GEO Glossary
Key terms and concepts in Generative Engine Optimization and AI visibility
RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)
RAG is the architecture that powers ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity. When an AI generates a response, it first retrieves relevant pages from a search index or live web search, adds them to the prompt as context, and generates a synthesized answer that can cite those pages as sources.
See the queries AI runs about your brandGEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
GEO is the practice of improving how often, and how accurately, AI answer engines such as ChatGPT, Google AI Mode, Gemini, Claude and Perplexity mention, recommend and cite a brand. Traditional SEO aims for a ranked link on a results page; GEO aims to be part of the generated answer itself.
What is GEO? The full guideN-Sampling Methodology
N-Sampling is a consistency scoring method that queries an AI model multiple times (typically 10x) for the same question to eliminate flukes and identify true ranking patterns. Single-query monitoring can miss inconsistencies that N-Sampling reveals.
How we measure answer consistencyCitation Path Analysis
Citation Path Analysis is the forensic process of identifying the specific web sources used by an LLM to generate a response. It traces the exact citation chain from AI output back to source material, revealing why certain brands rank and others don't.
Track the sources AI citesBrand Constitution
Brand Constitution is a declared source of truth about your brand (positioning, products, pricing, leadership). Targetlytics uses it to detect when AI models state something that contradicts it, so each hallucination can be logged and corrected at its source.
Detect AI hallucinations about your brandAnswer-First Content
Answer-First Content is a content format that directly answers a question in the first paragraph. This format wins Google Featured Snippets and AI citations because it provides immediate value and is easily extractable by LLMs.
Create answer-first contentKey Takeaways
- RAG architecture means AI responses are only as good as their source material
- GEO optimizes for AI-powered search engines, not just traditional Google rankings
- N-Sampling methodology eliminates flukes that single-query monitoring misses
- Citation Decay creates opportunities to replace stale competitor citations