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From SEO to GEO: Why Ranking Isn’t Enough in 2025

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While most marketers are panicking over shrinking clicks and vanishing rankings, a quiet shift is happening that few are prepared for. Google’s new AI features, from Overviews to the fully immersive AI Mode, are stealing the most valuable moment in search: the decision point. You can still rank on page one and lose. Why? Because if your brand isn’t being cited in those AI-generated results, you’re invisible.

Google is no longer just a list of links. It’s evolving into a curated answer engine, trained to pull insights from content it trusts. And if your business isn’t one of those trusted sources, you’re not even in the conversation. This isn’t just SEO anymore - this is GEO: Generative Engine Optimization.

SEO Is Not Enough Anymore

GEO means Generative Engine Optimization. It is the practice of optimizing your content so that AI search results - like Google's AI Overviews and others- cite, summarize, or recommend your brand.

Malagasy business owners - especially those in tourism, hospitality, agriculture, crafts, or local services - rely more than ever on being discoverable online. Whether you're running a hotel in Nosy Be, a restaurant in Tana, or diving school in Sainte-Marie, you’re competing not just locally, but globally - and Google is how people find you.

Let’s break down what’s really happening, and how you can adapt.

What is GEO and does it matter for Malagasy Business owner's ?

The Question-Based Search Explosion

Search used to be simple. People typed a few keywords. Now? They ask full, complex questions like:

“What’s the best season to film a destination wedding in Madagascar?”

Since AI hit the scene, users have shifted dramatically in how they search. They're no longer typing in short keywords like "best shoes", they’re asking real questions and expecting full answers directly on the search results page.

Where AI Overviews Actually Show Up?

Marketers think AI Overviews are replacing every search, but that’s a myth. The data tells a very different story. Google’s new AI Overviews don’t appear in every search. But they show up exactly where it matters most

Researching
Comparing products or services
Making decisions

Here’s what we found out, how AI Overviews appear by search type:

Informational searches (50% of all search volume): AI Overviews show up 45.9% of the time.

Commercial searches (e.g., “best CRM for agencies”): Just 14.8% of volume, but AI Overviews show up 17.8% of the time.

Navigational searches (e.g., “Facebook login”): 34.6% of volume, AI Overviews appear only 1.5% of the time.

Transactional searches (when someone’s ready to buy): Only 8% of searches, with AI Overviews showing up 6.1% of the time.

So where do AI Overviews matter most?

When people are researching, comparing, and deciding. If your brand isn’t cited in those summaries, you’re not even in the conversation.

Google’s AI Mode Is a Whole New Search Experience

If AI-Overviews are the appetizer, AI Mode is the full-course meal.

Google’s AI Mode is not just another feature, it’s a complete reimagining of how search works. Instead of a list of links, it gives you a full conversation. It handles multi-part questions instantly, pulls data from trusted content, and often doesn’t link back to source pages at all.

Behind the scenes, it runs something called Query Fan-Out, where one question triggers dozens of hidden sub-searches.

For example:

“What’s the best time this week for a sunset shoot in Nosy Boraha?”

It doesn't just run one search.

It runs 20–30 micro-searches behind the scenes. This is called query fan-out, and it includes searches like:

“Nosy Boraha sunset time this week”
“Nosy Boraha weather forecast”
“Best lighting for golden hour photography”
“Photography ideas for tropical beaches”
And many more...

It stitches all those results into one polished recommendation. But here's the kicker: if your content doesn’t show up in those hidden searches, you’re completely invisible.

The Brand-Discovery Reality

Here’s what no one is saying:

If AI doesn’t mention your brand, it doesn’t matter if you’re on page one.

Because AI results don’t care about rank. They care about trust. They pull from content that’s algorithmically trusted to summarize the search journey. That’s why this shift isn’t just about SEO anymore. It’s about training the AI to recognize your brand as a reliable source - so it gets cited in these curated answers. If you’re not being cited in AI Overviews, you’re missing the moment when your customer is ready to decide. You’re not showing up when it matters most.

Most people don’t click anymore, especially when the answer is already given by Google’s AI.

So now, the goal isn’t just to rank.

It’s to train the AI to recognize your brand and content as part of the answer.

That’s where GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) comes in. It’s the next step beyond SEO. And it’s how we Beyondpixels.io make sure Google’s AI features you, not just your competitors.

WE Can GET YOU STARTED !

If you want to learn which strategies we use to reverse engineer AI you can read more down below.

Service Explorer

This explosion in question-based searches skyrocketed from 38% to 87% in just 8 months, triggering a major shift in how Google works.

Why? Because Google’s AI features are making search far more useful.

The total number of searches per day jumped from 8.5 billion to 13.7 billion.

That’s over 5 trillion searches a year—and climbing. And users aren’t just browsing. They’re searching more often, more deeply, and expecting immediate, curated answers.

Researching
Comparing products or services
Making decisions

Here’s what we found out, how AI Overviews appear by search