Search is undergoing one of its biggest shifts in years. Online brand visibility was once defined almost entirely by Google. You optimised your website, built backlinks and created search-friendly content to climb the rankings. Today, search is starting to look very different. Increasingly, people are turning to generative AI search tools like ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini to ask questions, explore ideas and research companies.
This emerging behaviour is giving rise to a new but still undefined practice: Generative Engine Optimisation, or GEO. It’s far too early to call it a distinct discipline within digital marketing but it’s already being discussed and self-proclaimed ‘experts’ are starting to dominate the conversation. As a result, it’s prompting ambitious brands to think differently about how they show up in a world where AI search engines summarise information for their users rather than send them to a website.
In this article, Luminous PR Founder and CEO Kirsty Jarvis shares our GEO insights on how the right PR strategy can help brands to get found by LLMs.
What is Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)?
At its simplest, Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) describes the signals that help generative AI surface content and answer queries. These tools draw on vast amounts of publicly available digital content – earned media, websites, thought leadership, social profiles, encyclopaedias, funding announcements and reference sites – to provide the answers their users are looking for. And, unsurprisingly, savvy brands want to appear in those answers.
Although the mechanics of Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT are opaque, one pattern is starting to become clear: when someone searches for insight via AI, the model prioritises brands that demonstrate authority, originality and credibility across the web.
How Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) differs from Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
Modern SEO covers both technical optimisation and authority-building activities such as earning high-quality backlinks. These act as clear, measurable signals for search engines. Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines push this even further by rewarding content that demonstrates real experience, expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness. In many ways, this mirrors how earned media works in PR: reputable third parties validate a brand’s credibility, while strong thought leadership shows genuine subject-matter expertise.
The difference is that SEO operates with well-understood (if shifting) parameters, whereas GEO is still emerging and far less defined. Generative engines do not disclose how they weigh evidence or which sources they prioritise. Early indications suggest they look at the overall strength of a brand’s digital presence rather than any single metric. That is why credible earned media, authoritative written content and clear, consistent messaging appear to carry weight, even though the underlying mechanisms remain opaque.
The role of PR in Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)
Although AI is evolving quickly, most generative engines still rely primarily on written content when forming their answers. Some models can interpret images or summarise videos when transcripts or structured metadata are available, but this is not yet a universal or reliable capability.
This places renewed emphasis on written authority, including earned media, founder profiles, thought leadership and clearly articulated website content. These formats remain the most accessible, machine-readable evidence of a brand’s credibility.
And that’s where PR becomes key to GEO. As with SEO, earned media provides external validation of a brand’s credibility and makes that credibility machine-readable. High-quality thought leadership, clear messaging and consistent founder visibility all contribute to the digital footprint that LLMs draw from. Early evidence suggests that AI tools lean heavily on two categories when forming responses about companies: the organisation’s own website and its earned media. That aligns with what we see in practice.
For brands that want to be discovered by AI, PR is no longer an optional storytelling layer. It is part of the infrastructure that enables generative tools to understand who you are and why you matter.
An early example of Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO): Zama
Although GEO is still emerging as a practice, there are already encouraging signs of how consistent PR activity can influence generative visibility. A recent example comes from Zama – a company working at the forefront of Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE).
Despite being far newer and smaller than the established players in the field, Zama was surfaced by ChatGPT as one of the leading organisations in FHE, appearing alongside Microsoft and IBM in a recent response.
What was especially notable was the source cited in support of Zama’s inclusion. The model referenced a funding announcement published by CoinDesk – coverage secured by Luminous – which underscored the company’s innovation, market relevance and investment traction. In other words, earned media played a clear part in shaping how the AI understood the landscape.
For any comparatively young company, being placed alongside such established players is encouraging. Although generative engines are still a black box in many respects, the outcome hinted at how models weigh signals such as credibility, authority and momentum.
This should not be overstated, nor treated as a replicable formula, but it does illustrate an important point. When a company pairs genuinely differentiated expertise with a strong PR narrative, generative engines have more to work with. For innovative startups operating in niche technical domains, this can create early advantages that would be much harder to achieve through traditional search alone.
Measuring Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)
As the space is developing, so are the tools for measurement. Traditional SEO marketing platforms have been scrambling to launch generative AI tracking by introducing modules that indicate how LLMs assess your visibility, although these are still in their infancy. Examples of such AI tracking tools include:
- SEMrush’s AI Brand Narrative Tracking
- AHrefs’s Brand Radar
- SE Ranking’s AI Visibility Tools
- BridgeEdge AI Catalyst
These platforms, and others like them, can help brands begin to understand how generative engines perceive them.
Share-of-voice tools can reveal which companies dominate particular topics and how your visibility compares. Website analytics increasingly show traffic from AI chatbots, offering early clues about where interest is originating.
Perhaps most simply, founders and marketers can run manual checks by asking generative tools what they know about the company or leadership team. The sources those answers draw from are often revealing.
Over time, GEO measurement will likely become more standardised. For now, it sits within a broader mix of media monitoring, message tracking and competitive insight work.
Practical Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) tips for brands
Although GEO cannot be engineered in the way SEO can yet, there are strategic steps that increase the likelihood of being surfaced by AI search.
- Consistency matters – Visibility compounds across multiple channels and LLMs appear to reward brands with a steady presence rather than sporadic peaks.
- Authentic expertise rises to the top – Generic or AI-generated commentary is unlikely to build trust signals. Original insight is far more valuable.
- Integration works – Strategic PR, SEO and content marketing create stronger results when approached as a single ecosystem rather than isolated activities.
- Freshness counts – Updating web content, maintaining accurate information and keeping messaging current all help.
- Understand audience behaviour – Consider what your ideal customer asks an AI tool and whether your digital footprint enables the model to answer.
- Start with a basic GEO audit – Ask generative engines what they know about your organisation and examine the source material behind the response. This is often the clearest indication of where to focus next.
The opportunity ahead for AI search
GEO is still developing. The rules are not fixed, the models are changing rapidly and no one can claim to have a definitive methodology right now, so beware of the snake-oil vendors!
As AI search models evolve, so will the signals they consider. For now, the brands that invest early in consistent PR to boost your AI search citations, strong thought leadership and a credible digital footprint will be best positioned to rise to the surface in this new era of search.
If you’re looking to strengthen your digital footprint or want support shaping the thought leadership and earned media that generative engines rely on, we’d be happy to help. Get in touch with Kirsty and the Luminous team to explore how your PR strategy can elevate your visibility in this new era of search.
If you liked this article, why not try another?
- Thought leadership in the face of AI: Why originality should be the black watermelon of content creation (with examples)
- The importance of PR for AI Search and Google AI Mode
By Kirsty Jarvis
Kirsty, our CEO and founder, has spent the past two decades in PR and marketing roles, resulting in a wealth of experience leveraging the power of media and creating impactful campaigns for hundreds of startups and well-known brands.
