The latest buzzword among global B2B marketers appears to be GEO (Generative Engine Optimization). While traditional SEO focused on search engines like Google, GEO focuses on being cited and featured in generative AI engines such as ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity.
In particular, according to Search Engine Journal—a media outlet specializing in SEO and GEO— more than half of the pages cited by generative AI search engines in the B2B sectorwere websites (56%); as a result, building up structured websites and reliable content as assets has become even more important.
So today, for those new to GEO, I’ve put together a summary of the key concepts you’ll need to know to implement GEO on your website. If you’re a B2B marketer, be sure to save this link and keep it handy as a reference guide!
Key SEO Terms: The Basics of Search Engine Optimization
To understand GEO, you first need to have a solid grasp of SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Since content that ranks highly on Google tends to be widely referenced by AI search engines as well, mastering the fundamentals of SEO is essential for effective GEO optimization. Let’s start by looking at some of the key concepts that frequently come up when preparing for SEO.
On-page SEO
On-page SEO refers to search engine optimization efforts performed within a website. On-page SEO is divided into technical SEO and content SEO. Technical SEO involves technical tasks designed to help a website rank higher in search results, while content SEO involves optimizing the format and content of the material uploaded to the site for search engines. If you need a more detailed explanation, check out Elephant’s guide, “SEO Keyword Research Strategies for Beginners.”
Meta Data
In SEO, metadata refers to data used to provide information to search enginesrather than to users. A prime example is the meta tag. A meta tagis an element inserted into a webpage’s HTML code to convey information such as the page’s title, description, and keywords to search engines. This metadata plays a crucial role in helping search engines accurately index pages and display them in relevant search results.
Slug
Originally, a slug referred to the practice of creating concise and clear headlines in newspapers or magazines by combining only the words that convey the core meaning. Similarly, on websites, a slug refers to the portion of a URL that summarizes the page’s content to make it easier to read. Using words in the URL that effectively summarize the page’s overall content helps search engines find the page more quickly, making it a useful tool for SEO.
SERP (Search Engine Results Page)
SERP refers to the search results page that appears when a user enters a specific keyword into a search engine. It includes a variety of search results, such as a list of web pages, images, videos, ads, and Google snippets. B2B marketers conduct SEO efforts to ensure that their company’s web pages and content appear high in the search results.
Google Snippet
The term "snippet" means "a small piece" or "a small piece of information." On Google's search results page (SERP), the brief summary of information displayed for a specific search queryis called a Google snippet. Google snippets are broadly categorized into regular snippets, rich snippets, and featured snippets, but as a B2B marketer, you’ll likely encounter featured snippets—also known as recommended snippets—most frequently.
To ensure your page appears in Google search snippets, there are several steps you need to take, such as clearly defining the metadata on your website. I’ve outlined more specific tips in my article titled “4 Tips for Getting Your Page to Appear in Search Snippets.”
Featured Snippet
A snippet that appears at the very top of a search results page within a boxis called a featured snippet. It is also known as a recommended snippet. Google displays a recommended snippet when its system determines that this format will be helpful to the user. Featured snippets may appear in the main search results, in the "People Also Ask" section, or alongside content from the Knowledge Graph.
Related Questions (People Also Ask)
"People Also Ask" is a section in Google search results that displays additional questions related to the user's search query. When creating content for B2B marketing, if you use "People Also Ask" as a reference to provide content that answers searchers' questions, your content is more likely to appear at the top of search results.
Knowledge Panel
A Knowledge Panel refers to the information box that appears in the top-right corner of the search results page (SERP)when you search for an entity in the Knowledge Graph. It typically appears in SERPs for high-volume search terms such as celebrities, brands, countries, and animals and plants. To directly register and edit the content of the Knowledge Panel that appears when someone searches for your business, you can use Google My Business.
Knowledge Graph
The Knowledge Graph is a Google database that stores vast amounts of informationabout people, places, and things. In the early 2010s, Google introduced the Knowledge Graph feature, which began displaying key information related to search queries in the "Knowledge Panel" at the top right of the screen.
For example, thanks to the Knowledge Graph, Google’s search results page doesn’t just provide a link to Wikipedia for the search term “B2B marketing”; it can offer a variety of information, including the characteristics of B2B marketing, B2B marketing strategies, links to major B2B marketing platforms, and related images.
