No. The two are complementary and share the same foundations. Firstcom always manages them together to cover the entire search landscape, from Google to generative AI.
SEO and GEO. Are you visible where your customers are actually searching?
GOOGLE REMAINS ESSENTIAL. BUT YOUR CUSTOMERS ALSO ASK CHATGPT, CLAUDE, AND GEMINI.
Firstcom manages your visibility across all these channels with an integrated SEO & GEO approach, built around 5 common pillars.
Why search is evolving
x 4,4
The conversion value of LLM traffic vs. traditional SEO
58%
of consumers are replacing Google with AI tools.
+42%
Brand awareness for brands mentioned in LLMs.
SEO & GEO: two disciplines, one goal
Google and generative AI don’t operate by the same rules: Google evaluates a page’s popularity and relevance, while LLMs assess its ability to provide a reliable, structured answer to a specific question. Two different logics requiring two complementary approaches.
| SEO | GEO | |
|---|---|---|
| Target | Search engines (Google, Bing) | Generative models (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini) |
| Objective | Achieve a high ranking to generate clicks | To be cited as a reference source in AI responses |
| What the algorithm evaluates | Page popularity, relevance, and authority | Reliability, structure, depth of expertise |
| Impact on traffic | Direct traffic to your site | Visibility without clicks, but conversion value 4.4x higher than SEO |
| Results achieved | Qualified traffic, leads | Brand awareness, brand preference, top-of-funnel acquisition |
| KPIs | Rankings, clicks, organic traffic | LLM citations, mentions, brand awareness |
At Firstcom, SEO and GEO are always treated together. Because good SEO fuels GEO, and good GEO amplifies the benefits of SEO.
Our Approach: 5 Pillars of SEO & GEO
Technical
Indexability, Schema.org, speed, structure
Semantics
Expert content, FAQs, thematic depth
Authority
Backlinks, press coverage, E-E-A-T, trust signals
Usability
UX, hierarchy, AI-extractable formats
Analytics
Rank tracking, LLM citations, monthly reporting
Your visibility in Google and AI: we’ll handle it together.
What is Global Search?
The expanded search ecosystem in which your customers operate: Google, social media, YouTube, generative AI. The boundaries between these channels are blurring, AI aggregates content from all these sources to build its responses. Your presence must cover the whole spectrum.
How do I know if I’m visible in generative AI?
Through a GEO audit: Firstcom measures your mentions in ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini, identifies content where you’re missing, and prioritizes high-impact actions.
Will GEO kill my site’s organic traffic?
Google’s AI Overviews haven’t been rolled out in France yet but it won’t be long. In countries where they’re already active, the drop in organic traffic to websites ranges from 20% to 50% depending on the industry and query type. Firstcom is already managing SEO and GEO strategies in these markets, so we know exactly what to expect. But here’s the good news:GEO certainly generates fewer direct clicks (the AI provides answers without the user necessarily visiting your site). But this “lost” traffic is offset by a different, higher-quality visibility: your brand becomes a reference cited by the AI, which builds trust and brand awareness. And when a user clicks from an LLM response, its conversion value is 4.4 times higher than that of a traditional SEO click.
Where to start: SEO or GEO?
With SEO, always. Solid SEO is the best foundation for success in GEO: AI systems do not rely on search engine indexes (except for Gemini, Google’s AI), but the quality of your content and your domain authority contribute to your company being cited in LLMs. Without a solid SEO foundation, GEO cannot reach its full potential. At Firstcom, we always start with an audit to assess the current state of both disciplines and prioritize actions.
Can you do GEO without a solid SEO foundation?
Technically, yes, but it would be counterproductive. A poorly structured site with low authority or weak content will be hard for Google to find… and therefore hard for LLMs to find. Investing in GEO without a solid SEO foundation is like building on shaky ground. That’s why at Firstcom, SEO and GEO are always evaluated together—and often launched together.