What Kinds of Content to Create For AEO and GEO
Earlier, webmasters were in a tight race to rank for the top spot on the Search Engine Result Pages, but since 2023 that top spot’s role has changed completely.
The top spot on Google SERPs no longer goes to the foremost-ranking website, but to an AI Overview. The AI Overview condenses information it already has on the searched topic into a summary so users don’t have to go crawling down the SERPs, investigating every blue link.
On the right hand side, Google places the website links it has referenced while building up the summary.
This is what a typical AI Overview looks like:
How Does An AI Overview Work?
An AI Overview is generated using the knowledge that has already been fed into Google's inhouse LLM, Gemini. However, the catch is, since LLMs have been trained on specific data up to a point in the past, they can’t trace their knowledge to any particular website as such. So what Google does here is it links up the websites whose content most matches the AI Overview answer and showcases their links up in the window to the right. The websites are taken from the organic search index.
But organic search is set to die right?
What’s the Impact of an AI Overview?
The AI Overview answers users succinctly. It kills the need to scroll down and look into the contents of actual websites. Consequently, search is faster. Obviously, this is going to have a huge impact, not just on rankings, but also on metrics like CTR and the entire website building industry.
Moreover, nowadays an entire generation of users no longer “Google it” like they used to, they “ChatGPT it”, which even questions the need for having Google SERPs. If no one is scrolling past the Zero Spot, why bother listing all those websites anyway?
Remember, all LLMs are built on scrapped information from the web, and so updated information from the web still needs to be present to “feed” these LLM babies with daily fodder lest they hallucinate or go off track. A website now serves as just a conduit to feed the LLMs with the latest information.
Is SEO still relevant?
Yes, Google says SEO is still relevant. The organic search index acts as the RAG for the Gemini LLM making up the generative AI overview.
So, fresh, authentic, dependable content still needs to be written.
But it begs the question: If Google users are only relying on the AI Overview and ignoring organic search, what’s the guarantee that over time, the organic search index will still be a good indicator of a website’s relevance?
What is non-commodity content?
Non-commodity content is the content that is built up from personal experience, unique data, and insights, something that the LLMs can’t easily replicate. Surface-level information is no longer needed. Gone are the days when content writers churned out keyword-optimized content like “7 ways to pickle mangoes” or “5 reasons to move abroad”.
All that information has now been fed into the LLMs to a point of satiety. What remains then is the personal experience, the expertise, the individualistic, colourful opinions. This is what Google and the LLMs behind it are after.
If you can get the information you need by simply typing in a question into ChatGPT or Gemini, why should you waste your time trying to create content around that topic at all? Gone are the days when webmasters suggested we create content pillars and sub-topics around those pillars. Today the content game has changed.
So, what kinds of content to create for a brand/business in the age of AEO and GEO?
The Discovery Stage
When a user is searching for the best dishwashing soap on an LLM, the LLM summarises content from the various websites it has queried and puts up recommendations on the screen. It may quote content from any website or lift sections from any comparison blogs. So, it’s important that your brand is mentioned on numerous websites, social media, and forums.
Create specific and highly detailed FAQs regarding your business. Write blogs answering user queries around your domain in not more than 50-60 words so that the LLM attempts a direct lift. Don’t structure your blogs to be of around 1000-3000 words on any particular question, rather answer the question as directly and succinctly as possible. Keep explanations to a minimum.
The Consideration Phase
When a buyer is considering several options of dishwashing detergents, the LLM would turn to an authoritative source that compares products. So, it’s important to get high ratings and reviews on websites that compare your services/products. For instance, try to get good reviews on Clutch and other websites like it. Or you could write a feature-by-feature comparison blog.
The Decision Phase
