How marketers can succeed with generative engine optimization

The digital landscape is evolving rapidly, and marketers are feeling the shift. Generative AI is redefining how people search and engage with content, reshaping traditional marketing strategies. 

Features like Google’s AI Overviews now provide instant, generated answers for search queries. This transformation poses both challenges and opportunities for marketers. To stay visible and relevant, brands must adapt — and that’s where generative engine optimization (GEO) comes in. 

Think of GEO as SEO’s smarter sibling. It helps brands optimize content for AI systems that think and respond like consumers. By mastering GEO, brands can ensure their voice remains authentic, trustworthy and present in the AI-driven digital landscape.

Why GEO matters now more than ever

Today’s consumers are overwhelmed. Information overload and declining trust in brands created a perfect storm where getting heard — and seen — is harder than ever. 

Only 50% of consumers trust the brands they do business with, per a recent survey from Qualtrics XM Institute. This figure has stagnated since 2021. At a time when consumer trust is at historic lows, brands can’t afford to let their stories be told by others. 

Generative AI introduces a significant opportunity for marketers to rewrite this narrative by owning the conversation. Instead of leaving critical brand moments to chance, GEO ensures that AI systems represent your brand accurately and authentically. 

With generative search engines increasingly pulling responses from brand-owned content, marketers who adapt their strategies to GEO can: 

• Increase visibility in generative search results. 
• Build credibility by owning the narrative on AI-powered platforms. 
• Strengthen trust through consistent, authoritative digital assets. 

Brands that fail to engage in GEO risk losing relevance, leaving vital touchpoints to competitors or unverified sources. 

How generative AI search works

Unlike traditional search engines that rely on keyword matching, generative AI systems synthesize responses based on a broader contextual understanding. These systems actively gather data from across the web, combining static training models with real-time content. 

Here’s the game-changer: generative AI doesn’t just find answers — it creates them. This means that the quality and authority of your digital content directly influence how AI represents your brand.

This shift gives marketers a unique advantage. Brands that optimize their digital presence can influence up to 52% of the sources cited by generative models, per a recent study by Terakeet (disclosure: I serve as the company’s CMO). In other words, the more you control your digital assets, the more likely your brand will be featured authentically in AI-driven narratives.

Dig deeper: Google rolls out new AI-organized search results, AI Overview links

How to get started with GEO

To thrive in this AI-driven world, marketers need a clear strategy for engaging with generative AI. Here are five actionable tips to help you get started.

1. Understand how generative AI selects sources

Educate yourself on how different generative AI models identify and cite digital assets. These approaches involve longer-term, static training models and dynamic, real-time web searching. 

This means genAI favors content that is high-quality and relevant to queries, ensuring their tools and compositions provide the best user experience.

• Tip: Dive into how these models work and ensure your digital assets meet their criteria. Regularly update your content to maintain relevance and alignment with AI’s dynamic selection process.

2. Build a web of high-ranking content 

Terakeet research found a strong correlation between high-ranking domains in traditional search engine results and their inclusion in Google’s AI Overviews. Improving your search engine rankings increases your chances of being included in some AI-generated outputs. 

Just as traditional SEO emphasizes relevance and quality, GEO requires a robust network of owned and managed digital assets. These include blogs, videos, whitepapers and other resources that generative models can cite directly. 

• Tip: Optimize your website for search engines using SEO and user experience (UX) fundamentals and data-informed content strategy.

3. Own your digital narrative

Generative AI doesn’t know your brand’s story unless you tell it. Proactively manage your digital footprint by creating content that authentically reflects your brand’s values, expertise and solutions. This will help outside sources, like news reports and social media posts and make it easier for AI to understand and reference your brand’s expertise.

• Tip: Inject your brand message into all owned assets and optimize them for visibility. Doing this ensures that generative AI models reference accurate, brand-approved content when crafting their responses.

The future of GEO

Generative AI has revolutionized how consumers search for information and is transforming how marketers build trust. GEO is not just a strategy for the moment; it’s the foundation for long-term digital relevance. 

At its core, GEO is about connection. By optimizing your content for generative AI, you can reach consumers when they need it. This means using brand-controlled content, whether they are asking a search engine or chatting with an AI chatbot. 

The nature of marketing has always been about evolution and GEO represents the next frontier. It’s not just about visibility; it’s about ensuring your brand’s voice is heard clearly, authentically and consistently. 

Generative AI is the future and with GEO, your brand will be at the forefront. 

Dig deeper: Reaching consumers in the age of AI: What you need to know about search and social media

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