The AI Visibility Playbook: AEO briefing for B2B marketers

Our friends at Orange Marketing hosted a webinar a couple of weeks ago about AEO to share tips and insights on this emerging SEO trend. During the session, our dear friend and brilliant marketer Rebecca Gonzalez shared 10 actionable tips and the exact strategies that have been working for her to gain AI visibility after months of applying them. In the webinar, which you can find below, you won't find an explanation of what AEO is, but tips to help you navigate this new trend.

Because we loved this webinar, we've prepared a summary, along with a few comments from our own perspective, of the key lessons Rebecca shared to help you enhance your AEO strategy. Let's dive in!

Why AI visibility is important right now?

We have already talked about AEO in FreshJuice and the importance of appearing in AI tools, as it's becoming a new trend for users to rely on AI instead of traditional search engines. However, as Rebecca mentioned at the beginning of the webinar, everyone's traffic started to plummet in 2024 due to AI. While SEO is still worth working on, AI visibility is now crucial, and the data supports this. For example, even Google's AI implementation has negatively impacted ranked pages, with a 47% reduction in clicks when AI overview results appear. Some marketers have dubbed this the "traffic apocalypse."

On the other hand, while Google traffic is slowing down, AI-driven traffic is increasing. Conversion rates from AI traffic are six times higher than those from Google, as buyers using AI have usually already done their research and are ready to convert, resulting in a 24% conversion rate.

It's worth noting that we will discuss AI tools in general here, but ChatGPT is currently dominating the market. However, since the industry is still new, we believe it's better not to focus on a single tool, and instead create a strategy that works across all AI platforms.

The 10 tips for AEO tactics to apply on 2026 based on Orange Marketing

As AEO is a new trend, marketers are facing a situation similar to what happened with Google's algorithm in its early days. Back then, there wasn't either any official documentation explaining exactly how the algorithm worked, so SEO specialists had to rely on assumptions, experimentation, and A/B testing to figure out what strategies actually helped websites rank. The same is true for AEO: because it's so new, there is a LOT of misinformation circulating. Many marketing blogs are eager to grab attention, and some marketers even spread misinformation in order to appear as if they are the first to "know the truth" about how AI works.

But you don't need to worry about that here. The strategies recommended by Orange Marketing are backed by real results. After months of research and A/B testing with actual customers, these 10 tips have been proven to work effectively, helping brands improve their AI visibility without relying on guesswork.

1. Put the answer first

The main difference between SEO and AEO is that AI doesn't rank based on keywords but on questions, specifically, the ones users are actually asking. That's why the first tip to make AI love you (and include your site in its answers) is to create content in the way AI wants to find it. To do this, your content should be question-based and follow a structure where the question is:

• answered directly and immediately,
• expanded afterwards, and
• supported by a FAQ section at the bottom to give AI even more direct answers to work with.

If you're familiar with SEO, you might be thinking this sounds similar to what you already do like turning headings into questions. And you're right! The main difference is that instead of writing long, SEO-driven articles first and answering later, with AEO you put the clear, direct answer right at the top.

Other similarities with SEO still apply: follow a clear hierarchical structure, use clean headings, and format your content with bullet points and Q&A sections. These were great for UX before and they're still AI visibility.

According to Orange Marketing professionals, simply applying this tip can lead to an 8% traffic increase in just 3 weeks.

2. Format all content for AI

As mentioned before, AI loves structure, which is why formatting your content matters just as much as the questions you use or how you answer them. In the webinar, Rebecca shared a list of essential formatting elements you should include:

• Tables and comparison charts
• Bullet points and numbered lists (as you can see, we're already using them in this article!)
• Question-based headings
• Logical content hierarchy

Using these elements not only helps AI understand your content better but also makes it easier for users to read and navigate.

3. Create brand or product summary blocks

This was a tip we didn't know ourselves and one we haven't seen mentioned in any AEO or AI visibility blog posts: the importance of brand and product summary blocks. This means adding short text sections at the beginning of pages that help AI understand who you are or what your product is, so it can accurately describe your company when recommending you. To do this, simply add 2-3 sentences under a heading like "About [your brand]" or "About [your product]", giving a short (and obviously positive!) description.

