Search is no longer a single list of ten blue links. Buyers now get answers from featured snippets, AI-generated summaries and conversational AI assistants. That has produced three overlapping disciplines.
What is SEO?
Search engine optimisation (SEO) is the practice of helping web pages rank in search engine results. It covers technical health (crawlability, speed, structured data), relevant content and credibility signals such as links from other sites.
What is AEO?
Answer engine optimisation (AEO) focuses on making content easy to extract as a direct answer — for example in featured snippets or voice results. It favours clear questions as headings, concise answers and well-structured pages.
What is GEO?
Generative engine optimisation (GEO) is concerned with how a brand is represented in answers produced by AI systems. These answers may draw on many sources, so clarity, consistency and third-party credibility all matter.
How they compare
| SEO | AEO | GEO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main goal | Rank pages in results | Be the extracted answer | Be accurately represented in AI answers |
| Typical output | Click to your website | Snippet or spoken answer | Mention or citation in a generated response |
| Key levers | Technical health, content, links | Question-led structure, concise answers | Clarity, consistency, credible mentions |
| Measurement | Rankings, clicks, Search Console | Snippet presence | Monitoring AI answers; tools such as GEO Rank |
Where should a UK or US B2B business start?
1. Get the foundations right
A crawlable, fast website that clearly states who you are, what you do and who for supports all three.
2. Answer real buyer questions
Write content that responds to the questions customers ask in sales conversations.
3. Understand your current AI visibility
Before investing, check how AI tools currently describe your business and competitors.
None of these disciplines can guarantee a ranking or an AI recommendation. They improve the conditions for being found and understood.