Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO): The new SEO?

The world of traditional SEO is changing – and radically so. Whereas search engines such as Google used to display ten blue links, direct, AI-generated answers are now taking centre stage. Any brand or content provider wishing to remain visible must understand how these new systems work – and how to optimise content for them.

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) describes precisely this new discipline: it focuses on the question of how content must be prepared for generative search systems such as Google SGE, ChatGPT Search or Perplexity.ai in order to be cited, referenced or displayed directly by them.

Unlike traditional SEO extensions, GEO represents a genuine shift in perspective.

Anyone who optimises solely for traditional SERPs today runs the risk of no longer appearing in AI-generated answers tomorrow.

Anyone who understands how AI processes content right now will gain a real edge.

Key points at a glance

• GEO stands for Generative Engine Optimisation – the optimisation of content for AI systems such as Google SGE, Perplexity or ChatGPT Browsing.
  
• Search isn’t dying, but it is evolving: from links to answers. These days, users increasingly expect direct answers rather than having to click on ten blue links.
  
• Being quoted is the new top ranking. GEO aims to gain visibility in AI-generated responses – not just in traditional SERPs.
  
• GEO is expanding search engine optimisation to include three key factors: citability, semantic structure and machine-based trustworthiness.
  
• Three types of engine require different strategies: training-based, search-based and hybrid generative engines.
  
• Visibility is only achieved with machine-readable content: clear headings, concise answers, structured data (Schema.org).
  
• Tools such as Perplexity, ChatGPT and Surfer SEO can help with GEO testing: this is how you can check whether content is already being cited – or not yet.
  
• Early GEO optimisation is a competitive advantage. Those who tailor their content specifically for generative systems now will secure a wide reach without being dependent on algorithms.

What is Generative Engine Optimisation?

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO for short) is the practice of creating and structuring content in such a way that it features in the results returned by generative search systems – ideally as a cited source or recommended reference.

There are three key questions here:

• How do AI search systems access information?
  
• Which content is prioritised or cited?
  
• How can brands influence these processes?
  

Unlike traditional SEO, which focuses primarily on ranking in organic search results, GEO aims to appear within the generated answer itself – for example, in the form of an embedded snippet, a source reference or even as a directly quoted text block.

Examples of generative engines:

• Google SGE: Integrates AI-generated answers directly into the SERP.
  
• Perplexity.ai: Combines live web search with generative answers and sources.
  
• ChatGPT (with browsing): Provides search results in its own words, complete with links.

GEO stands for bringing relevant, structured, citable content to the digital forefront of AI search.

Why generative engines are revolutionising search behaviour

We are currently witnessing not only a technological transformation, but also a shift in user expectations. Rather than carrying out their own research, many users now expect a precise answer straight away – ideally contextualised, concise and action-oriented. This is exactly what generative engines deliver.

What’s changing:

• Away from the click, towards the answer:
  Users interact less with individual pages – they consume summaries.
  
• New visibility formats:
  Being quoted is the new ‘number one’. Anyone who doesn’t appear in the answer will be overlooked.
  
• Information selection using AI:
  Relevance is no longer determined solely by keywords or backlinks – generative search engines independently select which content appears in their results.

Why this is relevant to businesses:

For businesses, the importance of online visibility is undergoing a fundamental shift. Whilst a high ranking in Google’s search results used to be the be-all and end-all, it is now increasingly the presence in AI-generated answers that determines trust, brand perception and, ultimately, conversion.

When users ask a question and the answer cites their own brand name or a product page as the source, this immediately instils trust – without the need for a traditional click.

This development has far-reaching consequences for content strategies. In future, brand authority will no longer be measured solely by how highly a website ranks on Google, but by whether it is cited in the response from a system such as ChatGPT, Perplexity or Google SGE. This is precisely what calls for a rethink in the way content is designed.

Nowadays, product pages, advice articles and service sections must not only be informative and persuasive for human readers – they must also be structured in such a way that machines can clearly understand, categorise and, where necessary, cite the content. GEO therefore means not just publishing content, but strategically designing it in such a way that it is comprehensible, concise and trustworthy for both people and machines alike.

