Glossary
GEO
What GEO, generative engine optimization, means and what it can and cannot do for a small business website.
Updated
What does GEO stand for?
GEO: GEO stands for generative engine optimization: generative engines are the AI tools that write a reply from the pages they find, and the optimization is the work that helps them cite a website and describe it accurately. Its base is ordinary SEO, because a page that crawlers cannot reach, or that a search index has never stored, gives an engine nothing to quote. On that base, GEO shapes each page so a passage still makes sense when it is quoted alone, with the answer stated before the detail and markup that describes only what a reader can see. It cannot buy placement or guarantee that an engine names a business.
Where it shows up
GEO shows up in agency retainers and in site audits that check how answer engines describe a business. The same idea travels under other names, such as AEO (answer engine optimization) or AI search optimization.
On a page it looks like ordinary clear writing. The difference is discipline: each section can be read on its own, and every fact on the page matches the business's other listings.
Related terms
- Answer engineWhat an answer engine is and how it changes the way customers find a small business online.
- AEOWhat AEO, answer engine optimization, means and how it relates to GEO.
- llms.txtWhat an llms.txt file is and how much it matters for a small business website.
- Structured dataWhat structured data is and why it has to match what a web page shows.
- Every term in the glossary
Start with a written plan
Tell us about the business and what you need. We reply with questions, then a written plan that lists the work and its price, and nothing starts until you have read it.