From SEO to GEO: How AI-Powered Search Will Transform Product & Service Discovery

From SEO to GEO: How AI-Powered Search Will Transform Product & Service Discovery

The way people discover products and services online is undergoing a seismic change. Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) – the practice of optimizing for AI-driven search engines and assistants – is emerging as the new frontier for marketers. In an era where users increasingly ask ChatGPT, Bard, Claude, or Siri for answers instead of scrolling through Google results, businesses must adapt their visibility strategies. This shift is fast, profound, and likely the biggest discovery shake-up since Google’s debut. Below are the key ways GEO is transforming how consumers explore and find offerings:

• Rapid shift to AI-driven search: Traffic is quickly moving from traditional search engines to AI-powered platforms. In fact, AI search traffic grew 1,200% in just 9 months – a staggering surge that signals where users are heading for information.

• A seismic change in discovery: Industry observers call this “nothing less than a complete reordering” of how online discovery works. It’s a subtle but massive shift; instead of getting a list of links from a search engine, people now get direct answers from AI. This new paradigm – GEO – could become a $100B+ industry in its own right.

• Higher-value clicks from AI: Visits generated via AI assistants tend to be far more valuable. One extensive study found AI-driven visitors convert or engage 4.4× more than those from classic organic search. Why? By the time someone clicks a link from an AI’s answer, the AI has already “pre-sold” them with relevant context, meaning these visitors are highly qualified and ready to act.

• Faster path from query to solution: Generative AI can surface results sooner than traditional search. Instead of a user refining queries and clicking multiple sites, the AI delivers a synthesized answer (often citing sources) in one go. It shortens the path between the query and the action.

• The chat as the new top-of-funnel: The initial stages of customer discovery (“top of funnel”) are moving into chat interfaces. Users can learn about solutions, compare options, and even get personalized recommendations without ever visiting a website. As a result, much of the buyer’s journey now happens off-site, beyond the reach of traditional web analytics or retargeting.

Why AI Search is So Disruptive

For over two decades, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) was the go-to strategy to get discovered online – tweaking websites to rank higher on Google’s results. That playbook now faces a fundamental rewrite. Generative AI search engines (from OpenAI’s ChatGPT to startups like Perplexity) are reshaping how people discover information. Rather than typing a few keywords and scanning a results page of links, users are posing detailed questions and receiving human-like answers that synthesize information.

This shift has several distinctive characteristics:

• Conversational queries: People use natural language questions with more detail. The average AI search query is 23 words (vs. 4 words in classic search). Users might ask, “What is the best budget smartphone for photography under $400?” instead of just “best budget phone”. They expect the AI to parse nuances and context.

• Deeper interactions: Sessions with AI search are longer and more engaging – averaging about 6 minutes per session. Users often ask follow-up questions in a back-and-forth dialogue, refining their needs. The AI can remember prior context in the conversation and tailor its subsequent answers, mimicking a helpful salesperson or research assistant.

• Personalized, multi-source answers: Unlike a list of links, generative engines provide a synthesized answer drawn from multiple sources, delivered in plain language. They can remember, reason, and respond with personalized, multi-source synthesis. For someone exploring a product, this means the AI might combine reviews, specifications, and user opinions into one cohesive recommendation.

Consumers now search wherever they are: on social media, in messaging apps, via voice assistants, and on e-commerce platforms – many of which are integrating generative AI. Search is becoming multi-platform and multi-modal. For example, a user might ask Instagram’s AI for fashion tips, or query Amazon’s Alexa for the best espresso machine. The upshot: discovery is happening everywhere, not just on Google. As one marketing expert put it, we should now think of SEO as “search everywhere optimization,” with GEO as a core component.

GEO vs. SEO: An Evolution, Not a Replacement

What exactly is Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)? Simply put, GEO means optimizing your content to be selected and presented by AI models (the “generative engines”) when they answer user questions. If SEO was about getting your webpage to rank #1 on a Google results page, GEO is about getting your information or brand to be referenced within an AI’s answer.

