AEO/GEO vs. SEO: Differences, Overlaps, and What Works in 2024

TechAEO/GEO vs. SEO: What’s Different, What Overlaps, and What Actually Works

TL;DR

AEO and GEO are optimizing for AI and generative engines rather than traditional search; they share foundational SEO principles but require different KPIs, with success depending on brand authority, authentic mentions, and original research rather than rankings alone.

Key Takeaways

1SEO, AEO, and GEO share the same foundational principles but differ in metrics—prioritize brand authority and citations over rankings as AI visibility becomes critical
2Discovery is fragmented across Google, LLMs (ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude), social platforms, and community forums; you must optimize for all major platforms where customers search
3AI traffic currently represents only 1–2% of total traffic but converts 4.5% higher than Google traffic, making early adoption essential for competitive advantage
4Original research, unique content perspectives, and authentic third-party mentions drive AI visibility far more than backlinks or keyword density
5Avoid mass AI-generated content and low-quality bulk publishing—they initially spike traffic but tank within 6 months and harm your site's trust with algorithms
6Redefine success metrics: track brand search growth, AI citation visibility, and revenue instead of vanity KPIs like traffic and rankings
7Build a 90-day action plan: audit AI visibility, create original research content, then amplify through PR and community engagement using a unified cross-functional strategy

Notable Quotes

“You want to optimize to be the cited brand. That's the way to grow your revenue in today's world. Even with less traffic.”
— Neil Patel

“Ranking on ChatGPT is pretty much the new form of ranking on Google. It doesn't mean that it's replaced it. It's more so that rank on ChatGPT is climbing at extremely fast pace, which means it's becoming more and more competitive.”
— Neil Patel

“The things that work the best also require the most amount of effort. It's not easy, but it's a lot easier to do now than it will be to do in the future because one of the big advantages you have is most brands are stuck with analysis paralysis. Just moving and doing work now will put you so far ahead it'll be hard to dethrone you in the future.”
— Luke

“If your team is small and you can only focus on one thing: build some content first, then spend the same—use the same team, amplify that content, spend twice as long amplifying it than you did to build it.”
— Luke

Chapters

1. The Discovery Shift: Search Is Everywhere

Discovery no longer happens only on Google; it's fragmented across LLMs (ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude), social platforms (Instagram 6.5B daily searches, TikTok 1B+, YouTube 3.3B), Reddit, community forums, and podcasts. 60% of searches end without a click, and AI overviews reduce organic clickthrough by 58%. The definition of SEO must evolve to 'Search Everywhere Optimization.'

2. Understanding SEO, AEO, and GEO

SEO optimizes for traditional search engines; AEO optimizes to become the answer; GEO optimizes to be cited by AI platforms. All three share foundational principles (quality content, site accessibility, trust, authority, user intent) but differ in KPIs. For AI, mentions and citations matter more than backlinks. JavaScript rendering impacts LLM visibility more than Google's.

3. What AI Engines Actually Prioritize

Trust, brand mentions, sentiment, and authority rank highest for AI visibility, followed by content quality and structure. AI ignores thin pages, mass-generated content, and weak entity associations. Original research, structured data, author credentials, and clear unique perspectives are critical. Avoid inauthentic mentions and focus on relevance over link quantity.

4. Common Mistakes and Myths

Don't overfocus on single tactics, seek inauthentic mentions, chase every keyword variation, or assume specific file formats matter. Avoid mass AI-generated content—it spikes briefly then tanks and damages long-term trust. Don't ignore sentiment and authority-building or rely solely on outdated KPIs like traffic and rankings.

5. What Actually Works Now

Focus on differentiated content with information gain and unique viewpoints. Publish original research and data-driven insights. Refresh existing content for freshness. Build brand authority through authentic third-party citations on Reddit, YouTube, community forums, and digital PR. Align content, technical SEO, and brand trustworthiness across three pillars: content narration, technical accessibility for AI, and off-site authority.

