TL;DR: How AI is Changing SEO Practices in 2026
As businesses adapt to AI-driven search systems, traditional SEO tactics like E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) must evolve into GEO (Generative Engine Optimization). LLMs like ChatGPT prioritize clear, structured, and retrievable content over link-heavy traditional SEO methods.
- GEO focuses on content cited by AI, not just clicks or rankings.
- Businesses must establish themselves as entities in platforms like Wikidata for better AI recognition.
- Structured, citation-worthy content tailored toward niches has higher visibility in AI-generated responses.
Adapting to GEO gives startups and entrepreneurs a competitive edge in getting AI to cite their content. If you’re new to optimizing for AI, check out this guide on Generative Engine Optimization.
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Understanding LLMs vs E-E-A-T in SEO and GEO
The world of online visibility is shifting rapidly, and 2026 is proving to be a pivotal year. Search engine optimization (SEO) is no longer just about achieving high search engine rankings; now businesses need to grapple with concepts like E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization). Meanwhile, Large Language Models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT are introducing entirely new ways for audiences to discover and consume content. But here’s the provocative question: is everything we know about SEO still relevant in the age of generative AI? Let’s break it down to uncover the truth and understand what it means for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and startup founders.
As someone who runs multiple ventures, like CADChain and Fe/male Switch, I’ve seen these changes firsthand. Startups and SMEs alike are struggling to adapt their strategies, and every founder I mentor asks me the same thing: Does E-E-A-T even matter to LLMs? My answer is nuanced, and much of what you’ve been told about optimizing for generative AI may, frankly, be marketing hype.
What’s the Fundamental Difference Between LLMs and E-E-A-T?
Let’s start with the basics. E-E-A-T is a human-centered framework introduced by Google for evaluating content quality. It looks for experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness in ranking web pages. This system was built within the architecture of traditional search engines, with crawlers, indexes, and link-based authority systems like PageRank.
LLMs like ChatGPT operate completely differently. These are statistical models trained on massive datasets to predict patterns of language. Their “answers” are not based on real-time crawling or ranking algorithms but are generated from pre-trained data, enhanced by retrieval pipelines when connected to external sources. In other words, LLMs do not inherently “care” about your expertise or trust signals, they care about the clarity and relevance of the content fed into their training and retrieval processes. This isn’t speculation, it’s just how the tech works.
Bold insight for founders: trying to apply E-E-A-T-based strategies directly to LLMs is like forcing a square peg into a round hole. The real question isn’t whether you meet Google’s guidelines, it’s whether your content is structured and retrievable in a way LLMs can use. Think of it like making sure your shop is on a map, not obsessing about window dressing.
What is GEO and Why Should You Care?
GEO, or Generative Engine Optimization, is the process of ensuring your brand or content gets cited and referenced by AI-driven interfaces like ChatGPT, Perplexity AI, or Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE). In 2026, search volume is expected to drop by 25% as users increasingly turn to AI-powered answers rather than traditional search engines.
- Citations, not clicks: While Google relies on links and traffic, LLMs prioritize content that provides clear, quotable insights or evidence.
- A shift to entities: Authoritative brands, experts, and businesses are preferred within the “knowledge graphs” LLMs lean on. Your job is to ensure your business is defined as an entity and recognized across relevant datasets.
- Multimodal content readiness: With 20 billion searches handled visually and interactively, your content must work across formats: text, images, and even voice.
Why does this matter? Startups and entrepreneurs are still in “click generation” mode, chasing impressions and SEO rankings. But GEO demands a completely different mindset: How do you become the source that AI cites? With my background in game-based learning at Fe/male Switch, I teach participants to think of citation-worthiness like points in a video game. Your content must add clear, sourced value at every level.
How Do You Make Your Content LLM-Friendly?
- Focus on entity building: Register your business, founders, and products in databases trusted by LLM backends, like Wikidata and Crunchbase. The more well-defined your entity, the easier it is for LLMs to recognize you as an authoritative source.
- Structure your content for retrieval: Use headings, summaries, and bullet points to chunk your content. Multi-layer queries from LLMs rely on retrieval-ready pieces, not blocks of unstructured text.
- Provide citations: Whether you link to scholarly sources or display stats directly, LLMs prefer content that can be verified. This plays into AI’s tendency to prioritize factual reliability during training and alignment.
