Use AI engine optimization

With AI engine optimization (AEO), you can view how well-optimized your content is for AI-powered search. See which topics drive leads, identify underperforming content, and find new ways to increase visibility with your own data.

Please note: Please avoid sharing any sensitive information in your enabled data inputs for AI features, including your prompts. Admins can configure generative AI features in account management settings. For information on how HubSpot AI uses your data to provide trustworthy AI, with you in control of your data, you can refer to our HubSpot AI Trust FAQs.

Before you get started

Before you begin working with this feature, make sure to fully understand what steps should be taken ahead of time, as well as the limitations of the feature and potential consequences of using it. 

Please note: the information in this article is confidential and intended for beta participants only. Please do not publicly share any information outlined here.

Understand requirements

• To view the AEO tools, a user must have Marketing Access permission.
• To make updates to the SEO tool, a user must have Edit access to Email, Blog, Landing Pages, or Website pages, or have access to Website settings.
• To apply recommendations when viewing actionable insights for a topic, a user must have Edit access to edit page content and Publish access to take those changes live.

Understand limitations & considerations

• A Content Hub Professional or Enterprise subscription is required. 
• The AEO tools support English content.

Set up search optimization

1. In your HubSpot account, navigate to Content > SEO.
2. On the AEO and SEO Tools page, click the AI Search tab.
3. In the AI Search Optimization section, click Ideal Customer Profile Data or Products and Services Data. You'll be directed to your AI settings in a new browser tab.
4. Configure the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and Products and Services on their respective tabs. Learn more about managing your AI data sources.
5. When finished, click Start Analysis on the AEO and SEO Tools page.

Please note: analysis can take up to 4 hours, but may take up to 12 hours depending on the data in your portal.

View AI Search analysis

Once the analysis is finished, you can view topics and opportunities. 

View topics

The Your Topics page displays the topics that you're covering and groups them by shared themes across your content. Each topic is given a performance score, showing its effectiveness in generating leads and its importance in AI-based searches.

1. In your HubSpot account, navigate to Content > SEO.
2. On the AEO and SEO Tools page, click the AI Search tab.
3. Click View your topics.
4. On the Your Topics page, the following sections will be displayed:
   • High AI Search Readiness: topics that are well-optimized for AI-powered search and likely to be prioritized by AI models. 
   • Medium AI Search Readiness: topics that have moderate AI search readiness.
   • Low AI Search Readiness: topics that have low AI search readiness.
5. To show hidden topics, click to select the Show hidden topics checkbox on the top right of the page.
6. To display the topics as a table view, click the tableViewIcon table view icon on the top right of the page.
7. To display more topics within a section, click See more.
8. To hide a topic in a section, click the verticalMenuIcon menu icon in the top right of the topic card and then click Hide.
9. To pin a topic in a section, click the verticalMenuIcon menu icon in the top right of the topic card and then click Pin.
10. To view more details and actionable insights on a topic, click Details on the topic card. You'll be directed to the Topic details page.
    • On the Topic details page, you can view the following:
      • Score breakdown: displays the total score of the metrics that make up the performance score. These metrics include Performance metrics, AI visibility, and Topic proximity score.
      • Topic summary: a summary of the topic. 
      • Associated pages: a list of pages associated with the topic and recommendations for each page.
    • To view the recommendations for an associated page, click the title of the page. 
    • In the right panel, view the Topic Proximity Score and Recommendations.
    • To apply the recommendations, click Apply Recommendations in the bottom left of the right panel. You'll be directed to the content editor to further customize the page.

Topic proximity

The topic proximity score evaluates each piece of content to prioritize what content to create or update. Two dimensions are analyzed:

• A buyer’s journey stage.
• A product alignment score (e.g., 1-5). 

Each piece of content is assigned as stage it best serves to an audience:

• Not aware: the audience isn’t aware of your business or a related need.
• Problem aware: the audience is contextualizing a problem or use case.
• Solution aware: the audience is comparing types of solutions.
• Provider aware: the audience is evaluating providers.
• Post-purchase: the audience has purchased.

Additionally, each piece of content receives a product-fit score based on how closely it maps to your products:

• Score 5: directly relates to a product or service.
• Score 4: relates to one or two features of a product or service.
• Score 3: applicable to a product or service within a specific context.
• Score 2: relevant but not tied to a feature or product
• Score 1: unrelated to products or services.

View opportunities

The Potential Topics page recommends content ideas that are aligned with your goals. These suggestions are selected based on market demand and AI relevance, helping you create content that drives conversions.

1. In your HubSpot account, navigate to Content > SEO.
2. On the AEO and SEO Tools page, click the AI Search tab.
3. Click View your opportunities.
4. On the Potential topics page, click View on a topic card.
5. On the Topics details page, view a description and justification for the topic. 
6. In the Recommended content to create section, view the recommended Content title, Content focus, and Product alignment score. 
7. To generate the recommended content, click Generate.