# AEO GEO optimizer Human Guide

## What This Is For
Optimize content and websites for AI-powered search experiences — ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google AI Overviews, and Bing Copilot. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for search and SEO workflows: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the AEO GEO optimizer agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for AEO GEO optimizer.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the AEO GEO optimizer guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- **Authority signals** — Domain authority, author expertise, institutional backing
- **Content structure** — Clear headings, direct answers, structured data
- **Freshness** — Recent publication dates, updated statistics
- **Specificity** — Exact numbers, named sources, verifiable claims
- **Uniqueness** — Original research, proprietary data, novel frameworks
- **Test AI citation presence**: Query ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews with questions your content should answer. Document which queries cite your content vs competitors.
- **Check structured data**: Validate schema markup coverage using Google Rich Results Test or Schema.org validator.
- **Evaluate content structure**: Score each page on AEO readiness using the Content Scorecard below.
- **Lead with the answer.** AI models extract the first sentence after a heading. Make it count.
- **Use specific numbers.** "Revenue increased 47% year-over-year" beats "revenue increased significantly."
- **Name your sources.** "According to a 2026 McKinsey report" is citable; unsourced claims are not.
- **Create self-contained paragraphs.** Each paragraph should make sense extracted in isolation.

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: Install, Why This Matters, Core Concepts, AEO vs GEO vs Traditional SEO, The Citation Hierarchy, AEO/GEO Audit Workflow, Step 1: Assess Current AI Visibility, Step 2: Content Scorecard, Step 3: Optimize for AI Citation, Content Structure Patterns.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- Anti-Patterns (Never Do)
- **Do not block AI crawlers** if your goal is AI visibility
- **Do not write "click here" or "read more below"** — AI extracts content out of context
- **Do not bury answers in long introductions** — lead with the answer
- **Do not use vague qualifiers** — "many," "significant," "some" — use specific numbers
- **Do not neglect author bylines** — E-E-A-T signals matter to AI models
- **Do not duplicate content across pages** — AI models deduplicate and may ignore both
- **Do not over-optimize for one AI platform** — optimize for all of them

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the AEO GEO optimizer human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing skill entry for `aeo-geo-optimizer`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# AEO/GEO Optimizer

Optimize content and websites for AI-powered search experiences — ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google AI Overviews, and Bing Copilot.

## Install

```bash
git clone https://github.com/thatrebeccarae/claude-marketing.git && cp -r claude-marketing/skills/aeo-geo-optimizer ~/.claude/skills/
```

## Why This Matters

Traditional SEO optimizes for 10 blue links. AEO/GEO optimizes for AI-generated answers. When someone asks ChatGPT or Perplexity a question, the answer synthesizes from sources — and those sources get cited, linked, and trusted. If your content is not structured for AI consumption, you are invisible in the fastest-growing search channel.

## Core Concepts

### AEO vs GEO vs Traditional SEO

| Dimension | Traditional SEO | AEO (Answer Engine) | GEO (Generative Engine) |
|-----------|----------------|---------------------|------------------------|
| **Target** | Google/Bing SERPs | Featured snippets, AI Overviews, voice assistants | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude citations |
| **Goal** | Rank on page 1 | Be THE answer | Be cited in AI-generated responses |
| **Content format** | Long-form, keyword-rich | Concise, structured Q&A | Authoritative, quotable, fact-dense |
| **Signals** | Backlinks, keywords, UX | Schema markup, direct answers, authority | E-E-A-T, data density, citation-worthiness |
| **Measurement** | Rankings, traffic | Answer box appearance, voice search hits | AI citation tracking, brand mentions in AI |

### The Citation Hierarchy

AI models prioritize sources based on:

1. **Authority signals** — Domain authority, author expertise, institutional backing
2. **Content structure** — Clear headings, direct answers, structured data
3. **Freshness** — Recent publication dates, updated statistics
4. **Specificity** — Exact numbers, named sources, verifiable claims
5. **Uniqueness** — Original research, proprietary data, novel frameworks

## AEO/GEO Audit Workflow

### Step 1: Assess Current AI Visibility

1. **Test AI citation presence**: Query ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews with questions your content should answer. Document which queries cite your content vs competitors.

2. **Check structured data**: Validate schema markup coverage using Google Rich Results Test or Schema.org validator.

3. **Evaluate content structure**: Score each page on AEO readiness using the Content Scorecard below.

### Step 2: Content Scorecard

Rate each piece of content (1-5) on these dimensions:

| Dimension | Score 1 (Poor) | Score 5 (Excellent) |
|-----------|---------------|-------------------|
| **Direct answers** | Buried in paragraphs | Clear Q&A format, first-sentence answers |
| **Data density** | Opinions without evidence | Specific numbers, percentages, dates |
| **Source attribution** | No citations | Named sources, linked studies |
| **Structure** | Wall of text | H2/H3 hierarchy, lists, tables |
| **Schema markup** | None | Article, FAQ, HowTo, or relevant type |
| **Freshness signals** | No dates | Published date, "Updated" date, recent data |
| **Author authority** | No byline | Named author with expertise credentials |
| **Quotability** | Meandering prose | Crisp, self-contained statements AI can extract |

**Scoring**: 32-40 = AI-ready. 24-31 = Needs optimization. Below 24 = Major rework needed.

### Step 3: Optimize for AI Citation

#### Content Structure Patterns

**The Direct Answer Pattern:**
```
## [Question as H2]

[One-sentence direct answer.] [Supporting context in 2-3 sentences.]

**Key details:**
- [Specific data point]
- [Specific data point]
- [Source attribution]
```

**The Definition Pattern:**