AEO & GEO and how that is replacing SEO

Travel planning is changing. AI tools like ChatGPT and Google's AI Overviews are replacing traditional search methods. Instead of relying on keywords, users now ask conversational questions and receive instant answers, often skipping websites altogether. For Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), this means adapting to two new strategies: Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Geographical Engine Optimization (GEO).

Key Takeaways:

• AEO ensures your content appears in AI-generated answers by focusing on conversational queries and structured data.

• GEO optimizes location-specific content so AI tools recommend your destination in travel-related queries.

• Together, these strategies prioritize visibility in AI responses over website traffic.

Why This Matters:

• 60% of searches now result in "zero-click" answers - users get what they need without visiting a site.

• AI-driven referrals are growing, and DMOs risk losing visibility if their content isn’t optimized for these tools.

AEO and GEO shift the focus from driving website clicks to ensuring your destination is accurately represented in AI answers. This is the future of tourism marketing.

What is Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)?

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) focuses on optimizing content so that AI-powered tools and voice assistants can deliver direct, concise answers efficiently [8–12]. Unlike traditional SEO, which prioritizes driving traffic to your website, AEO aims to make your content the go-to source for AI tools like ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, Perplexity, Claude and Grok. These tools rely on AEO-optimized content to answer users' questions.

For Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), success isn't just about website visits. It’s about whether AI tools recommend your destination when travelers ask questions like, "Where’s the best place for a weekend getaway with kids?" or "What’s the ideal time to visit wine country?"

AEO Definition and Core Principles

AEO focuses on answering conversational queries directly and clearly, shifting the content strategy from traditional SEO's emphasis on keywords and rankings. For example, traditional SEO might target "hotels in Miami", while AEO addresses queries like, "What are the best beachfront hotels in Miami for families with young children?"

The principle is straightforward: craft content that provides specific answers to specific questions. AI tools need to interpret your content quickly, understand its context, and determine its reliability. Achieving this requires writing in natural, conversational language, organizing information logically, and ensuring your answers are complete without needing extra context.

How AEO Works with AI Search Tools

AEO ensures your content is easy for AI tools to interpret, cite, and use. These tools rely on technologies like natural language processing (NLP), large language models (LLMs), knowledge graphs, and structured data [13, 14, 16]. By leveraging these technologies, AI tools decode user queries and deliver precise, direct answers [13, 15].

For instance, when a traveler asks Google Assistant, "What are the top attractions in Austin?" the AI searches for structured, machine-readable content that lists attractions, includes descriptions, and provides locations. This allows the AI to generate a complete, natural response.

A key technique for AEO is using schema markup, which tags your content so AI tools can quickly recognize and categorize it. Featured snippets - those boxed answers at the top of Google search results - are another critical element, as AI tools often use them to generate answers. Together, these methods ensure your content is ready to meet the demands of AI-driven search tools.

AEO Examples for DMOs

DMOs can adopt AEO by focusing on FAQs, adding schema markup, and creating conversational content tailored for voice queries. This approach also addresses the rise of zero-click searches, where users find answers without visiting a website.

Start by identifying common questions travelers ask about your destination. Instead of generic content, create FAQ pages with specific queries like "How do I get from the airport to downtown?" or "What’s the weather like in October?" and provide straightforward answers.

Schema markup is critical for helping AI tools understand your content. Use LocalBusiness schema for attractions, Event schema for festivals and activities, and FAQ schema for question-and-answer content. This structured data ensures AI tools can interpret and categorize your information accurately.

For voice search, write content in a conversational tone. Instead of targeting keywords like "family activities", craft responses to questions like, "What can families do in Portland on a rainy day?" Use natural phrasing, full sentences, and detailed answers that AI tools can confidently cite when responding to similar user queries. This approach positions your content as a trusted resource for travelers.

What is Geographical Engine Optimization (GEO)?

Geographical Engine Optimization (GEO) is all about tailoring your destination's content to ensure it appears in location-specific answers provided by AI platforms. While AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) focuses on conversational queries, GEO zeroes in on optimizing content for AI to understand, extract, and cite in responses tied to specific locations. For Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), this is a game-changer. Travelers now rely heavily on AI tools for planning trips, from finding inspiration to nailing down the details. Imagine someone asking an AI assistant, "What's the best coastal town for seafood lovers in New England?" With GEO, your destination has a better chance of being featured in the AI-generated response - even if the traveler never visits your website.

