SEO: getting indexed
Traditional SEO optimizes search rankings through keywords, backlinks and technical performance. Necessary, but no longer sufficient on its own in 2026.
AEO: getting extracted
AEO targets featured snippets and Google's direct answers. Answer-first content, Q&A formats and clear H2/H3 structure bridge traditional SEO and GEO.
AEO calls for sharper writing: a question, an answer, evidence. Content must be clear enough to extract without context, yet solid enough to remain credible when quoted outside the page.
GEO: getting cited
GEO optimizes for inclusion in an answer generated by ChatGPT, Perplexity or Gemini. The unit of value shifts from the click to the citation.
GEO does not replace SEO. It adds a layer: prompts, AI citations, share of voice, source freshness, verifiable entities and brand consistency. A website can rank well and still be absent from generated answers if its identity is weak.
The method connecting all three
SEO establishes the technical foundation. AEO makes answers extractable. GEO makes the entity citable. SFT provides a shared framework: Structure so machines can read, Flow so they can connect and Trust so they have evidence to cite.
That is why I do not draw a hard boundary between these disciplines. A serious audit examines all three levels together: indexing, extraction and citation.
Quick comparison
| SEO | AEO | GEO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goal | Ranking | Extraction | Citation |
| Engine | Google featured snippets | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini | |
| Metric | Position, traffic | Extraction rate | AI share of voice |
| Effective format | Keywords, backlinks | Q&A, lists | Entities, evidence, structure |