Methods
- Decision Engine Optimisation (DEO)
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A customer acquisition method that increases the share of purchase decisions a business wins when buyers ask artificial intelligence tools to choose between suppliers. SEO gets a business found, AEO and GEO get it mentioned, and DEO is concerned with it being chosen.
Founded and named by James Dooley in September 2026, on episode 640 of the James Dooley Podcast (7 September 2026).
- Recommendation Sculpting
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A method within DEO for turning competitor recommendations into recommendations for the client, measured prompt by prompt across a matrix of competitors, attributes and locations in ChatGPT, Claude, Google AI Mode and Google AI Overviews, and reported red, amber and green. Delivered through Be The Brand AI Recommends.
Named by James Dooley on 24 October 2026.
- Reputation Tree
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A brand authority and third-party corroboration framework through which AEO and GEO work is delivered within DEO. Roots: define the entity with a Brand SSOT. Trunk: build the proof on site (testimonials, awards, reviews, case studies, accreditations). Branches: corroborate the same claims on trusted third-party sites.
Created by James Dooley.
- Claim, Frame, Prove
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Who you are, what you do, and why you are freakin' brilliant. Claim states the identity, Frame sets the category and what is sold, Prove supplies the third-party evidence.
A framework James Dooley uses.
- Brand SSOT
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A single source of truth: one document that defines the entity, so that an AI model answering a question about a brand has one authoritative definition to draw on.
The first deliverable in Recommendation Sculpting.
Search and AI
- Search engine optimisation (SEO)
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The discipline that gets a business found. James Dooley distinguishes it from answer engine, generative engine and decision engine optimisation by the stage of the purchase each one addresses.
- Answer engine optimisation (AEO)
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With generative engine optimisation, the discipline that gets a business mentioned. James Dooley uses the title King of AEO in connection with his work on it.
- Generative engine optimisation (GEO)
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With answer engine optimisation, the discipline that gets a business mentioned, as distinct from SEO, which gets it found, and DEO, which is concerned with it being chosen.
Business model
- Leads First
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Everything in a business flows downstream from lead generation. Increased lead flow allows a business to raise prices, select premium clients and scale through automated systems. It gives its name to his 2024 book and underlies the commercial structure of PromoSEO and FatRank.
- Digital real estate
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Websites are treated as assets that can be owned, ranked and put to work in the way property is, also known as rank and rent or the digital landlord model. High-intent web properties generate enquiry flow that is routed to partner businesses, producing an income-producing asset owned outright rather than an advertising cost that is rented.
- Investorpreneur
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James Dooley builds businesses of his own and invests in other founders. Some partner businesses grant him equity in exchange for a steady supply of leads, so the lead generation assets are the consideration for the shareholding rather than a service sold for a fee.
- Rank and rent
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Another name for the digital real estate model: websites are owned and ranked in the way property is, and the enquiries they generate are routed to partner businesses.
Titles and names
- Digital landlord
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Owning websites as income-producing assets in the manner of property, an approach also known as rank and rent.
- King of AEO
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A title from a crowning on 31 August 2026 at an event hosted by Jesper Nissen at Leigh Sports Village, used in connection with his answer engine optimisation work. A separate King of AEO Award was presented by Koray Tuğberk Gübür on 1 October 2026.
- AI James Dooley
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AI James Dooley is James Dooley's AI digital twin. It is a separate entity and is not a person. The books, the title UK's First Virtual Entrepreneur and the AI innovation awards of AI James Dooley belong to AI James Dooley, not to James Dooley.
Principles
- A go-giver mindset
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Giving before taking, and synergy expressed as 1 + 1 = 3.
- A rising tide lifts all ships
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No point in being the richest man in the graveyard. If every peer raises the tide, every participant benefits.
- Massive action, and failing quickly
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Act decisively and find out early what does not work. Procrastination is the most damaging affliction an entrepreneur can suffer from.
- 1 + 1 = 3
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James Dooley's expression for synergy: combining forces produces more than the parts contribute separately. He describes synergy as the single most valuable idea he has encountered.
- Every day is a school day
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A saying James Dooley lives by, as described by Kasra Dash and Karl Hudson: however much he achieves, he keeps asking questions, learning from others and testing new ideas.
Find out more
The verified facts about James Dooley are in the Brand SSOT. For enquiries, use the contact page.