What types of generative engines are there?

Type	Access to Live Web	Source visible	Current events	Ideal for GEO?
Training-based	❌ No	❌ No	Outdated	❌ Not very much
Search-based	✅ Yes	✅ Yes	High	✅ Very good
Hybrid	🔁Partially	🔁Sometimes	Depending on the situation	✅ Complex questions

The table provides a concise summary of the different ways in which generative engines are structured – and why this is crucial for GEO. This is because, depending on whether an engine accesses live web data or relies solely on trained content, the scope for gaining visibility with up-to-date content also changes.

Training-based models, such as GPT-4 without browsing, operate with a fixed body of knowledge. Visibility is only achieved here if content was already prominently available online prior to training. This means that early publication and subject-matter authority count for more here than technical optimisation carried out retrospectively.

Search-based engines such as Perplexity.ai operate differently: they access the web in real time, evaluate content based on structure, relevance and trustworthiness – and actively cite sources. This is where GEO comes into its own: anyone who provides structured, precise content with a high EEAT score can gain immediate visibility – even without significant brand authority.

Hybrid models such as Google SGE combine both – internal model knowledge and up-to-date web research. They are particularly demanding, as they require not only traditional SEO signals but also semantic and structural clarity. Anyone wishing to succeed in this environment must deliver on two fronts: technically sound content that is understandable to both crawlers and AI parsers.

The differences between these models are therefore not merely a technical quirk – they determine where and how your content still plays a role today. GEO means knowing which engine processes which content and how – and tailoring your content specifically to that.

Why GEO is becoming increasingly relevant

Organic visibility on the internet is changing dramatically. Whilst traditional SEO measures have long been sufficient to achieve good rankings, generative systems are increasingly coming to the fore.

Three developments make GEO indispensable:

• Google SGE is set to become the new standard.
  Google integrates AI-generated answers directly above the organic results. Even the number one result slips below the visibility line.
  
• AI is becoming the first point of contact.
  More and more users are asking their questions directly to chatbots such as ChatGPT or Perplexity – and relying on their answers without visiting any other websites.
  
• The AI quote competition has begun.
  Anyone who features in the answers provided by GPT, Perplexity or Gemini attracts attention, clicks and trust – without having to rely on traditional rankings.

GEO is not optional. It is a response to a changing information ecosystem.

Content that is not AI-readable and citable will simply no longer be found – neither by users nor by machines.

A report in the Wall Street Journal (May 2025) provides strong empirical evidence of just how dramatically search behaviour is changing as a result of generative search engines:

Major players such as Intuit, Mailchimp, Ziff Davis and Red Ventures are already seeing a measurable decline in organic website traffic – not because their content is ranking lower, but because more and more users are content with AI-generated answers without clicking through to the linked pages.

Good content gets read – but people no longer visit the site.

Is GEO the future of search engine optimisation?

GEO is not a substitute for SEO, but rather its logical next step. Anyone who masters GEO also masters SEO – but at a whole new level.

GEO is expanding SEO to include three key components:

• From search intent to answer intent:
  GEO no longer thinks solely in terms of keywords, but in terms of answers, lines of reasoning and contexts that generative engines can process.
  
• From click optimisation to citability:
  It is no longer enough simply to optimise content for users – it must be interpretable by machines and formulated with precision.
  
• From positioning to integration:
  Traditional SEO asks: “How do I get to number 1?”
  GEO asks: “How am I included as a source in the AI response?”
  

This means that SEO remains important – but it needs to evolve.

GEO is not the future instead of SEO, but the future of SEO.

GEO vs. SEO

To highlight the differences, it is worth making a direct comparison:

aspect	Traditional SEO	Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)
Objective	Good ranking in organic search results	Visibility in AI-generated responses
Search system	Google, Bing (classic)	Google SGE, Perplexity, ChatGPT, Gemini
Ranking factor	Keywords, backlinks, structure	Semantics, citability, reliability
KPI	Ranking, click-through rate, traffic	Presence in replies, mentions and visibility without a click
Content Focus	Keyword coverage & metadata	Contextual understanding & clarity for AI systems

Are SEO and GEO still worth it – particularly for SMEs?

