Episode 1251: Becoming the Brand AI Loves to Recommend

If AI answer engines stopped reading your brand tomorrow, would anyone searching for your solution still find you? In this episode of Sharkpreneur, Seth Greene interviews Julian Lopez, Head of Research at AEO.co, who explains how brands can become the answer AI is most likely to recommend. Drawing on months of deep research with co-authors Perry Belcher and Kasim Aslam, Julian explains why branding, structure, and multimodal content now sit at the heart of discovery in an AI-driven world. He also outlines what small businesses can do over the next 6–12 months to become compliant with this new landscape, increase AI visibility, and prepare for shifts such as zero-click search and wearables. Key Takeaways: → How AEO builds on top of traditional SEO rather than replacing it. → Why branding is becoming the key differentiator in AI recommendations. → Why you shouldn’t chase schema hacks and listicle formats without first building a solid foundational structure. → How video, transcripts, and repurposed clips give AI the rich data it craves. → How profiles, mentions, and consistent brand signals across platforms help engines confirm you’re real and relevant. Julian Lopez is a 'recovering' graphic designer with over 8 years of branding experience who decided to get into marketing as a new challenge to sharpen the skills that can make or break a business. Julian has co-authored The AEO Blueprint, the first full-length book on Answer Engine Optimization, which guides business owners and entrepreneurs in future-proofing their brands and becoming the AI-recommended answer in their market. Connect With Julian: Website: http://aeo.co/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aeo.co X: https://x.com/AEOdotCO