Bencium Aeo

AEO Content Optimization Skill

Answer Engine Optimization - Optimize content for AI citations, not traditional search rankings.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• User asks to optimize content for AI search/citations
• User mentions ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini visibility
• User wants FAQ schema, JSON-LD, or structured data for AI
• User asks about GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
• User wants to analyze content for AI extraction readiness
• User mentions "AI Overviews" or "answer engines"

NOT for traditional SEO - This is specifically for AI/LLM citation optimization.

Core Philosophy: Machine-First Content

Optimise for AI agents as primary consumers (90%), humans secondary (10%):

• Make facts copyable — JSON snippets, 18-token sentences.
• Make claims verifiable — evidence panels with methods, dates, sources.
• Make structure scannable — short answers, clear hierarchy, anchors.
• Make updates visible — dated change logs, freshness signals.

Related Skills

• toprank — SEO suite; its geo-content-optimizer sub-skill points back here for GEO/AI-citation technique when that work happens inside a broader SEO engagement. Use this skill directly for AI-citation work with no SEO context; see references/geo-techniques.md for the merged technique library (18-token rule, CORE-EEAT checklist, worked examples).
• perplexity-research — research competitor content and citation patterns before generating AEO content for a new page.

Core Reference

Full templates and guidelines: Read prd.md in this directory for complete implementation details.

Quick Reference: Key Principles

The 18-Token Extraction Rule

LLMs extract self-contained sentences of 18 tokens (15-20 words). Key claims must be complete, quotable statements requiring zero surrounding context.

Good: "Eight-API synthesis reduces property analysis errors by 67%." (9 tokens) Bad: "Our system is incredibly fast and delivers amazing results." (vague)

Single-Topic Focus Pages

Single-concept pages vastly outperform multi-topic content. Create focused URLs like domain.com/specific-concept rather than comprehensive guides.

Citations + Statistics = 30-40% More Visibility

Every major claim needs:

• Verifiable data with methodology
• Date of data collection
• Expert attribution (Name + Credentials + Org)

Freshness is Critical

95% of AI citations come from content updated in last 10 months. Static content dies.

Authority Level Determines Strategy

Princeton finding: Rank-5 sites gained 115% visibility with aggressive optimization. Rank-1 sites that over-optimized lost 30%.

What to Generate

When user requests AEO content, generate:

1. Product Overview (50 words)

• What it is (one clause)
• Scope/timeframe context
• Why it matters (value proposition)
• "Last updated" date

2. 15 FAQs with Schema

• Questions: 7-12 words, natural language
• Answers: 30-50 words (sweet spot for AI extraction)
• FAQPage JSON-LD schema with datePublished and dateModified
• Persistent anchor IDs (#faq-slug)

3. Evidence Panels

For every important claim:

• Claim statement
• Methodology
• Data source + URL
• Date of data collection
• Limitations
• Contact for questions

4. JSON-LD Schema

• FAQPage (most important)
• HowTo (for guides)
• Product (for product pages)
• Organization (for About page)

Anti-Patterns (What to Avoid)

Traditional SEO Tactics Harm GEO

• Keyword stuffing
• Generic listicles without original insight
• Vague hedged language ("may help", "could potentially")
• Multi-topic comprehensive guides
• Over-optimization on established sites

Content Structure Errors

• FAQ answers over 50 words
• Buried answers (put conclusion first)
• Pronoun ambiguity ("it" instead of "the product")
• Missing dates and freshness signals
• No schema markup

Assessment Framework

When analyzing content for AEO readiness, score (0-10):

Quick test: Can you copy-paste 3 sentences that fully answer a question without context?

Implementation Checklist

• Product overview: 50 words, dated, under H1
• 15 FAQs: 30-50 words each, natural questions
• Evidence panels: method, data, date, limitations
• "Last updated" dates on every section
• FAQPage JSON-LD schema in <head>
• Persistent anchor IDs for FAQs
• Validated with Google Rich Results Test

Testing Protocol

After implementation, test with:

1. Recognition: "What is [Product]?" (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini)
2. Comparison: "Compare [Product] to [Competitor]"
3. Best for: "What's the best [category] for [use case]?"
4. How-to: "How do I [task with product]?"

Track: Mentioned? Linked? Accurate? Evidence quoted?

Full Documentation

For complete templates, examples, and detailed guidelines, read:

• prd.md - Full AEO content generation guide with HTML templates
• story-structured.md - Framework summary from Princeton study
• references/full-guide.md - human-facing usage walkthrough (setup, worked example, validation checklist, FAQ)
• references/geo-techniques.md - merged GEO technique library (from toprank/geo-content-optimizer)
• references/ai-citation-patterns.md - how each AI engine selects and cites sources
• references/quotable-content-examples.md - more before/after quotable-content pairs