What Is GEO? 5 Easy Ways to Use Generative Engine Optimization to Grow Your Business
If you’re in marketing, you may have heard about GEO and be wondering, what is GEO?
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is a digital marketing strategy that optimizes your content for both search engines and artificial intelligence (AI) tools, similar to SEO.
While traditional SEO focuses on improving rankings on platforms like Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc, GEO ensures your content is also discoverable and readable by AI LLMs or platforms, such as Chat GPT, Gemini, Claude, voice assistants, and other AI-powered search engines.
GEO is essential because more people continue to rely on AI tools to find information, products, and services online. It’s not a matter of if, but when AI LLMs take over for search.
So, it should be clear that understanding what is GEO and how to use it can help your small business stay ahead of the competition and reach more customers. So let’s dive in.
Why Is GEO Important?
Generative Engine Optimization bridges the gap between SEO and the growing influence of AI-driven search (AI Overviews, etc).
AI tools like ChatGPT, Alexa, and Google Assistant are changing how people search for answers and interact with businesses.
By optimizing for GEO, you ensure that your website’s content is accessible and valuable to both search engines and AI whenever people use these tools.
This makes GEO the next big thing in digital marketing, especially for businesses looking to future-proof their online presence.
In five years fro now, when someone asks Alexa to ‘buy organic toothpaste’ – you will want Alexa to choose, or at least consider your own local organic toothpaste brand, right?
That is GEO.
5 Ways to Use GEO for Your Business
1. Write in Conversational Language
GEO relies on conversational, natural language that AI tools can understand.
These are often referred to as NLP keywords (natural language processing).
When writing content, think about how people speak or ask questions.
For example, instead of “best car repair service,” use “Where can I find the best car repair shop near me?”
This approach makes your content more AI-friendly and improves your chances of being featured in voice or chatbot responses.
2. Answer Customer Questions Clearly
A big part of what GEO does is to make sure your content provides genuine value by answering real customer questions.
Create informative blogs, FAQs, and how-to guides that directly address common questions in your industry.
This shows authority, builds trust, and showcases experience and expertise. (Also known as EEAT in Google land).
Tools like AnswerThePublic can help you find questions your audience is asking so you can get straight to answering them.
3. Add Structured Data to Your Website
Structured data, or schema markup, helps search engines and AI LLMs understand your content better.
In much simpler terms, Schema is a way for you to easily tell Google or Chat GPT that your page has a book (for example), with reviews and testimonials from previous readers.
Why does that matter?
Because the Schema will make it much easier for Google to display your book with an image, and with the reviews it has as part of the result pages.
You can use structured data to highlight your business hours, services, or customer reviews.
Just make it easier for the crawlers to understand what you are and who you are. It’s that simple.
You can use the Schema Validator tool to audit your own website today.
4. Make Your Content Easy to Read
Both AI tools and search engines (and your customers!) prefer content that is well-structured and easy to read.
Use headings, bullet points, and numbered lists to organize your content.
Kinda like this very post, which I hope is easy to follow.
Keep sentences short and paragraphs concise to ensure readability.
Here at Tabula, we personally like to break almost every sentence apart, so it has a better experience on mobile.
5. Optimize for Mobile and Voice Search
Most AI interactions happen on mobile devices or through voice search.
And that number only continues to increase.
By 2027, an estimated 162.7 million Americans will use voice assistants, up from 149.1 million in 2024.
So make sure your website is mobile-friendly, crawlable and loads quickly.
Write content in a way that answers questions naturally, as if you’re having a conversation with your customers.
What Is GEO and Why Should You Care?
If you’re still asking, “What is GEO, and why does it matter for my business?” the answer is simple.
GEO is the future of digital marketing, helping businesses stay visible as AI tools become the go-to search method for customers.
By understanding what GEO is and implementing the strategies above, you can boost your business’s visibility on both traditional search engines and AI-powered platforms.
How Tabula Can Help
Want to make GEO work for your business?
At Tabula, we specialize in SEO and GEO strategies to help small businesses thrive in an AI-driven world.
From optimizing your website for AI to creating GEO-friendly content, we’ve got you covered.
Take your first step into the future of digital marketing and book your free discovery call.
FAQs About GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
1. What is GEO in simple terms?
GEO, or Generative Engine Optimization, is about making your website and content easy for both search engines like Google and AI tools like Siri or ChatGPT to understand.
This helps people find your business when they search for something online or use voice assistants to ask questions.
2. How is GEO different from SEO?
SEO helps your website rank higher on search engines by using the right keywords and improving your website’s structure.
GEO takes it a step further by making your content friendly for AI tools, which many people now use to find answers, products, and services.
3. Why does GEO matter for small businesses?
More people are using tools like Alexa, Google Assistant, or chatbots to find businesses.
If your content isn’t easy for these tools to understand, your business might not show up in their answers. GEO helps make sure your business gets noticed.
4. How can I get started with GEO?
Start by answering common questions your customers ask simply and clearly on your website.
Use tools like FAQs, guides, and step-by-step instructions. Also, make sure your website loads quickly and looks good on mobile devices.
5. Do I need to hire an expert for GEO?
You can handle the basics, like writing helpful content and keeping your website updated.
However, working with an expert like Tabula can help you unlock GEO’s full potential by using advanced strategies like structured data and AI-focused optimization.
