SEO and AEO are often talked about as if they're competing disciplines. In practice, they're closely related — but they optimize for different outcomes.
SEO: optimizing for rankings
SEO focuses on improving a page's position in traditional search results — through technical health, on-page optimization, keyword targeting and backlinks. The goal is visibility on the results page and, ultimately, a click.
AEO: optimizing for answers
AEO focuses on how easily an AI system can extract a clear, accurate answer from your content — and choose to cite it. The goal is being the source behind the answer, whether or not that leads to an immediate click.
Why you need both
- SEO still drives the majority of measurable organic traffic today
- AEO is becoming a meaningful share of how people discover brands through AI tools
- The underlying work — clarity, structure, authority — supports both
- Treating them as one connected discipline avoids duplicated effort