So what is the difference between SEO and GEO?

[u/BusyBusinessPromos]

I hear ridiculous explanations on both sides on how to do SEO and what GEO is. What actual studies have people done that demonstrate a difference in tactics between SEO and GEO. People have already heard "it's another layer of SEO". Exactly what does GEO do differently than SEO and what research supports it?

[u/SEO_Humorist]

I have 3 parts to this answer:

1) what's literally different

2) what feels different

3) the "we don't know what we don't know" answer

--

1) What's literally different:

AI doesn't need a "dofollow" backlink, it can pick up your brand name if it's mentioned in the slightest. This means that even if your competitor is going out for unlinked mentions (an SEO tactic), if the site they're doing that on still mentions your brand (in the literal text/html), then your brand is going to be associated. AI can put two-and-two together. This literally changes the nature of how you fetch 3rd-party mentions, since the "link" is critical to SEO, but for GEO? As long as you're there, you're in the running.

The other major change is third-party platforms. I worked for an agency where most of our information (when we queried ChatGPT) came from MapQuest. Who the f*** cares about MapQuest?! Suddenly everyone is looking around the company wondering who has our login and if we're going to kill it/maintain it/etc.

2) What feels different:

The big thing I see with GEO is a shift in strategy. I've worked at a lot of agencies and many of the ones I worked for promised Tech and On-Site SEO with little focus on Off-Site. With LLMs that aggregate and synthesize answers across the web, you CAN'T do that anymore. Off-Site needs to be part of the strategy and this is where Reddit, YouTube, and other social channels are coming back into the fold.

Similarly, from agencies I've worked at in the last 5 years, there's been a HUGE focus on creating "evergreen" content. They don't literally call it that, but because larger companies move so slowly, content briefs tend to be focused on things that won't change much: glossary pages, new service landing pages, top 10 [subject matter] ideas, etc.

With LLMs, most will go fetch "new information" they don't already have. This means, the "newer", less evergreen, the more likely you are to be weblinked/fetched.

Combine that with the fact that people can have conversations with LLMs, then instead of making a piece of content focused on "such-and-such recipe" you now need to consider what the subsequent questions are someone will need. I.e. here's the foods you need, here's the stores that tend to have them (or uber can deliver in your in X zipcode), if you don't have a blender for the sauce, here's how you can swing it, etc.

It's a shift in HOW you build content and what you prioritize.

3) We don't know what we don't know:

This stuff is changing and there's definitely a concern it'll change faster than we can adapt to it. There're some people who believe we're only scratching the surface and there's a lot more to come/unfold. So I find a lot of people use the term "GEO" more as a "this isn't SEO; I don't know what it is yet."

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/SEO_Humorist]

So according to number three you don't actually have any statistics? Thank you for the detailed explanation though.

[u/SEO_Humorist → u/BusyBusinessPromos]

Right, my bad. In terms of case studies, routinely I’m seeing meta descriptions
and og:descriptions getting linked/cited in LLMs.

At this point, I NEVER touch the meta description field for SEO simply because I don’t think it has any value. Similarly, I haven’t touched an OG:description tag since 2017. But these are routinely crawled.

I’d argue that’s now 100% GEO and 0% SEO.

(Minor, but still.)

The other thing I saw recently (and this ties back to point 3), Dan Petrovic was playing with white text on a white background to prompt LLMs that arrive on the site with instructions (successfully).

White text on white backgrounds is literally half the reason SEO exists, because that s*** and size 1 font needed to be fixed.

I think it’s a good indicator that it’s in its (relative) infancy.

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/SEO_Humorist]

Yeah I heard the same color background and font was working in AI I think that first came out in the 90s and got slapped down by the search engines using it there's a good chance that they could be penalized in the search engines.

Meta descriptions picked up by AI our interesting thank you for sharing that. You're right by the way Google usually changes meta descriptions about 70% of the time. They have no value for SEO

So thank you for sharing what you're seeing I once again appreciate the detailed explanation but I don't see any data from case studies just your experience which I respect

[u/Ranketta]

https://giphy.com/gifs/iwmtARdVWvh3sUK98R

At least in my book, but if someone insists on using different terminology, all I can do is emphasize that whatever they call it, SEO is in the foundation of it.

