What is GEO and how to appear in ChatGPT and Google's AI Overviews

GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) is the set of techniques that get a company cited and recommended inside the answers generated by AI assistants: ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot and Google's AI-powered answers (AI Overviews and AI Mode). If SEO is about ranking well in a list of links, GEO is about being the source the AI uses to build its answer. In this article we explain how it works, why in 2026 it already affects how any small or mid-sized business wins clients, and what you can do, step by step, to get started.

What exactly is GEO?

GEO is the natural evolution of search optimisation for a world where people no longer just "search" — they ask. The term became popular after a 2023 academic study that analysed how to increase the visibility of content inside the answers of generative models. The underlying idea is simple: when someone asks an assistant "which industrial maintenance company would you recommend in Girona?", the model consults sources, summarises the information and mentions a few of them. GEO works to make your company one of those sources and to make sure what is said about it is accurate.

It isn't magic or a technical trick: it's a combination of clear, verifiable content, structured data, brand authority and a website that AI crawlers can technically access.

Why are generative answers changing client acquisition in 2026?

Because a growing part of the buying journey now happens before the client ever reaches your website. Google shows AI-generated summaries above the classic results for many searches, and millions of people use conversational assistants to compare suppliers, ask for ballpark prices or prepare for a meeting. The result is that the client arrives with a shortlist already made.

• Fewer clicks, more decided in advance: many informational queries are resolved inside the answer itself, without visiting any website.
• Recommendation outweighs position: being mentioned as a recommended option is worth more than being the sixth link.
• The leads that arrive are better qualified: people who find you through an AI often already know what you do, where you are and roughly what it costs.

For a B2B company in Girona, on the Costa Brava or in Barcelona, this means something very specific: if your competitors appear in the answers and you don't, you're off the list before the client even knows you exist.

How do AI assistants choose which sources to cite?

Assistants with search combine two things: what the model already "knows" and what it retrieves in real time from a web index. When they retrieve, they prioritise sources that answer the question directly and reliably. In practice, a handful of factors keep coming up:

• Extractable clarity: pages with a clear definition at the top, question-style headings and concrete facts (ballpark prices, timelines, location) are far easier to cite.
• Entity consistency: the company's name, activity, address and services must match across the website, Google Business Profile, directories and social media. Contradictions erode trust.
• Third-party authority: mentions in local press, trade associations, clients linking to you, reviews. AI gives more weight to what others say about you than to what you say about yourself.
• Freshness: content with a visible update date and current information.
• Structured data: schema.org markup (Organization, LocalBusiness, Service, FAQPage) that helps machines understand who you are and what you offer.
• Technical access: if your robots.txt blocks AI crawlers, or if content only loads through heavy JavaScript, they may simply be unable to read you.

What's the difference between SEO and GEO?

GEO doesn't replace SEO: it builds on top of it. Without a crawlable, fast, well-indexed website, it's very hard for an AI to find you. The difference lies in the goal and in how it's measured:

• SEO: the goal is to rank well on Google for specific keywords and earn clicks. It's measured in rankings, impressions and organic traffic.
• GEO: the goal is to be cited and recommended inside generative answers to your clients' questions. It's measured by presence in answers, the tone of mentions and referral traffic from assistants.

That's why we recommend working on both together: our SEO service lays the technical and content foundations, and our AI search optimisation (GEO) service shapes them so they can be cited.

How can a small business start working on GEO, step by step?

You don't need a big budget to start. This is the order we follow with our clients:

1. Audit what AI answers today. Ask ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google the 15-20 questions a client of yours would ask ("best solar panel installer in the Empordà", "web design agency in Girona for industrial companies"). Note who appears, which sources are cited and what is said about you.
2. Fix your entity profile. Align name, address, phone, opening hours and description across your website, Google Business Profile, LinkedIn and industry directories.
3. Turn service pages into answers. Each service needs a clear definition in the first paragraph, who it's for, how it works, timelines and ballpark prices. If the information isn't there, the AI can't cite it.
4. Add real FAQs. The questions people ask you by phone or email, with short, concrete answers.
5. Implement structured data. Organization, LocalBusiness, Service and FAQPage, connected to each other.
6. Review crawler access. Check your robots.txt and decide consciously which AI bots may come in. Some websites also publish an llms.txt file, a proposal that isn't yet a standard, which summarises the site for language models.
7. Earn external mentions. Client case studies, articles in local media, involvement in trade associations and industry events.
8. Measure every month. Repeat the audit questions and check Google Analytics for traffic coming from domains such as chatgpt.com or perplexity.ai.

A practical example: an industrial company in Girona

Picture a machinery manufacturer in the Girona area with a decent website that is very visual and light on text. When we ask AI assistants about suppliers in its sector in Catalonia, three competitors show up and it doesn't. On review we find the usual pattern: product pages without technical descriptions, no ballpark prices or lead times, a PDF catalogue nobody indexes and a Google profile with the wrong business category. The actions are concrete: solution pages with specifications in plain text, FAQs by industry, structured data, a corrected profile and two case studies published with the clients' approval. It's content and housekeeping work, not tricks.

Which GEO mistakes should you avoid?

• Filling your site with generic AI-generated copy. If your content says the same as a thousand other websites, no model has any reason to cite you. What makes you citable is your own data and real experience.
• Blocking crawlers without realising it. It often happens with templates, firewalls or badly configured security plugins.
• Contradictory information. An old phone number in a directory or services you no longer offer confuse the models.
• Believing promises of "number one on ChatGPT". Generative answers vary with the question, the user and the moment. Nobody can guarantee a citation; what you can do is greatly increase the likelihood of appearing.

How long does it take to see results?

Technical and data fixes can show up within a few weeks, especially in assistants that search in real time. Building authority, on the other hand, takes months, just as with SEO. The good news is that in local markets and B2B niches competition is still low: many companies in the area don't even know what AI says about them. Starting now is a real advantage.

How can Somia Digital help?

We work on GEO for companies in Girona, the Costa Brava and Barcelona with a clear methodology: citability audit, answer-format content, structured data, crawler access and monthly tracking. You can see how we do it on our GEO service page. If you'd like to know what AI assistants say about your company today, tell us about your case or message us on WhatsApp: we'll do a first no-obligation review.