How should B2B marketers prepare for Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) alongside their SEO strategy?
Have you noticed that search is falling in your analytics? Yes, us too.
B2B buyers increasingly bypass traditional engines and go straight to ChatGPT for quick, authoritative answers. That means your content could remain unseen (unless it’s optimised for how AI discovers and summarises information). Welcome to Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO): the next evolution of SEO.
What is GEO?
Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) builds on SEO – but with a twist. While SEO targets traditional search engines like Google using keywords, metadata and link-building to drive clicks, GEO aims for generative answer engines.
There is a big difference – these advanced AI algorithms don’t return a list of links; they synthesise and prioritise information, generating responses that may never lead a user to your page. It’s called “Zero click searching” and it is on the rise. The problem is, B2B buyers don’t come through to our clients’ sites, so we can’t say for certain by how much. Just that search volumes are falling.
Trust – all about trust
In B2B, recommendation trumps everything. Being backed by “people like me” is three times more influential than being cheaper or better performing. It’s not just about being the best—it’s about being seen as safe.
As AI becomes a key research companion, it’s starting to play that same role: summarising the market and surfacing trusted options. Which means earning the AI’s trust is now just as vital as earning your buyer’s.
What effect is it having?
Anecdotally, and across all our sectors, AI is already part of buyer research and shortlisting tools. That means brands will need to be present in LLM training data and structured for trust, so they appear not just in search engines but in machine-generated knowledge graphs. GEO today is only the start.
What can you track to see if GEO is in play in your market?
- Test prompt response visibility: Ask the main platforms typical buyer questions (“What are the top CRM platforms for enterprise GDPR compliance?”). See if and how you’re referenced. Monitor this
- Track ChatGPT referrals in GA4: Look under “Session Source/Medium” or “chat.openai.com” referrals. Read more here.
- Analyse search trends: If organic traffic dips while AI referral traffic rises, GEO is making waves.
How does it differ from SEO then?
GEO and SEO may share a few principles, but they play by very different rules.
Where SEO is about ranking in traditional search results, GEO is about earning citations in AI-generated responses. SEO leans on keyword-rich metadata, while GEO demands clear, context-rich content designed to answer natural language prompts. Instead of optimising individual pages, GEO focuses on how AI synthesises information across multiple sources. It also goes deeper into understanding user intent, anticipating questions rather than simply matching keywords.
And while SEO reacts to algorithm updates from platforms like Google, GEO requires continuous adaptation to how AI systems evolve and cite sources.
Structurally, GEO prefers clean formatting – headings, bullet points, schema markup – that makes content easy for AI to parse.
Tracking success is different too: not just keyword rankings, but visibility in AI prompts, citation frequency, and referral traffic from generative tools.
So quite different, yet strangely similar too.
Great, but what do I need to do?
Step 1: Create prompt-optimised content
Structure your content to answer questions AI tools are likely to receive. Think like a buyer. Build pages about pain points.
- Build Q&As, FAQs and ‘X vs Y’ comparison pages.
- Use clear H1–H3 headings, bullet points and TL;DR summaries.
- Back up your claims with data and cite trustworthy sources to build authority.
Step 2: Be present beyond your website
AI doesn’t just learn from your site – it learns from the whole internet.
- Make sure your brand appears on review sites (e.g., G2, Capterra), analyst platforms, Wikipedia and relevant forums.
- The more consistent your presence, the more credible you’ll appear to generative engines.
Step 3: Use semantic structure and schema markup
Help AI understand your content by formatting it correctly.
- Apply structured headings (H1, H2, H3), schema markup and bullet lists.
- Use descriptive, entity-rich phrases that position your brand clearly (e.g., “a UK-based cybersecurity provider”).
Step 4: Build AI trust through backlinks and mentions
AI gives weight to what others say about you.
- Contribute guest articles to reputable sector publications.
- Ensure you’re listed in industry directories.
- Encourage customers and partners to leave structured reviews on third-party platforms.
Step 5: Monitor and adjust regularly
This isn’t a one-and-done exercise. Stay visible.
- Prompt AI engines with common buyer queries to see if—and how—you’re mentioned.
- Track referral traffic, AI-generated citations, and where your brand appears.
- Update and optimise content based on what AI does (and doesn’t) surface.
And hold some budget back – paid AI won’t be far away
Yes, like Google did.
The shift from SEO to GEO is real. Like big shifts in B2B marketing over the decades like GDPR, responsive web design, IPads, the decline of Flash and now AI. The world of B2B keeps turning.
Brands that proactively structure content for AI understanding – and build visibility beyond their own site – will win the mindshare of both machines and buyers. In B2B, GEO doesn’t replace SEO; it upgrades it.
And the future is already here.
