Beyond SEO: Why generative engine optimisation will shape your digital future

How to make AI engines promote your content when no one's searching for links anymore

I have been hearing this question lately, "Why are we optimising for Google when everyone I know just asks ChatGPT now?"

It was one of those moments where you realise the ground has shifted beneath your feet without you noticing. I've spent years mastering organic strategies - keywords, backlinks, page speed - the whole playbook. But when I checked my own behaviour, I realised I hadn't actually typed a traditional search query in days. Instead, I'd been asking AI assistants for everything from market research to dinner recipes.

I have started getting irritated with a Google Search these days, I have started chatting more often with perplexity AI.

That's when it hit me:

We're witnessing the birth of a new discovery paradigm. While Google isn't going anywhere overnight, a parallel system is emerging where AI doesn't just find links - it synthesises answers directly. And if your content isn't optimised for these systems, you might soon become invisible in the digital ecosystem.

Today, I want to share what I've learned about this emerging field called Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) - because this shift will impact everyone from creators to founders to marketers. The rules are being rewritten, and you need to understand them now.

The rise of AI as the new discovery layer

Google has been the internet's front door for over two decades. But today's landscape looks radically different:

- ChatGPT has amassed over 180 million monthly users

- Perplexity AI (the AI-native search engine) has grown 858% year-over-year

- According to Gartner, Google Search traffic has declined 15% since AI Overviews launched

- 70% of users now trust generative AI answers as much as traditional search results

This isn't just a new tool entering the market - it's a fundamental shift in how people discover information. These AI systems don't just point to websites; they synthesise, summarise, and cite. They're becoming the intermediary between users and content.

Think about it: when someone uses ChatGPT to find the "best CRM for startups," they're not clicking through to your comparison article. They're getting a synthesised answer, possibly with your content as one of many sources in the mix. If you're lucky, you might get cited. If not, your content contributed to the answer without any attribution or traffic.

What is GEO? Understanding the new rules

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is the practice of optimising your content to show up in AI-generated answers. Unlike traditional SEO which focuses on ranking links in search results, GEO focuses on influencing:

1. Chat responses from Large Language Models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini)

2. Direct answers in AI-native search tools like Perplexity AI, Copilot, and Google AI Overviews

3. Content summarisations and citations from generative platforms

This requires a different approach because these systems work differently than Google's crawler-based index. They use two primary methods to access information:

Trained Knowledge: Static data learned during model training (e.g., ChatGPT was trained on web data up to early 2023)

Live Retrieval (RAG): Real-time data fetched through search APIs when you ask a question (often powered by Bing or other search engines)

This means your GEO strategy needs to consider both historical content that models might have been trained on, and fresh content that gets picked up by their retrieval systems.

GEO vs. SEO: Complementary, not competitive

It's important to understand that GEO isn't replacing SEO - they're complementary strategies -

You still need fast sites, proper tags, and link equity. But now you also need:

- Structured, clear, conversational answers

- Active publishing on multiple content surfaces (YouTube, Reddit, Quora)

- A focus on being an "entity" that LLMs recognise and trust

What makes content GEO-friendly?

From my research and experimentation, here are the key principles that make content more likely to be used and cited by AI systems:

1. Answer-first content structure

- Start pages with direct answers to specific questions

- Use clear headings that match natural language queries

- Structure content in a Q&A format where appropriate

2. Semantic richness

- Use entity-rich language (mention specific companies, products, people, concepts)

- Include statistics with specific numbers (AI models love these)

- Add explicit citations to authoritative sources

3. Technical implementation

- Implement FAQ schema markup

- Use structured data for products, articles, how-to content

- Ensure content is accessible to crawlers (most AI retrieval still depends on this)

4. Multi-platform distribution

- Repurpose content for platforms that get heavily indexed (Reddit, Quora, YouTube)

- Create video content with proper transcripts and timestamps

- Maintain consistent entity descriptions across platforms

5. Freshness & updates

- Regularly update existing content with new information

- Date-stamp your content explicitly when appropriate

- Create "evergreen with updates" content formats

MARKETING & STARTUP INSIGHTS: Building your GEO strategy

For founders, marketers, and growth teams, GEO represents both a challenge and an opportunity.

Here's how to adapt your strategy:

Content development for AI discovery

The most successful content for AI consumption tends to be:

- Listicles with explicit citations and statistics

- Comprehensive guides with clear section breaks

- Expert explanations with credentialing information

- Case studies with specific metrics and outcomes

When creating content, think about how an AI would synthesise your information. Clear structure isn't just for human readers anymore - it helps AI systems understand and extract knowledge from your content.

Tools for GEO implementation

Here's a starting toolkit for implementing GEO strategies:

Research & Planning:

- Ahrefs/Semrush for traditional keyword research

- Perplexity Pro for understanding how AI interprets topics

- Claude 3 Opus for exploring question variations

Content Creation & Optimisation:

- Writesonic or Scriptbee for GEO content

- Description for creating searchable video transcripts

- RankMath or Yoast for schema implementation

- Merkle Schema Generator for custom structured data

Performance Tracking:

- Google Search Console (still relevant for RAG systems)

- Bing Webmaster Tools (critical since many AIs use Bing)

- Perplexity Profiles (beta) for citation tracking

For enterprise needs, platforms like Content at Scale are building automated agents specifically designed for GEO implementation across large content libraries.

Practical actions to take this week

Let's turn knowledge into action.

Here are five concrete steps you can take this week to start improving your GEO presence:

1. Test your brand visibility: Go to ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity and ask about your company, products, or key topics. See what comes up and identify gaps.

2. Add FAQ sections: Identify your top 5 traffic-generating pages and add structured FAQ sections with schema markup.

3. Repurpose one key article: Take your best-performing blog post and adapt it into a comprehensive Reddit or Quora answer, maintaining key entities and statistics.

4. Create one explainer video: Record a short video explaining a core concept in your industry, with a complete transcript and proper timestamping.

5. Update your "About" content: Ensure your company/personal descriptions are consistent across all platforms, using the same entity descriptions.

The future of digital discovery

Looking ahead 12-18 months, we're likely to see generative AI become the default discovery layer for many users. This isn't just about search traffic - it's about:

- Brand discoverability in conversational contexts

- Thought leadership and expert positioning

- Influencing what the AI "knows" about your industry

The companies and creators who adapt earliest will have a significant advantage as this transition accelerates. While there's still time to prepare, the window for getting ahead of the curve is narrowing.

A question to reflect on

How would you redesign your content strategy if you knew 50% of your potential audience would never see your website, but only encounter your ideas through AI-generated summaries?

Until next time,