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This article introduces GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), a discipline that complements SEO and consists of optimizing a website to be cited by AI search engines such as ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity. It explains why these tools don't work like Google, which types of content they favor, and why SME and mid-cap executives should act now. Norry offers structured support in three steps: AI visibility audit, content optimization and monthly results tracking.
When one of your future clients asks a question in ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity, the AI answers within seconds with recommendations, company names and specific references. In the vast majority of cases, your company isn't in there. It's not a question of reputation. It's a question of optimization, and most websites weren’t designed for this new environment.
A paradigm shift, not just another trend
Since 2022, the use of generative search engines has exploded. According to a Salesforce study published in 2024, 17% of professionals already use AI tools as their main source of information before a B2B purchasing decision. That figure rises to 41% among those under 40. Among 25-34 year-olds, ChatGPT is already used as often as Google for professional searches.
This isn’t anecdotal. It’s a structural shift in information-seeking behavior. And it’s accelerating.
For years, the central question was: “does my site appear on the first page of Google?”. Tomorrow, it will be: “is my company mentioned when an AI answers my customers?”. These two questions don’t have the same answers, or the same levers.
SEO vs GEO: two logics, two languages
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) consists of optimizing a website to appear in Google's results. It relies on hundreds of criteria: domain authority, keyword density, loading speed, backlinks. Google returns a list of links. The user chooses which one to click.
GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) works differently. Language models such as GPT-4o, Gemini 1.5 or Perplexity don’t return a list of links. They generate a written answer, built from thousands of sources they have read, analyzed and weighted. In this answer, they may mention brands, cite experts, recommend providers. Or mention nothing at all.
The fundamental difference: SEO works on visibility in an index. GEO works on credibility in the eyes of a model. These are two different targets, with different criteria.
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A concrete example
A purchasing manager is looking for a Webflow agency to redesign a corporate website. They type into ChatGPT: “which web agency specializing in Webflow should I choose in France for a B2B project?”
The AI will synthesize the information available on the web and generate a structured answer. It will mention agencies for which it found clear content, client testimonials, well-written case studies, and blog articles on the topic. An agency whose site is visually well designed but poor in structured content probably won’t appear. An agency that regularly writes about its craft, with clear positioning and detailed pages, has a good chance of being cited.
This is exactly where the battle for visibility is being fought in 2025 and beyond.
What AI reads, and why it cites some sources rather than others
Language models don’t choose their sources at random. Their citation logic follows identifiable principles, which GEO practitioners have started to map out. Here are the four main signals.
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1. Content clarity and structure
Language models prefer content that answers a question directly, with a logical structure: definition, explanation, example, conclusion. A page that opens with “We are a passionate creative agency” gives a model no usable information. A page that explains precisely what the agency does, for what types of clients, with what results, is far more useful.
In practice, this means: explicit page titles (“Webflow agency specializing in B2B website redesign” rather than “We create digital experiences”), short, dense paragraphs, structured lists, and clear definitions of technical terms.
2. Topical authority
A model assesses a source’s credibility by looking at whether it covers its subject in depth and consistently. A company that publishes regularly on the same field, from varied and complementary angles, will be considered a reference on that subject.
This is what we call “semantic coverage”: does your site cover your field comprehensively? Does it answer the questions your customers really ask, not just the questions you want them to ask?
Example: a Webflow agency that publishes articles on CMS structure, accessibility best practices, the differences between Webflow and WordPress, the redesign process and common mistakes will be far more likely to be cited than an agency whose site is limited to five static pages.
3. External trust signals
AI relies on what the rest of the web says about you. If media outlets, industry blogs, specialized directories, clients or partners mention your company and describe what you do, the model consolidates this information and assigns you higher credibility.
This is the GEO version of “link building” in SEO: not links to improve a domain score, but mentions to build a reputation that models can read. An interview in an industry outlet, a detailed client testimonial published externally, a case study referenced by a partner: all of this contributes to your AI share of voice.
