The New Optimization Family Tree: SEO vs. AEO vs. GEO vs. AIO plus PR!
Brand founders are drowning in acronyms lately trying to get a fix on all these AI powered changes. Let’s decode and discuss what they really mean for modern PR and marketing teams.
All these acronyms can be overwhelming, let’s break down SEO, AEO, AIO, and GEO
The New Rules of Being Found Online
If you’ve been in marketing or PR longer than five minutes, you’ve probably been told, “It’s all about SEO.” And for a long time, it was.
But the internet has changed. Search has changed. And now, visibility isn’t just about ranking on page one of Google, it’s about showing up in AI-generated answers, chat-based recommendations, voice assistants, and algorithmic roundups that consumers actually trust.
For a brand founder wading through this for the first time, whose expertise is in fragrance or fashion design, this can all be overwhelming. So many confusing terms and letters make you want to forget the whole subject - believe me I get it!
But think of it this way: basically consumers have many new choices when they conduct an online search. They can do a browser search, which to be quite frank can bring up a bunch of nonsense a lot of the time. Looking for a simple answer you find yourself jumping from web page to page, not finding a cohesive answer to what you’re looking for.
Wouldn’t it be nice to just have your question answered? Back in 1997 a popular site called Ask Jeeves attempted to do just that. This was back in the days when you Googled something you would string together words like “best AND skincare”. The iconic butler character, Jeeves (inspired by the P.G. Wodehouse novels), was designed to provide a more intuitive and user-friendly experience, as if a human assistant were answering questions. Oh wow, doesn’t that sound like ChatGPT?
Instead of keyword combinations like "Capital AND France," users could type natural language questions such as, "What is the capital of France?" This approach made it popular with everyday users, especially those less familiar with the complex keyword-based search methods prevalent at the time.
Ask Jeeves provided answers to these questions by utilizing a combination of sources, including human-edited content, results from its own webcrawler (which later incorporated technology from acquisitions like Teoma), and paid listings powered by Google. If a suitable answer wasn't available, the query would be forwarded to human editors or community members for assistance.
Jeeves was eventually bought and sunsetted, but I bring it up because all these “optimization” machines are basically built on the concept of that wise old butler. Ask Jeeves and ChatGPT, while vastly different in their technological capabilities, share a common ancestry in their approach to information retrieval. Ask Jeeves, the early search engine, was designed to understand and respond to natural language questions, much like how ChatGPT operates. Both aimed to move away from keyword-based searches to more conversational interactions with information.
So when we think about four little acronyms: SEO, AEO, GEO, and AIO, it makes more sense to think of them as different natural language based search engines, all responding to different elements of your brand and your products.
SEO is still the foundation, but it’s no longer the full strategy.
AEO helps you become the actual answer in AI-powered search tools.
GEO ensures your brand is mentioned when AI generates suggestions.
AIO ties it all together, optimizing your presence across every AI touchpoint.
In this post, we’re quickly breaking down each one: what it is, why it matters, and how to future-proof your visibility in a world where consumers don’t just search… they ask, chat, and expect instant answers from machines.
Originally I started this post with a discussion of each of these terms, and the result was one long, meandering word salad that even confused me. So I’ve given you an overview below, and posted more in-depth about AEO, GEO, AIO separately.
🤔Let’s Dive Into the Optimization Matrix!
| Optimization Type | Stands For | Focus Area | Goal | Owned or Earned? | Tools / Tactics |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEO | Search Engine Optimization | Google and traditional search engines | Get your webpage to rank on page 1 | Owned | Keywords, meta tags, backlinks, technical SEO |
| AEO | Answer Engine Optimization | AI-powered search (SGE, Bing Chat) | Become the answer AI pulls into responses | Owned | FAQ schema, structured data, conversational content |
| GEO | Generative Engine Optimization | Generative AI tools (ChatGPT, Perplexity) | Be mentioned in AI-generated responses | Earned | Press coverage, roundups, expert quotes, product reviews |
| AIO | AI Optimization | All AI interfaces (search, chat, content) | Ensure brand performs well across AI touchpoints | Hybrid (Owned + Earned) | Blended SEO, AEO, and GEO strategy + training data awareness |
Quick Definitions:
SEO: The OG. Optimizing web pages for organic search engines like Google. Still critical, but less dominant alone in a post-AI search world.
AEO: Structured content that answers specific user queries. Think: featured snippets, FAQ boxes, voice search.
GEO: PR’s power move. You’re not trying to get your site into search. You’re trying to get your brand into the citations that AI references in its answers. (Media hits, expert rankings, reviews.)
AIO: The big umbrella, ensuring your brand, products, or voice are optimized for AI interfaces everywhere: search, content generation, brand detection. Think of it as the convergence of SEO, AEO, and GEO with a future-proof strategy.
💥 Is SEO going away?
No, but it’s being disrupted in a big, messy, thrilling, and slightly terrifying way.
SEO isn’t dying, but it is evolving fast, and if you're only playing the old game (keywords, meta tags, backlinks), you’re missing where consumer behavior is actually heading.
Let’s break it down:
✅ What’s not going away:
People still Google things.
Websites still need to be optimized for visibility, speed, UX, and crawlability.
Search engines still factor into how people discover brands, products, and content.
Google still owns the lion’s share of digital discovery, for now.
🚨 What is changing:
1. Google’s “10 blue links” are disappearing
Instead, we’re getting:
AI-generated summaries (SGE) at the top of the page
Featured snippets that answer the question directly
Zero-click search behavior (users don’t even scroll)
Translation: Your page could rank #1… and still get no traffic.
2. AI is becoming the new discovery layer
Consumers, especially Gen Z and Millennials, are turning to:
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Gemini
TikTok (!)
To ask questions like:
“What’s the best sunscreen for acne-prone skin?”
