GEO Checklist

Complete guide to implementing Generative Engine Optimization

Quick Start Guide

Quick Start - Next.js Implementation

Copy-paste snippet to get started with GEO in Next.js

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DO
Best Practices

Implement all required endpoints

Create all 6 GEO endpoints with proper content and headers

✓/.well-known/ai.txt - Plain text description
✓/ai/summary.json - Site summary (≤800 chars)
✓/ai/faq.json - Frequently asked questions
✓/ai/service.json - Service capabilities
✓/sitemap-llm.xml - LLM-optimized sitemap
✓/robots.txt - Allow AI crawlers

Use correct Content-Type headers

Set proper MIME types for all endpoints

✓JSON endpoints: application/json
✓Text endpoints: text/plain
✓XML endpoints: application/xml

Implement proper caching

Add Cache-Control headers for performance

✓Cache-Control: public, max-age=86400, stale-while-revalidate=604800
✓Allows 24-hour caching with 7-day stale-while-revalidate

Keep summaries concise

Write clear, informative summaries under 800 characters

✓Focus on key features and use cases
✓Include target audience
✓Mention primary capabilities

Include lastModified timestamps

Add ISO 8601 timestamps to all JSON endpoints

✓Format: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ssZ
✓Update when content changes
✓Helps AI systems understand freshness

Validate JSON schemas

Ensure all JSON follows the required structure

✓Required fields present
✓Correct data types
✓Valid URLs and formats

Allow AI crawlers in robots.txt

Explicitly permit AI bot access

✓User-agent: GPTBot - Allow: /
✓User-agent: ChatGPT-User - Allow: /
✓User-agent: CCBot - Allow: /
✓User-agent: anthropic-ai - Allow: /

Create comprehensive sitemaps

Include all important pages in sitemap-llm.xml

✓All public pages
✓Proper lastmod dates
✓Reasonable priority values
✓Include changefreq hints

DON'T
Common Mistakes

Don't block AI crawlers

Avoid disallowing AI bots in robots.txt

✗Don't use: User-agent: GPTBot - Disallow: /
✗Don't use: User-agent: * - Disallow: /
✗AI systems need access to validate GEO compliance

Don't use incorrect headers

Avoid wrong Content-Type or missing Cache-Control

✗Don't use text/html for JSON endpoints
✗Don't omit Cache-Control headers
✗Don't use overly aggressive caching

Don't write overly long summaries

Keep summaries focused and under 800 characters

✗Avoid rambling descriptions
✗Don't include unnecessary details
✗Focus on what AI systems need to know

Don't skip required fields

Include all mandatory fields in JSON schemas

✗version and lastModified are required
✗Don't omit key service information
✗Include all endpoint references

Don't use invalid JSON

Ensure all JSON is properly formatted and parseable

✗No trailing commas
✗Proper string escaping
✗Valid UTF-8 encoding

Don't ignore error handling

Handle missing or invalid endpoints gracefully

✗Return proper HTTP status codes
✗Don't serve empty responses
✗Handle network errors appropriately

Framework-Specific Guides

Detailed implementation guides for popular frameworks