AEO answer structure: question, answer, evidence
Pages that explicitly pose a question as an H2, answer it in the next sentence, and back the answer with evidence (data, screenshot, example, source) consistently earn more AI citations than pages without that structure.
Pages that explicitly pose a question as an H2, answer it in the next sentence, and back the answer with evidence (data, screenshot, example, source) consistently earn more AI citations than pages without that structure. AEO answer structure is the question/answer/evidence pattern repeated through the page. Each H2 is a question the target audience actually asks. The first sentence is the direct answer. The remaining paragraphs are the proof.
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What it is
AEO answer structure is the question/answer/evidence pattern repeated through the page. Each H2 is a question the target audience actually asks. The first sentence is the direct answer. The remaining paragraphs are the proof.
Why it matters
AI engines need three things to cite confidently: a matched question, a direct answer, and verifiable evidence. Pages that omit any of the three are passed over for ones that provide all three.
How to fix it
- Convert section headings to questions. "Pricing" → "How much does VectraSEO cost?". "Features" → "What does VectraSEO actually do?".
- Put the direct answer right under each H2. No preamble. The first sentence is the answer.
- Back every answer with evidence. Number, screenshot, example, source link. "We scored 89/100 on Lighthouse" beats "We are fast".
Authoritative sources
- Google Search Central documentation — Google
- Schema.org vocabulary — schema.org
- SEO Starter Guide — Google Search Central
- MDN — HTML meta and link elements — Mozilla MDN