Docs

What to know before you start

These are reference standards, not blog posts. When people in the same meeting use GEO to mean different things, every decision drifts. Here we publish the definitions DATAPREPREP works with, citation reach by publishing channel, how we choose target queries, the conditions for a citation, and our scope of work, so you can judge for yourself before hiring anyone.

Summary

How the four fit together

Two axes, one execution layer, one outcome. Drawing them as four equal boxes is where the confusion starts.

SEO and GEO are the two axes. AEO is formatting work done inside them, and AIO is the outcome that follows. E-E-A-T runs through all four.

1Only two axes

SEOCrawled, indexed and evaluated

Technical health and intent matching. A document that isn’t indexed can’t make it into any answer.

GEOCited by AI

Getting a brand recognized as a single entity, with original data, sourcing and outside evidence in place. It’s about eligibility, not phrasing.

This is what DATAPREPREP specializes in. The G stands for Generative, not Geographic.

Work done inside both axes

2Execution

AEOExcerpted into answer boxes

Question-style headings with a direct answer up front (100–160 characters on Korean pages). It’s where a document with SEO and GEO in place moves into answer placements.

It’s formatting work, so it costs almost nothing.

What follows once conditions are met

3Outcome, not directly buildable

AIOOutcome metric

The stage where a document that meets AEO requirements is cited as a source in generative AI answers such as ChatGPT search and AI Overviews.

An outcome that appears once the conditions are met. What DATAPREPREP builds is those conditions.

E-E-A-T Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness isn’t an item in any one box; it runs through all four. SEO and GEO are the only axes, and documents reach AIO by way of AEO. DATAPREPREP specializes in GEO, and E-E-A-T runs through all four.

20 terms

Terms that get mixed up in meetings

Each term’s definition and a misconception we’ve actually run into are in the glossary table. Each link jumps to that term’s row.

GEOGenerative Engine Optimization
GEO: definition and common misconception →
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