What is GEO? How to get ChatGPT & co. to recommend your business

“Which electrician in Cologne is good?” – more and more people no longer ask Google questions like this, but ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity. The answer isn't a list of ten links but a concrete recommendation. If you don't appear there, you're invisible to these customers. That's exactly where GEO comes in.

SEO and GEO: what's the difference?

Classic SEO makes sure your website ranks high in Google's search results. Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), often also called AEO (Answer Engine Optimisation), makes sure AI assistants understand and trust your content and mention your business in their answers. GEO doesn't replace SEO – it builds on it. If you're well positioned on Google, you also have better chances with AI assistants.

How AI assistants find their answers

AI assistants rely on two sources: their training knowledge and – for many questions – a live web search. For this, so-called crawlers read your website. Many of these AI crawlers don't run JavaScript: content that only loads in the browser is often invisible to them.

Seven measures for more AI visibility

1. 1

   Give clear answers

   Answer typical customer questions directly and clearly – ideally right at the start of a section.

2. 2

   Add FAQ sections

   Common questions with short answers are ideal for being quoted in AI answers.

3. 3

   Use structured data

   With Organization or LocalBusiness schema you tell machines who you are, what you offer and where you're located.

4. 4

   Build mentions

   Mentions in business directories, expert articles and comparison sites strengthen AI assistants' trust in your brand.

5. 5

   Allow AI crawlers

   Check your robots.txt: if crawlers like GPTBot or PerplexityBot are blocked, your content can't be considered.

6. 6

   Make content readable without JavaScript

   Important text should be in the HTML itself, not loaded later via JavaScript.

7. 7

   Create an llms.txt

   This new, voluntary file summarises your offer for AI assistants – few websites use it yet.

How do you measure AI visibility?

Unlike Google, there are no rankings you can simply read off. The most reliable method: regularly ask various AI assistants the questions your customers ask and check whether and how your business is mentioned. That's exactly what Rangsprung automates – every day, for ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude and Google's AI overview.