The short answer: Yes – but with new rules.

Traditional SEO measures such as technical foundations, local optimisation and keyword strategy remain essential. However, the ROI is shifting – clicks are no longer the only metric. In a world where generative AI systems provide direct answers, there is a risk that much content will remain visible but no longer be visited.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular face particular challenges in this regard:

• They generally have less brand authority, which reduces the likelihood of them being cited in AI responses.
• They often lack the resources for large-scale GEO content production.
• The algorithms favour well-known sources – which makes it harder to get started.

Nevertheless, GEO can also be worthwhile for SMEs – provided you take a strategic approach.

• Anyone who focuses specifically on niche topics has a realistic chance of being cited as a specialist.
• Structured, concise content is often enough to achieve search engine visibility – even without 100 blog posts.
• Local optimisation and trust signals (e.g. reviews, clear contact details, structured data) can help your content appear in SGE responses or in local search results.

For SMEs, this means:

• Less bulk, more style.
• Fewer clicks, more trust.
• Less ‘Top 1’, more ‘Top of Mind’ in AI responses.

What does this mean for those responsible for content?

• Keyword research remains important – but only as a starting point.
• Content must not only match search intent, but also provide precise, quotable answers.
• Technical optimisation must ensure that content is readable by AI (e.g. clear structure, clean markup, logical organisation).
• GEO is not a ‘bonus’, but a necessity if you want to remain visible in the future – even with smaller budgets.

Only those who consider both aspects together will remain visible in the long term – in search engines and generative systems.

In its ‘AI Visibility Pyramid’ framework, the content agency Animalz describes how content can be systematically prepared across three levels to ensure it is visible in generative search systems such as SGE or Perplexity:

1. Indexability (basic SEO principles)
   
2. AI readability (structured data, clear paragraphs)
   
3. Citation potential (quality of response, concise phrasing)

How your content appears in generative engines

In traditional search engines, the algorithm determines which pages are displayed and in what order. With generative search engines, the process works differently: content is not merely found – it is processed, weighted and integrated directly into the results.

But how exactly does your content end up in an AI-generated response?

Visibility is achieved in three steps:

1. Availability:
   Your content must be technically accessible to the search engine – via publicly crawlable URLs or APIs.
   
2. Relevance & Structure:
   Content must be structured in such a way that the engine recognises that this paragraph provides a clear, quotable answer.
   
3. Trustworthiness:
   The source must appear credible – from both a human and a machine’s perspective.
   

The weighting of these factors varies depending on the search engine. Perplexity, for example, displays sources directly below the answer. Google SGE processes content in the background, but provides targeted links to selected reference pages.

GEO-BENCH: Visibility through structure

In the GEO-BENCH study, published in 2024 by tech analyst Ethan Brooks, over 10,000 prompts were analysed in generative search systems such as Perplexity and ChatGPT.

The result:

Content with a structured outline, concise answers and semantic depth was cited up to 40 per cent more frequently in AI responses than shallow or purely keyword-driven texts.

Understanding AI Citation Logic

Generative engines do not cite content at random. Behind every mention lies a complex assessment based on semantic relevance, technical structure and authority.

What makes content citable by AI?

• Precise answers:
  Paragraphs that provide a clear, unambiguous answer to a specific question are preferred.
  
• A logically structured text:
  H2 and H3 headings, numbered lists, tables and FAQs help the AI to recognise connections.
  
• A neutral, objective tone:
  Marketing spiel is ignored. What counts is the information value, not the intention to sell.
  
• Semantic clarity:
  Terms must be unambiguous. Ambiguities, clichés or ironic phrasing mean that the content is not ‘understood’.

Tools such as Perplexity.ai or ChatGPT with browsing mode specifically access such content and link to it explicitly. The difference compared to a traditional search is that there is no chance of a click without a citation.

