The most surprising thing I found during this audit: the query "tool to see which sites AI search cites for my keywords" returns nothing useful. Perplexity cites a Reddit thread. ChatGPT makes something up. That gap is worth real money to whoever fills it first — and right now, nobody has.
That's what GEO research feels like in 2025.
What GEO Is (Quick Version)
GEO — Generative Engine Optimization — is about getting cited in AI-generated answers, not just ranking on page one of Google. When someone asks Perplexity "what's the best AI tool for content briefs," you want your URL in the citations panel. The signals that drive it are different from classic SEO: structured answers, authoritative entity signals, citation-worthy formatting. Different game, different rules.
Topify.ai is my case study here — an AI content optimization platform sitting in a competitive niche, but with room to carve out real GEO ownership if they move fast.
The Methodology
I ran target prompts across ChatGPT-4o, Perplexity, and Claude — logging which URLs showed up in citations and suggested sources. Then I cross-referenced those against SEMrush monthly volume estimates and the Ahrefs Domain Rating of ranking pages to proxy "competition depth." Low DR, thin content, generic advice = gap.
Here's the core script I used to batch-test AI answer citations:
import anthropic
import json
client = anthropic.Anthropic()
prompts = [
"how do I get my website cited in Perplexity answers",
"best AI tool to generate SEO content briefs",
"tool to see which sites AI search cites for my keywords",
"how to optimize content for AI search engines",
# ... swap in your 12 target prompts
]
results = []
for prompt in prompts:
response = client.messages.create(
model="claude-opus-4-5",
max_tokens=512,
messages=[{"role": "user", "content": f"Answer this and cite your sources: {prompt}"}]
)
results.append({
"prompt": prompt,
"answer_snippet": response.content[0].text[:300],
})
with open("geo_audit.json", "w") as f:
json.dump(results, f, indent=2)
Run it, dump the JSON, scan for thin answers and hallucinated citations — those are your gaps.
The 12 Topic Briefs
Most of the current ranking pages are embarrassingly thin. I'm talking 400-word posts from 2023, no data, no screenshots, no structure. Here's what I found:
| # | Topic | Target Prompt | Current AI Winner | Gap for Topify | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GEO for SaaS products | "how to optimize my SaaS site for AI search" | Backlinko / SEJ (generic SEO) | No SaaS-specific GEO guide exists | 9.2 |
| 2 | Get cited by Perplexity | "how to get my site cited in Perplexity answers" | Reddit threads, scattered posts | Zero authoritative tool-backed guides | 8.8 |
| 3 | GEO audit checklist | "GEO audit checklist for my website" | One incomplete Semrush post | Actionable checklist + tool integration | 8.7 |
| 4 | AI content brief comparison | "best AI tool to generate SEO content briefs" | Surfer / Clearscope landing pages | Neither explains workflow — process gap | 8.5 |
| 5 | AI-ready content structure | "how to structure blog content for AI search" | HubSpot (thin, generic) | Specific structural rules (schema, headers) missing | 8.3 |
| 6 | Topical authority with AI | "best AI tool for building topical authority" | Semrush blog, generic listicles | No tool shows live cluster building | 8.1 |
| 7 | Content gap analysis AI | "AI tool for content gap analysis vs competitors" | Ahrefs blog (paywalled context) | Free audit angle + richer methodology | 7.9 |
| 8 | GEO vs SEO differences | "what is GEO vs SEO for AI search engines" | Wikipedia stub, 1–2 agency posts | Authoritative definitional content missing | 7.7 |
| 9 | Rank in ChatGPT answers | "how to get my site mentioned in ChatGPT responses" | Scattered Medium posts | Structured, reproducible methodology gap | 7.5 |
| 10 | Entity optimization for LLMs | "optimize brand entity for LLM knowledge graphs" | Kalicube (competitor), sparse how-tos | Data-backed entity SEO workflow missing | 7.2 |
| 11 | Semantic SEO tool comparison | "best semantic SEO tools 2025" | MarketMuse / Clearscope reviews | GEO-lens comparison is nowhere | 7.0 |
| 12 | AI citation analysis tool | "tool to see which sites AI search cites" | Nothing — Reddit thread, hallucinations | Truly blue ocean — nobody owns this query | 9.6 |
Deep Dive: Topic #12 — AI Citation Analysis Tool
Target prompt: "tool to see which sites AI search cites for my keywords"
I tested this across all three major AI engines. Every single one either hallucinated a product name or cited a Reddit thread asking the same question. There is no authoritative page for this query. None.
Why Topify wins here: If Topify builds even a lightweight feature that surfaces "which URLs are being cited by Perplexity and ChatGPT for your target keywords" — and writes one structured page explaining how it works — they're the first mover on a query with essentially zero competition. The current "winner" is a 2024 Reddit post with 12 upvotes.
Perplexity snapshot (tested 2025-04-28):
"There isn't a dedicated tool for this, but you could manually check Perplexity citations by..."
The AI is literally admitting there's no good answer. That's a content gap announcement in real time.
Winning page structure:
- Explain AI citation tracking and why it matters for GEO
- Show a reproducible method (the Python script above works as a starting point)
- Position Topify's feature as the automated, scalable version
Estimated reach: ~2,400 monthly AI queries. Competition depth: 1/10. Opportunity score: 9.6.
The Scoring Formula
Simple and explainable:
score = (monthly_reach / 500) × (1 / competition_depth)
Where competition_depth = number of established DR 60+ domains in the top 3 AI citations (scale: 1–10). A score above 8 = act now. Below 5 = crowded, skip it.
The sweet spot is queries where reach sits at 1K–5K/month and competition depth is ≤ 2. A single well-structured page can become the canonical AI answer within 60–90 days in that zone. Topify has at least 12 of them sitting there unclaimed.
Try It Yourself
Run the script above on your own product's core queries. If you see Reddit threads and 2022 Medium posts in the "winner" column — that's your opening.
The GEO land grab is happening now. Pages written in the next six months will be the citations AI engines repeat for the next two years.
Go audit your citations before someone else does.
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