Why should you do this? Well, if llms.txt pages are pulling your content, you want AI to clearly identify that it's coming from you. And to make that happen, you need to explicitly tell AI who you are and what you offer, otherwise, it can't recommend you properly. Plus, since AI is basically a "lazy robot in a hurry," you need to make things as easy as possible. If you don't, it will just… ignore you.

We know this might feel silly or repetitive for users when reading, but hey… IT WORKS! Use your creativity to weave it into your content naturally, because the results are definitely worth it.

4. Build third-party citations

AI loves social media (except LinkedIn, which can't be crawled). In fact, it heavily cites platforms like Reddit, YouTube, podcasts, and media outlets, since they usually include real people's opinions about products, brands, and specific topics. Having a presence on these channels beyond your website can make you much more visible in AI results.

Try to appear on guest podcasts, publish press releases for product launches, write guest posts for industry sites, and contribute meaningfully on Reddit.

5. Publish on AI-crawled platforms

Building citations on social media and other third-party channels is just the first step. To maximize your AI visibility, you also need to be present on AI-crawled platforms. As Rebecca wonderfully explains, AI training data comes from specific platforms, so being present on those platforms can make you far more visible to AI. The main sources used include Wikipedia, Reddit, YouTube, Quora, Gartner, and Reuters.

Q&A and forum-type sites are being referenced more and more, and many people are trying to leverage them to get AI mentions. But remember: your mentions on these platforms must be genuine and truthful. It's not worth playing games by posting a question yourself and then replying with another account. If you try to add sketchy or spammy content, it will destroy your strategy.

Beyond these platforms and as mentioned before, other credible media outlets also help, so aim to get featured wherever your brand can be recognized as a trustworthy source.

6. Add alt text and transcripts

Regarding this tip, before diving in, we'd like to clarify one thing. Rebecca's definition of alt text isn't exactly the standard definition. It's more aligned with how SEO often uses it. According to the Digital Accessibility Services of Harvard University:

"Alternative (Alt) Text is a brief text description of images and graphics, and is an essential part of making content accessible. When adding images, icons, or other graphic elements to digital content, be sure to add alt text so that your content will be accessible to all users."

In other words, alt text is an accessibility feature designed for blind and low-vision users. It's not inherently an SEO or AEO tool, it exists to provide a description for people who can't access visual content.

That being said, if you want to use alt text to enhance AI visibility, it's important to choose images related to your content and make sure the alt text accurately describes the image. Imagine being a blind person trying to understand an image, and all you get is a keyword or a prompt that doesn't actually describe what's shown. It wouldn't be helpful or fair.

The best practice is to think about accessibility first. If you want AI to benefit from alt text, make it accessible too. AI and search engine crawlers "read" alt text to understand images as screen readers do since they cannot see the visuals. That's why we recommend:

• Only include images that add real value to your content.
• Make sure the images are relevant to the topic.

For example, adding a picture of a cat in a blog post about the Dunning-Kruger effect wouldn't make sense. On the other hand, including a slide from the webinar with a transcription of the text as alt text in this article would make it accessible both for AI and for blind and low-vision users.

Besides images, there are videos and other audiovisual contents. To make them accessible for both AI and disabled people add:

• Full video transcripts on your page
• Converts PDFs to open web pages
• Descriptive alt text on all images
• HubSpot-style pillar pages with comprehensive content.

Accessibility is a feature designed primarily for disabled users, and it just so happens that it can also be beneficial for marketing purposes. The key is to put people first and use accessibility features in a way that works for both users and AI. A good way to do this is to navigate your site as if you were blind by using a screen reader and see if the content is understandable. If it is, you're doing it right!

7. Get reviews and testimonials

We've already mentioned that AI relies on different platforms to gather content. Besides those previously mentioned, AI loves review sites. According to the Orange Marketing team, AI uses these sites to double-check the veracity of the information on your website. AI likes to compare data and prioritize what seems real and, what's more trustworthy than a customer review?

