SEO vs. AEO vs. GEO for Health & Wellness, Explained
Short version: SEO gets you ranked in Google’s traditional links, AEO gets you cited in AI answers like ChatGPT and Perplexity, and GEO gets you into the AI results inside search engines like Google’s AI Overviews and Bing Copilot. They’re three surfaces where a client can find you, and a healthy business shows up on all three.
SEO — the traditional blue links
Search Engine Optimization is what most people mean by “getting found on Google”: ranking your pages for terms clients type, winning the local map pack, and earning clicks to your site. It’s still the foundation — the same content quality, site health, and reviews that win SEO feed the other two.
AEO — being named in AI assistants
Answer Engine Optimization targets the standalone AI tools clients now ask directly: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini. These give one conversational answer, so the goal isn’t ranking — it’s being the business the assistant names. It rewards clear, structured, trustworthy content and consistent listings.
GEO — generative results inside search
Generative Engine Optimization targets the AI answers that live inside the search engines themselves. Two surfaces, not one: Google’s AI Overviews, which sit above the links on most health searches, and Google’s AI Mode, a separate conversational tab a client has to opt into. They cite different sources from each other on the same question, so both matter. GEO is about being one of those cited sources — the overlap of SEO (you’re in the index) and AEO (you’re citable).
Which should you care about?
All three — but they’re not separate projects. Do the underlying work once (clear answer-style content, a complete Google Business Profile, steady reviews, clean schema) and you improve all three surfaces at the same time. The mistake is treating AI visibility as a bolt-on; it’s the same foundation, aimed at where clients in Minneapolis, Sioux Falls, Omaha, and beyond are actually looking.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to choose one? No — the same foundational work improves all three.
Which is growing fastest? AEO and GEO — AI answers are taking share of the moment a client decides.
Is GEO just SEO? It builds on SEO but optimizes for being cited in the AI summary, not just ranked below it.
Not sure which surface you’re missing? Vitality Growth Labs works with health and wellness businesses across Minneapolis, Sioux Falls, Omaha, and virtually — book a free visibility check.
Vitality Growth Labs builds SEO, AEO and GEO for functional medicine, chiropractic, physical therapy and wellness practices in Minneapolis, Sioux Falls, Omaha, and virtually. Want to know which of the three you are losing? Book a scope call.
