SEO vs GEO and more: how AI is turning your findability upside down

With the rise of Artificial Intelligence and Google’s AI Overview, user search behavior is changing, but so is the way content is found. Terms such as GEO, AIO, AEO and SXO are popping up more and more often. These developments make it important to properly understand how these forms relate to each other.

Why SEO still matters

Despite all the innovations, SEO remains an important part of online findability. Search engines continue to function largely based on text, links and structure. Even with AI additions such as generative search results (as with Google’s AI Overview), good SEO still determines whether your content gets seen at all. The basic components of SEO still remain:

• On-page SEO: optimizing title tags, headers, content, images and internal links.
• Off-page SEO: build authority through backlinks, social signals and brand mentions.
• Technical optimizations: website speed, mobile usability, crawlability and website security.
• Content optimization: valuable, relevant keywords that match the user’s search intent.

The different forms explained

SEO vs GEO vs AIO vs AEO vs SXO. It may seem like a jumble of abbreviations, but each has a distinct role. By understanding all of these approaches well, you can better anticipate future search engine developments as a brand or company.

SEO: Search Engine Optimization

In 2025, SEO is still about optimizing Web sites for search engines such as Google. But the emphasis is more than ever on quality, semantic search and E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness). Structured data, fast load times and mobile-friendliness remain important, as do internal link structures.

Where quantity (of content and backlinks) used to be important, relevance now prevails. The integration of AI in search results means that your content must match search intent even more precisely. SEO in 2025 will be more technical and more human at the same time.

GEO: Generative Engine Optimization

GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), also known as local SEO, focuses on improving a brand’s visibility in specific regions or locations. It is important for businesses with physical locations, such as restaurants, retail stores, service providers and franchises.

In 2025, however, GEO will have an additional layer, namely AI. With the rise of generative search results, such as Google’s AI Overview, semantic context also plays a greater role. Local information must therefore be correct, but also clearly and contextually worded to be picked up by AI systems.

• Google Company Profile Optimization.
• Embed Google Maps on websites.
• Create location-specific landing pages.
• Use of local schema markups (structured data)
• Generate reviews and listings in local directories.

AIO: AI Optimization

AIO stands for AI Optimization and is all about improving content using AI tools. Think of writing texts, grouping keywords or finding out search intentions. Useful, because AI works lightning fast and makes the whole process a lot more efficient. But without your input, it remains pretty flat. You are the one who provides nuance, style and the right tone.

In 2025, we see AI being used to generate texts, but also increasingly for strategic applications. Think content audits or technical analysis. Something we are also working on in full swing. The great thing is that you can still scale up and deliver consistent quality with relatively few resources. Provided you know how to deploy AI in the right way, of course.

AEO: Answer Engine Optimization

AEO (Answer Engine Optimization) fits perfectly with the rise of voice search and smart AI assistants such as Google Assistant and ChatGPT. These no longer provide a list of blue links, just the answer right away in the AI overview. Want to be among them? Then your content must be super clear and well-structured. Think short definitions, clear bullet points and smart HTML. Structured data remains important here too, as does writing in natural language. Like just explaining it to someone.

The Google AI Overview also does something to your clicks here. The graph below shows that searches with AI Overview are more likely to yield no clicks than without. More and more users are finding their answer directly in the search results. This highlights the importance of optimizing for AI summaries (such as AIO and AEO) to remain visible and relevant online in a new search landscape.

Source: Semrush

SXO: Search Experience Optimization

SXO (Search Experience Optimization) is the clever blend of SEO and UX. It’s not just about being found well, but especially about what happens after the click. How does someone experience your website? Is your content easy to scan? Does everything work smoothly on mobile and do you convince the visitor? Or does someone just drop out immediately?

Search engines are paying more and more attention to how people behave on your site. Do they click through, do they linger, or are they gone in no time? Do you rank high in Google but your site is not user-friendly? Then you can lose that spot just like that. SXO makes sure you really think from the visitor’s point of view. So get to work with a logical structure, clear visuals, fast loading time and strong content.

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