GEO Explained: What’s Changing and How Marketers Should Respond

In this month’s headlines, Google has begun collapsing search and chatbot into a single, conversational experience, while EU regulators have stepped in to scrutinise who controls access to AI-driven answers. What that tells us is simple: AI has become the gatekeeper of visibility, trust and first impressions at scale.

Generative Engine Optimisation is no longer a fringe concern for curious marketers. Research from Forrester has found that 89% of B2B buyers have used an LLM (a large language model like ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude) during their buyer journey, meaning they are fast becoming the place where reputation is formed, challenged and decided.

Business decision-makers are using these LLM tools as their first port of call when researching markets, suppliers and partners. The answers they receive shape shortlists before a website is ever visited…if it is even visited at all.

Optimising for these answers is therefore essential, and will only become more important with data from Semrush suggesting that LLM search will overtake traditional search by 2028. The commercial impact is also already clear with Semrush’s research finding that traffic from LLM searches is 4.4 times more likely to convert to sales.

It’s plain to see LLM search is growing and being used by decision-makers with intent, budget and buying power.

Where does GEO sit in the Marketing Mix?

At With, we know this shift demands a more strategic approach to Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), a discipline that hones how well AI systems recognise, trust and represent your brand.

Data from MuckRack shows that up to 89% of generative AI responses are based on editorial media. In other words, the content AI trusts most is the same high-credibility material PR teams have been shaping for years.

The difference between a brand becoming a trusted source and an occasional citation lies in how consistently, accurately and credibly its story holds together across everything AI can see.

When LLMs synthesise information from editorial coverage, owned content and FAQs, they form a composite view of your brand. If that picture is inconsistent or outdated, the output will be too. That’s why GEO success depends as much on strategic communications discipline as it does on tooling.

Metrics like share of model can be a useful starting point, but on their own, they aren’t decision-grade. LLM providers don’t release full prompt data, results vary by model and context, and a mention that misrepresents your business can be more damaging than no mention at all.

That’s why, at With, we approach GEO as a blend of human consultancy and technology. We benchmark how brands appear across leading LLM tools, track accuracy, sentiment and framing, and apply judgement to understand not just where a brand shows up, but why – and what will genuinely shift that over time.

How to get started with GEO

Getting started with GEO doesn’t mean chasing algorithms or rewriting everything overnight. It starts with understanding how your audiences are actually using LLMs to research, compare and form opinions, then stress-testing how your brand shows up in those answers today. From there, it’s about consistency: clear messaging, trusted sources, and content that stands the test of time, not just the news cycle.

In With’s GEO Benchmarking and Visibility Guide, we share our proprietary, three-stage framework for managing how brands appear in AI-generated answers, from prompt planning and benchmarking through to optimisation and measurement. This is the methodology we use with clients to turn GEO from an abstract idea into a repeatable, decision-grade discipline.

If you are looking to move beyond surface-level understanding and want a clear way to assess, manage and improve your GEO performance, this is where to start.

Request a Consultation on With’s GEO Benchmarking & Visibility Guide

To book a consultation on With’s GEO Benchmarking & Visibility Guide and our proprietary methodology, please email hello@welcometowith.com.

In the meantime, if you are still getting to grips with what GEO is and how it works in practice, the articles below form part of our growing library of expert guidance on GEO and are a good place to start.

With’s Six Ways to Improve Your Geo

Read six practical steps businesses can take to improve how they are represented by tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity. From tightening up content consistency to earning the kind of third-party advocacy AI systems trust, it’s a clear, action-led guide for teams who want to move beyond theory and start.

The Geo Glossary of Terms

GEO has introduced a new layer of language into marketing and communications. From prompts and share of model to LLM.txt and zero-click search, teams are increasingly expected to make decisions using terms that aren’t yet widely standardised.

This glossary sets out the core GEO and AI terminology in clear, practical language, giving teams a common reference point and a more precise way to discuss how GEO is being measured and managed.