Content now serves three masters: human readers, traditional search engines, and AI systems that extract, summarise, and cite web pages in conversational answers. Over the past few weeks, a cluster of developments — from Cloudflare’s updated crawler controls to new guidance on ranking inside ChatGPT — has given our team a clearer picture of what generative engine optimisation (GEO) demands right now. Here is what we are acting on for our clients.

Key Takeaways

• Cloudflare’s AI training block now exempts Googlebot, meaning site owners can restrict AI scrapers without harming organic search visibility.
• Semrush has rebuilt its free SEOquake Chrome extension, giving our team faster page-level audits during GEO reviews.
• Long-tail keyword targeting is more important than ever for capturing both traditional search traffic and AI-generated citations.
• ChatGPT search rankings depend on extractable content structure and strong off-site consensus signals.
• Modern SEO content workflows must address users, search engines, and AI systems simultaneously through a unified five-step process.

Cloudflare Lets You Block AI Crawlers Without Losing Google Traffic

Cloudflare’s “Disallow AI Training” toggle now blocks AI training bots while explicitly sparing Googlebot, as detailed in Semrush’s analysis of Cloudflare’s updated crawler controls. That distinction matters. Many of our clients worried that blanket AI-blocking rules would accidentally tank their organic rankings. This update removes that risk.

One caveat: Bing will not honour the setting until early 2027. For sites that rely on Bing traffic — particularly B2B clients in certain verticals — we are keeping manual robots.txt directives in place alongside the Cloudflare toggle. The practical advice is simple: enable the setting now, but do not treat it as a complete solution.

Rebuilt SEOquake Extension Speeds Up Page-Level GEO Audits

Our front-end team runs quick SEO spot-checks dozens of times a day. Semrush has shipped a fully rebuilt version of SEOquake, its free Chrome extension, and we have already rolled it into our standard quality-assurance workflow. The rebuilt tool loads faster, surfaces cleaner data, and lets us verify on-page signals — title tags, heading hierarchy, structured data presence — without switching tabs.

For GEO specifically, we use SEOquake to confirm that pages carry the clear, well-labelled structure AI systems need for extraction. If a heading hierarchy is muddled or schema markup is missing, we catch it in seconds rather than waiting for a full crawl report.

Long-Tail Keywords Now Feed Both Search and AI Pipelines

Long-tail queries have always converted well. They now carry a second benefit: AI answer engines pull from pages that match specific, conversational queries. The comprehensive long-tail keyword guide published by Semrush reinforces what we see in client data — pages targeting three-to-five-word phrases earn citations in AI overviews at a higher rate than broad, head-term pages.

We are building long-tail clusters into every content brief. Each cluster maps a primary keyword to a set of related conversational variants, ensuring pages answer the exact questions AI models are trained to surface.

Eight Steps to Rank Inside ChatGPT Search

ChatGPT search is no longer experimental. Our team follows the eight-step framework for improving ChatGPT search visibility that centres on two pillars: making content easy for AI to extract, and building off-site consensus through citations, mentions, and authoritative backlinks. Structured data, concise answer blocks near the top of a page, and consistent entity references across the web all contribute.

We treat ChatGPT visibility audits as a standing monthly task alongside traditional rank tracking. If a client’s brand is absent from relevant ChatGPT responses, we diagnose whether the gap is structural (poor on-page markup) or reputational (weak off-site signals) and act accordingly.

A Unified Content Workflow for Users, Search Engines, and AI

The old two-audience model — write for people, optimise for Google — is outdated. The five-step SEO content workflow outlined by Semrush formalises what we have been moving towards: every page must satisfy human readers, rank in traditional SERPs, and be citable by AI systems. Our content team now scores each draft against all three criteria before publication.

This three-audience mindset shapes everything from heading structure to internal linking. Pages that earn AI citations tend to feature direct, factual statements early in each section — exactly the kind of copy that also performs well in featured snippets.

GEO is not a separate discipline bolted onto SEO. It is the natural evolution of the work we already do: clear structure, authoritative content, and strong off-site signals. The tooling and tactics are maturing fast, and agencies that treat AI visibility as a core deliverable — rather than an afterthought — will secure the most valuable real estate across both traditional and AI-driven search surfaces throughout 2025 and beyond.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is generative engine optimisation (GEO) and how does it differ from traditional SEO?

GEO is the practice of optimising content so AI-powered answer engines — such as ChatGPT search and Google AI Overviews — can extract and cite it. It builds on traditional SEO but adds requirements like concise answer blocks, consistent entity references, and strong off-site consensus signals.

How do web designers ensure Cloudflare’s AI training block does not hurt Google rankings?

Cloudflare’s Disallow AI Training setting explicitly exempts Googlebot, so enabling it will not affect organic search visibility. developers should still verify their robots.txt rules separately, especially for Bing, which will not honour the Cloudflare setting until early 2027.

Why do long-tail keywords matter for AI Search visibility?

AI answer engines favour pages that closely match specific, conversational queries. Long-tail keywords align naturally with the question-and-answer format these systems use, increasing the likelihood of citation in AI-generated responses.

How can a business check whether it appears in ChatGPT search results?

Run your core service queries directly in ChatGPT and note whether your brand or pages are cited. If they are absent, audit your on-page structure for extractability and review off-site signals like backlinks, mentions, and directory listings.