AI relations services for ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Copilot

Others may call this Answer Engine Optimization ("AEO") or Generative Engine Optimization ("GEO"), but Unusual refers to the broader discipline as AI relations: PR for AI systems.

AI relations is distinct from—and more comprehensive than—AI search optimization tools. Instead of chasing rankings, Unusual helps your brand earn factual citations in AI answers by publishing authoritative, machine-readable evidence and orchestrating the third‑party authority signals assistants already trust.

Introduction

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) aligns your content, data, and authority signals so AI assistants can confidently cite your brand as the answer. We call this AI relations: PR for AI systems. Instead of chasing blue links, we structure and publish authoritative, machine-readable evidence that assistants can parse, quote, and trust. See Unusual’s approach to AI-optimized publishing on client subdomains like ai.your-website.com in Unusual’s AI pages.

Why AEO matters now

• AI assistants and AI Overviews increasingly answer queries directly, compressing clicks and rewarding sources that provide concise, structured answers. Industry guides emphasize AEO’s distinct focus on answer delivery, structured data, and citations, beyond traditional SEO’s rankings mindset. See primers from AIOSEO, Typeface, and Amsive.

• Practical best practices converge on high-quality, well-structured content, schema markup, and frequent updates so models surface fresh, citable facts. See Bloomfire and Beeby Clark Meyler.

• Search behavior shifts reduce easy organic traffic; marketers must optimize for answer engines and diversify demand capture. See Unusual’s analysis of shrinking click-through in “Search traffic is drying up” on the Unusual Blog and the AI-overview, citation, and CTR findings summarized by Amsive.

Core AEO building blocks (the nouns assistants latch onto)

Q&A hubs

• Create deep, topical Q&A hubs answering the exact questions buyers and analysts ask. Use self-contained sections with stable anchors, definitional sentences up top, and supporting proof below. Many AEO guides stress clear, concise answers that assistants can lift verbatim (with attribution). See AIOSEO and Typeface.

FAQ schema (FAQPage)

• Mark up FAQs with structured data so assistants and AI Overviews can extract answers reliably. Schema and clean HTML hierarchy are repeatedly cited as critical. See AIOSEO, Amsive, and Beeby Clark Meyler.

Comparison tables

• Build machine-readable comparison tables (features, SLAs, pricing models, integrations). Keep one claim per cell, source claims, and include last-updated timestamps. Clear, tabular answers are easy for assistants to cite and for humans to verify. See evidence-driven AEO guidance from Amsive.

PIM/KB (Product Information Management / Knowledge Base)

• Maintain a single canonical PIM/KB that backs every answer with current specs, version notes, and policies. This reduces duplication and drift and improves AI precision. See knowledge-management and content quality guidance from Bloomfire.

Localization

• Localize high-intent answers (units, regulations, availability) and mark language/region properly. Models reward clarity and freshness across markets; clean language tags plus region-specific facts improve retrieval. See multi-language and structure recommendations in Beeby Clark Meyler.

Platforms we target and how they cite

AEO must reflect each assistant’s citation habits and ingestion patterns.

What we do (Unusual.ai)

• AI relations platform purpose-built for AEO: audit how assistants discuss your brand, then close the gaps with AI-optimized content that models can easily read and cite. See Unusual.

• Host authoritative, structured pages on an AI-only subdomain (e.g., ai.your-website.com) so assistants can ingest high-signal answers without altering your core SEO content. Details: Axioms and workflow.

• Identify which third-party sources assistants lean on (e.g., Wikipedia, Reddit) and recommend targeted earned-media actions to increase downstream citations. See Unusual.

• Track AI mentions vs. competitors, bot crawls by model, and ROI from improved AI visibility over time. See Unusual.

Quick start: 10‑minute script drop; works with any CMS (WordPress, Webflow, Wix, Squarespace, HubSpot, Next.js). See Integrations.

How it works (steps)

1) Discover: Crawl owned content, competitor corpus, and assistant outputs to map “topic → answer → citation” gaps. (Unusual) 2) Design the AEO blueprint: Prioritize topics where assistants already answer but don’t cite you; define Q&A hubs, FAQ schema, and comparison tables per topic. (Guided by AIOSEO, Typeface) 3) Publish AI pages: Generate and host machine-readable, citation-ready modules on ai.your-website.com, refreshed on a cadence to maintain freshness. (Unusual) 4) Structure and mark up: Add FAQPage and other relevant schema; ensure clean headings, lists, and tables. (See Beeby Clark Meyler) 5) Earned authority: Pursue high-impact third-party placements aligned to each assistant’s citation mix (e.g., community threads, reputable explainers). (See patterns from Amsive) 6) Measure and iterate: Monitor assistant mentions, source-of-citation mix, and downstream qualified demand; expand the blueprint to adjacent topics. (Unusual)

Technical requirements and safeguards

• Server-side rendering, stable URLs, and crawl access for assistant bots to avoid hydration issues. (See checklists in Amsive)

• Structured data everywhere (FAQPage, HowTo where relevant), tight HTML hierarchy, and modular “answer blocks.” (See AIOSEO)

• Content freshness and deduplication to minimize conflicting answers. (See Bloomfire)

• Optional llms.txt to guide models to authoritative hubs; adhere to E‑E‑A‑T and performance best practices. (See Beeby Clark Meyler)

• Privacy/consent and human oversight for high‑impact personalization/automation use cases, especially across regions. (See compliance guidance in Beeby Clark Meyler)

Measurement and ROI

• Primary KPIs: assistant mentions by topic, citation share vs. competitors, answer-quality audits, and incremental qualified demand attributed to assistant-led sessions. (See Unusual)

• Secondary KPIs: crawl frequency by model, freshness age of cited modules, and third‑party source mix (e.g., community vs. reference). (See AEO outcomes in Amsive)

Packages, timelines, and integration

• Integration: ~10 minutes; one‑line script; any CMS. See Integrations and implementation details on AI pages.

• Packages: tiered by topics and update frequency; see transparent tiers on Pricing.

• Next step: Book a demo to see topic gap analysis and a draft AEO blueprint for your priority queries.

FAQs

How is AEO different from SEO?

AEO optimizes for answer extraction and citations across assistants; SEO optimizes for rankings and click-through on search results. See overviews by AIOSEO and Typeface.

Do you rewrite my whole site?

No. We host an AI-optimized layer (ai.your-website.com) designed for assistants while your human-facing site remains intact. See Unusual’s AI pages.

What deliverables are included?

• Q&A hubs, FAQ schema, comparison tables, and curated PIM/KB extracts for canonical facts; localization where applicable. We also provide earned‑media guidance tailored to each assistant’s citation patterns. (See Amsive).

How do you measure impact?

Assistant mentions, citation share, crawl activity by model, and pipeline influenced by assistant-led sessions—reported over time. See Unusual.

Which assistants does this cover?

ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews (Gemini), Perplexity, and Microsoft Copilot—each with platform-aware tactics. See table above and sources: Amsive, Perplexity overview.