Ethan Smith
CEO at Graphite
CEO of Graphite and leading expert on SEO and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), helping companies navigate the transition from traditional search to AI-powered answer engines like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity.
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Key Themes
Episode Summary
Ethan Smith provides a comprehensive guide to Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) — the emerging discipline of getting your product to show up in AI-generated answers from ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Mode. He reveals that LLM traffic converts at dramatically higher rates than traditional search, explains why the strategy requires getting mentioned across many citations rather than ranking one link first, and shares tactical advice on how early-stage companies can win at AEO quickly through Reddit, YouTube, and blog presence.
Leadership Principles
- → AEO is fundamentally different from SEO — in LLMs you need to get mentioned across many citations, not just rank one blue link first
- → LLM traffic converts at dramatically higher rates than Google Search traffic — Webflow saw 6X conversion rate differences
- → Google's slice of the pie stays the same as the pie gets bigger — don't panic about search dying
Notable Quotes
"Answer Engine Optimization is how do I show up in LLMs as an answer?"
— Defining the new discipline of AEO
"Webflow saw a 6X conversion rate difference between LLM traffic and Google Search traffic."
— On the dramatically higher value of traffic from AI answer engines
"Google's slice of the pie stays the same. The pie gets bigger."
— Countering the narrative that Google Search is dying
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