As institutional investors and analysts increasingly turn to AI for real-time company information such as interim results and cost of capital, websites of AIM and MAIN listed businesses are facing a crisis of discoverability. It’s no longer enough for your website to be discoverable. The content within it needs to be, too. Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) is a critical factor in ensuring that the information being presented by large language models (LLMs) is coming from your website and not a third party.
What is AEO?
AEO is the method of increasing the discoverability of your content to AI and LLMs so that it is presented to users who are searching for specific answers.
If your content is deemed trustworthy and concise, it will be cited in AI results, alongside a direct link to your website. (That “AI Overview” you now see when you search for something).
What is the difference between AEO and SEO?
SEO (search engine optimisation) is a method for raising the discoverability of your website, but unlike AEO, it focuses on your ranking position within search engines (i.e Google). AEO is the optimisation of content for AI and LLMs to easily interpret and cite. Because of this difference, the techniques for achieving SEO and AEO, also differ.
Is AEO replacing SEO?
No, AEO isn’t replacing SEO. Whilst it’s important to integrate AEO into your digital marketing strategy, it doesn’t mean you should abandon your SEO strategy.
Optimising for search engines still needs to form the foundations of your strategy. There is evidence to suggest that citations shown, largely come from well-optimised websites.
AEO needs to provide you with the additional edge to increase the chances of your content and website being found, whether users are searching for specific information relating to your business, or if they have specific questions they’re needing an answer for. This is particularly important for listed brands who want to ensure the data being located by LLMs is correct.
What does AEO mean for listed businesses?
For IR professionals and marketing teams working in listed businesses, the change in search brings potential risk.
More and more investors and analysts are using AI to locate important information about AIM and MAIN Listed businesses. If your information isn’t being regularly updated or deemed trustworthy, AI will pull potentially outdated information from elsewhere. This puts you at risk of missing out on potential investment.
How can listed companies implement AEO?
Content and communications distributed by IR and marketing teams need to be regular, credible, and correct. Positioning yourself as a thought leader within your market creates authority, which LLMs and AI will prioritise, alongside accuracy and how recently the content was posted.
Five other actions IR and marketing teams should take to support discoverability:
1. Provide definitive answers.
LLMs look for the most direct answer to a question. Integrate an FAQ or Q&A section on your website, posing a succinct answer immediately after the question.
2. Use structured data.
Work with your development team to ensure your investor landing pages use structured data (schema markup). By structuring and labelling your data with schema, it makes it easier for LLMs to interpret, making your content more likely to be cited.
3. Avoid burying high-value data in PDFs only.
Most Annual Reports, RNS announcements etc are distributed via PDF. Whilst AI can read PDFs, it prefers semantic HTML. Create “executive summary” HTML pages that summarise key pieces of information so it can still easily be found.
4. Check the consistency of your information.
AEO will favour verified entities. If information presented on your website differs from what’s shown on third party websites such as financial news wires, LSE and LinkedIn etc., AI models won’t trust, and therefore cite, your content.
5. Be present across multiple channels.
The more regular, authoritative content you have across various platforms, the more likely you are to be deemed a source of truth. This also includes participating in conversations on forums by providing helpful insight and guidance.
Summary
Search has evolved. SEO hasn’t been replaced by AEO, but your existing strategy needs addressing quickly to ensure you maintain and improve your discoverability.
For listed companies and IR teams who distribute regulatory and financial data, this is even more imperative.
If your content isn’t being cited, then the narrative isn’t yours.
Prioritise regular, concise, authoritative content that clearly provides definitive answers, isn’t buried in PDFs, and uses structured data.