INBOUND 2025 Takeaways – AEO is the new SEO?

If INBOUND 2025 gave marketers one wake-up call, it’s that SEO alone is no longer enough. Traffic from Google is declining as AI engines intercept more queries, summarising answers before anyone clicks. But here’s the twist: AI-driven traffic is converting better.

It’s no longer enough to rank high on a results page. Success on search has now expanded to being spoken, cited, trusted by AI engines such as ChatGPT. HubSpot predicts that AI search will surpass traditional organic search within the next five years. For many marketers this may sound like a seismic shift, but here’s the truth: at Fifth Ring, we’ve been preparing for the AI era since ChatGPT was launched in November 2022.

From SEO to AEO to GEO: what’s the difference?

• SEO (Search Engine Optimisation): the established practice of ensuring websites rank high on Google and other traditional search engines.
• AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation): the process of structuring and positioning content so it appears in AI-generated answers, summaries and overviews.
• GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation): the discipline of building authority and trust so your brand is directly cited as a source in generative AI outputs.

We don’t see SEO, AEO and GEO as competing disciplines. We see them as a unified ecosystem. Where AEO builds on existing practices we’ve already been rolling out for clients. Great content isn’t siloed: it should perform across Google rankings, AI overviews and generative citations simultaneously. That’s why our mantra is simple – one page, three engines.

Strategy, not just structure

Here’s the real takeaway: the big win isn’t at the page level, it’s at the content strategy level. Traditional SEO often focused on technical fixes, keyword placement and site performance. That’s still important, but in the age of AI search it’s not enough. What matters most is whether your content tells a consistent, credible story across every channel. When it does, it doesn’t just appear in search results – it becomes the answer AI engines trust, cite and share in decision-making spaces. That is what builds enduring brand authority.

At Fifth Ring, we’ve built a hybrid framework that combines SEO, AEO and GEO to create resilient, future-proof visibility:

• SEO ensures foundational discoverability
• AEO gets your content into AI answers and overviews
• GEO builds the authority to be cited directly by generative engines

HubSpot has introduced new tools and checklists to measure visibility in AI engines. Useful? Absolutely. But tools are only as powerful as the strategy behind them. We’ve been applying AEO principles long before the name existed – because timeless, high-value content always wins.

The real question isn’t whether to optimise for SEO, AEO or GEO. It’s whether your brand is creating content worthy of being championed by all three.

Unsure how to navigate the AI search game? Get in touch with our campaign team – or download our latest e-book below.