GEO Definition and Core Principles

At its heart, GEO is about positioning your destination's content as the go-to source for AI tools when answering location-based travel questions. To achieve this, your content needs to be structured in a way that AI platforms recognize as authoritative and relevant. That means including clear geographic identifiers, detailed descriptions of the location, and rich information about local attractions, businesses, and experiences. Unlike traditional SEO, which focuses on ranking in search results, GEO aims to make your destination a trusted reference point that AI systems consistently learn from and cite. The goal is to help AI quickly understand what your content is about, where it applies, and why it’s meaningful for travelers.

How DMOs Benefit from GEO

For DMOs, GEO offers a unique opportunity to gain visibility in AI-generated travel recommendations without relying solely on website visits. When AI tools respond to queries like, "Where should I go for fall foliage and craft breweries?" and mention your destination, you’re connecting with travelers right when they’re making decisions. Beyond just promoting your area, GEO also shines a spotlight on local attractions and small businesses, integrating them into personalized travel suggestions. This approach spreads the benefits of tourism more broadly across your destination.

GEO Tactics for DMOs

To get started with GEO, focus on enriching your content with precise geographic details. Instead of vague phrases like "Visit our downtown area", provide specifics: "Discover the 12-block historic downtown district between Main Street and River Avenue, home to 45 shops and restaurants all within a quarter-mile." This level of detail allows AI tools to clearly identify what you’re describing and where it’s located.

Use geotagging across all your digital content - images, videos, and text - by including exact coordinates, neighborhood names, and well-known landmarks. When promoting events or attractions, always include complete details like addresses, operating hours, and seasonal availability. This ensures AI platforms can deliver accurate and timely recommendations.

Don’t forget to optimize your Google Business Profile. Add high-quality photos, detailed descriptions, and regular updates about local events or highlights. You can also launch geotargeted content campaigns that address specific traveler questions about your area. Encourage user-generated content with location tags to create a network of geographic data that AI platforms can reference when travelers inquire about your destination.

SEO vs. AEO vs. GEO: Key Differences

SEO vs AEO vs GEO: Key Differences for Tourism Marketing

Now that we've covered AEO and GEO in detail, it's time to see how they compare to traditional SEO.

Each of these strategies plays a unique role in the digital marketing world, especially for DMOs navigating the ever-changing online landscape. Traditional SEO is all about securing top spots on search engine results pages (SERPs) to drive traffic to your website. AEO, on the other hand, is designed to position your content as the go-to answer in AI-generated responses, featured snippets, knowledge panels, and voice search. This approach focuses less on clicks and more on establishing authority in a zero-click environment - where users get the information they need without visiting your site. GEO takes it a step further by optimizing how generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Perplexity understand, cite, and recommend your destination.

Let’s break down the distinct goals behind each of these approaches.

Primary Goals of Each Approach

The goals of SEO, AEO, and GEO highlight why AEO and GEO are becoming so important. SEO is centered on ranking high in search results to drive traffic to your site, where you can engage and convert visitors. AEO shifts this focus to making your destination the authoritative answer that AI tools rely on for conversational queries and voice searches. Instead of vying for the top spot on a list, AEO aims to make you the answer. Meanwhile, GEO ensures that AI-powered platforms recommend your destination in their synthesized responses. For DMOs, this means gaining visibility even when users don’t click through to your site - a dramatic shift from traditional traffic-based strategies.

Here’s a quick comparison of how these strategies stack up.

Feature Comparison: SEO, AEO, and GEO

Feature | SEO | AEO | GEO

Primary Focus | Ranking in search engine results pages | Appearing as direct answers in AI and voice search | Being cited and recommended by generative AI tools

Optimization Target | Keywords, backlinks, page authority | Conversational queries, structured data, featured snippets | Geographic identifiers, location-based content

Success Metrics | Click-through rates, traffic, SERP rankings | Zero-click visibility, featured snippet appearances | AI citations, brand mentions, local recommendations

Content Style | Keyword-optimized pages and blog posts | Short, precise answers to specific questions | Rich location details with accurate geographic data

Technology Approach | Traditional search algorithms | Natural language processing, structured data markup | Machine-readable geographic data, geotagging

User Journey | User clicks a link to visit the website | User gets an answer without clicking | User receives an AI-generated recommendation

This table highlights the shift from traditional, traffic-driven strategies to approaches that rely on direct engagement through AI. For DMOs, adapting to these changes is crucial to staying relevant in the AI-powered travel landscape.

