Answer Engine Optimization

Query fan-out breaks one search into several related questions AI systems run at once, then builds an answer from whatever addresses each. Learn how to structure content so it can be cited across that full set, not just the original query.

When marketing leaders ask whether their technical SEO covers them for AI search, Michael's answer is mostly yes. Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode run on Google's regular index, and most of a standard technical audit carries over to the other platforms. This week he sorts technical work into what to keep, what to start, and the short list of things to skip, including a training-bot decision that removes your own description of your company from what the next model...

It’s time to expand our notion of formatting beyond readability and UX. If you want your brand’s content to be used and cited in AI search, shift formatting from an afterthought to become a part of your content strategy. This article is a tactical guide to formatting content for AI retrieval.

For most of the last decade, brand was the marketing line item hardest to defend, because there's no click to track when a buyer arrives already knowing who you are. AI search changes that math. An assistant reads your website, your listings, your reviews, and every page that mentions you in passing, hands the buyer one summary, and decides whether to name you at all. This week Michael connects brand entity work to the brand building marketers already know how...

AI overviews have increased zero-click searches, making visibility critical for brand awareness. Make sure you appear for important queries in your industry with an AI overview optimization strategy.

For 15 years, marketing measurement got more precise every year. AI search is moving the other way. An assistant's recommendation happens in a conversation you can't see, and no platform will tell you what was asked. So how do you measure and report on it? Listen to find out.

With searchers seeking recommendations on AI platforms, your bottom-of-the-funnel strategy has to account for increasing mentions in those answers as well as what they'll find when they finally visit your site.

Publishing informational content used to have a clear return: the post ranked, people clicked, and the traffic showed the work was paying off. Now that traffic to TOFU pages has fallen dramatically, is creating informational content still worthwhile? In this episode, Michael makes the case that the part of your content AI can't produce is the part that earns the citation.

The need for a full funnel search strategy doesn't go out the window because of AI search. In this episode, Michaels lays out the foundation for what an integrated AEO and SEO strategy should look like.

Google is rebuilding search around AI Mode, and in this episode, Michael Transon makes the case that it will become the default way people search. Listen as he walks through the evidence, from the rapid spread of AI Overviews to the rise of zero-click results, and explains why AI Mode's modest adoption numbers understate what's coming. Plus, get practical tips for how to update your strategy so you can stay visible on every Google surface.