Our AEO Experiment: How We Turned AI Summaries into Conversational Bridges

We've been deep in the world of Answer Engine Optimization, running the CiteMET playbook across our best content. The initial results were solid - we saw users engaging with our AI Share Buttons, and we knew we were successfully seeding our content into AI platforms. But with our team's background in AI, we saw this as just the first step.

We understood that for a Large Language Model (LLM), a single, quick interaction is a whisper. A true signal of authority, one that builds lasting memory, comes from a deeper conversation. We saw an opportunity to transform that initial whisper into a meaningful dialogue.

Part 1: The Question We Were Eager to Explore

This led us to the central question that began driving our strategy sessions: How can we extend the conversation beyond the initial AI summary?

We knew that a great answer often sparks new questions. Our goal was to not only provide that first excellent response via the AI but also to anticipate and capture the user's follow-up curiosity. We wanted to create a journey that proved the deep value of our content by facilitating a longer, more helpful interaction.

Part 2: Our Starting Line

Our hypothesis was grounded in a core principle of how LLMs learn: conversational depth signals authority. The more back-and-forth a user has around a specific source, the stronger the AI's association becomes between that source and the topic.

Our expertise told us that a single, brilliant article, while valuable, is a monologue. We believed that if we could architect a natural "next step" for the user after they received their AI summary, we could create the multi-turn conversations that signal profound value to the model. We set out to intentionally design that path.

Part 3: Mapping the Territory

We didn't need a lengthy test for this; our approach was based on mapping a logical user journey.

A user finds our in-depth guide.

They use the AI Share Button to get a quick, accurate summary.

The summary efficiently answers their broad, top-level question.

This newfound clarity naturally leads to more specific, granular questions - the kind of details that don't belong in a high-level guide.

We realized the perfect destination for this follow-up curiosity was a dedicated page built to handle it. This led us to our strategy: we would create a companion FAQ page for each of our major content pieces.

Part 4: The Initial Signal

To validate our thinking, we quickly rolled this out on a few of our most important articles. We created detailed FAQ pages addressing the top 10-15 logical follow-up questions and linked to them prominently from the main content.

We began monitoring our referral traffic from AI platforms, and the pattern we hoped for emerged almost immediately. While clicks back to the original article were minimal (which we expected), we saw a new, distinct stream of referral traffic landing directly on the new FAQ pages.

This was the clear signal we were looking for. Users were getting their high-level summary from the AI and then choosing to continue their journey with us by exploring the deeper, more specific questions on our FAQ pages.

Part 5: Connecting the Dots

This early data confirmed our core insight. The AI summary wasn't the end of the conversation; it was the perfect beginning.

Here's the logic we followed: The AI summary efficiently provides the user with the "big picture," satisfying their initial query. This act of simplification clears the way for a new layer of curiosity to emerge. A user who now understands the fundamentals is perfectly primed to ask about nuances, edge cases, and specific applications.

We realized the FAQ page serves as a conversational bridge. It's the ideal next step for a user who has just been brought up to speed by the AI. It respects their journey by offering a direct path to the granular details they now want, turning a single interaction into a multi-step engagement with our brand.

Part 6: The Next Horizon

This understanding has added a powerful new layer to our CiteMET strategy. We now see the AI summary as the ideal entry point for a deeper, more valuable conversation. Moving forward, every major guide we publish will be launched with a companion FAQ page designed specifically to capture and continue that dialogue.

This successful experiment has already sparked our next question: How can we make this conversational bridge even more effective? We're now exploring ways to optimize the AI Share Button prompt itself. What if the prompt was, "Summarize this guide for me and then suggest three follow-up questions I should explore next." The journey to deeper engagement continues.