The useful distinction is not “old SEO” versus “new GEO.” The useful distinction is which discovery surface you are optimizing for and which shared systems influence that surface.
What matters most
The strongest approach is to improve the underlying systems that make information discoverable and trustworthy: technical accessibility, clear information architecture, useful content, internal linking, entity consistency, structured data, and credible evidence.
A practical framework
- Define the query or task. Identify what users actually need answered or completed.
- Map the source requirements. Determine what evidence, entities, and pages should support that answer.
- Improve retrievability. Make the important information easy to crawl, index, interpret, and extract.
- Strengthen credibility. Add first-party evidence, expert context, clear authorship, and corroborating references where appropriate.
- Measure outcomes. Track organic visibility, AI mentions and citations, referral behavior, and conversions separately.
Related resources
Continue with the AI Visibility Guide, review Entity Optimization & Schema, or explore Technical SEO.