GEO Is the New SEO: How Ecommerce Brands Can Show Up in AI-Generated Results

The Ecommerce Download #11

There’s a big shift happening in how people search—and how your brand gets discovered.

Search engines aren’t just listing websites anymore—they’re generating answers. Google’s new AI Overviews (AIO) (formerly known as SGE), ChatGPT with browsing, and tools like Perplexity.ai and Claude are now pulling content directly from across the web and delivering it as part of AI-generated responses to user questions.

---

---

And if your content isn’t being cited in those answers? You’re invisible.

I was inspired to write this article for a few key reasons. First, the shift in how search works isn’t coming—it’s already here. Second, I’m seeing firsthand how AI platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity are sending traffic to my clients’ ecommerce sites. And recently, someone signed up for The Ecommerce Revolution community and shared that they discovered us through ChatGPT. That didn’t surprise me—but it confirmed what I’ve been watching unfold: AI is already influencing brand discovery, and if your content isn’t being cited, you’re missing real opportunities.

That’s where Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) comes in. It’s not about rankings or keyword tricks—it’s about making your content clear, trustworthy, and structured in a way that AI tools actually want to cite in their answers.

And if you're an ecommerce entrepreneur, this might be one of the biggest visibility opportunities you’ve never even thought about. Let’s break it down.

What Is Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)?

At its core, GEO is about getting your content cited in AI-generated search results.

Traditional SEO is about climbing the ranks of search results for specific keywords. GEO? It’s about being part of the answer. AI tools like Google’s AIO and ChatGPT are building their responses by pulling from trusted web content—blogs, product pages, FAQs, and guides.

So instead of writing just for keywords or search crawlers, GEO pushes us to create content that’s:

• Clear and easy to understand

• Well-organized and scannable

• Deep and useful enough to earn trust

If AI can’t easily understand and extract value from your content, it’s going to skip right over you—and mention your competitor instead.

How AI Search Is Changing the Game

Not long ago, someone searching for your product would type in a phrase, scroll through some blue links, and maybe click on your site.

That’s changing fast.

Now, when someone asks a question like:

• “What’s the best yoga mat for beginners?”

• “Affordable organic skincare brands?”

• “Where to buy modern bar stools under $150?”

...AI tools like Google’s AI Overviews or Perplexity are serving up full, summarized responses—and citing where the info came from.

Here’s what’s driving the change:

• Google’s AIO now appears at the top of more and more search results.

• ChatGPT with browsing can pull current answers from live websites.

• Perplexity.ai is growing fast and links to cited sources in every response.

• Claude.ai (from Anthropic) is being used more and more for research-style queries.

For ecommerce brands, this shift is massive. AI tools are becoming the new gatekeepers between a shopper’s question and your product. If you’re not being mentioned in these AI-generated answers, you’re not even in the conversation.

Why This Matters So Much for Ecommerce Brands

Let’s be real: visibility is everything.

If someone asks an AI tool for the “best personalized baby gifts” or “eco-friendly shoe brands for wide feet,” and your brand doesn’t show up in the answer, you’ve lost the sale before you even knew it was happening.

This is where GEO shines:

• It gives smaller brands a shot at showing up without needing massive domain authority.

• It rewards clear, well-structured content—not just backlink volume.

• It favors brands that go deep on a topic and provide real value.

Your product guides, FAQs, and blog posts can become the source that AI tools pull from—if you create them with GEO in mind.

Imagine your Shopify product page being featured in ChatGPT’s answer to “best enamel camping mugs” or your blog post being cited in Google’s AIO for “gifts for new dads under $50.” That’s the new visibility game.

Up Next: Making GEO Work for You

So, how do you actually optimize your content for generative engines?

I’ll break it down in the next volume of “The Ecommerce Download”—with simple, actionable steps you can take right now to help your site show up in AI-generated results.

While we figure out this new world of GEO, “traditional” SEO strategies are still in play, and many of them also complement GEO strategies. So don’t drop the ball on your SEO strategies.

---

Other resources:

• Google’s E.E.A.T. framework

• Unlocking SEO Secrets

---

---