Are you familiar with the term “Generative Engine Optimisation,” or GEO? Although relatively new, this acronym might just become 2025’s biggest marketing buzzword.
Search engine optimisation is no longer just about ranking on Google's first page. The rise of artificial intelligence, particularly AI-generated search results, has completely changed how users find information. And with it, comes a new approach to content marketing called Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO).
What is Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)?
In simple terms, Generative Engine Optimisation is about making your content visible to AI-powered search engines. While traditional SEO focuses on getting your web pages to rank on Google and Bing, GEO is all about making sure your content is picked up, citied and summarised by platforms like Google’s AI Overviews, Chat GPT and Gemini.
You’ve probably already seen it in action. When you search a question, Google now delivers an AI-generated summary before any traditional listings appear. These summaries pull from a mixture of high-quality, trustworthy sources, and that’s exactly where your content should be, in what's known as “position zero”.
How does GEO work?
Although GEO and SEO may sound like competing strategies, they share quite a few similarities, while also having important differences.
Both GEO and SEO are designed to help users find the best answer to their queries. They value well-written, accurate content that follows E-E-A-T principles (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness). They also both require staying on top of data trends, keyword usage, and technical aspects like mobile friendliness and site speed.
However, the way they deliver information is different. SEO relies on ranking your content in organic listings, while GEO aims to summarise answers from multiple sources. And while you can track SEO performance through search engine rankings and keyword traffic, GEO success is measured by being cited in AI-generated search results.
This means we need to adapt content not just for search engines, but for how language models learn, summarise and share information.
How to optimise for GEO
Want to know how to rank in AI search results? Here’s where to start:
1. Start with strong SEO
To appear in AI-generated summaries, you need to start showing up in Google Search Results. AI tools like Chat GPT and Gemini still crawl the web like Google does, so a solid SEO strategy and a strong performing website is still your foundation. And if your content isn’t optimised or visible in traditional search, it will be far less likely to be seen by an AI model.
2. Research the competition
Just as you would with SEO, look at what your competitors are doing. Type common queries into tools like Chat GPT and take note of who is being cited. Look at how they answer questions, structure their content, and what sources they link to. Then, apply those learnings into your own strategy.
3. Target AI overview results
Generative engines love concise, well-structured jargon-free answers. They’re more likely to reference content that answers a question directly, explains a process step-by-step, or offers a fresh insight. Authority matters too as the more reputable your website looks to both people and search engines, the more likely it is to show up in generative responses. That means investing in digital PR, creating shareable content that’s regularly updated, building backlinks and collecting testimonials that give your business credibility.
The future of GEO in new homes marketing
From the first online search to booking a show home visit and reserving a new home, there are now more touch points than ever. GEO gives new build developers a new way to capture attention in the early research stages, when AI is summarising answers and offering helpful advice.
If your content is clear, helpful and ticks all the right boxes, you stand a good chance of being featured in AI-generated responses. That could put your brand in front of potential buyers, before they even realise they’re house hunting.
GEO and SEO support from MMS Marketing
From SEO to content marketing, we’re combining traditional tactics with new techniques to make sure you’re not just keeping up in organic search but leading the way.
If you’re a housebuilder looking to future-proof your digital marketing, we’d love to chat. You can get in touch with our new homes SEO experts here
