Getting found SEO vs GEO: what changes when your buyers ask AI

More and more buyers ask an AI assistant a full question instead of typing two words into a search engine. That has brought new acronyms (GEO, AEO, LLMO) and a lot of confusion. Here’s what each one means, what really changes and what stays the same.

What SEO is

SEO (search engine optimization) is the work of making sure a search engine like Google can crawl, understand and index your site, and show it when someone searches for what you offer. It covers the technical side (indexing, speed, structure), content, and the authority that comes from links and mentions. It’s measured in impressions, clicks and the requests that come from search.

What GEO is

GEO stands for generative engine optimization. The term took off with a 2023 academic study that looked at what kind of content answer-generating systems tend to cite. In practice, GEO is about making sure an AI assistant correctly identifies who you are, what you do and who you serve, and that your content is easy to cite.

You’ll also see AEO (answer engine optimization) and LLMO. They’re different names for very similar ideas.

How they differ

	SEO	GEO
Where you show up	Search results	AI assistant answers and generated summaries
The goal	Ranking and clicks	Being understood and cited as a source
What matters most	Relevance, authority and page experience	Entity clarity, direct and verifiable answers, consistency across sources
How it’s measured	Search Console and analytics	Repeated test prompts across assistants; no standard tool yet

What doesn’t change

Google has said that its AI features in Search rely on its core ranking systems and that no special markup is needed to appear in them. Many assistants also rely on search indexes to answer. So a site Google can’t crawl, or that doesn’t clearly explain what you do, won’t do well in AI either.

The foundation is the same: pages crawlers can access, accurate and up-to-date information, and content written for people.

What’s worth adding

• A single definition of your company (name, category, services, who you serve, where) repeated consistently across your site, your profiles and your structured data.
• Direct answers at the start of each section, so a paragraph makes sense on its own.
• Verifiable evidence: sourced and dated data, identifiable authors and real examples.
• Access for the AI crawlers you care about: check your robots.txt and your host’s firewall.
• Consistency beyond your site: what other sites say about you counts too.

What nobody can guarantee

No provider can promise that an assistant will mention you, or in what order. Answers change from one prompt to the next and from month to month. What you can do is improve the conditions for being understood and cited, and track it with repeated prompts over time.

So, SEO or GEO?

Both, in that order. If your site doesn’t show up on Google for your services yet, start with technical SEO and content. If that foundation is in place, GEO is the natural next step (see our guide on how to get your business found in ChatGPT), and it mostly means organizing and strengthening what you already have.

Frequently asked questions

Does GEO replace SEO?

No. It builds on it. Assistants often rely on search indexes, so solid SEO is still the foundation.

Do I need an llms.txt file?

It isn’t required. Google doesn’t use it for its AI features. It can be considered as an extra, but it doesn’t replace a clear, crawlable site.