Generative engine optimisation, usually shortened to GEO, is the practice of making your content more likely to be used and cited by AI systems such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Perplexity, Microsoft Copilot and Google’s AI Overviews. It builds on traditional SEO rather than replacing it.
When someone asks an AI assistant “what is the best CRM for a small agency?”, the answer is assembled from sources the system has learned from or retrieved in real time. GEO is about being one of those sources.
How do AI search engines choose sources?
Most AI answers that cite sources use retrieval: the system runs searches, reads the top pages and writes a summary. That means pages that already rank well in Google or Bing have a head start. On top of that, AI systems favour content that is:
- Clear and quotable, with direct answers to specific questions.
- Factual, with numbers, dates and named sources.
- From brands that are mentioned widely across the web.
- Fresh, for topics where things change quickly.
- Easy to parse, with clean HTML, headings, lists and tables.
GEO vs SEO: what is different?
The foundations are the same: crawlable pages, useful content and a trusted brand. The differences are in emphasis. Classic SEO aims for a click from a list of ten links. GEO aims for a mention or citation inside an answer, which may or may not produce a click. Brand mentions and being included in “best of” lists matter more, because AI systems summarise consensus.
Practical GEO tactics
Answer questions directly
Under each question heading, give a one- or two-sentence answer before you expand. This is the same format that wins featured snippets and passage-level citations.
Add original data
Statistics, survey results and benchmarks are among the most cited content types. If you publish the number, AI systems have to cite you to use it.
Build brand mentions
Get mentioned on industry sites, review platforms, comparison articles, podcasts and forums. Digital PR has become a GEO tactic as much as a link-building one.
Use structured data
Schema markup for organisations, products, authors, FAQs and reviews makes facts about your brand unambiguous.
Let AI crawlers in
Check that your robots.txt does not block crawlers such as OAI-SearchBot, PerplexityBot or Google-Extended if you want to appear in those products. Our robots.txt entry lists the main user agents.
Show expertise
Named authors, credentials, first-hand experience and citations to reputable sources all support E-E-A-T, which AI systems lean on when picking trustworthy sources.
Google AI Overviews and AI Mode
Google’s own AI features pull from its search index, so normal ranking work feeds them directly. Our entry on AI Overviews covers how they affect clicks and how to appear in them.
A related term you will see is answer engine optimisation (AEO), which focuses on direct answers in voice assistants, snippets and chatbots.
How to measure GEO
- Track referral traffic from chatgpt.com, perplexity.ai, gemini.google.com and copilot.microsoft.com in analytics.
- Run a fixed set of prompts monthly and record which brands are cited.
- Use an AI visibility tracking tool if budget allows.
- Watch branded search volume in Search Console as a proxy for AI-driven awareness.
Frequently asked questions
Is SEO dead because of AI?
No. AI answers depend on search indexes and web content. Strong SEO is the entry ticket to AI visibility.
Should I write content for AI or for people?
For people. Clear, well-structured, factual writing serves both.
Related terms
See SEO content writing, topical authority and the SEO encyclopedia.
Mr. SEO
Mr. SEO is the webmaster at SEO TT - SEO tips and tricks, a publication about all things SEO related.