Generative Engine Optimisation: Be Included When AI Search Summarises Your Topic
When someone searches a question in Google, an AI Overview may now appear above the familiar list of results. Perplexity, ChatGPT search and Google AI Mode work in a similar way: they read several sources and write one summary, with links to the pages they relied on. Generative engine optimisation, or GEO, is the work of making your content one of those sources.
This page is about inclusion in AI generated search summaries. If your concern is how AI assistants describe your brand, see LLM SEO. If you want to be selected as the single direct answer, see answer engine optimisation. For a full overview, visit the AI search hub.
Find out which of your important topics already trigger AI summaries, who is being cited and where your content is falling short.
When AI summaries replace the list of links
For many searches, people now read an AI generated summary before they see any organic results. Often they get what they need from the summary and move on. If your page is cited in that summary, you gain visibility at the very top of the page. If it is not, your well ranked page may sit below an answer built from your competitors’ content.
This creates a frustrating pattern for many organisations. Rankings look stable, yet clicks drift down, and nobody can say exactly why. The reason is often that the search results page has changed around them.
Signs that GEO deserves your attention include:
- Your key informational pages rank on page one but receive fewer clicks than before.
- AI Overviews appear for questions your customers ask, and cite other sites.
- Competitors with thinner expertise are linked inside AI summaries.
- Your content answers the main question but not the related questions people go on to ask.
GEO does not try to undo these changes. It helps you adapt to them, so your expertise is part of the summary rather than hidden beneath it.
What generative engine optimisation means
A generative engine is a search tool that writes an answer instead of only listing links. Generative engine optimisation is the practice of improving the chance that your content is selected, used and cited when those engines summarise a topic. The term was introduced in a 2023 research paper by Pranjal Aggarwal and colleagues, later accepted to the KDD 2024 conference, and is now widely used across the industry.
GEO differs from its neighbouring disciplines in what it measures:
| Discipline | Focus | Success looks like |
|---|---|---|
| GEO | Being included among the sources in a generated summary | Citations and links in AI Overviews, AI Mode, Perplexity and similar |
| LLM SEO | How AI assistants describe and recommend your brand | Accurate, positive brand descriptions |
| AEO | Being chosen as the one direct answer | Featured snippets and voice answers |
Traditional SEO asks “where do we rank?” GEO asks “are we part of the answer?” The two are closely linked, because generative engines usually draw from pages that already perform well in search.
How generative engines choose their sources
Google has explained how its own generative features work. According to Google Search Central, AI Overviews and AI Mode are rooted in Google’s core ranking and quality systems. They use retrieval augmented generation, also known as grounding, to fetch relevant and current pages from the search index. They also use query fan out, where the system runs several related searches to cover different angles of a question. To be eligible, a page must be indexed and able to appear in Google Search with a snippet.
Other generative engines differ in detail, but the logic is similar. That leads to some practical conclusions:
- Your page must already be crawlable, indexable and technically sound.
- Covering the related questions around a topic helps, because fan out searches look for them.
- Clear structure makes it easier for a system to find the passage that answers a specific point.
- Original insight and first hand experience give an engine a reason to cite you rather than a generic summary.
Google also notes what you do not need: no special AI text files, no breaking content into artificial chunks and no rewriting purely for machines. Good content for people remains the foundation.
Our GEO services
Our GEO services follow a structured approach, consistent with how we work across all projects.
Map the summaries that matter
We identify the questions your customers ask and check which ones trigger AI Overviews, AI Mode responses or Perplexity answers. For each, we record which sources are cited and how your content compares. This produces a prioritised list of topics where inclusion is realistic and valuable, rather than chasing every query.
Strengthen topical depth and structure
We then improve the pages that should be cited. That often means answering the follow up questions searchers ask, adding the specific detail and first hand experience that set you apart, and organising content with clear headings and logical flow. Our content for AI search and on page SEO work supports this step. We avoid producing large numbers of thin pages, which Google’s spam policies treat as scaled content abuse.
