What is SEO?
Search engine optimisation is the work of making pages accessible, understandable, relevant and useful for the queries and audiences a business genuinely serves. It covers technical delivery, information architecture, content, internal links and external signals.
What is AEO?
Answer engine optimisation focuses on making information easy to use in direct answers. Good AEO writing answers the question clearly, includes enough context to be accurate and makes the responsible source evident.
What is GEO?
Generative engine optimisation is commonly used for improving how a business or source is understood and represented in AI-generated experiences. The term is newer; the durable work is not. Consistent facts, useful original material, accessible pages and clear attribution remain central.
What should a business website do first?
- Define the real audience and the decisions the website supports.
- Create one useful page for each distinct service or information need.
- Make facts consistent across the website and trusted external profiles.
- Use semantic HTML, descriptive titles and appropriate structured data.
- Measure indexing, search queries, referrals and enquiries after launch.
What should it avoid?
Avoid mass-producing thin pages, copying competitor claims, adding schema for content that visitors cannot see or presenting speculative visibility as measured success. There is no special file or markup that guarantees inclusion in generative answers.
Reviewed: 26 October 2026. This guide will be updated when material platform guidance changes.