is about being the answer AI gives directly. When someone asks ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity or Copilot a question, or sees an AI Overview in Google, they don't get ten blue links. They get one answer, perhaps naming two or three companies. Often they get what they need without visiting a website.
The difference in short:
SEO asks: How do I rank higher in search results?
AEO asks: How do I become the answer AI gives?
SEO focuses on: keywords, links, page speed and technical structure.
AEO focuses on: clear, specific content, reviews, mentions on other trusted sites and a consistent story across the web.
The two work together. Good SEO gives AI something solid to read. AEO makes sure that what it reads leads to your name in the answer.
Why It Matters Now
Using AI to research suppliers is already normal for a lot of buyers, especially in B2B. People ask AI for shortlists, comparisons and recommendations before they ever visit a vendor's website. By the time they contact you, many have already formed a view.
That means your competitors may already be the ones getting named. When a buyer asks "which Google Ads agency works with equipment dealers?" or "what's the best coworking space in Austin for a team of 20?", someone is being recommended. If you haven't looked at AEO, whether it's you is down to chance.
How AI Decides What to Recommend
AI models build a picture of your business from everything they can find. No single source decides it. These are the main signals:
Owned Content
Your website, blog, help articles and case studies. You control these directly, and AI reads them, so clear structure and specific language matter.
Third-Party Mentions
Directories, partner listings, comparison sites, industry roundups and association member pages that mention your business.
Reviews and Ratings
Google reviews, G2, Capterra, Clutch and industry-specific platforms. These carry weight because they reflect what real customers say.
Your Own Public Presence
LinkedIn posts, YouTube videos and your own podcast or webinars show that your business is active and knows its subject.
Recognition You've Earned
Partner tiers, certifications, awards, guest appearances on industry podcasts and talks at industry events. You don't need a PR campaign for this. It mostly comes from doing good work and making sure it's documented where people, and AI, can find it.
Community Discussion
Reddit threads, forums and industry communities where real people mention your business in their own words.
It's the combination that counts. A business with a polished website but no reviews and no outside mentions will show up less than one that's visible in several places, even if its website is weaker. Think of it like a reference check: one good reference is nice, six from different places is convincing.
The Five Parts of AEO
1. Visibility Monitoring
What it is: Tracking when and where AI mentions your business, and when it doesn't.
Why it matters: Most businesses have no idea whether they appear in AI answers at all.
In practice: Ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity the questions your buyers ask, on a regular schedule. For an equipment supplier that might be "Who sells and services commercial floor cleaning machines in Texas?" If you don't appear, you've found a gap. If a competitor does, you know who's ahead.
2. Competitor Analysis
What it is: Seeing which competitors AI recommends, and for which questions.
Why it matters: It shows you what AI currently treats as a good answer in your market.
In practice: If a smaller competitor keeps getting named, look at what they've published. Often it's something simple, such as detailed case studies or a clear page about a service you also offer but have never written about.
3. Citation Analysis
What it is: Finding out which sources AI draws on when it answers questions in your industry.
Why it matters: If you know which sources AI trusts, you can make sure you're represented in them.
In practice: For B2B software and services, answers often cite partner directories, review sites like G2 and comparison articles. For construction and industrial suppliers, trade directories and project portfolios come up more. Check which sources appear for your own questions rather than assuming.
4. Prompt Tracking
What it is: Building a list of the real questions that lead AI to recommend businesses like yours.
Why it matters: People ask AI longer, more specific questions than they type into Google. "Best CRM for a mid-size construction company with field teams" is a prompt. "Construction CRM" is a search. They need different content.
In practice: Keep a prompt library for each segment you sell to, and use it to plan content that answers those questions directly.
5. Execution
What it is: Making the changes that improve your visibility.
Why it matters: Monitoring on its own changes nothing.
In practice: Rewrite service pages around the questions buyers ask, ask happy customers for reviews, complete the directory and partner listings you've missed, and publish case studies with specific outcomes. Then keep monitoring to see what moved.
What Good AEO Content Looks Like
Be Specific
Generic content such as "we provide quality solutions for your business needs" disappears into the noise.
Instead of: "We help businesses with their CRM"
Write: "We set up HubSpot for construction companies that need to track jobs from estimate to final invoice, with mobile access for field teams"
The more clearly you say who you serve and what you do, the easier it is for AI to match you to the right questions.
