Search is changing. Fast. And it’s not just about rankings anymore.
Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is how websites earn their place in the AI conversation. Because today, visibility doesn’t mean being listed. It means being cited.
When platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google’s AI Overviews decide what to include in their responses, they’re pulling from trusted, structured, citation-worthy content. GEO is how you make sure that’s yours.
This is the next digital strategic leap. And it’s already delivering results.
Beyond rankings. Toward relevance.
The jump from SEO to GEO is foundational. Traditional SEO taught us to optimise for search engines, focusing on factors like keyword density, backlinks, and crawlability to climb the rankings. That logic still holds, but it’s no longer enough.
GEO introduces a new layer of complexity. Optimising for AI systems that don’t just crawl the web, but interpret it. These systems are indexing content while actively synthesising it, generating answers based on what they deem credible, well-structured and contextually rich information. So if your content isn’t easy for them to browse, understand and attribute, it’s effectively invisible.
Formatting matters. Structure matters. Authority matters. GEO needs content to be grammatically precise, citation-ready, and free of fluff. Because while humans might skim, AI needs order. And when your content delivers it, AI quotes it.
The anatomy of GEO content.
To succeed in GEO, you need to think like a machine without losing your human touch. This is where structure becomes an asset.
AI responds best to content that’s explicitly organised. Clear headings, bullet points, FAQs, schema markup, and llms.txt files all help establish relevance and legibility.
But structure is only part of the equation. What matters just as much is substance. That means including verified data, clearly cited sources, expert quotes, and original insights that demonstrate thought leadership and authority. In other words, AI needs confidence in what you’re saying. And signals that others trust you too.
That’s why GEO is about strategy as much as it is about execution. You need to align technical fluency with brand credibility. And balance the needs of AI with the needs of your audience.
Why this matters more with every query.
We’re entering a post-click world. Research shows that 60% of traditional search queries now end in no clicks, meaning users get their answers without ever visiting a website. On generative platforms like ChatGPT, this is even more pronounced. Users aren’t looking to click through to a website. They’re looking for direct, intelligent responses. And if your content isn’t in that answer, you’re out of sight and out of mind.
As The Wall Street Journal reported, Ellen Mamedov, Global SEO Director at Intuit Mailchimp, predicts that “websites in general will evolve to serve primarily as data sources for bots that feed LLMs, rather than destinations for consumers.” And according to SemRush, LLM traffic will likely overtake traditional Google search by the end of 2027.
The most successful GEO strategies are quiet. Subtle changes in structure and substance that radically increase visibility without disrupting the user experience.
GEO in the real world
Forward-thinking brands are already building with this in mind. And seeing serious results.
For example, Backlinko, a heavyweight in the SEO world, recorded a whopping 800% year-on-year jump in AI-sourced traffic, with tens of millions more impressions surfacing in Google Search Console via AI Overviews.
And Broworks, a B2B SaaS brand, recently embedded GEO principles across its content ecosystem. By introducing machine-readable markup, restructuring their content into concise, scannable sections, and reinforcing their authority through credible sources and case studies, they unlocked AI traction within weeks. AI-driven traffic accounted for 10% of their overall site visits, with session durations increasing by 30% and conversion rates from that channel jumping from 2.1% to 27%.
Laying the groundwork. Strategies that scale.
You don’t need to overhaul your entire digital estate to start winning with GEO. But you do need to approach it deliberately. Here are some tips:
- Structure for clarity. This means predictable heading hierarchies, scannable formats, and logically segmented content. Bullet points. Tables. FAQs. These are functional for AI to understand your content and cite it seamlessly.
- Embed trust signals. Cite credible data. Link to known authorities. Use direct quotes from known experts. Case studies, whitepapers, and third-party validation all help build the kind of brand authority that LLMs gravitate toward.
- Don’t forget technical performance. Page speed, clean metadata, mobile-first design, and crawlable architecture remain fundamental. GEO doesn’t eliminate SEO. It layers on top of it.
- Measure what matters. AI mentions. Citation sentiment. Conversion rates by source. Revenue influenced by AI touchpoints. Tools like HubSpot’s AI Search Grader or Wix analytics are already helping brands understand their AI visibility and refine it in real-time. Because what gets measured gets managed. And what gets managed gets found.
Optimise with integrity.
The opportunity is real. But so are the risks. When visibility becomes the goal, there’s a temptation to over-engineer. To push tactics that work today without thinking about their impact tomorrow. Or quick wins, as some like to call them. But GEO, like SEO before it, is a long game. And models shift. Fast.
That’s why sustainable GEO requires a values-first approach. Structure and signal, yes. But always anchored in credibility and usefulness. The moment your content stops serving your audience and starts serving the algorithm alone, you risk undermining the very authority you’re trying to build.
LLMs will continue to evolve. The black box will shift. But trust is the throughline. And building for trust means building with discipline.
Let’s get things Done & Dusted.
Search isn’t what it used to be. And it won’t be again.
At Dusted, we build content ecosystems designed for AI-first discovery. Structured. Sourceable. Citation-ready. The kind of content that shows up where users search now – in generative AI tools.
We embed GEO principles from the ground up, shaping your content to speak AI fluently while staying true to your brand voice. We map your authority. Optimise for visibility. And track how AI platforms quote, cite and surface your story.
Because we’re living in the age of generated answers, where you have to be the source to show up and be cited. GEO gives you the tools to earn that spot. To shape the narrative. To get ahead while others are still optimising for yesterday’s model.
Contact us now. Ready when you are.