GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)

GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) is a specialized process of optimizing content and site structure within the Google Ecosystem, aimed at increasing brand visibility in results generated by artificial intelligence, such as AIO (AI Overviews) and SGE (Search Generative Experience).

In the hierarchy of modern Search marketing, GEO is a component of the broader AISO (AI Search Optimization) strategy. While AISO covers the brand’s entire presence in AI (including chatbots like ChatGPT or Claude), GEO focuses precisely on ensuring your content is “understood” and cited by the generative algorithms embedded specifically within the Google search engine.

The Place of GEO in the Search Ecosystem (GEO vs. AISO)

According to the market evolution from SEO to AISO, the relationship between these concepts is as follows:

AISO (AI Search Optimization): The overarching strategic category. A holistic approach ensuring the brand is recommended across all AI-based platforms—both in search engines and private Large Language Models (LLMs).
GEO (Generative Engine Optimization): The implementation tactic within Google. It is responsible for converting traditional SEO rankings into Direct Answers and citations in the AI modules at the top of search results.

Managerial Summary: AISO is the goal (to be recommended by AI). GEO is the tool used to achieve this specifically within Google.

What does GEO drive? (Key Components)

GEO techniques are applied to win visibility in three key areas of Google:

AIO (AI Overviews): Real-time summaries generated at the top of search results. GEO ensures your site becomes a “citation source” within this answer.
Direct Answers / AI Mode: Direct responses to user queries that do not require visiting a website but build expert brand awareness (Zero-Click Influence).
Supporting Traditional SEO: GEO actions (e.g., data structuring, quotability) reinforce classic rankings because Google increasingly prioritizes content that is comprehensible to its AI models.

How does the GEO technique work in Google?

For the Google algorithm (based on the Gemini model) to select your content for answer generation, the page must meet criteria different from old-school SEO:

Syntheticity: Content must be easy for AI to process and summarize (clear definitions, bullet points).
Data Authority: AI seeks facts, figures, and unique insights (Information Gain), rather than “keyword stuffing” or fluff.
RAG Structure: Formatting content in a way that facilitates Retrieval-Augmented Generation algorithms in “extracting” a specific fragment for the answer.

How does GEO differ from SEO?

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) fights for ranking (being #1 on the list of links). GEO fights for influence and citation (being part of the generated AI answer). In a modern strategy, these activities must complement each other.

Does GEO apply to ChatGPT and Perplexity?

n the strict classification (used in Delante's strategy), optimization for ChatGPT and Perplexity falls under the broader AISO umbrella and brand management in LLMs. GEO is reserved for technical actions within the Google Ecosystem, where the hybrid search engine combines the traditional index with the new AI layer.

Why do I need GEO if I already have SEO?

Because Google is shifting traffic from "links" to "AI answers" (AIO). If you have excellent SEO but poor GEO, you might rank #1 in organic results, but the user will still read the AI answer generated based on a competitor's site (which ranks lower but has better GEO).