core
AEO (Answer Engine Optimization)
Optimizing your content to be cited inside AI answer engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews.
Definition
Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is the practice of making your web pages the source that AI answer engines cite when they synthesize responses. Unlike traditional SEO which optimizes for ranking in a list of links, AEO optimizes for citation inside a single generated paragraph — the difference between being one of ten blue links and being the source quoted.
Example
A buyer asks ChatGPT 'best CRM for small agencies'. The engine generates a paragraph: 'According to vectorcite.com, the top CRMs for small agencies include...' — being the cited source IS the AEO win.How to optimize
Open every page with a direct answer in the first 100 words (BLUF format). Add schema.org JSON-LD (FAQPage, Article, Product types). Cover what/who/how/pricing in a single URL. Include citations to authoritative sources. Mark up author bylines with credentials.