Reinforce technical and trust foundations
Finally, we make sure nothing technical stands in the way, from crawl access and indexing to page experience and site speed. We add accurate structured data through our schema and entity optimisation service, keep content current and strengthen the credibility signals that help an engine trust your page. Supporting technical SEO is often part of this phase.
Every site starts from a different place. Talk to Cathy about the topics you most want to own, and she will tell you where GEO is likely to help and where other work should come first.
GEO and Google AI Overviews
Google AI Overviews are the generative feature most New Zealand searchers encounter, simply because Google remains the most used search engine. For that reason, much of our GEO work focuses on them, alongside AI Mode.
The good news is that you can measure progress here more directly than in most AI tools. Google Search Console now includes a generative AI performance report, which shows how your content performs in Google’s generative AI features. We use it alongside your existing performance data to see which pages are gaining visibility and which need attention.
Practical points specific to AI Overviews include:
- A site must be included in Search generative AI features in Search Console to be eligible for display.
- Structured data is not required, but it remains useful for rich results and clarity.
- Local businesses and online stores should keep their Google Business Profile and Merchant Center details accurate, as Google says these can appear in AI responses.
For a dedicated plan around AI Overviews, including how to respond when they reduce clicks to important pages, see our page on Google AI Overviews optimisation.
Who GEO suits
GEO is most valuable where people ask informational or comparison questions before they buy, and where AI summaries now appear for those questions. That includes organisations that rely on helpful content to attract enquiries.
GEO tends to deliver the clearest value for:
- Professional and advisory firms whose guides and explainers once drove steady traffic.
- Health, finance and legal providers, where accurate, well sourced summaries matter.
- Ecommerce businesses, where AI summaries compare products and categories, supported by ecommerce SEO.
- Trades and local services, where AI Overviews increasingly answer cost and process questions, supported by local SEO.
- Education, tourism and community organisations that publish detailed information.
We serve organisations across New Zealand from our Auckland office, mostly through remote work and video calls, and work with international clients. If you are unsure whether AI summaries affect your market, an AI visibility audit will show you.
What to expect from GEO
Generative engines change often, and they do not publish exactly how they pick sources. No one can guarantee inclusion in Google AI Overviews or any other AI summary, and we do not guarantee rankings, traffic or AI citations.
What you can expect from us is careful, evidence based work. Net Branding Limited has worked in digital marketing since 2008, with online experience before that. Director Cathy Mellett oversees our AI search services. We follow official guidance, including Google Search Central and its spam policies, and we avoid tactics that could put your site at risk, such as mass produced pages or inauthentic mentions.
You will see a written scope and pricing approach before work begins, and regular reports that explain what changed and why. We track citations in AI summaries for your priority topics, performance in Search Console, and traffic and enquiries from search.
Read what clients say on our verified Google Business Profile.
Frequently asked questions
What is generative engine optimisation?
Generative engine optimisation, or GEO, is the practice of improving the chance that your content is included and cited when AI search tools such as Google AI Overviews, AI Mode and Perplexity write a summary in response to a search.
How is GEO different from SEO?
SEO aims to rank your pages in a list of results. GEO aims to have your content used as a source inside an AI generated summary. GEO builds on SEO, because generative engines usually draw from pages that already perform well.
How is GEO different from LLM SEO and AEO?
GEO is about inclusion in generated search summaries. LLM SEO is about how AI assistants describe your brand. AEO is about being selected as the single direct answer.
Can you guarantee inclusion in Google AI Overviews?
No. No ethical agency can guarantee inclusion in AI generated results. We focus on the factors that consistently improve visibility over time.
Do I need an llms.txt file for GEO?
Not for Google. Google Search Central states that Google Search does not use llms.txt or other special AI files. We focus on content quality, structure and technical health instead.
How do you measure AI search visibility?
We use Google Search Console’s generative AI performance report, repeat checks of AI summaries for your priority topics, and search traffic and enquiries in your analytics.
If you would like costs before deciding, ask for a GEO quote covering topic mapping, page improvements and reporting, with each inclusion listed in writing.
Net Branding Limited, 165 Orakei Road, Remuera, Auckland, New Zealand. Phone 09 523 0478. Email cathy@seocompanynz.com.