Want to learn more about MarketScale's GEO tool, AI Visibility? Learn more here.
Table of Contents:
Why does GEO matter right now?
Because your buyers are asking AI the questions that used to live on Google.
If your brand isn’t showing up inside those answers (and ideally getting cited), you’re not just missing traffic. You’re missing trust at the exact moment people decide who’s legit.
And here’s the scoreboard you should repeat until it’s annoying:
Invisible → Mentioned → Mentioned + Cited
SEO was “rank my page.”
GEO is “make the answer impossible without us.”
What’s GEO in practice?
GEO is structuring your content + distribution so AI models:
Understand what you’re credible for
Recommend you for the right prompts
Cite you as evidence (this is the trust level)
If you’re only “mentioned,” you’re on the list.
If you’re cited, you’re the source.
How are normal people actually using LLMs today?
They’re using ChatGPT/Gemini/Perplexity like Google with a cheat code:
Ask a question
Get a synthesized answer + options
Click the sources they trust
Ask follow-ups to narrow the shortlist
So your first GEO strategy starts here:
When someone asks the most important questions in your industry…
Are you recommended/mentioned?
Are you cited?
Are you showing up as an authority across multiple questions?
What are the most common mistakes that make GEO fail?
Treating GEO like “a blog project” → you stay invisible because AI learns authority across channels
Only chasing “mentioned” → you get awareness but don’t earn trust
Publishing only on your website → AI often cites YouTube, Reddit, LinkedIn, Medium, forums, and earned media too
Trying to cover everything → you never become “the source” for any lane
Relying on generic, polished fluff → AI rejects unoriginal content (it reads like AI)
Relying on AI-generated content → AI rejects AI; it rewards verifiable information and authenticity
Not activating SMEs → you starve the internet of real expertise (and then wonder why competitors get cited)
No weekly cadence → one content burst every 3 months does not build authority
No measurement loop → you keep guessing instead of diagnosing
How do I launch a GEO strategy (roadmap before tools)?
Step 0 — Use AI Visibility to stop guessing (and set the table for everything else)
Before you build a Prompt Map or pick an Authority Lane, you need one thing: a reality check.
AI Visibility is your GEO radar + GPS:
Radar: Where you’re showing up right now (mentions, citations, share of voice)
GPS: What to do next (prompt gaps + content recommendations)
If you skip this step, you’re basically doing GEO like it’s 2016 SEO: guessing, publishing, hoping.
How do I read the basics of AI Visibility? (the 90-second interpretation guide)
1) Start with the Overview dashboard (your “where are we?” screen)
Look for three quick signals:
Mentions: Are you even showing up?
Citations: Are you being used as evidence (trust)?
Share of Voice / Ranking vs competitors: Who’s winning the space right now?
Simple interpretation:
If you’re low on mentions, you have an awareness problem.
If you’re mentioned but not cited, you have an authority problem.
If competitors are cited more than you, you have a distribution + proof problem (your content isn’t living where AI is pulling sources).
2) Check Tracked Competitors (make the comparison real)
AI Visibility only helps if it’s tracking the right “race.”
Remove irrelevant names
Add the competitors you actually lose deals to
Don’t overthink it—5–10 is plenty
3) Go to Prompts (this is the foundation of the whole system)
Prompts are literally the questions the tool uses to test you in LLMs.
Your goal here is to answer:
What questions are we already showing up for?
What questions do we need to show up for?
What questions are our buyers asking before they ever talk to us?
4) Scan Responses + Citations (this tells you what AI trusts today)
This is where the tool becomes a strategy weapon:
Responses: What the model said + whether you were mentioned/cited + sentiment
Citations: Which domains/channels keep getting cited (YouTube, Reddit, LinkedIn, Medium, etc.)
Key insight: You can’t build a winning content plan if you don’t know where AI is pulling sources from.
5) Peek at Content Recommendations (this is the “do this next” engine)
Once your prompts + competitors are set, Recommendations becomes your weekly execution board.
Think of it like a quest log:
“Here’s what to publish next”
“Here’s the gap you need to close”
“Here’s what will most likely move citations”
Step 1: What is my “Prompt Map”?
You need to understand what questions your customers are asking about you, your industry, their buying decisions, etc., to understand which prompts to monitor. Build a Prompt Map with 3 buckets:
A) Discovery prompts
“What is ___”
“Best ___”
“Top ___”
“Examples of ___”
B) Comparison prompts
“___ vs ___”
“Alternatives to ___”
“Pricing for ___”
“Who should choose ___”
C) Implementation prompts
“How to ___”
“Setup ___”
“Troubleshooting ___”
“Common mistakes with ___”
Start with 10 prompts you truly want to win.
Step 2: How do I audit my current AI positioning?
For your top prompts, check AI Visibility to answer:
Am I mentioned?
Am I cited?
Who is cited instead (often not your direct competitor)?
Which channels/domains keep getting cited?
Step 3: What’s my “Authority Lane”?
Pick 1–2 lanes you will become the source for, and use these to guide your initial UGC creation strategies.
This is the “revenge of the nerds” moment:
Your most valuable marketing engine is your technical experts, operators, and use-case people.
What should I publish if I want to get cited (not just seen)?
GEO is not just owned media. It’s Owned → Distributed → Earned.
Owned media (your foundations)
Canonical FAQ/explainer pages (pain → outcome → how it works)
Simple how-tos (most consistently citable category)
Product impact explainers (not spec dumps)
Distributed media (where authority spreads)
LinkedIn posts from real experts
YouTube: how-tos, case studies, interviews
Partner channels + community forums
Earned media (the multiplier)
Industry journals, podcasts, roundup inclusions
Commentary on trends/legislation/market changes
Benchmarks/studies in your niche
Key rule: AI cites authority, and authority is built across channels.
What’s the fastest way to execute this with UGC?
Stop making content a marketing-only job.
Use UGC to decentralize creation across your contributor bench:
SMEs (product, engineering, ops)
Sales and customer-facing teams
Exec POV (optional but powerful)
Customers and partners (trust infrastructure)
UGC wins in GEO because it produces what AI prefers:
real expertise, real stories, real answers—in volume, consistently.
What’s the 7-day GEO sprint I can run this week?
Day 1: Choose your battlefield
Pick 10 prompts (or 1 prompt pack)
Identify where you’re Invisible / Mentioned / Cited
Choose 1–2 prompt clusters to attack
Day 2: Build your Contributor Bench (assign owners, not volunteers)
3 SMEs
1 customer or partner proof
1 trend/POV voice
Days 3–5: Produce 5 assets (fast)
3 SME videos (60–90 sec)
1 customer proof clip
1 trend/news POV clip
Day 6: Convert + publish across the authority ecosystem
Turn the videos into:
1 canonical FAQ/explainer page
1 how-to
1 POV/trend post
Publish on the channels AI is already citing.
Day 7: Re-check AI Visibility
What moved?
What got cited?
What recommendations changed?
Repeat.
Mantra: AI Visibility gives you the map. Your people make the moves.
What should I remember the next time I do this?
If you’re still guessing, you’re behind.
Leverage AI Visibility in MarketScale Studio. Pick the prompts that matter to you. Diagnose mentions vs citations. Publish what AI rewards. Activate your experts to feed quality, authoritative content. Repeat weekly.
That’s how you become the brand AI recommends.