How to Get Traffic From AI Search: AEO and GEO Strategies

Search is evolving. Customers no longer rely exclusively on Google to research products, compare providers, or decide which businesses deserve their attention. Increasingly, they are turning to AI-powered tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, and other conversational search platforms to find information and evaluate their options.

For businesses, this shift creates a new challenge: how do you make your brand visible when AI systems help customers discover and evaluate solutions?

Microsoft Advertising addressed this question in its official guide, From Discovery to Influence: A Guide to GEO, published in January 2026. The guide explores how brands can improve their visibility across AI assistants, browsers, and agents.

Although the guide primarily targets retailers, its underlying principles offer valuable lessons for marketers, service providers, and businesses looking to strengthen their digital presence.

What Are AEO and GEO?

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) focuses on making information clear and useful for systems that provide direct answers to questions. Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) focuses on improving the likelihood that a brand's information will be understood, trusted, and represented in AI-generated responses.

Traditional SEO remains important. However, businesses must also consider how their information is interpreted and used beyond conventional search results.

Microsoft's position is that existing SEO investments provide a foundation for AI discovery. Businesses do not necessarily need to start over. Instead, they should improve the quality, completeness, accessibility, and credibility of the information they already publish.

1. Make Your Website Information Clear and Complete

One of Microsoft's central recommendations is to treat existing digital information as a strategic asset rather than simply content published to rank in search engines.

The principle is straightforward: AI systems need meaningful context to understand what a business offers and when it is relevant.

For example, a generic description such as "We provide quality roofing services" communicates little about a contractor's capabilities.

A more useful description explains whether the company specializes in commercial roofing, roof replacements, waterproofing, emergency leak repairs, or preventative maintenance. It can also identify the locations served, relevant qualifications, and the types of customers supported.

My recommendation: Audit your important website pages and identify missing information that could prevent customers from understanding your expertise.

For service businesses, prioritize service descriptions, pricing guidance where appropriate, operating hours, service areas, frequently asked questions, warranties, and contact information.

The objective is to eliminate ambiguity for both prospective customers and the systems helping them research their options.

2. Build Visibility Beyond Your Website

Microsoft's framework identifies three important information pathways: feeds, crawled website data, and off-site data.

Retailers may use product feeds to communicate current prices, product attributes, and availability. Other businesses will have different information requirements, but the broader principle remains relevant.

AI discovery does not depend exclusively on what a company publishes about itself.

Third-party references, reviews, industry publications, and other credible sources can contribute to how a brand is understood.

For local service businesses, this makes Google Business Profile optimization, consistent business listings, authentic customer reviews, trade association memberships, and relevant local media coverage important parts of a broader visibility strategy.

My recommendation: Make sure your website and external profiles reinforce the same business identity, service offerings, and areas of expertise.

Do not confuse this with pursuing mentions anywhere on the internet. Prioritize relevant, trustworthy sources that provide genuine value to your audience.

3. Prioritize Credibility Over Content Volume

Publishing more content does not automatically make a business more authoritative.

Microsoft's broader GEO discussion emphasizes the importance of clear, structured information and credible signals. The practical implication is that businesses should focus on demonstrating expertise rather than producing endless variations of generic content.

Consider a plumbing company publishing an article about common causes of low water pressure.

A basic article might summarize familiar troubleshooting tips. A stronger resource could explain diagnostic steps, distinguish between common causes, identify warning signs, and incorporate the company's practical experience.

Original project examples, expert commentary, useful research, and detailed case studies can give prospective customers stronger reasons to trust a business.

My recommendation: Invest in content that demonstrates knowledge competitors cannot easily reproduce. Use AI to support research and organization, but ensure the final material reflects genuine expertise and accurate information.

4. Keep Technical SEO Foundations Strong

AI search does not eliminate the importance of technical SEO.

If important pages are inaccessible, content is poorly organized, or business information is inconsistent, your digital presence becomes harder to interpret and maintain.

Review crawlability, indexability, mobile usability, internal linking, page structure, and relevant structured data. Make sure important information is available as readable text and that your website provides a reliable experience.

Structured data can help clarify information about a business and its services, but it does not guarantee AI citations or recommendations.

For local businesses, accurate business information and functional calls to action are equally important. Visibility creates little value if customers cannot easily call, request a quote, or schedule an appointment.

5. Measure Influence, Not Just Traffic

Microsoft's guide highlights a shift from conventional search traffic toward influence during AI-assisted discovery.

This does not mean clicks no longer matter. It means traffic alone may not capture the full effect of visibility.

Businesses should monitor traditional organic performance alongside available AI citations, branded searches, referral visits, qualified leads, booked appointments, and revenue.

AI visibility tools can provide useful directional insights, but individual responses vary and measurement capabilities remain limited. Avoid assuming that every increase in branded traffic resulted from AI recommendations.

Instead, combine multiple indicators and evaluate whether marketing activity contributes to meaningful business outcomes.

Final Thoughts: Prepare Your Business for AI Search

Microsoft's From Discovery to Influence guide reinforces an important principle: businesses should build on their existing SEO foundations while making their information more complete, accessible, and credible.

The practical opportunity is not to chase every new AI optimization tactic. It is to strengthen the signals that help customers and discovery systems understand what your business does, why it is relevant, and why it deserves consideration.

Start by auditing your website, improving your most important service pages, strengthening credible third-party references, and measuring qualified business outcomes.

AI search visibility is not a shortcut around good marketing. It is another reason to make your marketing more strategic, useful, and trustworthy.

Official source: Microsoft Advertising, From Discovery to Influence: A Guide to GEO.

Editorial note: The recommendations for non-retail businesses are strategic applications of Microsoft's published framework, not a claim that Microsoft provides a dedicated playbook for every industry.