The Ultimate
GEO Checklist.
65 tasks. 8 categories. Everything your brand needs to show up when customers ask AI for answers.
40% of searches now include AI-generated answers. If your brand isn't being cited, you're invisible to a growing segment of your market.
AI search is eating your organic traffic.
Instead of scrolling through 10 blue links, your customers are asking ChatGPT and Perplexity for direct answers. If your brand isn't in those answers, your competitor is.
of searches now include AI-generated answers
of consumers trust AI recommendations as much as human ones
the number of results on page 2 of an AI answer
What's inside.
8 categories. 65 tasks. Prioritized by impact tier (T1, T2, T3). Every task includes what to do, why it matters, and how to validate it worked.
AI Crawler Access & Analytics Foundation
10_TASKSMake sure AI crawlers can actually reach your content. Audit robots.txt, fix anti-bot blocking, set up AI referral tracking, verify server-rendered content.
Content Structure for AI Extraction
7_TASKSStructure your content so AI systems can extract and cite it. Summaries, question-based headings, direct opening paragraphs, clear definitions.
Authority & Trust Signals
9_TASKSBuild the credibility signals AI systems use to decide whether to cite you. Author bios, publication dates, inline citations, original data, expert quotes.
Structured Data for AI Understanding
9_TASKSAdd machine-readable schema markup so AI systems can reliably parse your content. Article, FAQ, HowTo, Organization, Product, and Person schema.
Brand Entity & Reputation
9_TASKSStrengthen your brand's identity across the sources AI systems learn from. Wikipedia, Wikidata, Knowledge Panel, consistent NAP, authoritative mentions.
AI-First Content Strategy
9_TASKSCreate the types of content AI systems cite most. Definitive guides, original data, comparison pages, topic clusters, People Also Ask answers.
Monitoring, Measurement & Iteration
5_TASKSTrack whether your GEO work is paying off. Monthly AI visibility audits, referral traffic analysis, competitor tracking, content freshness reviews.
Advanced & Emerging Tactics
7_TASKSStay ahead with emerging conventions. llms.txt, AI-agent-friendly navigation, content changelogs, structured feeds, content licensing.
Built for teams who take organic seriously.
Marketing Leaders
You're responsible for pipeline and revenue. You know SEO matters, but you're hearing 'AI search' more every week and need a concrete action plan.
SEO Managers & Specialists
You've mastered traditional SEO. Now you need to extend your strategy to cover AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude before your competitors do.
Founders & Operators
You're building a brand and can't afford to be invisible in the fastest-growing discovery channel. You need a checklist you can hand to your team and say 'do this.'
Built by Forged Catalyst.
Compiled by the SEO & GEO team at Forged Catalyst, led by Philip Hegarty, Director of Performance Marketing. We don't just write about this. We do it.
- Generated $34.6MM in pipeline on $4.3MM in ad spend
- Improved on-site conversion rates from 0.67% to 2.29%
- Ranked multiple pillar pages to #1 on Google
- Built and scaled a D2C brand from $0 to $3MM/year
- Managed relationships with 50+ Fortune 500 companies
- Closed 1,109 deals at a 34% win rate across 3,200 opportunities
This isn't theory. This is the same framework we apply to our client engagements, distilled into a checklist you can execute today.
Want us to run your GEO audit instead? →Questions.
What is GEO?
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the practice of optimizing your website and brand presence so AI-powered search engines like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity, and Claude cite your content when users ask questions related to your business. Think of it as SEO for AI answers.
How is GEO different from SEO?
GEO builds on top of SEO. Traditional SEO gets you ranking in search results. GEO gets you cited in AI-generated answers. Many fundamentals overlap (quality content, structured data, authority signals), but GEO adds new requirements like AI crawler access, entity reputation, and content structure optimized for extraction.
Is this checklist relevant to my industry?
Yes. The checklist covers universal GEO fundamentals that apply to any website: B2B, B2C, e-commerce, SaaS, professional services, local businesses. Some tasks are tagged with conditional applicability so you can skip what doesn't apply.
What format is the checklist in?
CSV (comma-separated values). Open it in Google Sheets, Excel, Notion, Airtable, or import it directly into project management tools like Asana, Linear, or Monday.com. Every task includes an ID, category, tier, description, validation criteria, and status column.
Do I need technical skills to use this?
About half the tasks are non-technical (content strategy, brand positioning, authority building). The other half are technical (schema markup, robots.txt, server rendering). Each task is labeled so you can split the work across your team.
Is this actually free?
Yes. No credit card. No trial. No upsell wall. If you want hands-on help implementing the checklist, you can book a free GEO audit with our team, but the checklist itself is yours to keep and use however you want.
Stop waiting for AI to find you.
65 tasks. 8 categories. One checklist. Start getting your brand cited by AI today.
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