What is GEO?
In short
GEO is generative engine optimisation. It is the work of making public pages a fair, accurate source for generative answers, so a model has a chance to name or cite the business. It does not promise a mention in ChatGPT, Perplexity or Google AI.
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What is GEO for?
A generative answer is assembled from sources the model can retrieve or already trusts. If the public description of a business is thin, conflicting, or hard to check, the answer may omit the business, or describe it badly. GEO is the work of giving those tools a clear, consistent source.
What does a fair source look like?
The same facts on every site the business owns. Plain wording, close to the questions a buyer asks. Pages that state what the business does, and what it does not do. A record, in public, that can be checked against the answer a tool gives.
Monitoring is part of the work: asking public questions, and writing down what the tools say and which sources they cite. Clearly Seen uses AI tools for that monitoring, and for research and content optimisation, and studies how ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI choose what to cite. The point is to see the public answers clearly, not to claim control of them.
How does GEO relate to SEO and AEO?
GEO uses the same pages as SEO and AEO. If a page cannot be found, there is less to retrieve. If a page never states the answer, there is less to quote or to name. We treat the three as one piece of work. There is a separate page on how they fit together.
What can GEO not do?
It cannot sell a recommendation. Generative tools choose for themselves, and the same question can produce a different answer on a different day. A useful GEO report shows what the public answers said, and what on the public pages could be clearer. It does not promise that the next answer will change.
Questions
What does GEO stand for?
Generative engine optimisation.
Is GEO different from AEO?
Closely related. AEO focuses on being a clear source for a direct answer. GEO focuses on being a clear source for a generated answer. The work on the page is largely the same.
Can anyone promise a ChatGPT mention?
No. No one can promise a mention in an AI answer.
Do I need a special file or format to be cited?
Clear, accurate, findable pages matter most. Extra files can help a system understand the site; they are not a ranking switch, and not every system uses them.
Keep reading
Write to us when you want the public pages checked.
Tell us the business and the sites. We will write back, and we will not ask for personal details about your customers, patients or clients.
Write to [email protected]