Glossary — Fundamentals
Generative Engine Optimization/ じーいーおー
GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) refers to tactics for getting your company cited within the answers when someone asks generative AI such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini a question. It is easiest to think of it as the "AI-era version" of SEO.
For example, suppose someone asks ChatGPT, "What are some recommended B2B SaaS sales-enablement tools in Japan?". ChatGPT might respond:
The main options include Sales Cloud from Company X, , and .
It "cites" several companies in the answer.
Getting your company onto that "cited side" list is the goal of GEO.
Another example: a dental clinic working to be cited by AI for a query like "Which orthodontic clinics near Tokyo Station have good reputations?" is a typical GEO use case.
| Aspect | SEO (traditional) | GEO (new) |
|---|---|---|
| Goal | Top ranking in search results | Citation in AI answers |
| Targets | Google / Bing | Claude / ChatGPT / Gemini |
| Key metrics | Rank, CTR | Citation count, citation context |
| Main tactics | Link acquisition, on-page SEO | Structured data, llms.txt, FAQ |
A key caveat: top-ranking SEO sites are not automatically cited by AI. From GEO Meter's own observations, it is not uncommon for the #1 Google result to go uncited by AI.
The four main moves are:
llms.txt: Surface your key content to AI crawlersIn GEO Meter's Smoke analysis (2 topics x roughly 20 domains), the gap between top-cited and bottom-cited companies correlates strongly with implementation rates of these tactics.