5 Things to Know About Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)

GEO isn’t replacing SEO, but you need both in your strategy. Here’s how

Generative engine optimization (GEO) is one of the hottest topics in digital marketing. Traditional SEO focuses on keyword rankings and click-through rates. However, GEO focuses on whether AI assistants (think Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Claude) cite your content when answering user questions. According to researchers at Stanford, who introduced the concept of GEO in 2023, the future of organic conversions lies in optimizing content not just for search engines, but also for generative engines.

For digital and content marketing teams, this means building GEO strategies that earn citations, mentions, and brand memory within generative AI. Here are five things you need to know to stay ahead.

1. What is GEO?

Generative engine optimization, or GEO for short, is the practice of adapting your content so generative AI systems, like ChatGPT and Claude, surface it in their answers. Instead of competing for clicks on Google’s results pages, GEO places your content into an AI’s knowledge base. A 2023 Stanford study introduced the term GEO to show that structured and quotable content is cited more often in generative responses. If you’re already working with generative AI SEO, GEO is simply the next step forward.

2. How GEO differs from SEO

SEO and GEO share a common foundation, but they have different goals. SEO helps your page rank higher in search results, so you get more organic clicks and traffic. GEO’s goal is to position your content within the answers AI assistants provide and cite your brand as a trusted source.

Both GEO and SEO rely on quality content, keywords, technical optimization, and authority building, but they differ in how they measure and achieve results.

How SEO and GEO are similar

• Both SEO and GEO increase online visibility and authority. The ultimate goal is to get your brand in front of the right audience at the right time.
• SEO and GEO rely on keywords, structured data, and compelling content. Both on-page and off-page SEO, as well as keyword mapping, still matter, but so does presenting information in a way that both machines and humans can quickly interpret.
• Both GEO and SEO benefit from consistency, credibility, and adapting to algorithm updates. Whether it’s Google rolling out a core update or AI engines updating citation processes, marketers who adapt the quickest stay visible the longest.

How SEO and GEO are different

• SEO drives clicks from ranked links within a SERP, while GEO produces mentions and citations in generative answers. Instead of competing for a spot on page one, GEO surfaces your brand or content directly within an AI-generated response.
• SEO focuses on keywords, meta tags, and ranking signals; GEO examines how AI can cite, synthesize, and contextualize content.
• In SEO, you track your ranking position and the amount of traffic it generates. In GEO, you track how often AI assistants cite your content, mention your brand, or send referral traffic. That difference means you should reconsider the metrics you use to measure success.

For digital marketing, the key takeaway is not to pick one over the other. SEO builds the foundation, but GEO carries that foundation into AI knowledge bases. The best strategies now optimize for both AI and search engines, treating them as complementary rather than competing priorities.

3. Why GEO matters for marketers

Generative engine optimization isn’t a future trend; it’s already an integral part of how users interact with the internet. Millions now skip the results page and go straight to generative AI tools for answers and product research. ChatGPT is testing features that enable people to order food, book flights, and purchase items, which means GEO is no longer just about organic visibility. GEO is now about revenue.

Gartner predicts that traditional search will decline by 25% by 2026, with organic traffic expected to drop by half. A second study predicts that AI will surpass traditional search by 2028. At the same time, nearly 70% of consumers already trust AI search results over Google and Bing.

For both digital and content marketers, the implication is simple. If your content isn’t showing up in AI answers, you’ll lose a growing share of your audience. Here’s why:

• Reach: GEO’s reach extends beyond search engines and helps you appear where users are actually searching.
• User experience: When you optimize content for GEO, you give AI the building blocks to deliver relevant answers that it personalizes for each user.
• Competitive edge: Brands that embrace GEO early get a head start on building authority while competitors are still catching up.
• Authority: Citations in AI responses reinforce your reputation as a trusted source.
• Resilience: GEO future-proofs your strategy so your brand adapts as search continues to evolve.

4. How generative engines work

Generative engines create unique conversations for each user by analyzing large datasets and online sources (which is why SEO is still necessary). However, instead of showing ten blue links like Google, they combine context, facts, and patterns into a single, synthesized response.

