by Jaimie Siegle | Advertising Systems Inc.
The recent hype about generative engine optimization (GEO) seems to be everywhere, hitting everything from global beauty brands to local business owners.
According to Google SEO expert Danny Sullivan, GEO and SEO share the same goal: to help end-users easily find the answers they’re looking for.
Optimizing your brand’s digital presence for AI search platforms is an undertaking, manageable as it may be. Fortunately, there are several low-cost ways to quick-start your GEO marketing journey, and some you’re probably familiar with already.
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Prioritize Your Human Audience
Despite any reservations we may have about the AI takeover, the hype around GEO is real. Businesses that aren’t implementing a GEO strategy are already lagging behind.
While there are certain formatting structures that AI search engines prefer, Sullivan insists that digital content should always be written for your audience (not for the AI algorithm) and in service of the user experience.
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Keep Your Website Up-To-Date
While this is part of a solid SEO strategy, it’s also a sub-category of #1 above, as it relates to prioritizing the human audience. (After all, is there anything more annoying than a website that’s littered with an overabundance of ads, or takes forever to load?)
By regularly updating your blog or client page, you’re telling AI search engines—or LLMs—like Gemini and Grok that your information is accurate and trustworthy. And that means they’re more likely to recommend you or cite you as a resource.
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Use AI the Right Way
AI chatbots use crawlers (similar to those used for SEO) to assess a company’s expertise and quality of online content. As such, website copy—especially blog posts and articles—are more critical than ever when it comes to implementing a comprehensive GEO strategy.
Just because LLMs can write all your social media posts doesn’t mean they should. One might consider enlisting the help of a content marketing agency or professional, as it ensures your content is both on-brand, timely, and data-informed.
However, AI can still be helpful for things like research deep dives, grammar/spell check, and competitive analysis.
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Think of LLMs as Part of Your PR Strategy
Generative engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude provide responses based upon
A) the sum of information that exists online (social media networks, review sites, videos and photos); and B) the weighted consensus according to verified sources, subject experts, and other data.This doesn’t mean the answers are always right. And when they’re wrong, it can have a negative impact on the perception of your brand.
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Think Outside the Box of Traditional Segmentation
When people say they want “authentic,” they mean they want something real; that is, something created by humans. And most humans are on social media, not to mention forums like Reddit and Substack. Could these online spaces be a new place to find new customers and improve your GEO score?
