The SEO realm is evolving once again and facing a new challenge with the rise of AI search. It is another issue following Google’s changes when they continued to push organic results further and further down the results page after adding SERP features that competed with the original 10 blue links. It started with Google Ads being ranked above organic, followed by “People Also Ask”, followed by the introduction of AI Overviews.
The latter challenge is a new one, with users starting to lean more towards searching on AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and other LLM’s, website’s have taken a slight hit in total traffic coming through. To pivot and accommodate this change, SEOs need to shift the focus and embrace GEO:
| Aspect | SEO | GEO | AEO |
| Definition | Optimising website’s and content to rank higher in search results. | Optimising content to appear higher in AI-powered search engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity. | Optimising website’s and content to rank higher in search results. |
| Primary Goal | Rank higher on Google and show on on page 1 within the blue links to acquire clicks. | Earn visibility and mentions in AI-generated answers. | Become the preferred single answer for spoken or featured responses. |
| Optimisation Focus | Keywords, backlinks, on-page SEO, technical SEO, UX. | Data structure, factual accuracy, EEAT signals, AI-friendly citations. | Conversational phrasing, schema markup, FAQs, voice intent alignment. |
| Content Style | Long-form, keyword-rich, SEO-structured. | Concise, factual, citable, and multi-format. | Short, natural-language answers for direct responses. |
| Ranking Signal Priority | Authority. | Credibility. | Clarity. |
| User Interface Targeted | Google Search results. | AI assistants. | Voice assistants and zero-click environments. |
| Measurement Metrics | Rankings, traffic, CTR, bounce rate. | AI citation frequency, visibility in AI responses. | Featured snippet share, voice query appearances. |
| Content Formats | Blogs, service pages, landing pages. | Q&A, datasets, EEAT-enhanced content. | FAQs, schema data, concise explainers. |
| Core Tools | Google Search Console, Ahrefs, SEMrush. | Perplexity dashboards, ChatGPT query tracking, AI rank visibility tools. | Schema validators, voice optimisation tools, AnswerThePublic. |
| Outcome | Traffic growth and lead generation from search engines. | Brand inclusion and visibility in AI-generated summaries. | Greater brand recognition in voice and zero-click ecosystems. |
While this may seem like a major crisis and threat to SEO, it’s not. The industry just needs to adapt to the change and consider the following:
Adjust Keyword Strategies
AI Overviews are not shown for every keyword. Some keywords are what we call “AI-immune”:
- Service-based keywords (e.g. plumber near me, plumber Toronto) are not very likely to trigger AI answers. They behave like a version of the Yellow Pages for users looking for a provider, not an answer. Google knows that, and so does ChatGPT. These keywords will continue to return local packs, ads, and blue links, just like they have for years.
- Local keywords in general (those that include cities or regions) are also less likely to be answered by generative AI and are more likely to produce clicks.
How To Appear In AI Overviews
What we have found is that most informations earch queries are appearing in Google’s AI overviews. Search queries such as “how does SEO work” or “is SEO necessary for my website” will likely result in zero-click AI overviews.
So, what do we need to do?
Audit your keyword rankings and categorise them:
- Which keywords still offer SEO opportunity (won’t appear in AI overviews)?
- Which keywords would be useful for AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation)?
- Which keywords align with GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation)?
If you are ever unsure, focus on SEO keywords and they can generally tend to overlap.
Choose Your Optimisation Focus
AEO and GEO tactics share some very similar tactics to SEO. I’ve asked Perplexity to give me a the most impactful actions across SEO, AEO and GEO and here is what it has produced:
Now we need to categorise these tasks into on-page and off-page tasks that can be ticked off to achieve desired results. We’d advise starting on the most resource instensive areas and utilise tools such as ChatGPT to guide you along the way. When it comes to SEO vs GEO vs AEO, the 3 magical words are:
Authority. Experience. Trust.
These are some of the most difficult expertise for businesses to master – and that is the exact reason that you should start focusing on them. Here’s how we can help with each one:
Authority
Search engines won’t directly tell you how authority truly works, but some things are certain: earning high quality, relevant backlinks, brand mentions and citations from trusted sources is one of the most important ranking signals.
Experience
To build authentic signals, you need to go above and beyond what is already out there. Instead of touching on a certain topics, rather cover it in as much depth as possible. This means going beyond basic search and expanding the horizons to:
1. Video tutorials
2. Case studies
3. Customer testimonials
AI can rephraase content, but it can’t rephrase experiences.
Trust
Authority and links are part of trust, but it can go further. Businesses need to demonstrate consistency, reliability, credibility and reputation. Here is how SEO can help achieve this:
– Strong branded profiles on platforms like YouTube, LinkedIn, and even industry-specific forums help show that real people stand behind the business.
– Online reviews, especially on Google, Trustpilot, Yelp, and niche directories, are major trust signals. The volume, sentiment, and recency of reviews are often used by both traditional search engines and AI tools to assess legitimacy.
– Consistent branding and NAP (Name, Address, Phone) data across directories and citations also contribute to perceived trust.
Conclusion
To remain competitve and avoid falling behind the way people search, SEOs need to evolve. GEO and AEO are not replacing SEO, but rather expanding and segmenting SEO as we know it. It’s more important than ever that we focus on the itnent that people are searching with and build our strategy around AI-driven experiences and double down on authority, experience, and trust.
One Response
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