Structure Content Around Questions
Use headings that mirror real questions, answer the question in the first paragraph, then expand. Every section should work as a standalone answer.
Show Your Work
Case studies with real outcomes, testimonials with names and roles, project portfolios and certifications all show that you've done what you claim. AI looks for content it can trust, not just content that's relevant.
Be Consistent Everywhere
If your website says one thing, your LinkedIn page another and your directory listings something else, AI gets mixed signals. Your services and positioning should tell the same story everywhere, even if the wording varies.
Answer "Why You?"
Most business content explains what a company does. Good AEO content also explains why someone should choose you: what's different about your approach, what clients consistently say and what results back up your claims.
How HubSpot's AEO Tool Helps
HubSpot has built AEO tracking into its platform. Most standalone AEO tools work from the outside in: they check AI answers and report mentions, but they don't know anything about your business.
Because HubSpot's tool sits next to your CRM, it can suggest prompts based on who your customers actually are. A standalone tool might check "best CRM for construction". HubSpot can check something much closer to how your real buyers would ask, because it can see your segments, products and positioning.
It reports on:
- Brand visibility across the main AI engines
- Competitors being recommended for the questions that matter to you
- Citations, showing which content AI references
- Recommendations for content and changes that could improve visibility
When it finds a gap, you can update a page or publish a post in the same platform, which shortens the distance between finding a problem and fixing it. Packaging and pricing for the tool have changed since launch, so check what's included in your current Marketing Hub subscription.
It's a measurement tool, not a shortcut. The value still comes from acting on what it shows you.
How AEO Differs by Industry
Equipment and Industrial
Buyers ask detailed questions about specifications, service areas and support. Product and service pages that spell out models, applications, regions covered and service options give AI something specific to match. Dealer and distributor directories also matter.
Construction and Real Estate
Trust and track record decide most purchases. Written-up projects with scope, location, challenges and outcomes are usually the highest-impact AEO work, because most firms have strong projects but little documentation of them. Reviews matter here too, as buyers check them as part of due diligence.
Ecommerce
AI shopping answers draw on product data, reviews and comparison content. Complete product information, a clean product feed and genuine customer reviews make it easier for AI to recommend specific products.
B2B Services and SaaS
These are exactly the businesses people ask AI about. Partner credentials, certifications and review profiles are strong signals, as is published expertise: useful articles, guides and webinars on specific topics.
Across All Industries
- Consistency beats volume. One strong piece a week beats five weak ones.
- Specificity wins. The clearer you are about who you serve, the better AI can match you.
- Reviews are underrated. Most businesses know they matter for local SEO. Fewer realise they matter for AI answers too.
- Mentions build over time. Directory listings, partner pages and roundups add up.
Getting Started: A Quick Checklist
Start here:
☐ Ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity the questions your buyers would ask. Note whether you appear and who does.
☐ Check your Google reviews: how many, what rating, and how recent. If they've gone quiet, start asking again.
☐ Read your service pages as a stranger would. Is it clear exactly who you help and how?
☐ Check that your directory and partner listings exist, are complete and are current.
Next:
☐ Write two case studies about real projects with real outcomes, and publish them with clear headings.
☐ Make sure your LinkedIn company description matches your website.
☐ Ask three happy clients for reviews on Google and one industry platform.
☐ Build or update an FAQ page around the questions buyers actually ask.
Then:
☐ Set up regular monitoring, by hand or with HubSpot's AEO tool.
☐ Plan content around the questions AI is being asked about your industry.
☐ Fill the gaps in directories and roundups where competitors appear and you don't.
☐ Check that your story is consistent across your website, LinkedIn, directories and review platforms.
You don't need to do everything at once. The aim is to build, steadily, the signals AI uses to decide who to recommend.
Where AEO Fits
AEO works best when it isn't treated as a separate project. The same things that help AI recommend you, such as clear messaging, specific landing pages and strong proof, also make Google Ads perform better and help sales close. And HubSpot's AEO tool is most useful when it's connected to clean CRM data and a content process that acts on what it finds.
AEO is one part of the work we do as a fractional RevOps team, alongside running clients' HubSpot, Google Ads and AI. See how our fractional RevOps service works.
Gather 'n' Grow is a HubSpot Platinum Partner and Google Partner. We work with businesses in the US, UK and Australia as their fractional RevOps team, running their HubSpot, Google Ads and AI.