Glossary
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)
Generative engine optimization is the practice of shaping content, sources and entity data so generative AI engines retrieve it, quote it and attribute it when answering a user. The term was introduced in a 2024 research paper that tested which content changes raise a source's visibility inside generated answers.
In plain terms
Classic SEO tries to win a blue link on a results page. GEO tries to win a place inside the answer text an AI writes — the sentence that names you and the citation that links to you.
Why it matters for B2B
In an AI answer there is no page two. A handful of sources are quoted and the rest are invisible, so the practical question for a B2B brand is not where it ranks but whether the engine reaches for it at all when a buyer asks who to consider.
How to apply it
- Publish claims in a directly quotable form: a short answer first, evidence immediately after.
- Support statements with attributable sources, statistics and named quotations rather than unsourced assertion.
- Keep entity facts (who you are, what you sell, what you cost) consistent across your own site and third-party sources.
- Measure with a fixed prompt set so you can see whether retrieval and citation actually changed.
Sources
Related reading
Related terms
Back to the full glossary (25 terms).
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