Answer engine optimization (AEO) strategist
I structure your content so Google, voice search and AI assistants can lift a clear, correct answer from it and credit you for it.
In short
Answer engine optimization (AEO) is the practice of writing and structuring content so that search engines and AI assistants can pull a direct answer from it. Victor Olanrewaju is an AEO strategist in Kigali, Rwanda who builds answer-first pages, FAQs and structured data, then tests the result across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews.
What AEO covers
Answer engines are anywhere a question gets a direct response instead of a list of links. Each one wants the same thing: a clear question, a short correct answer and proof that the source can be trusted.
- Featured snippets and People Also Ask boxes
- Google AI Overviews and AI Mode
- Voice assistants
- Chat assistants such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity
How I build answer-first pages
- Start from the real question, using search data, sales calls and support tickets
- Put the answer in the first 40 to 60 words under a question-style heading
- Back it with specifics, sources and a named author
- Add an FAQ for the follow-up questions buyers ask next
- Add structured data where it fits the page
- Keep the page fresh, with a visible updated date
What Google says about AI features
Google’s documentation says the best practices for SEO remain relevant for AI features such as AI Overviews and AI Mode, and that there are no additional requirements and no special optimizations needed. To appear as a supporting link, a page must be indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet. That is why I fix the foundations before anything else.
Google also limits FAQ rich results to well-known government and health sites. I still use FAQ markup because it makes answers unambiguous to machines, but I do not promise a rich result from it.
Why being the answer matters more now
Pew Research Center analysed browsing data from 900 US adults in March 2025. Users who saw a Google AI summary clicked a traditional result link in 8% of visits, against 15% for users who did not see one. When fewer people click through, being the name inside the answer carries more of the value.
How AEO feeds your pipeline
An answer that names you, links to you and gets the follow-up questions right puts you in front of buyers at the moment they are deciding. I connect each answer-first page to a clear next step, whether that is an enquiry form, a WhatsApp message or a booking, then report on the enquiries those pages produce. For the AI side of this, see AI citation and recommendation.
Proof from my work
5 of 11
AI answers about Kigali restaurants and hotels cited a business’s own website; broad questions mostly cited directories (my 2026 research, small sample)
#1
MANTRA (OM) coverage at CCN held the top Google position for months and was cited by AI models
3 of 3
AI assistants, ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude, name LAGE Lightings first for luxury lighting in Nigeria
Further reading
- SEO, AEO and GEO: what each one is, how they differ and how to fit them together
- Schema markup for AEO and GEO: which types matter, with JSON-LD examples and an honest view of what it does
- llms.txt: what it is, how to write one, and an honest view of whether it helps
- How to get cited by ChatGPT: a practical, sourced guide to being found and recommended
Sources
Questions
Straight answers.
The things people ask before they hire a copywriter or an SEO.
What is answer engine optimization (AEO)?
AEO is the practice of writing and structuring content so that search engines and AI assistants can lift a direct answer from it, in featured snippets, People Also Ask, voice results, Google AI Overviews and chat assistants.
Is AEO different from SEO?
AEO builds on SEO. Google says the best practices for SEO remain relevant for its AI features and that no special optimization is needed. AEO adds answer-first writing, FAQs and structured data on top of a sound technical base.
Does FAQ schema still help?
Google limits FAQ rich results to well-known government and health sites, so FAQ markup is unlikely to give most sites a rich result. It still makes your questions and answers unambiguous to machines, which is why I use it.
Which AI assistants do you optimize for?
I test and report on ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews, because buyers use all of them and each draws on different sources.
What is the difference between AI citation and AI recommendation?
A citation is when an AI assistant uses your page as a source for its answer, usually with a link. A recommendation is when it names your business as the answer to a buyer’s question, often in a short list. Citations build trust and referral visits. Recommendations win shortlist positions and enquiries. GEO works on both.
What does a content strategist do for SEO and AI search?
A content strategist decides what a business should publish, for which buyer question and in what order, so each page can earn a Google ranking or an AI citation and lead a reader towards a purchase. In practice that means mapping buyer questions, giving each one its own answer-first page, keeping facts consistent across the site and measuring rankings, citations and enquiries every month.
Start here
Tell me what you want to be found for.
Tell me what a new customer is worth to you and the search you want to win. I read every message myself and reply within one working day. Want to see where you stand first? Ask for the free AI visibility audit.
- victor@vatam.co
- +250786001349
- Kigali, Rwanda
What happens next
- I read your message myself, usually the same day.
- You get a reply within one working day with my first read and an offer of the free audit.
- If it fits, the scope and price are agreed in writing before any work starts.
“Within weeks, we were getting inquiries from top architects, 4-star hotels real developers, eventually leading to some of the biggest deals we've ever closed.”