Everyone is chasing "Generative Engine Optimization." Here’s why it’s a waste of time, and the on-page secret that actually works.
It is the hottest buzzword in every marketing meeting: GEO, or "Generative Engine Optimization." An entire industry of gurus and new platforms has emerged, all promising a secret playbook to get your brand featured in ChatGPT, Claude, and other AI models.
But what if the entire gold rush is a charade?
In a bombshell announcement that sent ripples through the industry, Benjamin Houy, founder of the GEO platform Lorelight, announced he was shutting it down.
His reason, detailed in a candid blog post, is a devastating blow to the new "GEO" hype. After building a tool that worked, he realized he had solved a problem that did not exist.
"I realized that probably should have been obvious from the start," Mr. Houy wrote. "There's no such thing as 'GEO strategy' separate from brand building."
After analyzing hundreds of AI responses, he uncovered the "secret" to getting mentioned by AI:
"Sound familiar?" he wrote. "It's the same stuff that's always worked for SEO, PR, and brand building... There's no shortcut. No hack."
This is not an isolated opinion. AI expert Britney Muller has been sounding the alarm for months, practically begging marketers to see the truth.
"Everyone's acting like optimizing for LLMs is an entirely new discipline that we need to do ASAP," Ms. Muller posted. "It's not."
She put it bluntly: The "GEO" industry is confusing two very simple mechanisms.
This is a pure "popularity contest." It means your brand is so widely discussed in authoritative places (the data the AI was trained on) that it is "baked into" the model's knowledge. It is 100 percent brand building.
This is the one everyone is selling tools for. But Ms. Muller revealed the simple truth:
"Every Single URL you see in an LLM output comes from a search engine API (Google or Bing)."
LLMs are not databases. They are using Google to find your content.
When you hear "GEO experts" discovering new "AI behavior patterns," they are just discovering SEO, five years late:
"You're not discovering AI behavior patterns," Ms. Muller wrote. "You're rediscovering SEO!"
So while half the industry is busy chasing a ghost, the other half is simply doubling down on what has always worked. The "secret" to GEO is that there is no secret.
You do not need a new "GEO tool." You need a blueprint for authority.
We found this image that perfectly illustrates the anatomy of a page built to win in this new era. This is the exact on-page setup that gets you ranked in Google and, as a result, cited by AI.
This is not an "AI hack." This is Google's E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) framework in action. If you want to get cited, your content must become the most authoritative, trustworthy, and citable result on the web.
Here is the only "GEO" playbook you will ever need:
Stop regurgitating what everyone else is saying. Become a primary source. Conduct your own studies, poll your audience, or present unique case data. This is an instant signal of expertise.
Do not hide behind a generic "Admin" or "Staff" byline. Google (and by extension, AI) needs to know who wrote your content and why they are an expert. A clear author byline with a bio is non-negotiable.
The image highlights "a timestamp with a last update date." This is crucial. It signals to search engines that your information is current, relevant, and trustworthy today.
Do not bury the lede. The "clear answer right from the start" (like a Key Takeaways box) is exactly what search engines look for to create featured snippets. AI models, which are built for answering questions, look for the same thing.
Make your information "structured and specific." Use clear headings (H2s, H3s), bullet points, and data visualizations. This makes your article easy for a human to scan and, more importantly, easy for a machine to parse and understand.
The game has not changed. The stakes just got higher. Stop investing in shortcuts and start investing in authority.