Generative Engine Optimisation: Why Smart Businesses Are Moving Beyond Traditional SEO

This guide explains what Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) is, how it helps coaches, course creators and service providers get featured in ChatGPT and AI Overviews – and the strategies to get started.

While you were busy mastering SEO and creating incredible content for your business, something massive happened in the digital world. AI completely changed how your dream clients discover you online.

Welcome to our new world of Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO) – the strategy that forward-thinking women entrepreneurs are using to get discovered by their ideal clients in this AI-powered world where more and more people are turning to ChatGPT to gather information and learn about… well, everything really.

What Exactly is Generative Engine Optimisation and How Does it Work?

GEO is your ticket to becoming the go-to expert that AI recommends.

Instead of just trying to rank #1 on Google, you’re optimising your content so that when someone asks ChatGPT or Google’s AI a question about your expertise area, YOUR insights get featured in the response.

Picture this: A busy mum asks ChatGPT, “How do I start a profitable online business while working full-time?” If your content is optimised for GEO, the AI might respond with advice that draws directly from your expertise, positioning you as the authority before she even knows your name.

That’s the power of GEO – you become the trusted voice in conversations that matter most to your business growth.

Note: With 47.4% of sources in AI overviews come from domains within the top 10 organic results this isn’t the time to be hitting the snooze button on your search engine optimisation either!

How GEO is Different from Traditional SEO?

Traditional SEO is about trying to get the best spot on Google (yes, other search engines exist – but Google takes the overwhelming majority of search traffic). You optimise for keywords, build backlinks, and work your way up the ranks until you’re on the first page.

GEO works differently. Instead of continuously optimising for attention in a sea of links, you’re becoming the expert voice that AI systems trust and quote. When your ideal client asks an AI assistant for advice in your area of expertise, GEO ensures your wisdom gets shared.

Why Do AI Overviews Matter for Coaches and Service Providers?

Here’s something that might surprise you – or maybe not if you’ve been paying attention:

More and more women are turning to AI for business advice instead of scrolling through traditional search results and they’re asking questions like “How do I price my coaching services?” or “What’s the best way to launch an online course?” and trusting* the AI responses they receive.

But here’s a word of caution – don’t trust AI completely yet. It hallucinates and makes stuff up, and if it’s fed garbage, it’s going to churn out garbage..

It’s this shift in behaviour which creates an incredible opportunity for women entrepreneurs.

Consider your own behaviour when researching a new topic. We all tend to defer to sources we perceive as knowledgeable and authoritative – and that’s exactly what happens when AI features your expertise in its responses.

When your expertise gets featured in these AI responses, you’re not just another search result – you’re the recommended expert. You’re building trust and authority before potential clients even visit your website (which is the ultimate goal).

Consider your own behaviour and how you go about researching a new topic (aka Googling random shit at 2am because I had a “thought” and I’m not going to be able to get to sleep until I find out more!). We all tend to defer to sources we perceive as knowledgeable and authoritative – and that’s exactly what happens when AI features your expertise in its responses.

Real Success in the Early Days

I’ll be honest with you – this is all pretty new territory. I’ve been transitioning from SEO to GEO myself over the past year, and while I don’t have decades of case studies to share, I can tell you what I’m seeing with my own clients.

The women entrepreneurs who are embracing GEO principles now are starting to see their content referenced by AI tools more frequently. They’re appearing in AI overviews for questions in their expertise areas. And crucially, they’re building authority in a space where most of their competitors don’t even know the game has changed.

Real Success Stories from Women Entrepreneurs

• Life Coach Success: Sarah is a life coach who specialises in work-life balance.

Working with me, she restructured her blog content using GEO principles. Now when women ask AI tools about managing career stress, her strategies frequently appear in the responses and she’s seen a 40% increase in discovery calls without spending a penny on ads.

How Your Ideal Clients Are Searching Now

Your dream clients aren’t just typing keywords into Google anymore. They’re having full conversations with AI assistants – good grief – they’re even using chatbot assistants as bloody agony aunts and relationship counsellors!

Instead of searching “business coach for women,” they’re asking detailed questions like:

• “How do I know if I’m ready to hire a business coach, and what should I look for?”

• “I’m a working mum who wants to start a coaching business but only have evenings and weekends. What’s the most realistic way to get started?”

• “I created an online course but I’m struggling with marketing it without feeling salesy. What should I do?”

These conversational queries are where GEO shines because when you optimise for these natural but detailed questions, you position yourself to be the expert voice in exactly the conversations your ideal clients are having.

AI loves direct and clear content. No more ambiguous “soulful” fluff. It wants solutions spelled out in plain language, which is quite a shift from what we’ve been taught about content marketing.

What Are the Best GEO Strategies for Women Entrepreneurs?

Speak Like You’re Talking to a Friend: Write your content as if you’re having coffee with a potential client. Use the same warm, conversational tone you’d use in a consultation call. AI systems love natural, helpful content, but leave the fluffy language at home.

Answer the Questions They’re Really Asking: Go beyond surface-level topics. Your ideal clients have deep, nuanced questions about their challenges. Create content that addresses these complex concerns with empathy and expertise.

Tip: Next time you do a Google search, scroll to the bottom of the page and check the “People Also Ask” section. This gives you ideas for topics and what people are really wanting to know. Often when I search for something, I’m not quite sure what I want to know – but when I scroll down to this section, I can follow the paths others have taken who probably knew what they were looking for better than I did!

Be Genuinely Helpful First: Focus on providing real value before promoting your services. When your content genuinely helps people, AI systems are more likely to reference and recommend you.

You’re Ahead in the AI-first Game

Here’s the exciting part: Most of your competitors don’t even know GEO exists yet. While they’re still playing the old SEO game, you can establish yourself as the trusted expert in AI-powered conversations.

The women entrepreneurs who embrace GEO now will dominate their niches as more people turn to AI for business guidance. You have the opportunity to be ahead of the curve, not catching up to it.

Ready to become the expert voice your ideal clients discover through AI? The future of business discovery is here, and it’s time to claim your place in it.

Last updated: June 2025 – GEO tactics evolve with AI, and so does Be Unsociable.