Building up a network of reliable sources

Trust is a key selection criterion for generative engines – particularly when it comes to deciding whom to cite. In doing so, the systems are guided by signals that convey trust in terms of both technical aspects and content.

Key indicators of trust for GEO:

• Domain Authority:
  High-quality backlinks, thematic relevance and consistency in subject matter increase your chances of being regarded as an authority.
  
• Structured data:
  For example, use the Article, FAQ, HowTo and Product schemas. This helps the search engine to interpret your content correctly.
  
• Current status:
  Out-of-date content falls by the wayside – even if the technical structure is sound. Make sure to update it regularly.
  
• Transparency & clarity:
  Provide links to primary sources, name authors and demonstrate your expertise. This conveys trustworthiness.
  
• Reputation on third-party platforms:
  Mentions on LinkedIn, Wikipedia, GitHub or Trusted Shops indirectly increase your chances of being ‘noticed’ by AI systems as well.
  

If you want to be recognised as a source, you need to demonstrate to both users and search engines that this content is accurate, clear and reliable.

Strategies for Successful Generative Engine Optimisation

To be visible on traditional search engines, we have learnt that it’s all about good content, keywords and backlinks. But in the world of generative engines, the rules of the game have changed. Content must not only be found, but also understood, analysed and incorporated directly into AI responses.

That is the role of Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO). And GEO only works if you optimise content in three dimensions:

1. Content and semantic optimisation

Entity Structure and Subject Authority

Entities are ‘fixed terms’ with a clear meaning – for example, Shopify, SEO, iPhone 15 or Google Analytics. They help the AI understand what your text is about.

If you’re writing about ‘Email marketing for Shopify shops’, you should make it clear that:

• What is Shopify?
  
• What is email marketing?
  
• What tools or strategies are involved?
  

You build authority on a topic not just by writing a single article on it, but by creating a whole range of content that explores the topic from different angles. For example:

• “What is email marketing?” (The basics)
  
• “The best email marketing tools for Shopify” (comparison)
  
• “How to set up automated campaigns in Klaviyo” (How-to)
  

This tells the AI: This website knows its stuff – it’s trustworthy.

This increases the likelihood that your content will be mentioned or even quoted in AI-generated responses.

Semantic text structure rather than keyword stuffing

In the past, people often crammed texts full of the same keyword (‘keyword stuffing’) in order to rank higher. These days, that tends to have the opposite effect – and it doesn’t work with AI anyway.

Instead, you need a clear, logical structure so that the AI can ‘understand’ your content:

• Use clear headings (H2, H3), e.g.:
  👉 What is email marketing?
  👉 How does automation work with Klaviyo?
  
• Answer each question immediately after the heading – ideally in the first two sentences.
  
• Use lists, tables and bullet points – they help machines (and people) to scan and understand content.

Objective:
Don’t just ramble on; phrase it in such a way that an AI can construct a response directly from your text.

2. Technical optimisation

Even the best text is of no use if machines cannot read or analyse it. GEO requires your content to be technically sound and readable by AI systems.

Structured data (Schema.org)

Structured data is additional information that you embed in your website’s code. It helps search engines and AI systems understand what kind of content they are looking at.

Examples:

• Article: For editorial content
  
• FAQ Page: Frequently Asked Questions & Answers
  
• Product: For product detail pages
  
• HowTo: For step-by-step guides
  

You can incorporate these mark-ups using JSON-LD code. Tools such as the Schema Markup Generator from technicalseo.com can help you with this.

This is particularly important for GEO because many generative engines (such as Google SGE or Bing) actively use these mark-ups to structure or cite content.

Data structure & machine readability

As well as structured data, the structure of your content also plays a role:

• Short paragraphs (3–5 lines)
  
• Headings that answer questions
  
• Well-formatted HTML code (not a jumble of text copied from an editor)
  

Avoid technical barriers such as:

• Login screens
  
• Content in JavaScript only, with no HTML fallback
  
• Content in PDFs rather than as HTML text
  

The easier it is to access and read your content from a technical point of view, the better it is for GEO.

