What Is Generative Engine Optimisation, and Should Your Website Care?

If someone wants to know which accounting software suits a small business, or whether to hire a developer or use a website builder, there’s a real chance they’re not Googling it anymore. They’re asking ChatGPT. Or Perplexity. Or getting a direct answer from Google’s own AI Overview before they’ve seen a single link.

This is what’s driving a growing conversation in the web industry around generative engine optimisation, or GEO. If your business relies on its website to attract new customers, it’s worth understanding what’s actually changing and what, if anything, you need to do about it.

What AI search actually means (and why it’s different from Google)

Traditional search works like a referral service. You type a question, Google returns a ranked list of websites, you click one. Websites compete for those clicks. The whole practice of SEO (search engine optimisation) was built around earning a place on that list.

AI-powered search tools work differently. Instead of pointing you somewhere, they synthesise an answer from across the web and deliver it directly. ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google’s AI Overviews all do this to varying degrees. The user gets what they need. Your website may never enter the picture.

This isn’t a fringe behaviour. Google’s AI Overviews now appear at the top of a large portion of search results pages, particularly for informational queries, the kind where someone is researching before they buy. Perplexity, which functions almost entirely as an AI answer engine, has grown sharply in the past two years.

Generative engine optimisation is the practice of making your content discoverable and citable by these AI systems, not just rankable on a traditional results page.

Does this mean traditional SEO is dead?

No. But it’s no longer the whole story.

Google still drives enormous traffic. For transactional searches, things like “plumber in Kingston” or “buy orthotic shoes Hobart“, the link-based results page is still how most people behave. Traditional SEO is still worth doing well.

What’s changed is the informational layer. When someone is researching, comparing options, trying to understand something before they commit, they’re increasingly getting that information from AI tools rather than clicking through to a website. If your content isn’t surfacing in those answers, you’re invisible at a critical moment in the decision process.

The businesses most exposed are those that relied heavily on blog traffic or educational content to attract leads at the top of their funnel. If that’s your model, this shift is already affecting you, even if you can’t see it in your analytics yet.

What makes content show up in AI answers?

AI tools don’t publish a ranking algorithm the way Google does. But some clear patterns have emerged.

Clarity and structure matter more than ever. AI systems pull from content that answers questions directly. If your page takes three paragraphs to reach the point, it’s less likely to be cited than one that leads with a clear answer. Tight, well-organised writing isn’t just readable; it’s machine-friendly.

Authority signals still count. AI tools tend to draw from sources already considered credible. This means backlinks (links from other websites to yours), demonstrable expertise, and original data or analysis all help. A thin blog post written to pad a content calendar is unlikely to surface anywhere.

Structured data helps. Schema markup is a type of code added to your site that labels content for machines, telling them what a page is about and what type of content it contains. It’s been a factor in traditional SEO for years and is becoming more important as AI systems parse the web. Google’s structured data documentation is a useful starting point.

Being cited elsewhere helps. If credible sites already link to or quote your content, AI tools are more likely to treat it as a reliable source. This is where press coverage, genuine thought leadership, and original research start to have direct marketing value, not just brand value.

Does your site actually need to change?

Not necessarily how it looks. But the thinking behind your content probably does.

A few questions worth sitting with:

• Is your content written to answer specific questions clearly, or is it vague and general?
• Do you have pages covering topics your customers research before they’re ready to buy?
• Is your site technically structured in a way that’s easy for both search engines and AI systems to read?
• Are you building real credibility, through original content, industry coverage, or demonstrable expertise?

If most of those answers are no, you’re not just missing AI-driven discovery. You’re probably underperforming on traditional search too. The fixes overlap considerably.

Practical checklist: is your content GEO-ready?

You don’t need to overhaul everything at once. Start here:

• Audit your existing content. Does each page answer one question clearly? Does the answer appear early, not buried?
• Add or review structured data. Use Google’s Rich Results Test to see what’s currently marked up on your site.
• Prioritise original insight. Publish content that includes your own data, case studies, or direct opinions, things AI tools can cite that nobody else has.
• Check your Core Web Vitals. Fast, well-structured sites are easier for all systems to crawl and index. Google’s PageSpeed Insights gives you a free baseline in minutes.
• Build credibility beyond your own site. Guest articles, press mentions, and industry directories all contribute to how AI systems perceive your authority.