SEO VS GEO (AI SEARCH)
SEO vs GEO (AI Search Optimisation) — Do You Need Both?
Traditional SEO optimises for Google's search results. GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation) optimises for AI engines — ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google AI Overviews. They overlap heavily but aren't the same discipline. In 2026, ignoring either leaves money on the table.
Compared
A
SEO
B
GEO (AI Search)
Where you appear
Google's search results pages, Maps 3-pack
AI answer text in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Google AI Overviews
Primary signal
Backlinks, content depth, user signals, technical health
Schema markup, entity consistency, FAQ structure, llms.txt
Time to results
3–9 months for measurable lift
4–8 weeks once foundations are in place
Customer behaviour
Browse and compare across multiple results
Trust the AI answer, click 1–2 cited businesses
Current NZ adoption
Universal — every competitor invests at some level
Niche — most NZ businesses have zero GEO foundation
Citation count visibility
Rank tracking tools (SEMrush, Ahrefs)
Emerging — Perplexity API, manual citation tracking, AI Overview tracking
Best for
Established categories with mature search behaviour
Forward-looking businesses, AI-native demographics, any category where customers research via AI
Pick SEO
Pick traditional SEO alone if your customers are 50+ and AI search adoption in your market is genuinely low (rare in 2026).
See the servicePick GEO (AI Search)
Pick GEO alone never — it works best as an extension of SEO, not a replacement.
See the serviceRun both
Most modern engagements should cover both. The good news: 80% of the work overlaps. Schema, structured content, named-entity consistency and FAQ pages serve Google and AI engines equally well. The remaining 20% (llms.txt, AI-crawler access, citation tracking) is the GEO-specific add-on.
Related pricing guides.
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