How to Implement AEO and GEO for Tourism Marketing

Now, let’s break down how Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) can put these strategies into action.

It’s one thing to understand the concepts behind SEO, AEO, and GEO, but applying them effectively is a different challenge. With AI-driven search reshaping the landscape, DMOs need to rethink how they create, organize, and share content. The good news? You don’t have to start from scratch. Many principles of good SEO - like providing high-quality content and accurate details - still apply. What’s different is how you format and optimize that content so AI systems can easily find, interpret, and recommend it.

Here’s how to bring AEO and GEO into your tourism marketing strategy.

AEO Implementation for AI-Driven Searches

AEO focuses on optimizing content so AI systems can extract and present it authoritatively. To do this, your content needs to answer travelers' questions directly and clearly. Think about what potential visitors might ask, such as, "When’s the best time to visit [destination]?" or "What’s the fastest way to get from the airport to downtown?" Tools like AnswerThePublic and AlsoAsked can help you discover these natural language queries to guide your content creation.

Craft conversational content that feels natural and mirrors how people speak. Skip keyword-heavy text and instead use a question-and-answer format that’s easy to read. Incorporate structured data markup (schema) to help AI systems interpret your content. Platforms like Schema.org and Google’s Rich Results Test can guide you in adding schema for events, attractions, accommodations, and restaurants.

To increase visibility, aim for featured snippets and AI-generated overviews. Research shows that 25.11% of Google searches now include an AI Overview result. Structure your content with clear headings, concise answers (40–60 words work well), and FAQ sections addressing common traveler questions. Additionally, configure an llms.txt file to manage AI crawling permissions and update your robots.txt file to allow access for AI crawlers like GPTBot and ClaudeBot.

Now, let’s explore how GEO can enhance local engagement.

GEO Implementation for Local Engagement

GEO takes optimization further by focusing on how generative AI tools interpret and recommend your destination. Start by building brand authority and ensuring your location data is accurate and consistent across platforms like Google Business Profile, Bing Places, and TripAdvisor. Since most travelers search on their phones, ensure your content is mobile-friendly - AI recommendations often prioritize sources optimized for mobile use. Encourage visitors to leave reviews, share photos, and tag your location, as AI systems frequently pull from recent user-generated content.

Develop location-specific content that goes beyond surface-level descriptions. Include detailed neighborhood guides, seasonal recommendations, and insider tips. Use geotagging and machine-readable geographic data to help AI systems understand exactly where your attractions, hotels, and experiences are located.

To establish authority, aim to secure mentions from reputable sources. Reference data from trusted organizations, and get your destination featured in travel publications, local news outlets, and tourism databases. The more credible sources that mention your destination, the more likely AI systems will highlight it in recommendations.

Tools and Technologies for AEO and GEO

Several tools can help you implement AEO and GEO strategies effectively.

To track performance and structure your content, tools like Google Analytics 4 (GA4) are essential. Use GA4 to monitor AI traffic under Acquisition > Traffic Acquisition, and create analytics segments specifically for AI platforms like ChatGPT. This is important because visitors referred by AI tools tend to convert at twice the rate and require fewer sessions compared to other traffic sources.

HubSpot’s AI Search Grader is another valuable resource, offering insights into how well your content performs in AI-powered searches and providing actionable recommendations to improve your GEO and AEO efforts. In fact, organizations that combined AEO with SEO in 2024 reported a 54% increase in click-through rates within six months, and AEO-optimized pages achieved a 14% higher click-through rate compared to standard SEO pages.

For a more integrated approach, platforms like Drifter AI combine AEO and GEO capabilities, helping DMOs optimize for AI-driven searches, track partner referrals, and access real-time analytics - all without requiring a CMS migration. These tools make it easier to stay ahead in the evolving landscape of AI-powered tourism marketing.

How Drifter AI Empowers DMOs with AI Visibility Intelligence

Drifter AI takes AEO and GEO from theory to practice. Currents, our AI visibility analytics platform, shows DMOs exactly how their destination appears across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini — and what to do to improve it.

