Is GEO the same as SEO?
One of the things we get asked the most by the dozens of Companies and brands that we work with is: “is GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) the same as SEO (Search Engine Optimization)?”. The answer to this: No, Geo is not the same as SEO, although many of the GEO best practices rely on SEO fundamentals.
In this article, we will review and study what is SEO, what is GEO, and how you can optimize your website for both GEO and SEO.
What is SEO?
SEO stands for "search engine optimization," and is a way of making sure your website is showing up higher on search engines when people are searching for stuff. People have this misconception that optimizing for SEO is optimizing for Google. But in reality, that's not true. Google is by far the most dominant search engine with close to 90% of market share. Although SEO also applies to all of the other search engines out there, like Bing, Yahoo, and so on.
What is GEO?
GEO stands for Generative Engine Optimization, and it's the process of making sure AI engines like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google's AI mode, mention your brand or website when people ask them questions, similarly to how people ask Google questions. Fun fact, the term GEO is relatively new, especially when compared to SEO, having been first mentioned in 2023 only.
Are GEO and SEO the same thing?
GEO and SEO are not the same thing. However, GEO relies heavily on the fundamentals of SEO, meaning that if you are optimizing for SEO, chances are that you will be optimizing for GEO as well. However, there are some actions that you can take to increase your likelihood of showing up in AI Answers and thus optimizing for GEO.