Content formats for AI snapshots / Source citations

Generative engines often create what are known as AI snapshots – that is, short, concise answers to a user’s question. If your content is clear and helpful, it may appear there.

What helps:

• Definitions in a single sentence
  
• Bullet-point summaries
  
• Tables showing advantages and disadvantages
  
• Direct replies under question headings
  

Aim: Your website won’t just be linked to – it will appear directly in the answer.

3. Strategic content integration

Even the best content needs a framework: good planning, clear objectives and a logical place within your website’s structure. This is all the more true for GEO.

GEO-optimised editorial planning

Instead of simply choosing topics based on gut feeling, you should consider:

• What sort of questions might users ask a generative search engine?
  
• What content is currently missing from AI responses (content gaps)?
  
• Which pieces of content are frequently cited – and how can I improve them?
  

Create a topic map (content cluster) and prioritise content that is suitable for AI citation – in other words, informative, clear, up-to-date and helpful.

Evergreen vs. AI-generated content

• Evergreen content: Timeless guides (e.g. What is a conversion funnel?) – ideal for long-term visibility.
  
• The latest in AI: new developments, tools and trends – essential for keeping up to date with AI systems.
  

Update your evergreen content regularly – outdated articles are cited less often by AI systems.

Structure of GEO pillar page content (pillar pages)

A pillar page is a comprehensive main article on a key topic. It serves as an anchor point for other, smaller sub-pages.

Example:

• Pillar Page: Email marketing for online shops
  
• Subpages: Setting up a welcome series, Klaviyo vs Mailchimp, Abandoned Cart Automation
  

This helps:

• To make the AI realise that you’ve really got to grips with the subject matter
  
• To create internal links and strengthen your authority on specific topics
  
• Help users navigate your knowledge more easily
  

GEO needs depth – and you achieve that through well-structured, interconnected content.

Tools and methods for GEO optimisation

GEO isn’t just a concept – it can also be put into practice. You don’t need any special software to do this; what you need, above all, is a good understanding of three things:

• How generative search systems find and evaluate content
  
• How to test your content in a targeted way and make it visible
  
• Which tools can help you with analysis, structure and optimisation
  

Below, I’ll show you some specific tools and methods you can use to check and optimise your content for GEO compatibility.

Testing GEO visibility: prompts and analyses with ChatGPT and Perplexity

Before you spend hours fine-tuning technical details, you should be able to answer one simple question:

Is my content even mentioned or used in AI responses?

Two tools that can help you with your exam are ChatGPT with its browsing function and Perplexity.ai. Both access the web and show you which content they consider relevant.

Step-by-step: Testing visibility with Perplexity.ai

1. Go to perplexity.ai
   
2. Enter a typical question that your content is intended to answer,
   Example: “What is the difference between SEO and GEO?”
   
3. Take a look at the answer – and note:
   
   • Which domains are cited?
     
   • Is your website on the list?
     
   • Which phrases were included?
     

➡ If you don’t turn up, think about this:

• Is your answer clear and concise?
  
• Is it machine-readable?
  
• Does your text have a heading that matches the search query?
  

Try it out with ChatGPT (Plus subscription, GPT-4 with browsing):

1. Try using this prompt, for example:
   
   “Look up a definition of ‘Generative Engine Optimisation’ and state the source.”
   
2. Take note of which websites are mentioned or cited.
   
3. Alternatively:
   
   “Summarise in three sentences how to optimise content for generative search engines – using up-to-date sources.”
   

➡ If ChatGPT recognises or cites your site, that’s a strong signal.

How to use Neuronwriter & Surfer SEO specifically for Generative Engine Optimisation

Well-known content tools such as Neuronwriter and Surfer SEO were originally developed for traditional SEO – but they can also be used very effectively for GEO, provided you know what to look out for.

Objective: To plan and optimise GEO-relevant content

Both tools help you create semantically rich content. Here’s how to use them specifically for GEO:

1. Neuronwriter

• Create a new project for the keyword of your choice.
  
