GEO (generative engine optimisation) is the practice of getting your business mentioned, cited and recommended in answers written by AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google’s AI Overviews. It works by making sure the information those tools draw on is accurate, easy to quote and found on websites they trust, including your own.
Why Does GEO Matter?
Because more buying decisions now start with an AI answer. Someone asks ChatGPT for the best accountant nearby, or reads Google’s AI Overview before they look at a single website. The tool gives them a shortlist of names. If you are not on it, you never get the call.
It is the same pattern search has always followed. People went from the Yellow Pages to Google to social media, and each shift left some businesses behind. AI answers are the next one, and most businesses have not started on it yet.
How Do AI Tools Decide What to Cite?
AI tools don’t publish their rules, but research into their citations shows clear patterns:
- They quote clear answers. Studies of AI Overview and ChatGPT citations found that most cited passages come from the first third of a page, where the main answer usually sits.
- They lean on trusted sources. Well-known publications, review sites and pages that already rank well get cited more often.
- They repeat what is consistent. If your business details, services and reviews say the same thing everywhere, AI tools can describe you confidently.
- They need to be able to read your site. Pages blocked from crawlers, or hidden inside images and PDFs, are hard for AI tools to use.
The Four Parts of GEO
We break GEO work into four parts:
- Know where you stand. Run the questions your customers ask through the main AI tools and record whether you are mentioned, and who is mentioned instead.
- Make your content quotable. Put direct answers at the top of pages, use question-led headings and include specific facts, prices and comparisons.
- Be easy to understand. Add structured data, keep your name, address and services consistent across listings and make sure AI crawlers can reach your pages.
- Get mentioned in the right places. Reviews, press coverage, industry directories and partner sites all feed the sources AI tools trust.
How Is GEO Different From SEO?
SEO aims to rank your page so people click. GEO aims to get your brand named inside the answer, whether or not anyone clicks. They overlap heavily, because AI tools mostly draw on pages that already rank. We compare them side by side in SEO vs AI search.
What Has Changed in AI Search Recently?
AI answers have spread fast. Google’s AI Overviews now appear on a growing share of searches, including commercial ones, and Google’s AI Mode offers a full chat-style search experience. Google Search Console has also started reporting on AI performance, so it is getting easier to see how often your site appears in these answers.
How Do You Measure GEO?
Rankings won’t tell you whether AI tools recommend you. Instead, track:
- Mention rate: how often you are named for a set list of customer questions
- Citation rate: how often your website is linked as a source
- Share of answers: how often you appear compared with competitors
- AI referral traffic: visits from ChatGPT, Perplexity and others in Google Analytics, which our GA4 tracking guide covers
At SPCE Digital we use our own tracking tool to check these across the main AI platforms each month.
How Long Does GEO Take?
Quick fixes, like unblocking AI crawlers or rewriting key pages to answer questions directly, can be picked up within weeks. Building the mentions and reputation that get you recommended usually takes several months, much like SEO.
GEO FAQs
Is GEO the same as AEO or LLMO?
Mostly, yes. AEO (answer engine optimisation) and LLMO (large language model optimisation) describe the same goal: being the source AI tools use and recommend.
Do I need GEO if I already do SEO?
Good SEO covers a lot of it. GEO adds answer-first content, a focus on brand mentions and tracking what AI tools actually say about you.
Can GEO guarantee ChatGPT will recommend my business?
No. Nobody controls what AI tools say. GEO makes it far more likely by giving them accurate, well-referenced information about you in the places they look.
What is the first step?
Check what AI tools say now. Ask ChatGPT and Gemini the questions your customers would ask and note who they recommend.
Get Started With GEO
Our AI search optimisation service tracks your visibility across the main AI platforms and works on the gaps. Start with a free SEO audit, which includes an AI visibility check.
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