It’s important to note that GEO isn’t the death of SEO. Rather, it’s what happens when search evolves with AI. Traditional SEO tactics don’t become irrelevant overnight – in fact, many foundational principles carry over. Whether a human or an AI is reading your content, quality and relevance remain king. A well-structured, authoritative article that thoroughly addresses a user’s query will serve you well in both SEO and GEO.

Many SEO experts even argue that GEO is just SEO. The things you do to rank in search engines are largely the same things that help AI systems find and trust your content. To be visible in an AI’s training data or real-time web browsing results, you need lots of relevant content and backlinks – essentially, classic SEO best practices. Structuring your content, using clear headers, and creating content that directly answers common questions will increase your chances of being included in AI-generated responses.

However, there are new considerations in the GEO era:

• Reference over rank: In an AI chat, there is no ranked list of ten blue links. Either your brand/content is referenced in the answer or it’s not. Success is measured by reference rate – how often the AI cites or uses your content.

• Content optimization for AI: Generative models prefer content that is well-organized, concise, and information-dense. While old-school SEO sometimes encouraged verbose pages and repetitive keywords, AI wants clarity. Bullet points, summaries, and FAQ-style sections help AI extract and reproduce key facts accurately.

• Trust and accuracy signals: AI platforms have less incentive to send users away unless necessary. They won’t cite a source unless it adds value or credibility to the answer. That means establishing your site as authoritative (through expert content, citations, and backlinks) is vital so that the AI “feels” your content is worth including.

The New Customer Journey: Off-Site and AI-Driven

For consumers, the promise of this AI-centric search is a more seamless journey from question to answer. For businesses, it fundamentally alters the marketing funnel.

• Yesterday’s journey: A user searches a keyword, sees a list of links, clicks one or two, maybe refines the search, visits a few websites, reads reviews, and eventually lands on a product page. Marketers could track visits, retarget them, and guide them with on-site content.

• Today’s AI-driven journey: The same user opens an AI assistant, asks a detailed question, and gets product suggestions with explanations. Most of the research and comparison happens within the AI’s answer. The user spends far less time browsing websites.

This upends traditional tracking and retargeting. If a customer doesn’t visit your website during their consideration phase, you lose visibility into that part of their journey. The top-of-funnel has moved to the chatbox, and companies need new ways to gain insight and presence there.

Embracing GEO: Preparing for AI-Powered Discovery

Forward-thinking founders and marketers are starting to act. Much like the early days of SEO, those who move now will dominate their categories.

You don’t have to throw out your SEO playbook; you just need to extend it. To prepare:

1. Continue creating high-quality, user-focused content – Answer your audience’s questions thoroughly and clearly.

2. Structure content for easy parsing – Use clear headings, concise summaries, bullet points, and schema markup.

3. Build authority and get cited – Brand mentions and backlinks across the web boost credibility.

4. Leverage new analytics – Track how and when AI platforms mention your brand.

5. Educate your team and adjust KPIs – Measure share-of-voice in AI results, not just clicks.

The Opportunity

Generative Engine Optimization offers an opportunity similar to the early days of SEO. Those who adapt now can become the recommended answers and trusted sources in their category – effectively securing a virtual “top spot” in the AI’s mind. And because AI-driven recommendations often convert better, this isn’t just about traffic; it’s about high-quality leads and customers.

At Merrow, we help companies get discovered, ranked, and selected in a world run by generative engines. We’re pioneering GEO strategies so that in an AI-powered world – where chatbots and smart assistants are the gatekeepers – our clients’ brands are properly represented across all AI platforms. Where SEO once focused on appeasing Google’s algorithm, GEO ensures your brand is fluent in the language of AI.

The bottom line: AI is rewriting the rules of search and discovery. Much like the Google revolution rewarded those who mastered SEO, the generative AI revolution will reward those who master GEO. By investing in it now, you can position your product or service to be the one an AI recommends – which may soon be the difference between obscurity and market leadership.