Learn GEO for free: the roadmap to getting cited by AI
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) gets your brand mentioned and cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. Follow the 10 steps below — each one links to the best free guides from the field's leading experts.
1. Understand GEO
What GEO is, how AI search picks its sources, and what the evidence says.
What is GEO?
What generative engine optimization means and why it matters now. Read the guides →
GEO vs SEO vs AEO
Is SEO dead? How GEO, AEO and LLMO relate to classic SEO. Read the guides →
How AI search works
How AI answers pick sources: training data, live retrieval, citations. Read the guides →
Why AI platforms differ
Why ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and AI Overviews cite different sources. Read the guides →
Google AI Overviews
How AI Overviews and AI Mode pick sources, and how to appear in them. Read the guides →
GEO statistics
How big AI search is, how much traffic it sends, and how it converts. See the numbers →
Proven vs hype
Which GEO tactics have evidence behind them, and which are speculation. Read the guides →
2. Find your starting point
See where your brand stands in AI answers today, then plan your first moves.
Audit your AI visibility
Does AI mention your brand, and what does it say about you? Read the guides →
Is AI hurting your traffic?
How to tell whether AI answers cut your clicks, and what to do. Read the guides →
Benchmark competitors
Who gets cited instead of you, and why. Read the guides →
Prompt research
Find the prompts your buyers actually ask AI. Read the guides →
Your first 30 days
The quick wins to do first, in order. See the plan →
3. Optimize your content
Lever 1 of 4: write content AI can find, trust and quote.
Answer-first writing
Lead with the answer so AI can lift a clean passage. Read the guides →
Q&A and FAQ content
Write the questions people ask AI, and answer them well. Read the guides →
Facts, stats and sources
Statistics, quotes and citations that make content quotable. Read the guides →
Topic clusters and depth
Cover a topic completely so AI sees you as the authority. Read the guides →
Content freshness
Keep key pages current — AI favours recent content. Read the guides →
AI-written content
Does AI-generated content get cited? How to use AI writing safely. Read the guides →
4. Optimize your site
Lever 2 of 4: make sure AI crawlers can reach and read your site.
AI crawler access
robots.txt for GPTBot and co., and what llms.txt can and can't do. Read the guides →
Schema markup for AI
Structured data that tells machines what your content is. Read the guides →
Clean HTML and speed
Content AI crawlers can actually read: plain HTML, fast pages. Read the guides →
Bing and fast indexing
Bing Webmaster Tools and IndexNow — the index behind ChatGPT search. Read the guides →
5. Earn mentions
Lever 3 of 4: be talked about on the sites AI cites most.
Digital PR
Earn mentions on the publications AI trusts. Read the guides →
Reviews
Review platforms AI draws on for recommendations. Read the guides →
Reddit and communities
Show up in the threads AI cites most — without spamming. Read the guides →
Best-of lists
Get into the roundups AI uses for “best X” answers. Read the guides →
YouTube and video
Video with transcripts — one of AI's most-cited sources. Read the guides →
6. Build your brand entity
Lever 4 of 4: help AI know exactly who you are.
Wikipedia and Wikidata
The knowledge sources AI checks to know who you are. Read the guides →
Consistent brand facts
One name, one description everywhere, including your Knowledge Panel. Read the guides →
Authors and expertise
Named experts and E-E-A-T: why AI trusts people it can identify. Read the guides →
Fix wrong AI answers
What to do when AI gets your brand wrong. Read the guides →
All 52 GEO strategies in one filterable list
Filter by lever, effort, skill and how proven each tactic is.
7. Measure results
Prove what GEO brings: the metrics, the tracking and the tools.
GEO metrics and KPIs
Visibility rate, share of voice, citations: what to measure. Read the guides →
Make the business case
Show leadership what AI visibility is worth. Read the guides →
Track AI traffic in GA4
See visits and conversions from ChatGPT, Perplexity and co. Read the guides →
GEO tools
The tools that track your brand in AI answers, free tiers first. See the tools →
8. Apply it to your business
What changes for shops, software companies and local businesses.
E-commerce
Products in AI shopping answers and agentic commerce. Read the guides →
B2B and SaaS
Get on the AI shortlist when buyers research software. Read the guides →
Local and small business
Be the business AI recommends nearby. Read the guides →
9. GEO services and agencies
Want help? Learn how to pick a GEO agency that delivers.
Do it yourself or hire?
When in-house works, and when an agency pays off. Read the guides →
Choosing a GEO service
What a good GEO agency does — and how to tell. Read the guides →
Questions to ask
The questions that separate experts from rebranded SEO shops. Read the guides →
Pricing and red flags
What GEO services cost, and the promises to walk away from. Read the guides →
10. Keep up
GEO changes monthly. These keep you current.
Who to follow
The experts, newsletters and podcasts that keep you current. See who →
GEO courses
Free courses to go deeper. See the courses →