Here’s the step-by-step process that reveals how generative engines work:

• Data gathering: Generative engines draw information from massive datasets across the web and other sources to build their knowledge base.
• Data cleaning: The raw data is standardized and filtered to ensure it’s ready for training a generative AI model.
• Model training: Machine learning models are trained to recognize patterns, interpret context, and understand how humans use language.
• Fine-tuning for tasks: The trained models are adjusted and refined so they perform better on specific types of queries or industries.
• Answer generation: When a user asks a question, the AI model draws on its training and knowledge to synthesize a coherent, conversational response, rather than a list of links.
• Evaluation and feedback: It reviews its own outputs for quality and relevance, and uses this feedback to improve future answers.
• Content prioritization: AI models highlight the content they deem most relevant, organized, and authoritative, which is where marketers can influence the results.

For marketers, the key takeaway is that AI assistants quote content that can be easily parsed, contextualized, and trusted. If your pages include structured data, concise definitions, and apparent authority signals, you increase your odds of being cited in those synthesized answers.

5. Current GEO best practices

GEO builds on familiar SEO tactics but requires additional steps for AI to include brands and content within generative engines. Academic research and industry studies support these best practices in GEO.

1. Send authority signals and structure your content for AI

• Stanford researchers found that authoritative, structured content is more likely to be cited in generative AI answers.
• Semrush reported that concise definitions, statistics, and quotable statements are more likely to appear in AI-generated responses.
• Following E-E-A-T principles (experience, expertise, authority, trust) signals credibility to both traditional search engines and AI assistants.
• Cover topics comprehensively to build topical authority rather than publishing isolated or single posts on a topic.

2. Regularly update your posts and pages

• Ahrefs’ research showed that AI assistants often favored newly published content when choosing which sources to cite.
• Regularly update high-value pages with new insights and highlight dates or “last modified” tags to reinforce freshness.

3. Build brand memory via outreach and diversifying content distribution

• Researchers studying generative engine optimization found that repeated mentions across high-quality sources increase the likelihood of being cited in AI answers.
• Build off-page relationships to request mentions and references on third-party sites, reviews, and media, which will help AI build a brand memory around your company.
• Create entity-focused content around people, places, products, or topics so AI can reliably associate your brand with those entities.

4. Optimize your copy for machine readability

• Write in short, scannable paragraphs that answer questions directly, since AI tends to favor content it can easily parse.
• Optimize for Google AI Overviews with question-based headings that reflect real user queries (e.g., “What is GEO?”).
• Avoid complex or ambiguous phrasing so generative engines can interpret and synthesize your content accurately. Addressing indexing issues, such as duplicate content, helps generative AI properly cite your content.

5. Optimize your posts and pages for AI answers

• Include FAQ sections that reflect conversational queries users ask in ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, and Perplexity.
• Provide step-by-step guides, lists, and other AI-friendly content formats.
• Publish text, images, and videos whenever possible, as generative engines are increasingly integrating multiple media types into their answers.

6. Monitor your performance

• Track AI citations and mentions using tools like Perplexity, Bing Copilot, or AI visibility reports via SEMRush or Ahrefs.
• Identify which of your pages get cited and strengthen their authority signals.
• Compare traditional SEO metrics (traffic, rankings) with AI visibility metrics (citations, mentions, referral clicks) to understand where to focus next.

7. Integrate both SEO and GEO into your content strategy

• A Search Engine Land analysis noted that GEO should be integrated with traditional SEO, since technical optimization is the foundation for GEO.
• Continue conducting holistic semantic and keyword research, including conversational queries and natural language prompts.

Make GEO part of your SEO strategy

Generative engine optimization is the next layer of search, and this article showed you how to adapt your content so AI assistants can cite and surface your brand. The most actionable step you can take today is to audit your existing content for AI visibility and start refining it for GEO best practices.

That’s where I can help. I’m a freelance SEO and content strategist who works directly with marketing teams to identify missed opportunities, optimize for AI citations, and future-proof content strategy planning without the overhead of an agency. If you’re ready to make sure your brand shows up in the answers people actually see, let’s talk. Reach out today for a free consultation.