How AI answer engines choose sources
AI systems retrieve passages, not pages. They favour content that is server-rendered (not JavaScript-only), structured with clear questions and short answers, backed by verifiable facts, and attributed to a real, identifiable organisation.
GEO vs SEO
SEO optimises for ranked results; GEO optimises for citation and inclusion in generated answers. The foundations overlap — crawlability, authority, relevance — but GEO adds machine-readability and quotability.
- Server-rendered full text (AI crawlers often do not run JavaScript)
- Answer-first paragraphs under question-shaped headings
- Organization, Person, FAQPage and Article structured data
- Consistent brand name, NAP and sameAs entity links
- Original statistics and evidence that others can cite
- Allow AI crawlers in robots.txt and keep content accessible
A GEO checklist for your website
Test whether AI systems can answer 'what does this company do and where is it?' using only the HTML your server returns. If the answer is not clearly present, fix content and structure before worrying about any AI-specific tricks.
Measuring GEO
Track brand mentions and referral traffic from AI assistants, citation accuracy in AI answers for your key questions, and share of answers where your business is named. Documenting before/after answers is the practical baseline.