The ultimate guide to AEO: How to get ChatGPT to recommend your product | Ethan Smith (Graphite)

Summary

This podcast introduces Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) as a new discipline for capturing high-value traffic from Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. The conversation explains the fundamental shift from traditional SEO's focus on ranking to AEO's focus on increasing brand mentions across many sources. It then provides a comprehensive, actionable playbook for businesses to identify target questions, optimize on-site and off-site content for citations, and measure their share of voice in this emerging channel.

Key Concepts

• Answer Engine Optimization (AEO): A new discipline focused on optimizing content to be cited and mentioned in the answers generated by LLMs. It is distinct from traditional SEO, which focuses on ranking a single link.
• Strategy Shift from Ranking to Mentions: The core goal of AEO is to increase the frequency of your brand being mentioned across a wide variety of sources (e.g., Reddit, Forbes, YouTube), as LLMs synthesize information from multiple citations to formulate an answer.
• High-Value Traffic: Traffic from answer engines is highly qualified and converts at a significantly higher rate than traditional search traffic because users are further down the decision-making funnel.
• The AEO Action Plan: A step-by-step process involving:
  1. Identifying Target Questions: Converting high-value keywords into the questions real users ask.
  2. Tracking Performance: Establishing a baseline for your "share of voice" in LLM answers.
  3. Targeting Citations (Off-site): Getting mentioned in sources LLMs already trust, such as community platforms, video sites, and affiliate partners.
  4. Creating Content (On-site): Building comprehensive landing pages and optimizing your Help Center to answer user questions directly.
• The "Dark Funnel": A significant portion of AEO-driven traffic is not directly attributable, as users often see a brand mentioned in an answer and then search for it directly in a new tab. This impact is often hidden within direct and branded search traffic.
• Opportunity for New Players: Unlike SEO, where domain authority takes years to build, AEO allows newer companies to gain visibility quickly by getting mentioned in relevant online discussions and content.
• AI-Assisted Content Creation: Studies show that purely AI-generated content does not rank well. The most effective approach is using AI to assist human creators, who provide the essential editing, expertise, and final polish.

Quotes

1. "Significantly more valuable... Webflow saw a 6x conversion rate difference between LLM traffic and Google search traffic." (Context: This data point is used to demonstrate the immense commercial value of AEO. It proves that users arriving from an LLM answer have a much stronger intent to purchase.)
2. "But that's not the case in the LLM because the LLM is summarizing many citations... and so you need to get mentioned as many times as possible." (Context: The speaker uses this to explain the fundamental strategic difference between SEO and AEO, highlighting why the goal must shift from ranking one link to achieving high mention frequency.)
3. "It's not your choice whether to play the game... you are playing the game whether you want to or not. So you might as well try to show up." (Context: This is a strong piece of advice against companies trying to opt out of LLM indexing. The speaker argues that since competitors will be present, opting out only guarantees your absence.)
4. "So early stage companies can win... they can win quickly." (Context: This quote emphasizes the democratizing nature of AEO. It highlights that new companies aren't blocked by the "domain authority" barrier that dominates traditional SEO and can compete for visibility almost immediately.)
5. "Most work is wasted in SEO. Most work is wasted in AEO. So how do you know what's not wasted? You do an experiment." (Context: The speaker stresses the importance of running controlled experiments to validate which AEO tactics actually work, rather than blindly following "best practices" that may be ineffective.)

Takeaways

• Shift Your Goal to Maximizing Mentions: Your primary objective is no longer to rank a single "blue link." Instead, focus on getting your brand or product mentioned frequently and favorably across a diverse set of online platforms, including forums, blogs, video sites, and news articles.
• Optimize Your Help Center: A company's own help and support documentation is a major, often-overlooked asset for AEO. Ensure it is indexed, internally linked, and structured to comprehensively answer the long-tail questions your sales and support teams receive.
• Acknowledge the "Dark Funnel": Understand that the full impact of your AEO efforts won't appear in standard attribution reports. Look for correlated increases in direct traffic and branded search queries to measure its true value.
• Engage Authentically on Community Platforms: To get cited from sources like Reddit and Quora, you must participate genuinely. Create an account, disclose your affiliation, and focus on providing real value by answering questions before promoting your product.