Your future customers no longer use Google. They ask ChatGPT.

This is the AI-generated summary (from Google’s Gemini) that appears at the very top of certain search results.

In French, Google calls them "AI overviews." The summary directly answers the question and cites a few relevant sources, appearing before the standard search results.

The idea behind GEO is similar, because it rests on the same 3 pillars: technical foundations, content and popularity.

Where SEO targets search engine results pages, GEO targets the answers produced by AI assistants.

The two work hand in hand.

Our analysis covers the 6 major players on the market:

• ChatGPT,
• Gemini,
• Claude,
• Perplexity,
• Mistral AI,
• Grok AI (X).

By asking each assistant the questions people in your industry ask, and analysing the answers.

That is exactly what GeoBuster does. You check the questions your prospects & customers are asking across 6 AI assistants, and we measure whether your business shows up, in which position and in what context.

Yes, and probably more than a big brand with strong authority. Local recommendations (a tradesperson, a shop, a service provider nearby, etc.) are among the fastest-growing uses of AI assistants.

Being the only one listed in your area is a considerable competitive advantage.

Cited: the AI points to your website with a link or an explicit source.

Mentioned: it names your business in its answer without a link.

Absent: neither.

A mention counts: it proves the AI knows you. A citation is worth more, because it sends traffic and shows the AI has read your content.

Not exactly, and the difference matters.

The test uses the assistants’ APIs (ChatGPT, Perplexity...) with neutral settings. The consumer app sometimes adds the user’s history, their location, or a different version of the model.

The big picture matches (who is recommended and who is not), but the exact wording can vary from one user to another.

Yes, we have now added this feature, you can try here : AI overviews test

That is the case for most of the businesses tested today. And it is an opportunity.

Start with the content analysis tool: it scores a page against 12 quality criteria and gives you the three priorities to work on to become a reference AI assistants want to cite.

Because an AI never answers exactly the same way twice: it generates each answer, it does not read it from an index.

Two identical tests can give different results.

That is why a trend measured over several tests tells you more than a single snapshot.

Yes, it is possible, by improving your brand’s visibility on the web. The whole point of GEO is to become a recognised reference in your field for generative AI.

It also means feeding the different AIs with relevant, interesting content, which makes it easier for them to suggest you through a citation.

Fix the source the AI used, not the AI itself. Wrong information almost always comes from an outdated or poorly structured page (old pricing, old address, a “2019 events” page still online), a Google Business Profile that was never updated, or a third-party directory.

Update or remove the source, then check again after a few weeks.

Good SEO is obviously a good thing.

But AI assistants do not reuse Google’s ranking: they select, rephrase and prioritise their own sources. Businesses ranking first on Google can be absent from ChatGPT’s answers.

No, none of the engines on the market sells placement in its answers to date.

The only way to be cited is to produce the content the AI finds most useful for the question asked, and to be present on the sites it consults.