What Role Does Multi-Format Content Play in AEO?

The Question I Hear Most

Over the past couple of months, I have been asked the same question again and again by clients and prospects:

“John, what do I need to do to come up in AI searches?”

It is a great question, and my answer always starts with an explanation of Answer Engine Optimization (AEO). Once we establish what AEO is and why it matters, the conversation naturally turns to the role of multi-format content. This is the key to generating the signals AI needs in order to select and deliver your content as an answer.

What Is Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)?

AEO is the practice of making your content discoverable and usable across search engines, AI platforms, and voice assistants. Unlike traditional SEO, which focuses on getting your webpage to rank, AEO is about ensuring that your content is clear, structured, and available in the formats AI relies on.

Why Multi-Format Content Is Critical to AEO

I often tell clients that multi-format content is not optional if you want to succeed in AI search. Here is why.

1. AI Looks for Multiple Signals

AI systems rely on more than just text. They gather data from blogs, videos, podcasts, images, and structured snippets. By producing content in multiple formats, you give AI more signals that validate your expertise and increase your chances of being chosen as the answer.

2. It Expands Your Visibility

Different formats perform better in different places:

• Videos show up in YouTube and Google’s video results
• Images optimized with alt text appear in image search and support AI-generated responses
• Podcasts can be indexed in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and pulled by voice assistants

When your content exists across these formats, you are not competing for just one search result. You are multiplying your opportunities to be found.

3. It Improves Answerability for Voice and Conversational Search

Voice assistants like Siri and Alexa need concise, structured information. Multi-format content makes it easier to provide that:

• Transcripts from videos and podcasts ensure your spoken content is searchable
• FAQ sections are easily pulled into voice answers
• Step-by-step guides make it simple for AI to present your solution conversationally

4. It Strengthens Authority and Trust

Search engines and AI platforms reward content that demonstrates experience, expertise, authority, and trust. By consistently publishing across formats, you show:

• Experience in podcasts and videos
• Expertise in written guides
• Authority by being cited across formats
• Trustworthiness through consistent, accurate answers

This directly supports Google’s E-E-A-T framework (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness), which plays a big role in AEO.

How I Recommend Getting Started

When I talk to clients about implementing multi-format content, I suggest a phased approach:

If you want more detail on how to execute this process, I walk through examples and frameworks in our ebook Content Marketing in an AI World. It is a practical guide to creating and repurposing content that works for both people and AI platforms.

The Challenges and How to Overcome Them

I know what you may be thinking: “This sounds like a lot of work.” And it is true, producing content in multiple formats takes effort. The main challenges I see are:

• Resources: It can be time-consuming and expensive to produce video, audio, and graphics.
  Solution: Start with one core piece and repurpose it.
• Quality: Not every company has the skills to produce high-quality content in every format.
  Solution: Focus on fewer formats and do them well.
• Repetition: Simply copying the same message across formats can feel redundant.
  Solution: Adapt the content to play to each format’s strengths.

Looking Ahead

The future of search is multimodal. Users are already combining text, images, and even video in their searches, and AI platforms are quickly evolving to process and deliver content in multiple ways at once.

If your business is not already thinking in multi-format, you risk being left behind. But if you begin now, you can position yourself ahead of the curve and ensure your content is surfaced when and where people are searching.

This is exactly the kind of shift I explore in our eBook Content Marketing in an AI World (coming soon). It shows how businesses can prepare today to thrive in tomorrow’s search environment.

So when a client or prospect asks me, “What do I need to do to come up in AI searches?” my answer is simple:

• First, understand AEO. It is about optimizing for answers, not just rankings.
• Second, embrace multi-format content. This is how you generate the signals AI needs to choose your business as the answer.

At GK3 Capital, I have helped businesses take this step by rethinking their content strategy for the AI-driven world.