Glossary entry
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)
Also known as: GEO, Generative Search Optimization
The practice of structuring content, infrastructure, and brand signals so that LLM-based search systems surface, cite, and attribute the work in generated answers.
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the term that emerged in late 2023 — popularised by Aggarwal et al. (2024) — to describe the discipline of optimising content for generative search.
GEO is distinct from but overlaps with:
- AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) — older term, broader scope (any answer-engine, including pre-LLM voice assistants)
- LLMO (Large Language Model Optimization) — narrower term, focused on model citation behaviour irrespective of search context
- SGE (Search Generative Experience) — Google-specific, refers to the AI Overviews feature
See: What is GEO? for a full primer.