AI Visibility Analytics

Currents runs 50+ real traveler queries across major AI engines and measures two core metrics. Answer Share tracks how often your destination gets recommended when travelers ask AI for suggestions. Authority Share reveals which of your content sources AI models actually trust and cite. Both are broken down by journey phase — inspiration, planning, validation, and booking — so you know exactly where you're winning and where you're invisible.

Content Briefs and Competitive Intelligence

Knowing your visibility gaps is only half the equation. Currents generates prioritized content briefs based on real AI behavior, telling your marketing team what to publish, which traveler intent it targets, and how to structure it for AI citation. Peer benchmarking shows which competing destinations AI recommends instead of yours, and for which types of queries — turning competitive blind spots into actionable strategy.

Getting Started with Currents

DMOs can generate a free AI visibility snapshot at drifter.travel with no credit card required. The snapshot delivers a full baseline report showing your destination's current AI presence, top peer competitors, and highest-priority content gaps. Early adopters have used these insights to identify quick wins in their content strategy before committing to a paid plan — making it easy to demonstrate value internally and build the case for ongoing AI visibility monitoring.

Conclusion

Over 60% of searches now end in a "zero-click" experience, signaling a shift away from the dominance of traditional search results, like the classic ten blue links. AI platforms are reshaping the search landscape by offering direct, detailed answers. For Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), this means that sticking to traditional SEO strategies simply won’t cut it anymore.

Around 60% of consumers now turn to AI tools for research or purchases, with 44% relying on AI as their primary source of insights. Travelers are asking highly specific questions - like “What’s the best three-day itinerary for families in winter?” - and receiving instant, customized recommendations. If your destination isn’t referenced by these AI systems, it risks being invisible to potential visitors. This underscores the importance of blending traditional SEO with new approaches like Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Geographic Engine Optimization (GEO).

By embracing AEO and GEO, DMOs can build on their existing strengths while making their content more AI-friendly. Treating AI-driven discovery as the gateway to their destinations positions organizations to thrive in this rapidly evolving space.

AI-powered tools make this shift easier by enabling personalized experiences through natural language search, real-time analytics, and partner referral tracking. These tools allow DMOs to engage travelers directly within AI-assisted interactions and prove their value with measurable results.

The urgency to adapt is clear, as AI-driven referral traffic to travel websites is surging. DMOs that establish themselves as trusted sources for AI platforms today will attract tomorrow’s travelers. The future of destination marketing is already here - personalized, conversational, and powered by AI.

FAQs

What makes AEO different from traditional SEO?

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is all about crafting content that AI systems can easily interpret and use to provide direct answers, summaries, or voice responses. Unlike traditional SEO, which focuses on improving rankings through keywords, backlinks, and lengthy content, AEO zeroes in on creating concise, well-structured, and ready-to-use answers.

AEO also emphasizes keeping content updated frequently and ensuring its accuracy through external validation. As voice search and AI-driven tools continue to grow in popularity, businesses need to adjust their strategies to align with these advancements in technology.

What are the first steps for a Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) to implement Geographical Engine Optimization (GEO)?

To get started with Geographical Engine Optimization (GEO) for your DMO, begin by strengthening your website's core structure. Make sure to use structured data, write clear and concise metadata, and ensure your content is error-free and easy for AI to interpret. Use hierarchical headings, bullet points, and natural language to organize your information in a way that's simple for search engines to understand.

Once your foundation is solid, work on establishing credibility. Get your DMO listed in reputable directories and aim to earn citations that highlight your accomplishments. Keep your content fresh and updated to stay aligned with current trends and search engine algorithms. These practices will improve your hyper-local targeting efforts and help create tailored travel experiences for your audience.

Why is schema markup essential for optimizing content with AEO?

Schema markup plays a key role in AEO by making your content easier for AI-driven tools - like voice assistants and search algorithms - to understand and organize. Essentially, it structures your data in a way that machines can process effortlessly, increasing the likelihood of showing up in featured snippets, voice search results, or AI-generated answers.

This improved clarity doesn’t just expand your content’s visibility - it also enhances user engagement by delivering accurate and relevant information right when people need it. Adding schema markup ensures your content stays accessible and ready for today’s advanced search technologies.