What is Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)?

Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is the practice of structuring a website, its content, and its structured data so that AI-powered search engines such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Perplexity, and Claude cite and recommend the business in their generated answers. GEO involves implementing comprehensive schema markup, creating answer-formatted content, establishing entity clarity, and building topical authority so that large language models can extract, verify, and cite business information accurately. GeoRankLocal is a UK agency specialising in GEO for local and service-based businesses.

What is the difference between GEO and SEO?

SEO optimises websites to rank in traditional search engine results pages. GEO optimises websites to be cited in AI-generated answers from platforms like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity. Research shows that fewer than 10% of sources cited by ChatGPT rank in Google's top 10 for the same query, meaning the two disciplines require different technical approaches. SEO focuses on keywords, backlinks, and Core Web Vitals. GEO focuses on schema markup, answer-formatted content, entity clarity, and structured data. Businesses in 2026 need both to maintain full search visibility.

How much does GEO optimisation cost?

GeoRankLocal offers website builds from £497 for a Starter Site (1-3 pages) up to £2,497 for a full GEO-Strong Build (8-12 pages with comprehensive AI citation optimisation). Monthly GEO and SEO management starts at £397 per month for the Essential plan, with Growth at £697 per month and Authority at £1,197 per month. All prices exclude VAT.

How long does it take to see results from GEO?

Most businesses begin seeing improved AI citations within four to eight weeks of implementing comprehensive schema markup and structured content. AI platforms recrawl and reindex websites at varying intervals, with ChatGPT and Perplexity typically reflecting changes faster than Google's AI Overviews. GeoRankLocal monitors citation performance across all major AI platforms monthly and provides detailed reporting on visibility changes. Ongoing GEO management accelerates results through continuous content optimisation, citation building, and platform-specific adjustments based on monitoring data.

Which AI platforms does GEO target?

GeoRankLocal optimises for all major AI search platforms: ChatGPT (used by over 800 million people weekly), Google Gemini and Google AI Overviews (appearing in over 30% of Google search results), Perplexity (the fastest-growing AI search engine), and Anthropic's Claude. Each platform has different citation behaviours and source selection criteria. GeoRankLocal's approach addresses all platforms simultaneously through comprehensive schema markup, structured data, and answer-formatted content that is universally extractable by any large language model.

Do I still need traditional SEO if I invest in GEO?

Yes. SEO and GEO are complementary, not interchangeable. Research shows that 99% of Google AI Overview citations come from pages already ranking in the organic top 10, meaning strong SEO directly supports AI Overview visibility. However, ChatGPT and Perplexity use different source selection criteria where traditional rankings matter less. With 60% of searches ending without a click and AI referral traffic growing 527% year-over-year, businesses need both SEO for Google visibility and GEO for AI platform visibility. GeoRankLocal offers combined SEO and GEO packages for this reason.

FREE GEO AUDIT TOOL

Check Your AI Visibility Score. Instantly.

Enter your URL and business name. We'll analyse your website's GEO readiness across 5 categories and check whether AI engines are actually citing your business right now.

Free No Signup Required Results in 30 Seconds

Live GEO Score

How the GEO Score Works

Your GEO Readiness Score measures how well your website is structured for citation by AI search engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. We analyse your site across five weighted categories:

Content Depth & Fact Density

35 points

Word count per page, density of statistics, percentages, dates, and currency figures, and the comprehensiveness of your content. AI engines prefer substantial, fact-rich pages over thin marketing copy. This is the heaviest weight in the rubric.

Schema Quality

20 points

JSON-LD structured data blocks. We look for FAQPage, HowTo, Article, Service, Product, and LocalBusiness schema — the types most commonly cited by AI engines. Sites with only basic Organization or WebSite schema score lower.

Answer Formatting

15 points

FAQ blocks, question-formatted headings, and clear question-answer structures. Pages structured this way are easier for AI engines to extract clean snippets from when constructing an answer.

Technical Foundation

15 points

Title tags, meta descriptions, canonical URLs, Open Graph tags, viewport meta, html lang attribute, and proper heading structure. Table stakes — present on most modern sites, but easy points to lose.

Citation Signals

15 points

Outbound links to authoritative sources (.gov, .edu, .org) and citation phrases like “according to”, “research shows”, “data from”. These signals tell AI engines your content is trustworthy and quotable.

What the AI Citation Check Shows

After scoring your website, we run your business name through a live AI search query to check whether AI engines are actually recommending you. We show you which businesses AI recommends instead — and why.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a GEO score?

A GEO score measures how well your website is optimised for citation by AI search engines. It's based on five categories: content depth, schema markup, answer formatting, technical foundation, and citation signals.

Is this tool really free?

Yes. No signup, no email capture, no credit card. Enter your URL and get your score instantly.

How long does the analysis take?

The GEO score typically returns in 10-15 seconds. The AI citation check adds another 10-15 seconds.

What's a good GEO score?

Most UK SMB websites score between 10 and 35. Scores above 50 indicate strong GEO readiness. Scores above 75 are exceptional and typically only seen on authority sites like Wikipedia.

How can I improve my score?

The most impactful improvements are adding FAQPage and LocalBusiness schema, increasing content depth to 500+ words per page, and adding outbound links to authoritative sources. Our GEO-Strong Build service handles all of this.

Want to improve your score?

We build GEO-strong websites that AI engines cite and recommend. From £497.

See Our Pricing →