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

View Full Next.js Guide Test Your Implementation

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

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

GEO Checklist

Quick Start Guide

Quick Start - Next.js Implementation

DOBest Practices

Implement all required endpoints

Use correct Content-Type headers

Implement proper caching

Keep summaries concise

Include lastModified timestamps

Validate JSON schemas

Allow AI crawlers in robots.txt

Create comprehensive sitemaps

DON'TCommon Mistakes

Don't block AI crawlers

Don't use incorrect headers

Don't write overly long summaries

Don't skip required fields

Don't use invalid JSON

Don't ignore error handling

Framework-Specific Guides

GEO Checklist

Quick Start Guide

Quick Start - Next.js Implementation

DOBest Practices

Implement all required endpoints

Use correct Content-Type headers

Implement proper caching

Keep summaries concise

Include lastModified timestamps

Validate JSON schemas

Allow AI crawlers in robots.txt

Create comprehensive sitemaps

DON'TCommon Mistakes

Don't block AI crawlers

Don't use incorrect headers

Don't write overly long summaries

Don't skip required fields

Don't use invalid JSON

Don't ignore error handling

Framework-Specific Guides

DO
Best Practices

DON'T
Common Mistakes

DO
Best Practices

DON'T
Common Mistakes