GEO (Generative Engine Optimization): Is This the Next SEO Shift?

Lately I’ve been catchin myself going straight to ChatGPT or Claude instead of even opening Google.

Feels faster. Cleaner. Gets me what I need 90% of the time.
That’s what got me lookin into this whole “Generative Engine Optimization” (aka GEO).

Not just SEO for Google… but for AI-generated answers.

It’s wild to think we might need to optimize not for search rankings, but for how AI responds to prompts like “what’s the best payment processor for high risk merchants?” or “how do banned supplement brands still accept cards?”

Some stuff I’ve seen or tried:

- Structuring blog posts to match common AI queries

- Publishing on sites AI trusts so you get quoted more

- Crafting answers that sound like they’d come from ChatGPT itself

- Maybe even lightly training or feeding models in some way ‍

Still early. But I’m lowkey thinkin… if more ppl are searchin via AI, how do we show up there?

How would GEO even work for service-based businesses like mine (or yours)?

Not selling products but solving problems. Building trust. Getting booked.

If anyone’s experimenting with this or just curious like me, def open to vibing.

This feels like SEO 2.0… but no one’s fully figured it out yet.

You say ‘no one has figured it out’ but obviously that is not true. It is like SEO. AI models change and get swapped out by newer editions constantly, yet many new models have similar criteria but at the same time alterations in what they value. Therefore, just like SEO, some things are more fluctuating while others are more foundational. Also, many of the requirements of ‘GEO’ is similar to SEO already.

I recommend using the search bar. This question has been asked at least once a week. There are many valuable discussions already.

GEO definitely feels like an interesting shift. AI models seem to pull a lot from trusted, well-structured sources so maybe the key for service-based businesses is getting content onto platforms and domains that AIs already trust.