That's why, even though your website's own reviews and testimonials can help, AI also checks third-party review platforms like G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, or Google. Rebecca says that Google reviews work amazingly, but in our experience with the brands we work with, results have been mixed. So, it's safer not to rely solely on Google reviews and to collect testimonials on other publicly available third-party sites as well.

We'd also like to point out that, as marketers working with European-based brands, we've noticed that AI seems heavily focused on the US, since it draws most of its data from US-based review platforms like the ones mentioned or Trustpilot, which isn't as widely used elsewhere. If your brand is based outside the US, it may sometimes be more challenging to get your reviews to appear prominently in AI results.

8. Use schema markup

Even though it was focused on SEO, we've already written a complete guide that you can read here, which provides all the information you need to implement it for AEO as well.

9. Implement llms.txt

The same goes for llms.txt. We published an exhaustive guide on implementing this file a couple of weeks ago, which you can read here.

10. Track your AI visibility

First and foremost, it is essential to be aware that 57% of brands that disappeared in one query resurfaced later, while only 30% remained consistently visible. As stated in the webinar, AI rankings are probabilistic, not fixed, and this piece of information is vital. Fluctuations are completely normal, and if it happens to you, it doesn't mean you're not doing a good job. Keep this in mind while tracking your AI visibility.

Knowing this, Rebecca recommends going "lo-fi." You can track AI prompt visibility manually or use tools to do it (she recommends tools later). She also suggests thinking like a customer to figure out the prompts and start working from there. For example, if you want to know which AEO tool is better, how would you ask ChatGPT for it? That's how you would find a prompt that users use.

If you use HubSpot, you can enable the "AI Referrers" tool to track ChatGPT and Perplexity as original sources.

What to do with all these information and tips?

Even though everything is changing very quickly, some information becomes outdated fast, and we don't really know exactly how AI works. Rebecca emphasizes that the suggested tips are basics and 100% worth implementing. That's why she recommends revisiting the following playbook every six months:

• Check your content and update all the outdated info you find.
• Prune irrelevant content without worrying about SEO as irrelevant content won't help you and you can always redirect.
• Review best practices again to find any issues and update accordingly.
• Test your AI visibility to see if the AEO strategy is working or not.

What tools does Orange Marketing recommend?

Regarding tools to both track and implement AI visibility actions, the Orange Marketing team has been using the following for different projects. Most of these are paid tools (and quite overpriced), as the market is still quite new and brands are taking advantage of that, but they work great.

• HubSpot AEO Grader. The first recommended tool, and probably one of the best ones, is HubSpot's own AEO tool. Besides being easy to use and providing valuable insights, it's FREE! The tool includes features such as analyzing your content for AI optimization, tracking performance, and suggesting actionable improvements, allowing you to boost your AI visibility without any extra cost.
• AI Trust Signals. This audit tool is not free, but you can get a first look at it at no cost. It's designed to help you analyze your website's AI trust, assessing how well your content and site structure align with best practices for AI visibility. By using this tool, you can identify areas for improvement and make data-driven adjustments to build credibility and increase your AI performance thanks to its suggestions. The monthly subscription goes from $10 to $25 monthly, which is not too much but can be if you already pay more AEO and SEO tools.
• Helpful Hero SuperSchema. We've talked a LOT about schema and how important it is for both SEO and AEO, so working on it with a tool (especially one that's partially free) is crucial. Helpful Hero SuperSchema can help you create, manage, and optimize your schema markup more efficiently. Its price varies from how many credits you need and can go from $19.99 to $499.99 for 1000 credits.
• Traditional SEO tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, etc. Well-known all-in-one SEO tools such as SEMrush or Ahrefs now include AEO features that let you track performance, find prompts, and analyze your existing content. These tools can be a good investment if you're already using them as by increasing your monthly subscription, you can gain access to AEO tools (TBH, a bit sketchy of them to charge extra for it). While they are somewhat generic, they work well.

Rebecca also mentions the FreshJuice tools (thanks, dear friend!) and especially shouts out our llms.txt generator, which we launched a couple of weeks ago, and that can help you easily create an llms.txt file for AI tools to crawl your site. We also offer a free SEO Analyzer and Metadata Checker to help you audit your pages. If you are interested in learning more about llms.txt, you can check our latest in-depth article about this topic, in which we will also teach you how to implement it.