6. The Revenue Paradox: Less Traffic, Higher Conversion

Organic AI traffic is only 1–2% of total traffic but converts 4.5% higher because users research within AI platforms before visiting your site. They arrive pre-educated and ready to convert. Revenue can grow despite declining traffic because visitors are more qualified and intent-driven. Fewer clicks doesn't mean fewer opportunities.

7. Redefining KPIs for the AI Era

Stop tracking keyword rankings and vanity traffic metrics. Instead, measure brand search growth, share of visibility across platforms, AI citation visibility (with sentiment context), returning visitor growth, assisted conversions, and ultimately, revenue. Build dashboards top-down: start with business KPIs, then influence metrics, then foundation metrics like impressions.

8. The 90-Day Action Plan

Week 1–2: Audit AI visibility, identify citations vs. mentions, analyze declining CTRs, add entity clarity, and strengthen EAT signals. Days 15–45: Publish original research, refresh and refine content. Days 45–90: Amplify through PR, build authority strategy, and align SEO, content, and communications teams. Measure quantifiable changes in AI visibility by day 90.

9. Tools and Measurement Strategy

Use AI visibility tracking tools like Uber Suggest, Profound, and Bright Sonic. Measure share of voice, brand mentions in LLM responses, and sentiment context. Be wary of surface-level visibility percentages—understand what prompts you rank for and whether sentiment is positive. Track conversion quality and how off-site discovery influences on-site conversions.

10. Long-Term Strategy and Early Mover Advantage

Early adoption of GEO/AEO tactics compounds over time and creates defensible competitive moats. Short-term hacks (inauthentic mentions, unrelated third-party placements) backfire and risk future penalties. Think 3+ years ahead. The fastest-growing organizations combine paid, organic SEO, and AI visibility strategies holistically. Personal branding without a website is possible through LinkedIn, Reddit, YouTube, and social content—LLMs cite all platforms.

Key People & Entities

Neil Patel: Co-founder of NP Digital; digital marketer and author; leads webinar discussion on SEO, AEO, and GEO strategies
Luke Olirri: Senior Vice President of AMI (Agency Management Institute); focuses on future-proofing digital marketing strategies
Rob Tendulla: Director of SEO at NP Digital (United States); oversees SEO clients and advises on AI visibility and GEO strategies
NP Digital: Global performance marketing agency; won Performance Marketing Agency of the Year by Ad Age; specializes in GEO, AEO, SEO, and paid advertising
ChatGPT: OpenAI's large language model; major LLM platform for discovery and research; competitor to traditional Google search
Google: Dominant search engine; parent company Alphabet; introducing AI Overviews to traditional search results
Meta AI: Meta's AI assistant with 1B+ monthly active users; powers search on Instagram and Facebook
Gemini: Google's generative AI model; integrated into search and used for AI-powered answers

Glossary

AEO (Answer Engine Optimization): Optimizing content and brand presence to be recognized as the answer by AI language models and generative search engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude.
GEO (Generative Engine Optimization): Optimizing to be cited and recommended by AI platforms and generative engines; focuses on mentions and visibility rather than traditional ranking positions.
RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation): A process where LLMs retrieve and synthesize information from top-ranked web pages (essentially 'researching' via Google) before generating answers; equivalent to 'research and Google.'
Query Fanout: The semantic relationship between a head term (seed keyword) and related longtail variants; LLMs understand that a query relates to many similar terms and rank accordingly.
Zero-Click Behavior: When users find answers within AI platforms or search results without clicking through to a website; driven by AI overviews and LLM-generated responses.
Share of Visibility: A metric measuring how often your brand appears and is visible in AI responses and LLM mentions relative to competitors within your industry or topic space.
Entity: A distinct concept, product, person, or brand that AI systems recognize and relate contextually; strong entity associations improve AI visibility and citations.
EAT (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness): Core signals AI and Google use to evaluate content quality and brand credibility; critical for visibility in generative and traditional search.
Digital PR: Public relations focused on earning authentic mentions, citations, and coverage from digital-first publications, communities, and platforms to build brand equity for AI algorithms.
LLM (Large Language Model): AI systems like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity that generate human-like responses by synthesizing information from web data and training datasets.

Explore