SEO and GEO: useful content that search and AI can understand

Start with the same technical foundation

Google’s guidance for AI features says that pages must be indexed and eligible to appear with a snippet to be eligible as supporting links. The same SEO fundamentals apply: allow crawling, use crawlable internal links, serve important content as text, and ensure structured data matches visible content.

There is no special schema or AI text file required for Google’s AI search features. An llms.txt file can offer an optional plain-text map, but it does not replace a sitemap, robots.txt, or useful pages. It is not evidence that an AI service has read or cited the site.

Make answers clear enough to stand on their own

Begin a section with the answer, then explain how it applies, when it does not, and what evidence supports it. Name the product or subject explicitly rather than relying on vague pronouns. Tables and lists help when they genuinely organize a comparison or process; they are not citation tricks.

For example, “ArticleStudio exports Markdown and DOCX” is more precise than “we export everywhere.” Put limitations near the capability they qualify. Link to original sources for substantive claims, and include publication or update dates only when they reflect real editorial work.

Distinguish AI search crawling from training

OpenAI documents OAI-SearchBot as a crawler used for ChatGPT search visibility and GPTBot as a crawler associated with model training. These controls are separate. Allowing search crawling does not require you to make a blanket promise about training, and blocking a bot is not an authentication mechanism.

This site’s general crawler rules allow public content and exclude private workspace paths. Protected content still requires login. Site operators should also check firewall behavior and actual request logs; a permissive robots.txt cannot overcome a network block.

Measure observed visibility without inventing a GEO score

Google reports traffic from its AI search features within overall Web search performance in Search Console. It does not provide this site with a standalone universal GEO score. Monitor landing-page impressions, clicks, and conversions, and document the limits of the available reporting.

For other AI services, record referral traffic when available and sample a stable set of relevant questions over time. Save the date, system, prompt, answer, and cited URL. Results vary, and an isolated citation is not proof of durable visibility.

Questions and answers