AI has officially upended the search engine results page (SERP)—but enterprise teams still have a path to visibility. In this episode of SmartBug on Tap, host Tonia Speir sits down with SEO Specialist Mari Boni to break down the rise of Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), what it means for enterprise content teams, and how to pivot your strategy accordingly. From zero-click journeys to latent intent and synthetic queries, they unpack how generative AI is changing digital visibility—and how to structure content that earns trust and attention in AI-powered search experiences.
📚 What You’ll Learn
- What Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) really is—and how it differs from SEO
- Why AI is narrowing visibility and what that means for your brand
- How to build authority and semantic clarity into your content
- The evolving role of pillar pages, blog clusters, and formatting in HubSpot
- The limitations of current attribution models in an AI-first world
- Real-world examples of content transformations for enterprise brands
🔑 Key Highlights & Timestamps
[00:14] Intro: AI Broke the SERP
[01:12] Meet Mari Boni
[02:13] What is AEO and Why It Matters Now
[04:51] How Search Experiences Are Becoming Hyper-Personalized
[06:19] Why Enterprise Teams Can’t Rely on Legacy SEO Tactics
[08:38] Does Traditional SEO Still Have a Seat at the Table?
[11:23] Why Authority is the New Currency
[14:09] AEO vs SEO: A Rebrand or a Revolution?
[16:39] What Influences AI-Generated Visibility
[19:35] Does Timeliness and Historical Optimization Still Matter?
[21:46] Corporate Jargon vs Semantic Clarity
[24:54] Format, Structure and the Role of Industry Pages
[28:14] How to Structure Enterprise AEO in HubSpot
[29:52] AEO, Zero-Click Journeys and Attribution Shifts
[33:02] What to Stop Doing and Start Doing This Quarter
🔗 Want to Connect?
👉 Contact SmartBug: www.smartbugmedia.com/contact-us
👉 Contact Tonia: tspeir@smartbugmedia.com
👉 Contact Boni: mboni@smartbugmedia.com
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