Creating 'Answer Assets': A Guide to Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)

TL;DR

• The Goal: Create "Answer Assets"—comprehensive, self-contained pieces of content designed to be the definitive source for AI search engines.
• The Mindset: Shift from writing short "blog posts" to developing ultimate resources that completely answer a user's query and all related follow-up questions.
• The Anatomy: A perfect Answer Asset combines in-depth, expert-level coverage, unique original data, a clear scannable structure, direct Q&A formatting, and strong E-E-A-T signals.
• The Technicals: Ensure your content is machine-readable by using semantic HTML, implementing Article and FAQPage schema markup, and ensuring your site is easily crawlable.

In the new era of AI search, your content has one primary job: to be the definitive answer. AI models like ChatGPT and Google's AI Overviews are constantly scanning the web for the most reliable, comprehensive, and clearly structured information to synthesize into their responses. If your content doesn't fit the bill, it will be ignored.

This is where Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) comes in. GEO is the practice of creating content specifically designed to be the perfect source material for an AI. It’s not about writing for robots; it’s about creating self-contained, expert resources so clear and valuable that an AI has no choice but to recognize them as the best possible answer. We call these resources "Answer Assets."

While a broader SEVO (Search Everywhere Optimization) strategy is crucial for building the off-site trust that makes your content credible, GEO is the on-site foundation. It’s how you create the "ammunition" that your SEVO strategy will validate. This guide will provide a tactical, step-by-step framework for creating powerful Answer Assets.

The Mindset Shift: From Blog Post to Ultimate Resource

The first step in creating an Answer Asset is to stop thinking in terms of traditional "blog posts." A 700-word article that covers a few talking points is no longer sufficient. An Answer Asset is a comprehensive, self-contained resource that aims to exhaust a topic and answer every conceivable user question related to it.

Think of it this way: if a user reads your Answer Asset, they should have no need to go back to Google to ask follow-up questions. Your content should be the beginning and the end of their search journey for that specific topic.

The Anatomy of a Perfect Answer Asset

An effective Answer Asset is built on a foundation of deep expertise and logical structure. Here’s a summary of the core components:

Example Answer Asset Outline

To make these concepts tangible, here’s a simple outline for an Answer Asset.

Topic: "How to Choose a Baby Bottle."

• H1: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Perfect Baby Bottle
• H2: What Are the Different Types of Baby Bottles?
  • Bulleted list comparing Glass vs. Plastic vs. Silicone, with pros and cons for each.
• H2: How Do I Know Which Nipple Flow Rate to Use?
  • H3: Signs the Nipple Flow is Too Fast
  • H3: Signs the Nipple Flow is Too Slow
• H2: Our Research: Which Bottle Material Do Parents Prefer in 2025?
  • Section detailing original survey data with a unique chart.
• H2: FAQ: Your Baby Bottle Questions Answered
  • Q: Can you put glass baby bottles in the dishwasher? (This would be marked up with FAQPage schema).

Here are the core components in more detail:

1. Comprehensive, In-Depth Coverage

This is the most critical element. Your content must go beyond surface-level explanations and provide genuine, in-depth insights.

• Answer the Primary Question Thoroughly: Start by directly and comprehensively answering the core question or topic.
• Address Secondary and Tertiary Questions: Use tools like Google's "People Also Ask" and "Related searches" to identify all the follow-up questions users have. Integrate the answers to these questions directly into your content.
• Include Nuance and "Expert-Only" Details: What are the edge cases? What are the common mistakes people make? What are the details that only a true practitioner would know? Including this level of detail is a powerful signal of expertise that AI models are specifically designed to look for.

2. Unique Insights and Original Data

LLMs are trained on the existing internet. The most powerful way to become a definitive source is to create unique, primary-source information that the AI cannot find elsewhere. This positions your brand as an originator of knowledge, not just a synthesizer. Conduct industry surveys, publish proprietary research, and analyze your internal data to create unique statistics that only your brand can provide.

3. Logical and Scannable Structure

AI models, much like busy humans, appreciate well-organized information. A clear structure makes your content easier for them to parse, understand, and pull "chunks" from to use in their answers.

• Use a Clear Hierarchy of Headings: Use a single H1 for your main title, followed by a logical progression of H2s for main sections and H3s for sub-points. This creates a clear outline for the AI to follow.
• Leverage Bullet Points and Numbered Lists: Whenever you are listing items, steps, or key features, use bullet points or numbered lists. This format is highly "scannable" for AI and is often pulled directly into AI-generated summaries.
• Keep Paragraphs Short and Focused: Each paragraph should focus on a single idea. This makes it easier for the AI to extract specific, self-contained pieces of information.

4. Direct Question-and-Answer Formatting

One of the most effective ways to get your content featured in AI responses is to directly answer common questions.

• Integrate an FAQ Section: Conclude your Answer Asset with a dedicated FAQ section that explicitly asks and answers the most common questions related to your topic.
• Use Question-Based Headings: Structure some of your H2s or H3s as questions (e.g., "How Do You Measure the Success of a SEVO Strategy?"). This makes it incredibly easy for the AI to match a user's query to a specific section of your content.

5. Strong E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) Signals

Your content needs to prove its credibility. Integrate trust signals directly into your Answer Asset.

• Cite Authoritative Data and Sources: Link out to credible studies, reports, and industry leaders to back up your claims.
• Include Expert Quotes: Feature quotes from recognized experts (either from your own team or from external sources) to add another layer of authority.
• Show, Don't Just Tell: Use original images, screenshots, and data visualizations to demonstrate your first-hand experience with the topic.

Technical Optimization: Making Your Answer Asset Machine-Readable

Once you've created the content, a few technical steps are crucial for ensuring an AI can find and understand it correctly.

• Use Semantic HTML: Use HTML tags correctly. For example, use <ul> or <ol> for lists, not just dashes in a paragraph. Use <blockquote> for quotes. This semantic structure gives clear signals to the AI about the purpose of each piece of content.
• Implement Schema Markup: Schema is a vocabulary that you add to your website to give search engines explicit context. For an Answer Asset, two types are particularly important:
  • Article Schema: This identifies your content as an article and allows you to specify the author, publication date, and headline.
  • FAQPage Schema: If you've included an FAQ section, use this schema to mark up the questions and answers. This makes your content eligible to appear directly in search results as a rich snippet.
• Ensure Crawlability: Make sure your content is easily discoverable. It should be linked to from prominent pages on your site and included in your sitemap.

Conclusion: Building Your Foundation for AI Visibility

Creating a true Answer Asset is a significant investment of time and effort, but in the AI era, it is the most effective on-site strategy for achieving sustainable visibility. While your broader SEVO efforts build your reputation across the web, your GEO-optimized Answer Assets serve as the foundational proof of your expertise.

By moving away from churning out simple blog posts and instead focusing on building comprehensive, authoritative, and perfectly structured resources, you provide the exact kind of content that AI models are designed to find, trust, and amplify.