The Shift / 5 min read
SEO Is Not GEO
SEO still matters. It just does not answer the whole AI visibility question. AI assistants cite and summarize from a different mix of sources.
A high rank does not guarantee a recommendation
The Cited knowledge base includes a GetMentioned and Brandlight finding that the overlap between top Google-ranked links and AI-cited sources has fallen from 70% to below 20%. That is the strategic break. Traditional SEO visibility and AI citation visibility are related, but they are no longer the same report.
A business can rank well and still be missing from AI answers. The assistant may pull from directories, review surfaces, editorial mentions, structured brand pages, forums, or a competitor profile that says the answer more cleanly.
The platform mix is uneven
Google Search Central says there are no special extra requirements for AI Overviews or AI Mode beyond standard search requirements. That is useful guidance for Google surfaces. It does not mean every AI assistant behaves like Google.
Yext analyzed 17.2 million AI citations across major answer platforms. The KB summary records clear platform differences: Gemini favors brand-owned structured content, while ChatGPT leans heavily on third-party listings. One source strategy will not cover every model.
GEO starts with source fit
The practical question is simple: which sources does each assistant trust for your market and buyer prompt? Directory-heavy answers call for cleaner directory evidence. Editorial-list answers call for credible third-party coverage. Brand-site answers call for structured pages that answer the prompt directly.
That is why Cited does not sell a generic SEO checklist. The Cited Audit starts by checking the prompts, platforms, named competitors, and source gaps. Then the work becomes specific enough to matter.
The practical next step
Run the prompt set for your business. See which AI assistants name you, which competitors show up, and where the source record is thin.