The Knowledge Graph draws content from a variety of fact-based sources. To ensure that our B2B marketing content appears in the Knowledge Graph, we must use structured markup—such as Schema Markup—and create high-quality content that aligns with users’ search intent.
Schema Markup
To enable search engines to read the information on a web page, it must be formatted as structured data. Structured data is expressed using schema markup. Schema markup is a standardized syntax that can be added to a website’s HTML, helping search engine crawlers read and interpret specific parts of a web page. For more detailed information on schema markup , including Schema.org and JSON-LD, please refer to the “Comprehensive Guide to Schema Markup” post on the Elephant Blog.
Key Terms in GEO Optimization: New Optimization Strategies for the AI Era
So far, we’ve covered the basics of SEO. Now, I’ll explain some terms related to GEO optimization that have emerged with the rise of generative AI.
Zero-Click Search
"Zero-click" refers to a recent evolution in search technology that allowsusers to find the information they need without having to click anywhere on the search results pageafter entering a query into a search engine.
In a generative AI environment where the correct answer appears on the first page of search results, customers can now get the answers they want without even having to click. In particular, following the release of a study indicating thatorganic website traffic has dropped by up to 60%due to Google AI, B2B companies that previously relied on search traffic to boost brand awareness and generate leads are now completely overhauling their strategies.
Entity
The term "entity" refers to a single, unique, well-defined, and distinguishable object or concept. To put it simply, the four types of entities— people, places, organizations, and things—that appear in the Knowledge Panel when you search on Google are examples of entities.
Concepts such as company name, product name, service features, core values, and founders are the key entities that make up our brand. AI-powered search engines understand and reference companies based on structured brand information (entities), rather than simple keywords. Therefore, to ensure that our website and content are accurately recognized and displayed as a trustworthy source, we must build our brand image by using consistent brand terminology across all online channels—including not only our website but also social media and reviews. For more details, please refer to Google’s resources.
EEAT
E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness—the four factors Google uses as criteria when evaluating the quality of search results. The most important concept is Trustworthiness (T), while the other factors serve to support it.
To improve the search quality of our website and ensure it appears at the top of AI search results, it’s essential to consider E-E-A-T. For a more detailed explanation, please check out our article titled “From E-E-A-T Concepts to Practical Examples.”
SGE (Search Generative Experience)
SGE is a generative AI search model provided by Google. It is available on Search Labs, where you can try out Google’s beta services. It can handle everything from complex Q&A to AI-generated images.
Google AI Overview
The Google AI Summary, announced by Google in May 2024, is a generative AI-powered feature built on SGE. While Google Featured Snippets display the clearest and most concise answer to a question in a box at the top of the page, Google AI Summary uses AI to analyze and synthesize information from multiple websites in real time to generate a natural, summarized response.
AI Citation Rate
What metrics should be used to evaluate GEO performance? The most important one is the AI Citation Rate. The AI Citation Rate is a metric that quantifies the frequency with which an AI actually mentions a specific brand or website—or directly cites it as a source—when generating responses. Unlike traditional web search engine rankings or click-through rates (traffic), it focuses on how often, where, and how a brand is cited and mentioned within the AI’s responses.
AI Crawler Traffic
AI crawler traffic is a metric that shows how frequently generative AI systems, such as ChatGPT and Perplexity, crawl a website. It measures the traffic generated when generative AI models automatically collect website content for training or to provide responses. This allows you to determine how valuable the site’s content is perceived by AI systems. Unlike traditional web bots, AI crawlers access websites more frequently and with greater sophistication, so it’s important to monitor this activity regularly.
If you'd like to learn more about how to measure GEO performance, check out the content below.
🔗The Ultimate Guide to Measuring GEO Performance: AI Search Optimization Metrics for B2B Marketers
4-Step Self-Assessment Checklist for GEO Optimization
Now that you’re familiar with the basic terms related to SEO and GEO, it’s time to check whether our website is truly ready to be indexed by AI search engines!
Elephant Company has compiled and organized the latest information through the first half of 2025 to create the GEO Self-Assessment Checklist. Use the checklist below to implement your GEO optimization strategy right away, ensuring your brand’s philosophy is conveyed in a consistent and refined manner across the digital landscape.
✅ GEO Checklist: Basics—Here’s what it covers
- Providing entity templates to enhance our brand's credibility
- Providing guidelines for logically structuring a website
- Guide to Creating and Expanding Your Brand on the Knowledge Graph
- An Introduction to Writing Content for Generative AI Engines
