I remember when SEO was keyword stuffing. SEO writers crammed target phrases into paragraphs like clowns into a car. The content didn’t have to be useful; it just had to rank. The goal was to flood the search results, volume over value, with zero concern for keyword cannibalization. And in many corners of the internet, that approach still reigns.
Raise your hand if you remember when extra keywords would be added to pages but in white font color? What wild times we lived in.
But times are changing. Rapidly.
With the rise of generative AI integrated into traditional search engines and standalone platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini, we’re witnessing a radical shift. We're no longer just optimizing for Google’s old-school algorithm. We're optimizing for AI reasoning engines. Systems that synthesize, summarize, and serve insights, not just links.
SEO has become a bloated umbrella term, stretched thin across too many objectives. From technical audits to content strategy, UX to link-building, it’s asked to do too much. It’s no longer just about helping people find content. It’s about trying to do everything for everyone, and that has diluted its effectiveness.
At the same time, user behavior has changed. Searchers are no longer satisfied with a list of ten blue links. They want answers. They want synthesis. They want something closer to conversation. And that’s exactly what generative AI is providing.
Adding further evidence to this shift, a 2024 Bain & Company study found that 80% of consumers rely on zero-click search results (AI summaries) for at least 40% of their queries. In B2B sectors like software, this has contributed to a 30% drop in click-through rates, making it harder for marketers to influence purchase decisions early in the buyer’s journey.
In B2B sectors like software, this has contributed to a 30% drop in click-through rates, making it harder for marketers to influence purchase decisions early in the buyer’s journey.
— JUNE ALEXANDER | DIRECTOR, CONTENT
This behavior underscores the move away from traditional search patterns and highlights the growing demand for immediate, self-contained answers. As users become more accustomed to generative AI summarizing and answering queries directly, the need for strategies like Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) becomes not just relevant but essential.
Some call it AEO (Answer Engine Optimization). Others try ASO (AI Search Optimization). These acronyms reflect the industry’s scramble to define what’s next, but they don’t quite capture the strategic transformation we’re undergoing. I reluctantly champion GEO. Not because the acronym is beautiful, but because it feels right. It points directly to what we’re optimizing for: generative platforms that now act as both search engines and content distributors.
Meanwhile, traditional engines like Google and Bing are embedding generative AI into the core of the search experience. This integration is transforming how information is displayed, interpreted, and delivered. The results are more dynamic, contextual, and personalized than ever before.
GEO deserves its own identity because it plays by different rules. It's about creating content that feeds AI models with context-rich, structured, and citation-worthy information. It's not just about being found. It's about being included in an answer.
I champion GEO because the industry needs clarity.
Too many marketers are chasing tactics designed for yesterday’s search environment, not tomorrow’s discovery ecosystem.
— JUNE ALEXANDER | DIRECTOR, CONTENT
Too many marketers are chasing tactics designed for yesterday’s search environment, not tomorrow’s discovery ecosystem. GEO helps us focus on intent and format instead of obsessing over rankings and click-through rates. It encourages us to build content that’s not only relevant and built to be cited. That evolution, from being found to being used, will define the next generation of digital visibility.
GEO fits hand-in-glove with zero-click marketing, but it demands a different kind of strategy. Instead of luring users to your site, the goal is to make your expertise unavoidable wherever discovery happens. In an environment where AI-generated summaries are often the user's final stop, value must be delivered within the search result itself.
Rather than baiting for clicks, GEO prioritizes creating content that AI systems view as authoritative, verifiable, and irreplaceable. The aim is not just visibility; it's participation in the answer itself. Your ideas need to travel farther than your URLs, embedding themselves directly into the knowledge graph powering generative engines. Picture a university FAQ being cited in a Gemini response, or a nonprofit’s research summarized by Perplexity—those are the new signals of authority.
But what does that really look like? It means stepping back from the constant grind of tactical checklists and asking harder questions about what your brand actually offers. It means building marketing strategies that prioritize credibility, contribution, and conversation over just conversion. It demands letting go of outdated vanity metrics and investing in ideas that are strong enough to stand on their own, even outside your website walls.
We are moving into a world where conversation is king. Where the best marketing doesn't just find audiences, it becomes part of their thinking. That just saved you a few bucks in therapy. You’re welcome.
So what does embracing GEO actually involve?
We should allow this evolution to happen. In fact, we should name it. Not because we need more acronyms, but because SEO has become too bloated to hold everything we’re trying to do with it. It’s tired. It’s carrying too many strategies, too many use cases, too many KPIs.
Let’s give it a break.
GEO marks a strategic and philosophical turning point. It’s not just an update. It’s a reorientation. One that requires precision, adaptability, and human plus machine collaboration. One where rankings are replaced by recommendations. Where content isn't just discovered—it’s directly cited.
That’s the future.
And it’s time we started optimizing for it—with intention, not inertia. Because the next phase of visibility won’t go to the loudest voice, but to the clearest, most useful one. Your relevance won’t be measured by clicks, but by whether your insight shows up in the answers people trust.
Ready to rethink your strategy for a world where AI decides what gets seen, shared, and cited? Yes& Beacon can help you lead, not just adapt, in the era of Generative Engine Optimization. From developing content ecosystems that feed AI engines to crafting narratives that earn citations instead of clicks, we’re here to guide you into the next frontier of visibility.
Let’s make your brand the one AI can’t ignore. Get in touch to start building your GEO strategy.