- Hire an AI co-founder: Don’t roll your eyes. One of the smartest things I teach at Fe/male Switch is how to automate content generation and data retrieval with AI-first tools. Think Jasper, Writesonic, or custom AI models trained on your niche. AI should draft, and you should refine.
Practical example: If you’re running a SaaS business targeting remote work, write objective, citation-rich guides on best practices that AI is likely to pull into generated answers. Stay niche, LLMs value specialists over generalists.
What Do Startups Get Wrong About E-E-A-T and LLMs?
- Overloading content with trust signals: Author bios and credentials alone don’t matter to LLMs unless they’re tied to existing databases.
- No focus on depth: LLMs retrieve high-density insights. If your content is surface-level or repetitive, you’ll be ignored.
- Chasing backlinks exclusively: In the age of GEO, consistency across digital ecosystems (not just your website) matters more than backlink counts.
Shocking stat for 2026: While traditional SEO practitioners only see marginal improvements in rankings with E-E-A-T adjustments (2, 5%), those adopting GEO strategies report visibility boosts of up to 40% in AI-driven search results. If you’re not adapting, someone else is taking your spot in AI-generated answers.
Final Thoughts: Is E-E-A-T Dead?
No, but it’s evolving. While E-E-A-T is still critical for organic search and traditional SEO, its relevance to LLMs is limited. Instead, GEO and retrieval alignment are becoming essential skill sets for businesses aiming to survive in the generative AI era. Entrepreneurs must think beyond traffic metrics and ask: How do I make my content indispensable for AI?
Here’s what I recommend: recalibrate your mindset. Treat SEO as the foundation and GEO as the emerging blueprint for AI-centric visibility. And most importantly, hybridize your toolkit, optimizing for both human readers and the algorithms shaping our digital future. That’s how you win both now and in the years ahead.
FAQ on LLMs vs E-E-A-T in SEO and GEO
How does E-E-A-T compare to LLMs in content evaluation?
E-E-A-T emphasizes human-rated content quality focusing on experience and trustworthiness, while LLMs prioritize statistical relevance and structured inputs. LLMs use training data and retrievable insights rather than evaluating authority directly. Learn how to master AI SEO for startups.
Why is GEO important for startups?
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) ensures visibility in AI-driven search platforms like ChatGPT by optimizing content for citations, data consistency, and multimodal readiness. Explore what GEO means and how to implement it.
What does it mean to "optimize content for LLMs"?
Optimizing for LLMs involves structuring content for clarity, adding citations, and creating retrieval-friendly formats. LLMs favor niche-specific, structured, and factual content over generalized material. Dive into cost-efficient marketing strategies for LLMs.
Do LLMs prioritize E-E-A-T principles?
No, LLMs are designed to predict patterns from training data, not to evaluate website credibility based on E-E-A-T principles. They retrieve accurate snippets from indexed sources, emphasizing retrieval algorithms over trust frameworks.
How can startups build authority in the era of GEO?
Startups should register their business as entities in databases like Wikidata, link data across platforms, and create multimodal, evidence-backed content. Discover how SEO strategies are evolving for startups.
What is the role of citations in GEO?
Citations have replaced traditional backlinks for AI-driven visibility. Structured, attribution-rich content increases the likelihood of being referenced in machine-generated AI answers. Creating valuable, factual content is crucial for citation readiness. Learn more about AI-focused content optimization.
Can startups still leverage traditional SEO for 2026?
Yes, traditional SEO lays a foundation by ensuring visibility in classic search engines, but GEO is critical for leveraging emerging AI-driven search tools. Balancing both strategies ensures maximum reach. Discover the future of SEO for startups.
How can startups embrace AI-driven discovery?
Startups should blend AI tools like LLMs with traditional strategies, focusing on automating content generation and aligning with AI retrieval layers. Tools like Jasper or Writesonic can draft content while startups refine accuracy. Learn how AI boosts startups’ content strategies.
Why is multimodal content crucial for GEO?
With 20 billion monthly searches being visual and interactive in nature, engaging across text, images, and video ensures that AI platforms recognize and retrieve your content effectively. Becoming multimodal-ready boosts citation opportunities substantially.
What mistakes do startups make about E-E-A-T and GEO?
Common mistakes include overloading content with trust signals irrelevant to LLMs, overlooking entity registration, and focusing on backlinks rather than building factual, citation-worthy content. Learn common mistakes and how to fix them.
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the “gamepreneurship” methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the point of view of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