• Take a look at the ‘Top 10 SERP Content’ analysis: What questions are your competitors answering?
  
• Make use of the ‘Content Terms’: these show you which terms you need to be recognised as thematically relevant (entities!).
  
• Use the AI feature to generate FAQ answers using the relevant terms
• The text should not have been written entirely by AI. Check the texts and improve them!

💡 GEO tip: Write your paragraphs so that they are concise, precise and quotable.

2. Surfer SEO

• Start by creating a content editor for your keyword.
  
• Pay particular attention to:
  
  • Content Score: Target >70
    
  • Topics & Questions: These show you potential ‘AI citation points’
    
• Incorporate structured data and sections (e.g. lists, tables) into your text in a targeted manner.
  

💡 GEO tip: Write section headings as questions so that AI systems can pick them up more easily.

Success stories & benchmarks from GEO practice

The field of ‘Generative Engine Optimisation’ is still in its infancy – many companies are only just getting started. As an agency, we too have not yet carried out any specific GEO projects, but have primarily helped our clients achieve visibility through traditional, yet structured, SEO.

Yet it is precisely this experience that shows that the overlaps between SEO and GEO are already measurable today.

Example: Soulspice – SEO with a GEO effect

For our client Soulspice – an organic spice manufacturer specialising in fair trade products – we have spent several months implementing a structured SEO strategy:

• Focus on semantically rich, thematically well-structured category descriptions
  
• Creating a content cluster on ‘seasoning food properly’
  
• Structured data (including FAQs, article schema) & short, definitional paragraphs

Although GEO was not explicitly the target of the measure, the site now features in Perplexity prompts for questions such as:

• “Where can I buy organic, Fair Trade spices online?”
• “How can I season lamb?”

cited by Perplexity as the source.

This shows that SEO optimisation characterised by structure, clarity and thematic depth is already being rewarded by generative search engines – even without a targeted GEO strategy.

Next step: Making GEO measurable

We are currently at the start of a new phase:
Over the coming months, we will be deliberately testing which measures actually lead to citations in generative search engines.
These include:

• Prompts & Visibility Monitoring (ChatGPT, Perplexity, SGE)
• A/B articles: with vs. without GEO structure
• Integration of AI-friendly text formats (tables, snapshots, direct replies)

We will document the results on an ongoing basis – and update this article as soon as genuine benchmarks become available.

Conclusion: GEO isn’t just a ‘nice-to-have’ – it’s the next stage in the evolution of SEO

Organic search is undergoing a major transformation. Traditional SEO remains relevant, but anyone who focuses their content solely on rankings and clicks is taking too narrow a view. With the rise of Google SGE, ChatGPT and Perplexity, visibility is shifting to platforms where answers are generated directly – rather than simply linked to.

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is the answer to this trend:

• It delivers content to where attention is focused today – into the response fields of AI systems.
• She creates content not only for people, but also for machines – semantically clear, technically precise and structurally citable.
• It builds trust, visibility and differentiation in an increasingly automated information landscape.

At the same time, the following applies:
GEO will not replace SEO – it will complement it.
The best results are achieved where traditional SEO principles – such as structure, keyword relevance and technical foundations – are combined with GEO factors such as citability, entity strategy and AI comprehensibility.

Anyone planning content today should pursue two objectives simultaneously:

1. Top rankings in the SERPs
2. References and citations in AI-generated responses

SEO and GEO are converging – to form a holistic strategy for organic visibility in a world both with and without clicks.

Anyone who ignores GEO will suffer a significant loss of visibility in the long term.

Anyone who gets on board now can gain a real head start in a discipline that is still in its infancy – and take their SEO to the next level in the process.

Would you like to put GEO into practice?

We’re here to help – from analysing your existing content to targeted GEO optimisation of your content.

Want to find out how your content appears in AI searches? Let’s carry out an initial assessment together – with no obligation, but in depth

FAQ: Frequently asked questions about GEO and SEO