GEO courseModule 6 of 10: Content an AI Can UseLesson 6.1
Answer First, in Quotable Facts
Putting the direct answer in the first one or two sentences under a heading, with the key number or fact, then adding the detail, the exceptions and the source. Each answer should be short, specific, true, and still make sense if it's lifted out on its own.
Why it matters
If your fee is halfway down the page under "we pride ourselves on a personal service", AI quotes a competitor's figure or a national average instead.
The evidence
Evidence: Study
Microsoft guidance plus one observational ChatGPT study and one lab study. Good for readers either way; not a guarantee of citation.
Do this first
Rewrite the first two sentences of your fees page so they answer "how much do you charge?" with a real figure.
01What it is
If a friend asks “what time does the shop close?”, you say “five o’clock” first. You don’t start with the history of the shop.
Think of it like
The headline on a newspaper story. The reader, or the machine, decides in a second whether the page has what they need. The rest is for those who want more.
See it happen
Same fees page, same question. Ask the AI, then switch versions and ask again.
oakfieldhomes.co.uk/fees
Our Fees
Welcome to Oakfield Homes. We have served the Hallowford community since 1998 and pride ourselves on a personal, friendly service.
Every home is different, so our fees are competitive and tailored to each client.
Please contact us to discuss your requirements.
An AI assistant
How much does Oakfield Homes charge?
Press “Ask it”, then switch versions and ask again.
02Why it matters
To the people searching
People who get the answer quickly are more likely to ring you. Sellers and landlords compare agents on fees and process, and often decide from the first thing they read.
buyers
Want the figure, the next step or the rule without scrolling through a company history.
tenants
Want the rent, the deposit and what happens next, straight away.
sellers
Compare agents' fees and process, often from the first lines they read.
landlords
Want the management fee and what's included before anything else.
To Google, Bing and AI
Evidence: StudyMicrosoft's guidance (October 2025) says its systems judge pages section by section, and recommends descriptive question headings with direct, factual answers. An analysis by Kevin Indig (reported February 2026) found about 44% of ChatGPT's citations came from the first 30% of a page's text. That's ChatGPT only, and observational. Google says clear headings and paragraphs are enough and promises no boost for any format. The research paper that named GEO found adding statistics, quotes and sources raised visibility "up to 40%" in a lab test, and that keyword stuffing made things worse.
- ChatGPT citations taken from the first 30% of a page's text (Indig, 2026)
- 44%ChatGPT citations taken from the first 30% of a page's text (Indig, 2026)
- Visibility gain from adding stats, quotes and sources, in a lab test (GEO paper, 2024)
- Up to 40%Visibility gain from adding stats, quotes and sources, in a lab test (GEO paper, 2024)
An agent example
Before: "Welcome to Oakfield Homes. We have served the community since 1998 and pride ourselves on a personal service. Our fees are competitive and tailored to each client." After: "How much does Oakfield Homes charge to sell a home? Our fee is 1.2% of the sale price plus VAT (1.44% including VAT), and you only pay if your home sells. On a £300,000 sale that's £4,320 including VAT. It covers photography, floorplan, portal advertising, viewings and sales progression. Last checked: 11 October 2026." (Illustrative figures: use your own.)
03Your turn
Check yours, then fix it
- 1Open your fees page on your phone.
- 2Count the seconds until you see a fee figure. More than five, and the answer is buried.
- 3Repeat on your valuation, landlord and tenant pages.
- 1Write the one question each key page should answer, such as "What does it cost to let my property?"
- 2Read only the first two sentences under the heading. Do they answer it, with a number or a clear fact?
- 1Pick three sentences from a key page.
- 2Could each be copied into an answer and still be true and clear? Does it name the subject, or say "it" and "this"?
- 3For each legal or numerical claim, is there a link to the official source?
- 1Ask two or three assistants: "How much does an estate agent charge in [town]?" and "What does a letting agent charge a landlord in [town]?"
- 2Is your page cited? Does the answer use your figures?
- 3Log it (lesson 2.3).
- 1In Performance, filter queries containing "how much" or "cost".
- 2The pages getting those impressions are your answer-first candidates.
- 1Turn vague headings ("Our fees") into the question people ask ("How much does it cost to sell a house with us?").
- 2Put the answer in the first sentence: the number, the yes or no, the rule.
- 3Put conditions, exceptions and detail after it.
- 4"It depends" isn't an answer. "It depends on three things; here's the usual range" is.
- 1Replace vague words ("competitive", "many", "great") with numbers and dates you can stand behind.
- 2Name the subject in each paragraph's first sentence: "Our fully managed service…", not "It…".
- 3Link legal statements to the specific official page (gov.uk, the ASA, your redress scheme), and say when you checked it.
- 4State the same fee the same way everywhere. If one page says 12% and another 10%, AI may quote either.
- 1"Sarah Jones, Head of Lettings, 14 years in the town" is more usable than "our experts say".
- 2Add a "checked by" name and date to fees and rules pages. Never invent a quote or an expert.
Here is a page from my estate agency website. What question does it answer? Rewrite the opening so the first two sentences answer it directly. Keep every fact exactly as I've written it, and add nothing I haven't given you. [paste page]
Then: Add a "Last checked" date to fees and rules pages, and only change it when someone has really checked (lesson 6.6).
04Keep it up
Apply to every new page as you write it. Re-check your ten key pages every few months, because openings drift back to waffle.
That's lesson 6.1
Worked through it? Mark it done and we’ll keep track on this device.
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