“Who are the best sustainable fashion brands for toddlers?”
“How can I improve my brand visibility?”
They’re skipping traditional search and going straight to answer engines. That means you’re not just optimizing for Google anymore. You’re optimizing for AI.
3. Search intent is becoming answer intent
People aren’t looking for links. They’re looking for answers. That changes the game from: “How do I rank?” To:
“How do I become the answer?”
“How do I get cited in the answer?”
That’s where AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) come in and why your traditional SEO strategy needs some AI-era upgrades.
In short: SEO is not dead, it’s just no longer the whole story.
SEO is now part of a stacked strategy:
🪄 What smart brands and publicists should do:
Still do SEO (of course!) but fold in structured content, AI citations, and press placement strategy.
Treat PR and SEO as besties, not silos.
Audit your brand’s Share of Model in AI tools just like you track Google Analytics.
Ask: What does AI say about us? Not just Where do we rank?
Bonus! Here's what else impacts how you rank, show up, and get recommended:
1. 💬 E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness)
Still critical, especially for Google and AI summarization.
Google's SGE and other AI tools lean into content from sources that demonstrate E-E-A-T.
This is especially crucial in YMYL categories (Your Money, Your Life) like beauty, skincare, wellness, health, parenting, finance, etc.
🛠 Tactics that boost E-E-A-T:
Featuring named authors with bios
Using expert quotes and citations
Publishing first-hand experience and case studies
Being cited by other high-authority publications (hello, PR!)
2. 📡 Structured Data & Schema Markup
If you want to win at AEO and be "machine-readable," structured data is key.
Helps AI and search engines understand the context of your content
Enables things like rich snippets, featured answers, product reviews in SERPs
🛠 Best practices:
FAQPage, HowTo, Article, Product, and Review schema
Use Google's Structured Data Testing Tool to validate
3. 🔗 Backlinks & Citations (Still a heavy SEO + AEO signal)
Old-school, but still highly influential.
AI tools (including Google’s Gemini/SGE) favor content that’s well-linked and widely cited
In GEO terms: every media hit you earn that links back to your site is extra visibility juice
🛠 Tip: Not all backlinks are equal. One link from Vogue trumps 100 from random lifestyle blogs.
4. 🧠 Knowledge Graph Inclusion
Google’s Knowledge Graph helps inform both traditional SEO and AI-generated responses.
Brands that appear in the Knowledge Graph are far more likely to show up in SGE and Gemini
Entities include: brands, people, products, locations
🛠 How to get in:
Claim your brand on Google Business
Ensure your brand is listed across Wikipedia, Wikidata, Crunchbase, social media, etc.
Use consistent, structured metadata across all channels
5. 🌍 Multichannel Digital Presence
AI tools are pulling signals not just from Google, but from:
TikTok
Reddit
YouTube
Pinterest
News aggregators
LinkedIn, Substack, even Medium in some cases
If you're not showing up on these platforms, you’re potentially missing visibility from AI systems that are trained on this content.
🛠 Visibility tip:
Repurpose earned media across platforms (e.g., turn a press quote into a Reel or Pinterest pin)
Get your brand in roundups, reviews, and creator content, especially on TikTok and Reddit, which have increasing influence in search results
6. 💡 Personalization & Contextual AI Prompts
AI responses can now vary based on:
User location
Previous queries
Conversational context
User behavior patterns
Which means: your visibility isn’t static, it changes based on who’s asking, what they asked before, and how their prompt is worded.
🛠 Strategy tip:
Monitor AI visibility regularly, not just with brand name prompts, but with real-world consumer language and variations
Include multiple personas and use cases in your SEO/AEO/GEO strategy
7. 📲 Mobile & Voice Search Optimization
AI and voice assistants are merging. Think Siri, Alexa, and Android’s voice search. These platforms heavily rely on:
Structured data
Featured snippets
Natural language phrasing
🛠 Voice tip:
Use conversational language in product descriptions, FAQs, and blog content (this also boosts AEO).
8. 💬 Sentiment & Review Signals
AI and modern search engines increasingly factor in:
Customer reviews
Public sentiment (Reddit, Quora, forums)
Product rating quality, not just quantity
🛠 Sentiment tip:
Encourage detailed, keyword-rich reviews on your site and third-party platforms
Monitor for brand reputation signals in AI tools using prompts like: “What do people think about [brand]?”
If you’re a founder of a lifestyle brand you’ve poured heart, soul, and probably your savings into making a product that stands out: whether it’s a clean skincare line, a hand-poured candle, or a sustainably made clothing collection.
But here’s the truth: In today’s AI-powered world, having a great product isn’t enough. You have to make sure your target audience and the algorithms know you exist.
Once upon a time, people typed into Google. Now? They’re asking ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini:
“What’s the best body oil for dry skin?”
“What candle smells like fall but doesn’t give you a headache?”
“What beauty brands are actually non-toxic?”
And those tools aren’t guessing, they’re pulling from media articles, expert roundups, and trusted sources to answer those questions.
That means if you’re not getting PR in the form of real, reputable press, then you’re not training the algorithms to include you. You’re invisible in the places where people are making purchase decisions.
This is where PR changes the game.
PR is not only about getting your name in influential media, it’s about showing up when the machines start talking.
You want to earn mentions in the media AI trusts so your brand becomes one of the names these tools recommend, over and over again. We’ve moved from ranking pages to ranking people, products, and ideas. It’s not just about traffic anymore, it’s about trust + presence in the generative layer.
PR helps you build credibility and awareness. It helps you show up in AI-powered search results, right when your customer is looking for exactly what you sell.
This shift isn’t coming. It’s here. If you want to future-proof your brand and stay ahead of the curve, investing in PR isn’t optional, it’s urgent.
