GEO — generative engine optimization (and answer engine optimization)
Your customers no longer only ask Google — they ask AI. GEO (generative engine optimization) and AEO (answer engine optimization) make your business citable by ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. Become the answer — not just a link.
Your customers ask AI — will you be cited, or a competitor?
A growing share of searches now ends inside an AI answer, with no click. If ChatGPT, Perplexity or Google AI Overviews answer instead of Google, the only question that matters is : do they cite your business, or a competitor? Ranking well is no longer enough if AI doesn't name you.
It's a good fit if you're a business that wants to appear in AI answers for your industry — to become the source generative and answer engines reuse, not just a link buried in a blue list.
GEO and AEO : be cited by every generative engine and answer engine.
One discipline, four surfaces where AI draws its answers — AI engine visibility, YouTube, LinkedIn, Reddit — never social account management.
AI engine visibility
Being cited in answers from ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot, Claude and Google AI Overviews : authoritative content, structured data, answers reused as-is.
YouTube as a cited source
AI cites YouTube heavily. We make your videos citable : transcripts, chapters, structured descriptions — not channel management.
LinkedIn as an authority signal
LinkedIn feeds the E-E-A-T authority AI weighs. We align your presence to strengthen citable authority — without community management.
Reddit as proof of experience
AI engines cite Reddit for its real, dated opinions. We aim for a cited presence in the right threads — never spam.
Get cited by generative engines : method and surfaces.
What generative and answer engines are — and why now
A generative engine (ChatGPT, Gemini) writes a synthesized answer from several sources ; an answer engine returns the direct answer (featured snippet, position zero). Generative engine optimization and answer engine optimization aim at the same thing : being the cited source. Now is the moment to publish — ahead of your competitors, while the field is open. My method rests on JSON-LD structured data : I built a JSON-LD plugin (19 schema generators, 72-bot awareness) that tells the engines, explicitly, what your content means.
GEO or AEO : the difference, plainly
The GEO side (generative engines) optimizes for the synthesized answer the AI writes ; the AEO side (answer engines) optimizes for the direct answer and the featured snippet. On this page we treat them as one discipline : making every answer reusable, whether the AI writes it or cites it. The term comes from the founding paper GEO: Generative Engine Optimization (Aggarwal et al., KDD 2024).
AI engine visibility : ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Google AI Overviews
We shape your content to be reused by ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini, and to appear in Google AI Overviews : clear answers, question→answer structure, named entities and structured data. That is how you move from "ranked well" to "cited."
YouTube
YouTube is one of the sources AI cites most. We make your videos citable — transcripts, chapters, structured descriptions — so a generative engine can reuse them.
LinkedIn feeds the authority (E-E-A-T) AI weighs before citing. We align your presence to make it a credibility signal reused in AI answers.
Reddit concentrates real, dated opinions : an experience signal AI treats as trustworthy. We aim for a cited presence in the right Reddit threads — no spam.
Capturing the answer box (position zero)
Each page is structured around a question and its direct answer : a short featured snippet, structured data, and a heading hierarchy that answers the sub-questions. That is what captures the answer box and position zero — the springboard to being cited by AI.
| Build | What it does |
|---|---|
| JSON-LD SEO/GEO plugin: 19 schema generators, 72-bot awareness, replaces Yoast/Rank Math | The GEO/AEO lever : structured data AI engines read and cite. |
| AI content engine: bilingual, 15,000-city batch capacity, QA and export in parallel, 436,561 lines, 31,637 tests | Content at scale, structured for AI reuse. |
| GBP reviews plugin: Places API, 6 layouts, embeds on static HTML | Real reviews on display — an authority signal AI weighs. |
| Invoicing platform: Word to one-click, email delivery, Google Drive archive | Proof I ship complete systems, not mockups. |
| Cost-estimate calculator: real-time CAD, PDF, CRM push, 5-destination deploy, Playwright + PHPUnit tested | A custom tool shipped, tested end to end. |
Where you appear in AI answers : proof and surfaces.
| Surface | What we optimize |
|---|---|
| Generative engines (ChatGPT, Gemini) | Structured content, named entities, JSON-LD data reused in the answer. |
| Answer engines (AI Overviews, Perplexity) | Featured snippet, answer box, question→answer format. |
| YouTube | Transcripts, chapters, structured descriptions. |
| LinkedIn / Reddit | Citable authority (E-E-A-T) and proof of experience. |
| Proof | Figure |
|---|---|
| Web developer | Since 1996 |
| In search (SEO) | Since 2000 |
| Revenue led (all projects) | $2.5B |
| Bots watched by my JSON-LD plugin | 72 |
Three kinds of expertise to get cited by AI.
I understand results.
BBA Marketing, HEC Montréal and an agency career. We optimize to be cited where it pays off, not for the technology.
I code the lever.
Web developer since 1996, in SEO since 2000. I coded a JSON-LD plugin with 72-bot awareness : the GEO/AEO lever, made in-house.
I think like an owner.
Co-founder of two companies, $2.5B in revenue led. Being cited by AI must bring customers, not just visibility.
Make your expertise ready for AI answers.
One point of contact.
I set the strategy and put it into practice. You work directly with the person responsible for the work.
Let's talk about your AI visibility →To get started
- Your expertise
- The subjects your business knows best.
- Your content
- Your site and YouTube, LinkedIn or Reddit presence.
- The answers that matter
- The questions you want your business cited for.
YouTube, LinkedIn and Reddit are citation sources to optimize, not a daily social-account management service.
GEO complements our search engine optimization service in Montreal and is distinct from our AI consultant services in Montreal (building AI systems) : here, we make your business citable by AI.
Your questions about GEO and AEO.
What is generative engine optimization (GEO)?
Generative engine optimization (GEO) means optimizing your presence so that generative engines — ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Google AI Overviews — cite your business in their answers. Instead of only chasing a Google ranking, you aim to become the source the AI reuses and names.
What is the difference between GEO and AEO?
GEO targets generative engines that write a synthesized answer (ChatGPT, Gemini). AEO — answer engine optimization — targets the direct answer: featured snippet, answer box, position zero. They overlap and form one discipline: being the cited answer, not just a link in a list.
How do I get my business cited by ChatGPT and Perplexity?
You make your content citable: clear, structured answers, JSON-LD structured data the bots read, demonstrated authority (E-E-A-T), and a citable presence that AI draws from — YouTube, LinkedIn, Reddit. I built a JSON-LD plugin with 72-bot awareness; that exact lever, applied to your site.
How do I capture the answer box and position zero?
You structure each page around a question and its direct answer: a 40-to-55-word featured snippet, FAQ/HowTo structured data, and a heading hierarchy that answers the sub-questions. That is what moves a page from fifth position to the answer box — position zero.
Does structured JSON-LD data really help you get cited by AI?
Yes. JSON-LD structured data tells the bots explicitly what your content is — entity, question, answer, author, date. That is what makes a passage reusable by a generative engine. I built a JSON-LD plugin (19 schema generators, 72-bot awareness) precisely for this; we apply it to your site.
Why does AI cite Reddit so often?
AI engines cite Reddit because it concentrates real, dated, discussed opinions — the kind of experience signal AI treats as trustworthy. Being present and cited in the right Reddit threads (no spam) raises your odds of being reused. Same logic for YouTube and LinkedIn: surfaces AI reads and cites.
Become the source AI cites.
Reply within 48 hours. A quick question? Call me at 438 228-0827, or write to info@sogalpes.com.