GEO vs SEO: how to get referenced on ChatGPT and AIs
GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) brings together actions that make your brand cited in the responses of ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude or Perplexity. SEO aims for a position in Google's results, GEO aims for a place in the AI-generated answer. The two complement each other: a well-referenced site remains the foundation, GEO adds work on the sources that models consult and on measuring your presence in their answers.
In brief
GEO relies on SEO: structured content, authority and technical aspects remain the foundation.
What's changing: AIs cite sources, they don't list links. You need to be present where they get their information.
The levers are played out on your site (content, FAQ, numerical data) and off it (media, comparisons, reviews).
AI visibility is measured: mention rate, share of voice, cited sources, traffic from AIs.
Why GEO is becoming a priority
Your prospects are increasingly asking their questions to an AI assistant before visiting a site. Gartner anticipated as early as 2024 a 25 % decrease in the volume of traditional search engines by 2026, in favour of chatbots and AI agents (Gartner).
The difference with Google lies in the format. A results page displays ten links. An AI answer often cites three or four brands, sometimes just one. To be absent from this answer is to not exist when the prospect forms their short list.
SEO and GEO: what remains common, what changes
Criterion
SEO
GEO
Objective
A position in Google results
A citation in the AI's answer
Unit of work
The keyword
The question asked (prompt) and its context
What matters
Relevance, authority, technical aspects
The same, plus presence in sources consulted by AI
Off your site
Backlinks
Mentions in media, comparisons, directories and reviews cited by AIs
Measurement
Positions, clicks, organic traffic
Mention rate, share of voice, cited sources, AI traffic
The right reflex: keep a solid SEO foundation, then extend it. Assistants that browse the web partly rely on search engine results. A poorly indexed page is therefore unlikely to be cited. That's why we treat both together in our SEO and GEO support.
How a LLM chooses the sources it cites
When an AI assistant responds with a web search, it selects a few pages, extracts passages, and writes a summary. The most frequently used content shares common points: a clear answer from the first few lines, verifiable facts, sourced figures, and an easy-to-break-down structure.
Academic research confirms this. The work of Princeton researchers who formalised GEO shows that content optimisations (source citations, statistics, clear formulations) can increase a source's visibility by up to 40 % in generative responses (KDD 2024, Princeton).
The other factor plays out off your site. If a sector comparison or a reference media outlet cites you, the AI is more likely to recommend you. This is one of the reasons why we ourselves publish comparisons on our markets, such as our ranking of SEO and GEO agencies.
The levers of AI referencing
On your site
Content that answers your buyers' questions, with a direct answer in the introduction.
Structured pages : explicit titles, short sections, FAQ, comparative tables.
Numerical and sourced data, ideally proprietary: client cases, studies, field feedback.
Clean technical aspects : indexing, structured data, loading time, authorised AI bot access.
Off your site
Media and comparisons that AIs cite in your sector.
The challenge is to know which sources carry weight in your market. This is the purpose of measurement.
Measuring your visibility in ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity
You can only manage well what you measure. At Galadrim, we track AI visibility in four steps.
Galadrim Method
Measure your AI visibility in 4 steps
List key queries that your buyers ask AIs: "best software for…", "alternative to…", "which agency for…".
Test them regularly on ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity. Our GEO tracking tool, developed by our engineers, queries the interfaces used by your prospects every day, rather than APIs, for results as close as possible to reality.
Map cited sources and identify subjects where no competitor is yet established.
Act then follow up : mention rate, share of voice against competitors, traffic from AIs in your analytics, and leads that declare an AI as a source.
Client cases: our results in GEO and SEO
Orki publishes a carbon footprint and life cycle analysis SaaS. During the initial audit, we tested 424 queries on four assistants. The brand appeared in only 8.7% of responses (9.4% on ChatGPT, 8.5% on Claude, Gemini and Perplexity), compared to 45% for Greenly and 41% for Sami.
We set up automated monitoring of over 600 queries each month, mapped cited sources, then produced targeted content each week on subjects where there was an open space. In four months, Orki increased to 43% of citations and established itself in the top 3 of AI recommendations for its target.
Puncto, a payroll software publisher, appeared in only 10% of Claude's responses to its key queries (payroll software, alternatives to Payfit, Silae or ADP). With daily monitoring of 27 queries on ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, and GEO actions driven month after month, its visibility on Claude doubled in two months.
Adrezio, a real estate platform for Overseas territories developed by Galadrim, illustrates the SEO foundation. The platform ranks 2nd for « immobilier département d’outre-mer », 5th for « immobilier outre-mer » and on the first page for « chercher maison outre-mer ». It currently gathers over 2,000 listings and has generated over 1,000 contacts.
Client
Sector
Leverage
Result
Orki
Carbon footprint SaaS
GEO
8.7% → 43% AI citations in 4 months, top 3 recommendations
Puncto
Payroll software
GEO
Visibility doubled on Claude in 2 months
Adrezio
Overseas Real Estate
SEO
2nd and 5th on its key queries, 1,000+ contacts
43 %
of AI citations for Orki in 4 months, compared to 8%
600+
queries analysed each month
x2
of visibility on Claude for Puncto in 2 months
4 key takeaways
SEO remains the foundation, GEO extends it to AI responses.
AIs cite sources : your site matters, what is said about you elsewhere also matters.
Clear, quantified and sourced content are more likely to be picked up.
AI visibility is measured and linked to your leads.
Conclusion
GEO extends SEO work to where your buyers now ask their questions. Brands that measure their AI visibility today take the still-available spots in the responses. To find out where yours stands, let's talk about it.
About Galadrim. Galadrim is a marketing 3.0 agency : dedicated marketing experts, supported by 150 AI, data, and tech engineers, official partners of OpenAI, Anthropic, and Salesforce. We manage your SEO, your Ads campaigns, your GEO and your AI automations, with one objective: your leads and sales.
FAQ
Should we abandon SEO for GEO?
No. GEO builds on SEO: assistants that search the web partly rely on search engines, and a well-indexed site remains a prerequisite. GEO adds work on external sources and monitoring of your presence in AI responses.
How long does it take to see results in GEO?
The first effects often appear within a few weeks for less contested queries. In competitive markets, allow several months: Orki reached 43% of citations in four months.
Can you pay to appear in ChatGPT's responses?
Advertising has existed in ChatGPT since 2026, but ads are displayed separately and marked as sponsored. According to OpenAI, they do not influence the responses. To be cited in the response itself, you need to go through GEO.
How do you know if your brand is cited by AIs?
By regularly testing your key queries on the main assistants and monitoring your mention rate against your competitors. Manual tests give an initial idea, while tool-based monitoring allows for long-term management.
Do you want support to launch your digital project?