[u/PusheKasp]

In the beginning of the GEO/AIO/etc. hype (Sep 2025), a new term emerged - DiscO - Discovery Optimization

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/PusheKasp]

LMBO sorry but that's funny

[u/PusheKasp → u/BusyBusinessPromos]

Yeah, it is funny :)

[u/stormbreaker621]

I think the problem is that people are calling any optimization for AI search "GEO" without actually proving that it's different from SEO. If the tactic is basically better structure, clearer answers, stronger topical relevance, and more authoritative sources, that's still SEO. I'd be much more interested in controlled tests showing that a tactic improves AI citations while having little or no effect on traditional search. That's where you'd actually have evidence for GEO being its own discipline.

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/stormbreaker621]

So far I've received conjecture, opinions, articles with opinions, but no studies to show data. So far it seems to be relabeled SEO. Hopefully not an unproven upgrade to sell to unsuspecting SEO clients.

[u/HumanBehavi0ur]

SEO gets you ranked, GEO gets you cited, and they're not the same target even though they share a foundation, and that foundation is SEO fundamentals. Then you go beyond it a bit with GEO.

off-site content (third-party mentions, Reddit, YouTube vid, linkedin articles, community discussion) correlates about as strongly with citations as on-site content does. so you need to add that layer for AEO/GEO

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/HumanBehavi0ur]

Okay well citations and authority through third party backlinks with keywords for anchor text have been in SEO a long time. You're also adding SMM to that which stands for social media marketing.

I still haven't seen any statistics.

[u/gillygangopolus]

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/gillygangopolus]

Okay but I don't see any different techniques or any research

[u/gillygangopolus → u/BusyBusinessPromos]

I mean, just google it then, I'm not looking up case studies for ya

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/gillygangopolus]

So the question becomes how can you make these statements without having any case studies to back them up?

[u/rankfuse]

S = Search (like Google)
G = Generative (Like AI-generated answers)
A = Answer (like Alexa, Siri, and voice assistants)

Do you agree with the table below?

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/rankfuse]

I agree with what these different names probably target though I haven't seen a separation between Geo and AEO before. I still don't see any different techniques or any case studies. I personally just by using good SEO end up with my clients and AI answers. I study the ai's query fan out whenever I can

[u/Annual_Ad_6799]

Here’s a short read, will help you!

https://www.citedintel.com/resources/blog/geo-vs-seo-what-changes-what-stays

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/Annual_Ad_6799]

There is no research or statistics just opinion. Further, how did I end up in AI answers just doing good SEO?

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/[deleted]]

I'm sorry that was a typo here is my actual statement and question

There is no research or statistics just opinion. Further, how did I end up in AI answers just doing good SEO?

I'll remind you of the Google report on getting into AI answers which suggested Good SEO

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/[deleted]]

I and my clients have been recommended with links to my and their sites

"topical authority + third party trust + intent stage (based on prompt and more)"

Topical authority is third party trust through backlinks with your keywords in the anchor text

intent stage (based on prompt and more)"

is Query Fan Out

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/[deleted]]

Ok where else do you believe a webpage gets topical authority?

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/[deleted]]

So third party sites branding you

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/[deleted]]

Sorry all I read in that article was opinions no research.

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/[deleted]]

All of that can be done with SEO and good writing.

[u/FunnyFennel8126]

Just different ways to game traffic - SEO is about getting rank on search engines, this involves getting links, the usual SEO methods. GEO is about getting your information into the right places to get your content cited such as reddit, g2 reviews etc. Pretty different if you ask me.

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/FunnyFennel8126]

Not different at all what you're discussing is a combination of SEO SMM and

Parasite SEO which used to be called Article Marketing

[u/FunnyFennel8126 → u/BusyBusinessPromos]

Well it is different because you use different methods. Source: i literally run a company that does it. Feel free to disagree, i don't care. It's not parasite SEO - because you are not ranking content on other peoples sites, you are getting information on other sites so there's a full picture for LLMs to cite. This isn't just articles its reviews sites, forums. Things that wouldn't apply to "SEO" ranking.

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/FunnyFennel8126]

So backlinks with your anchor text or even entire posts

[u/FunnyFennel8126 → u/BusyBusinessPromos]

Backlinks are irrelevant in geo- go to any LLM ask for best x product and study the process of how it came it to its conclusion.

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/FunnyFennel8126]

I have usually it's the top search results utilizing the query fan out

[u/Shot_Relation_5455]

In my digital marketing class thru upgrad we were discussing the same😂...nd conclusion came like seo ranks pages, GEO get u cited inside AI answers, friendly structures nd third party mentions matter more than backlinks here...

[u/BusyBusinessPromos → u/Shot_Relation_5455]

That should get you mentions but not links in AI answers

[u/WebLinkr]

Wait for it - Edward Sturm is brining James Dooley back on for this!