GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
Also known as: Generative Engine Optimization, AI search optimization
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the practice of optimizing content so it gets cited, summarized, or recommended by generative AI systems — ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews — instead of only ranking in a traditional list of blue links.
When someone asks ChatGPT or Perplexity a question, the model doesn't show ten ranked links — it synthesizes an answer, often citing two or three sources. GEO is the set of practices that make a page more likely to be one of those sources: clear, factual, well-structured content; explicit author expertise (E-E-A-T signals); FAQ and structured data (schema.org) that machines can parse cleanly; and technical crawlability for AI bots like GPTBot, ClaudeBot, and PerplexityBot.
GEO also includes a newer, more direct channel: publishing an `llms.txt` file — a plain-language summary of a site's content and purpose that AI systems can read directly, the same way `robots.txt` talks to search crawlers. Sites doing GEO well treat AI answer engines as a first-class audience, not an afterthought of traditional SEO.