Search is being rewritten in real time.
For more than two decades, visibility online meant one thing: ranking on Google. SEO shaped how brands wrote, structured, and distributed content, optimising for algorithms designed to rank pages and drive clicks. But in 2026, that model is no longer enough. As generative AI becomes the first stop for search, discovery is shifting away from links and toward answers.
This transition marks a decisive move from traditional SEO to a new layer of optimisation built for AI systems that interpret, synthesise, and cite information rather than simply indexing it. Brands are no longer competing just for position on a results page, they are competing to be referenced in the response itself. The shift from SEO to GEO reflects a deeper change in how authority is earned online, and it is redefining what visibility really means in the age of AI.
What is GEO?
Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is the new frontier of visibility; an evolution of SEO shaped by the rise of Large Language Models. If SEO was about impressing Google’s crawlers, GEO is about becoming intelligible, trustworthy, and quotable to AI systems that don’t just index content but interpret it.
As of October 2025, ChatGPT took the crown as the world’s most-used app with 769 million monthly active users. For the first time, LLMs are genuinely challenging the dominance of legacy search engines. Instead of sifting through a million blue links, users now expect a single, synthesised answer.
That means the battleground has changed. GEO isn’t a “nice-to-have” – it’s what determines whether your brand is cited, surfaced, or forgotten altogether.
Is GEO the new SEO?
Not quite, but it is the layer that now sits above SEO. Think of SEO as the structural foundation: keywords, headings, hyperlinks and site performance. Those signals help search engines determine whether your site deserves to rank. Useful, still relevant, still required.
But AI engines don’t work like Google in 2015. Instead of ranking pages, they retrieve, evaluate, summarise, and cite. They aren’t reading your content for style, they’re extracting meaning, authority and clarity.
Traditional SEO asks:
“How do I get higher up the page?”
GEO asks:
“How do I get included in the answer?”
One aims for clicks. The other aims for citation.
And because users increasingly prefer instant, conversational responses, AI is fast becoming the first stop for search, especially for multi-step questions. Organic traffic in traditional search is slowing. AI-assisted queries are exploding. GEO is no longer “the future” – it’s the new competitive edge today.
How do AI search engines rank and cite content?
AI engines like ChatGPT Search and Perplexity use a retrieval process that looks radically different from keyword-based ranking. Before generating a response, the model retrieves documents, ranks them, processes them, and then synthesises an answer. If your content isn’t easily interpreted by the retrieval system, it won’t enter the mix, no matter how stylish your prose is.
AI tends to favour content that meets a very specific set of criteria:
1. Clear, authoritative, structured information
- Direct definitions
- Logical framing of problems and solutions
- Topic depth demonstrated across multiple pages
2. Consistent topical authority
Generalists, look away. AI engines look for brands that repeatedly publish high-quality content within one niche or thematic cluster. Authority is earned through consistency.
3. Clean formatting
AI reads by structure, not aesthetics.
- Lists
- Tables
- Headings
- Explicitly labelled concepts
The neater your information, the easier the model can lift it into a summary.
How AI models decide what to reference
AI models evaluate content using signals such as:
- Confidence matching — how closely the content aligns with the query.
- Recency — newer content is preferred for fast-changing categories.
- Credibility — brand authority, citation patterns, PR footprint, and long-term topical depth.
- Evidence-based claims — AI rewards stats, methodologies and expert-backed statements.
- Original insights — proprietary research dramatically increases your chance of being cited.
- Brand authority signals — recognisable tone, subject expertise, thought leadership.
Fluffy, metaphor-heavy or overly branded content tends to fall down the rankings. AI simply can’t extract value from waffle, and it doesn’t try.
How GEO differs from SEO (tactically)
SEO has historically been built on:
- Backlinks
- Keywords and semantic clusters
- Technical performance
- SERP features
GEO, by contrast, optimises for machine comprehension and citation potential:
- Fact density
AI doesn’t speculate. It lifts concrete, verifiable statements. - Semantic optimisation
Writing for meaning, not keywords. Conceptual clarity beats keyword frequency - Perspective optimisation
Brands with distinct viewpoints get quoted more often. If your ideas are recognisable, AI is more likely to replicate them. - AI-trainable language
Phrasing that is structured, explicit, and easy for models to summarise. - AI-friendly writing
Predictable structures, defined terminology, and concise wrap-ups.
It’s not about writing like a robot. It’s about writing in a way a robot can reliably interpret.
Emerging GEO tactics for 2026 and beyond
Here are the innovations that brands and agencies are already leveraging:
- AI-targeted “source pages”
High-clarity, single-topic pages built for retrieval (definitions, frameworks, glossaries). - Original research and proprietary data
AI engines prioritise unique value. If you publish data nobody else has, AI will cite you. - Topical authority clusters
Interlinked articles that demonstrate deep expertise. - First-party data utilisation
AI increasingly rewards insights derived from brand-owned sources. - Monitor your AI presence
Check ChatGPT Search, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot and Bing AI to see how your brand is being referenced (if at all). - Brand signatures
Distinctive frameworks or repeatable narratives AI can detect and reproduce.
Conclusion: How we’re winning in the era of AI search - and how you can too
Winning in AI search isn’t about gaming the system, it’s about speaking the language of generative engines while doubling down on human intelligence. GEO demands clarity, authority, originality and strategic consistency. It demands content that an AI can understand and a human can trust. And critically, it demands the kind of multidisciplinary thinking, strategy, storytelling, data fluency, that integrated agencies are built for.
Brands that embrace GEO now will shape how AI describes their category for years to come. Those who delay will find themselves overwritten by competitors who understood the assignment earlier.
This is a new era of search.
And with the right GEO strategy, your brand won’t just show up in AI search, you’ll own the conversation.
Want help integrating AI into your business or optimising in the era of generative search?
As a full-service marketing and communications agency, we’ll help you harness its full potential, from strategy to execution, so you can stay ahead in the era of generative search.
Get in touch to find out more.
About the author
Simarin Tandon | Senior Digital Marketing Manager
Having worked with brands across the Beauty &Wellness, FMCG, FinTech, and Home & Lifestyle sectors, Simarin focuses on driving acquisition and growth, whilst managing the performance team at brandnation.
A curious marketer, Simarin is always on the pulse when it comes to performance and digital updates across both paid and organic platforms.