4. Technical markup suited to LLMs
Beyond content, the way your site is technically structured plays a growing role. Several standards are emerging:
- The llms.txt file: like robots.txt for search engines, this file tells AI model crawlers which pages of your site are the most important to read and how to interpret your content.
- Schema.org markup: structured data that describes in machine language what you do, who you are, and which products or services you offer. A model that finds a well-filled Organization schema on your site has reliable, verifiable information.
- Structured FAQs: clear question-and-answer blocks, properly marked up, are ingested particularly well by models. They match exactly the question-and-answer format AI tries to generate.
- Complete metadata: title, description, author, publication date, category. The more context and dating a piece of content has, the more reliable it is considered.
Why act now and not in two years
The question we often hear: “We’ll see in a few years whether this trend really takes hold.” That’s a strategic mistake, for two reasons.
Usage is already here, and it’s growing fast
In January 2025, ChatGPT had more than 300 million weekly active users, up from 100 million two years earlier. Perplexity handles more than one billion queries per month. Google itself has built its “AI Overviews” into its search results: a generative summary now appears at the top of the page for millions of queries, even before the classic links.
This shift isn’t going to reverse. It’s going to amplify. AI tools are becoming more accurate, more reliable, and better integrated into professional workflows. Your customers’ search behavior is already changing.
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AI visibility is built over time
Like SEO, GEO doesn’t deliver immediate results. It depends on the quality and volume of published content, the consistency of positioning over time, and the mentions accumulated on other sources. A company that starts today is building a lead. A company that waits two years will have to catch up on two years of content published by its competitors.
To give an order of magnitude: in SEO, it takes an average of 6 to 12 months for well-optimized content to start generating significant organic traffic. In GEO, signals accumulate the same way. Every article published, every mention earned, every page properly structured helps build the representation that models have of your company.
What Norry offers in practice
We’ve designed a three-step GEO offer, applicable regardless of your industry and the maturity of your current digital presence.
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1. The AI visibility audit
The first step is diagnosis. We test how your brand is perceived by the main generative models in circulation: ChatGPT (GPT-4o), Gemini, Perplexity, and depending on the industry, Claude or Mistral.
Concretely, we formulate the questions your clients actually ask these tools, we observe whether your company is mentioned, how it's described, whether the information is correct, and what is said about your competitors. We measure your “AI Share of Voice”: the proportion of answers in which you appear across a set of target queries.
This audit results in a clear roadmap: which pages to optimize first, which content to create, which technical signals to put in place, which external mentions to go after.
2. Content and structure optimization
Once the diagnosis is in place, we take action on your site. This covers several levels:
- Rewriting key pages: homepage, “About” page, service pages. Each page must clearly answer at least one question your client asks before choosing a provider.
- Creating content with high semantic value: blog articles, practical guides, case studies. This content must cover the angles from which your expertise can be recognized by a model.
- Technical markup: setting up the llms.txt file, enriching schema.org data, structuring FAQs, completing metadata.
- Work on external signals: identifying mention opportunities (directories, media, partners), supporting the production of content cited by other sources.
3. Monthly tracking
AI visibility changes with model updates, new content published by your competitors and your own output. We provide monthly tracking that includes:
- A report on your AI Share of Voice across target queries, compared with the previous month.
- An analysis of new content opportunities identified from changes in generative answers.
- Recommendations for technical and editorial adjustments.
- A monthly strategy meeting to align our actions with your business goals.
The question is no longer whether to do it, but when.
GEO isn’t just another trend. It’s a fundamental change in how information circulates and how decisions are made. Companies that embraced SEO before everyone else built lasting positions for twenty years. There is no reason this cycle won’t repeat itself with GEO.
Your site may be excellent: well designed, well written, well ranked on Google. But the question that matters now is different: when your future client asks an AI a question about your industry, does your name appear in the answer?
If you don’t know, that’s already an answer in itself.
