6 minute read
AEO, GEO and SEO: what actually changed, and what didn't
New acronyms, same foundation. A plain-language guide for owners and marketing leads deciding where to spend on search in 2026.
If you've sat through an agency pitch this year, you've heard AEO (answer engine optimization), GEO (generative engine optimization), and possibly LLMO. They describe the same goal: getting AI assistants to mention your business accurately. The useful question isn't which acronym is right. It's what you should do differently.
What changed
Fewer clicks. Pew Research found that when Google showed an AI summary, users clicked a result about 8% of the time, versus about 15% when no summary appeared. SparkToro's 2024 study found roughly 58% of US Google searches ended without a click. Ranking still matters, but a ranking that doesn't get clicked is worth less than it was.
Short lists instead of pages. An assistant names a few businesses. Position five on a results page still got some traffic; fifth place in an AI answer usually doesn't exist.
A new measurement problem. Analytics can't see a recommendation that happened inside ChatGPT. You have to ask the assistants directly, on a schedule, and log what they say.
Citations matter. Assistants that search the web show their sources. Being one of the pages they read, or being named on those pages, is now a goal in itself.
What didn't change
- Accurate, consistent business facts are still the foundation.
- Structured data still helps machines understand who you are and what you do.
- Clear pages that answer specific questions still win.
- Reviews still drive trust, for people and for models.
- Technical basics, such as speed, crawlability and clean redirects, still decide whether you're read at all.
Gartner forecast in 2024 that traditional search engine volume would fall 25% by 2026 as people shift to AI assistants. Whether or not that exact number lands, the direction is clear. The work to prepare for it is mostly the work good SEO always required, done more carefully and measured in a new place.
Where to spend first
- Fix facts and listings. Cheapest, fastest, and every assistant reads them.
- Add structured data. A few days of work on most sites.
- Rewrite your most important pages to answer real questions. Services, locations, pricing, who you serve.
- Start measuring AI mentions monthly. Without a baseline you can't tell if anything worked.
- Then invest in new content and third-party mentions.
Red flags in a pitch
- Guaranteed placement in ChatGPT or guaranteed rankings.
- A brand new "AI SEO" program that ignores your listings and site basics.
- Reporting that shows AI "scores" without the underlying questions and answers.
- Long contracts with no defined deliverables.