Definition
Generative engine optimization, or GEO, is work intended to improve how a brand or page appears in AI-generated answers. The measurable outcomes include recommendations, mentions, quotations and linked citations. They are related, but they are not interchangeable.
If someone asks for accounting software for a small charity, an AI assistant may build a shortlist without sending them to ten vendor homepages. GEO asks whether you appear in that answer, whether the description is accurate, and which evidence the answer uses. It does not replace the need for a product people want.
Start with an outcome you can name
| Outcome | What to record | What it does not prove |
|---|---|---|
| Brand mention | The answer names the company | That the answer recommends it. |
| Recommendation | The answer suggests it for a stated need | That the user bought it. |
| Citation | A source link supports part of the answer | That the linked company is recommended or received a visit. |
This distinction matters when evaluating a dashboard. A brand can gain mentions because people are discussing a problem with its product. A documentation page can earn citations for an industry definition while generating little demand. Read the answer before celebrating the number.
What the original research found
The GEO research paper introduced a framework for measuring and changing source visibility. Its experiments found gains of up to roughly 40% under the tested conditions. It also evaluated Perplexity using supplied source files. These are experimental results, not a forecast for your website or evidence that a purchased placement will produce the same outcome.
The distinction between adding citations to a document and earning links from other publications matters. They are different interventions. Use research to form a testable content hypothesis, then measure your own result. Do not turn a benchmark’s best result into a promised percentage for every customer.
What to improve on your own site
- Make public pages accessible and important information readable as text.
- Answer the buyer’s question under a clear heading, with conditions and limitations beside the answer.
- Link claims to evidence: product documentation, original research or a properly described customer example.
- Maintain changeable facts such as plans, versions and availability.
- Check the rules for each provider instead of treating every AI bot as a training crawler.
For Google AI Overviews and AI Mode, Google says its existing search requirements apply. Special AI files or special schema are not prerequisites. A technically eligible page still is not guaranteed to be selected.
A practical example
Illustrative content change
A project management product says “Everything your agency needs.” A buyer asks whether clients can approve a proof without buying a seat. A useful edit explains the actual guest-access rules, approval history and plan requirement. That gives the buyer a verifiable answer; whether an engine cites it remains a measurement question.
Check third-party descriptions too. If an old review has the wrong plan name, correct the record through the publisher. If a category comparison omits a relevant capability, offer documentation. Do not pay for undisclosed endorsements or mistake a publisher’s placement guarantee for an AI recommendation guarantee.
Where llms.txt fits
llms.txt is a proposal for helping agents use website information. It is worth evaluating for a concrete documentation or agent workflow. Publishing the file does not establish that a search engine uses it as a ranking signal. Keep it accurate, inspect relevant usage, and prioritize accessible source pages.
Build a baseline you can repeat
- 1.Choose questions from actual buying decisions, with the relevant audience and location. Keep direct questions about your brand separate from discovery questions.
- 2.Record the engine, product or API surface, settings, date, full answer and citations.
- 3.Save failures separately. A missing response is not a response that omitted your brand.
- 4.Make one documented change, confirm it is live, and compare matching questions later.
- 5.Report uncertainty. Model changes, retrieval changes and competitor activity can move results too.
Put the findings to work
August connects visibility tracking with a reviewable next step: inspect the answers and citations, prepare a draft, publish through your own workflow, then check what changed. Copy the content or create a GitHub draft PR; you control what goes live. A follow-up comparison is evidence to examine, not proof that one edit caused a gain.
Get started with August. Compare the current plans: Starter includes 25 tracked prompts across one brand workspace; Pro includes 75 across three, with Google AI Overviews and AI Mode alongside the four core engines. Prompt allowances are shared across the account.
Choose the next guide
Read GEO vs SEO for the relationship with search, AEO vs GEO for terminology, or the ChatGPT guide for a provider-specific checklist.
Questions, answered.
Is GEO a guaranteed way to get recommended?
No. It is a set of content and measurement practices. Engines control their own answers and sources.
Does a citation mean more sales?
It can contribute to discovery, but a citation does not measure a visit, lead or purchase. Track those outcomes separately.
How should a small team start?
Choose a few real buyer questions, inspect the answers and fix one identifiable information gap. Keep the baseline so you can evaluate what happens next.
Find out what AI tells your customers.
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