Until recently, search involved typing a handful of keywords into a search box and scrolling for links to answers. Today, people ask full questions and they expect quick and accurate answers. The change in search behavior is transforming how content is discovered and consumed.
At the heart of this change are two approaches; SEO (Search Engine Optimization), the long-practiced activity of ranking in search results, and AEO (Answer Engine Optimization), the nascent practice of providing direct answers ready for action via AI-driven platforms and voice assistants.
This article will highlight the main differences between SEO and AEO, why the rise of answer-based search is significant, and how you can create a hybrid content strategy that helps you gain visibility in traditional search results as well as voice assistants and other AI-driven experiences.
Understanding the Fundamentals of SEO
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) involves process of optimizing a web page so that it appears more prominently in a search engine results page (SERPs). SEO has been a foundational aspect of online visibility for some time and means that when somebody searches online, they are more likely to find your site.
SEO works on several important principles. First and foremost, although the role of keywords may be changing, it is still at the heart of SEO because the effectiveness of any search for content relates to the user’s search intent or query. Backlinks are also referred to as links from external authority sites that indicate quality or trust. Technical SEO optimizes a site to be crawlable or indexed and considers traffic-speed, mobile friendliness and structured data. On-page optimization is related to the quality of the actual content, which includes aspects such as the strength of the headline or meta description, as well as in what structure the information appears and its order.
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Even with these fundamentals, SEO has always boiled down to one thing- making the click. The goal was to take a user from the search results page to a website. The environment, however, is already changing. A 2025 SEMrush survey reports that 67% of businesses now employ AI to complete tasks in SEO and content creation, illustrating how technology is deeply embedding itself into traditional practices. The changes are developing a new dialog for AEO vs SEO, where optimizing for the answer is possibly just as important, if not more so, than for the click.
The Rise of AEO
Answer Engine Optimization, abbreviated AEO, is in simple terms about shaping content to be a direct answer to the user’s request. In practice AEO is different than traditional SEO which is typically focused on driving links to a website where traditional SEO is based on the intent to drive clicks AEO supports getting information to the user in the fastest, best way possible. AEO aligns particularly well with the ongoing explosion in adoption of AI enabled platforms, where users want an answer and not links to sort through.
The momentum toward AEO is fueled by paradigm shifting advances in search technology. AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE) have drastically changed the manner in which people search for information. Virtual voice assistants like Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant continue to layer into this additional trend toward conversational search as opposed to keyword-based search. As a result, content that provides an easy to extract answer in a context closest to natural language has a better chance of being surfaced.
What differentiates AEO is a focus on pinpoint accuracy and usability. The aim is not just to be found, but to be the answer. All of the winning content will be short, credible, and contextually relevant, whether presented in a featured snippet, an AI overview, or an answer spoken by a voice assistant.
The rapid speed of this change is astounding. According to SEMrush, AI Overviews surfaced in 13.14% of queries in March 2025, up from 6.49% in January. This rapid pace of change is just one of the reasons why developing content strategies for AEO needs to be a priority, not an option, as we all become AI-first brands in the world of search.
Key Differences between SEO vs. AEO
Although SEO and AEO share the same ultimate purpose of helping people find information, they differ sharply in how they approach the goal. Understanding these differences is essential for anyone shaping a content strategy in today’s evolving search landscape.
Content Focus
- SEO has always been keyword-centric. It revolves around identifying the phrases people type into search engines and weaving those terms naturally into content.
- AEO, by contrast, is intent-driven. It focuses on the questions users ask and the context behind them. Instead of just targeting ‘best laptops,’ AEO considers queries like ‘What is the best laptop for college students in 2025?’
Goal
- SEO aims for the click. Success is measured by how many users move from the search results page to a site.
- AEO aims to be the final answer. The win comes when an AI overview, featured snippet, or voice assistant delivers your content directly to the user.
Optimization Target
- SEO content is crafted to align with search engine algorithms, balancing factors like backlinks, keyword density, and technical health.
- AEO content is optimized for AI models, which prioritize natural language, clarity, and concise responses.
Content Format
- SEO often favors long-form, comprehensive articles that cover a topic in depth.
- AEO leans toward content that is easy to extract short summaries, structured tables, step-by-step lists, and Q&A formats.
This shift is already visible in search behavior. According to SEMrush, 88.1% of the queries that trigger AI Overviews are informational. This reinforces how search is evolving from keyword matching to intent fulfillment. People increasingly ask questions, and AI-powered engines are built to surface the most direct answers.
In practice, SEO and AEO are not rivals but complements. SEO ensures your site is discoverable, while AEO ensures your content is accessible in formats favored by AI-driven experiences. Brands that master both will capture visibility whether the user is clicking through links or listening to a voice assistant’s reply. The challenge is not choosing one over the other but knowing how to balance depth with clarity, so your content can both rank and answer.
Crafting an AEO-Forward Content Strategy
Embracing an AI-first search environment requires an intentional refocusing of content creation and content delivery. An AEO-fronted strategy is not abandoning all aspects of SEO. An AEO strategy, rather, means layering new practices on top of the core fundamentals of SEO to ensure content is findable, scannable, and credible.
We first need to focus on natural language queries, rather than just becoming focused on keywords. We need to think about the conversational questions/queries users are actually asking. There is an opportunity to focus on these questions using tools such as ‘People Also Ask’ boxes or proprietary AI-driven keyword tools. Content that is created in the way that users communicate a question is much more likely to appear within an AI-driven answer.
Secondly, we want to structure for scannability. AI models, and therefore search engines, prefer to see content that is organized and easily scannable. We can do this by incorporating descriptive headings (H1, H2, H3), use of bullet points, and numbered lists. All of these examples allow for easier extraction of relevant answers by search engines and make it easier for readers to parse content.
Another powerful strategy is to use a ‘summary first’ approach. You want to base your entire article or section off of the main question you are addressing. Therefore, you want to start off with a short and (ideally) direct answer to that question and then follow that answer with supporting details. This structure is vital for getting your content into featured snippets as well as in Google Search Generative Experience (SGE); they are both designed to provide answers up front.
Also critical in this process is the notion of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness). AI models are developed to prioritize content that is reliable and credible. Because Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness are all key measures of credibility, sharing your own anecdotes or case studies will establish experience. Using credible examples to demonstrate expertise will also show real-life applicability and a shareable experience. You can build Authoritativeness with links from credible sources and back web site links from authoritative sites. Ultimately Trust is built through accurate information, correct citations, and responsible secure-site practices.
There is too much riding on getting this right. According to industry cost studies, soon traffic from large language models (LLMs) is predicted to eclipse organic search traffic, likely around the start of 2028. This is very important because this prediction represents a step-change, with the brands that optimize for answers today being the same brands that users discover first tomorrow.
The Future is Hybrid
The development of search is not the demise but the growth of SEO. SEO in the traditional sense is still important to help brands become visible, which means sites will show up in results and receive organic traffic, but AEO has risen as the natural evolution of SEO. In essence, AEO helps content serve as the answer directly within these AI realities.
So the best approach is not to choose SEO or AEO, it’s to combine both strategies. Optimize with keywords and technical best practices so that you can claim a presence in search engine results. Then, implement AEO best practices – structure your content for scannability, lead with answering questions first, and focus on matching organizational queries. So the insights you share can fuel responsive overviews, voice assistants, and generative search approaches.
Because the search environment is only going to get increasingly complex and multifaceted, the brands that will win, both today and tomorrow, will embrace an omnidirectional approach. By evolving now you will continue to be relevant in today’s SERPs and tomorrow’s AI enriched reality.