Another mentioned and highly recommended tool by Orange Marketing team is ScrunchAI, which is quite expensive ($250/month), but according to their experience, it's definitely worth it.

Ours and Orange Marketing POV? Investing in these tools will depend on your budget. Since they can be pricey and somewhat generic, a smarter approach is to try to find affordable alternatives. However, if you have a larger budget, these tools are worth the investment because they provide a centralized platform where you can manage everything in one place, rather than juggling multiple tools for different tasks.

3 ways to ensure the success of your AI visibility strategy

Applying the tips above is not enough. As we mentioned earlier, AEO is still very new, and things change constantly and what works today may not work a few months from now. That's why it's crucial to regularly monitor your site's performance. To do that effectively and ensure the success of your AI visibility strategy, you should keep a close eye on three key metrics: visibility, conversions, and content performance.

1. Visibility metrics. This consists of checking your brand's mention rate, which can be tracked both with one of the tools recommended before or manually.
2. Conversion metrics. These metrics relate to visits and conversions, which you can track using your preferred analytics tool (such as GA4 or HubSpot's built-in analytics). However, Rebecca highlights an interesting point: sometimes these tools don't attribute conversions accurately. She recommends that if you use a form to collect leads, for example, you add a question asking users where they came from. Her team has seen cases where traffic is labeled as "direct," but when they ask users directly, they say they actually found them through ChatGPT. These insights are KEY!
3. Content performance metrics. Also in your preferred analytics tool, track factors like engagement (time on page, scroll depth) and click-through rates to see which content is driving visibility, attracting visitors, and supporting conversions. Over time, this insight helps you optimize your content strategy for AEO and ensures that the content you create continues to perform effectively.

What to work on every week?

Rebecca recommends a "Monday plan" to help you implement AEO gradually. You shouldn't try to do "everything, everywhere, all at once" as that approach will only overwhelm you, make tracking quite challenging, and ultimately prevent you from understanding what truly works.

To get started with AEO, you should:

1. Turn on AI Referrers tracking in HubSpot. The first thing to actually start working with AI visibility is having a way to track the improvements or deficiencies of your AEO strategy, so, first up, turn on AI referrers tracking in HubSpot by following the steps in the following tutorial:

   How to enable AI Referrers tracking in HubSpot

2. Add FAQ sections to your most-visited pages. One of the easiest and most effective ways to start implementing your AEO strategy is by incorporating topic-based prompts in a format that AI tools, like Contentwise, can easily recognize. The simplest way to do this is by adding an FAQ section to your top-performing pages and monitoring how they perform. We also recommend using specific FAQ Schema markup to make it even easier for AI to crawl the content and not format it as an accordion (Rebecca mentions that, in her opinion, it won't work as well). Make sure the questions you include are structured like actual AI prompts and that they directly answer the questions. And if you're unsure about which questions to include, you can always start with questions your customers have asked about a specific product to your customer success department. This is a great starting point, as these are prompts that customers are likely searching for and can be answered in a clear and direct way.

3. Add brand summary blocks to your top 10 pages. As mentioned in the third tip of the Orange Marketing Playbook, another type of content that is easy to implement and highly effective for AI visibility is adding brand or product summaries to your pages. Rebecca recommends starting with the top 10 performing pages on your site to test it out. Track their performance weekly to decide whether it makes sense to expand this approach to more pages.

As you can see, the key is to start improving AI visibility step by step with these ten basic tips, and you will start to see results in as little as 3 weeks, as Rebecca mentioned at the end of the webinar. This approach makes it easy to implement, track, and organize an effective strategy to enhance the AEO of your site. By taking gradual, consistent actions, you not only make your content more understandable for AI but also create a stronger, more structured foundation for long-term growth and improved user experience.

Disclaimer: At the end of the webinar, questions were asked to Rebecca about AI visibility. We haven't included a specific section for this in our summary, as we preferred to integrate her answers throughout the article. We hope you enjoyed it, and we encourage you to watch the full webinar on YouTube as it's 100% worth it!