Digital marketing changes fast, making it hard for experts to keep up. Your current plans might not work later when AI becomes a bigger part of how people search online. SEO helps people find your apartment communities on the web today. But experts say you need to learn about GEO - optimizing your content for AI search engines like Google Gemini or Perplexity.
You've probably seen AI search results already. Those summary boxes at the top of Google searches come from Google Gemini. They give quick answers without making you click through websites. This creates new problems for apartment marketers, who must figure out how to appear in these AI summaries that show up higher than regular listings or paid ads.
Nicholas Putz from Wangard Partners says trying to rank for keywords at the top of search results isn't enough anymore. We need smarter content that people want to engage with. If nobody interacts with your content, why would AI systems consider it trustworthy?
SEO improves your website's visibility in regular search engines. GEO works with AI searches from Google, ChatGPT, or Perplexity - systems that use large language models and natural language processing. Xiyao Yang from Bozzuto explains the difference clearly: Traditional search is like going to a library, seeing books on shelves, and then picking one to read. AI search is like having a librarian hand you a summary based on what you usually read.
With regular Google searches, you want to rank high on page one. With AI, Yang says it's more complicated - you want to BE the results, appearing directly in the summary itself. And if you think it's too early to worry about GEO, Kyle Jones from Reach by RentCafe disagrees. GEO prepares you for tomorrow. It hasn't caused huge changes in apartments yet, but it will.
Good SEO practices today will set you up well for GEO tomorrow. The basics still matter. Content remains crucial—keep it thorough and real. For a dog-friendly community, do more than mention pet fees. Create pages about nearby pet stores and dog parks to prove you truly welcome pets.
Your Google Business Profile matters greatly for AI searches. Include Q&As and reviews, and update it regularly. Don't just focus on keywords because AI prefers natural, conversational language. Putz emphasizes authentic, dynamic content that encourages interaction. A search for "two-bedroom apartments in downtown West Palm Beach" differs from asking "What are the best apartments in downtown West Palm Beach, and why should I choose them?" The second query triggers an AI search.
Use many platforms, not just your website. People search on Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok. Wangard uses this approach for The Locklyn Apartments with great results. Putz reports more interest and leases. Structure your data with headings, bullet points, Q&As, and schema markup code that helps search engines understand your pages.
Social media presence matters for AI searches. Cottonwood Residential posts TikTok videos as part of their GEO plan. Katie Madeira, their digital marketing manager, recommends using targeted keywords in social posts but keeping a conversational tone. Six months ago, they posted a TikTok video for Cottonwood Lighthouse Point that earned 13,000 organic views and still appears on TikTok's "For You" page. Madeira knows that since GEO pulls from everywhere online, creating more similar posts helps their visibility.
You've probably seen AI search results already. Those summary boxes at the top of Google searches come from Google Gemini. They give quick answers without making you click through websites. This creates new problems for apartment marketers, who must figure out how to appear in these AI summaries that show up higher than regular listings or paid ads.
Nicholas Putz from Wangard Partners says trying to rank for keywords at the top of search results isn't enough anymore. We need smarter content that people want to engage with. If nobody interacts with your content, why would AI systems consider it trustworthy?
SEO improves your website's visibility in regular search engines. GEO works with AI searches from Google, ChatGPT, or Perplexity - systems that use large language models and natural language processing. Xiyao Yang from Bozzuto explains the difference clearly: Traditional search is like going to a library, seeing books on shelves, and then picking one to read. AI search is like having a librarian hand you a summary based on what you usually read.
With regular Google searches, you want to rank high on page one. With AI, Yang says it's more complicated - you want to BE the results, appearing directly in the summary itself. And if you think it's too early to worry about GEO, Kyle Jones from Reach by RentCafe disagrees. GEO prepares you for tomorrow. It hasn't caused huge changes in apartments yet, but it will.
Good SEO practices today will set you up well for GEO tomorrow. The basics still matter. Content remains crucial—keep it thorough and real. For a dog-friendly community, do more than mention pet fees. Create pages about nearby pet stores and dog parks to prove you truly welcome pets.
Your Google Business Profile matters greatly for AI searches. Include Q&As and reviews, and update it regularly. Don't just focus on keywords because AI prefers natural, conversational language. Putz emphasizes authentic, dynamic content that encourages interaction. A search for "two-bedroom apartments in downtown West Palm Beach" differs from asking "What are the best apartments in downtown West Palm Beach, and why should I choose them?" The second query triggers an AI search.
Use many platforms, not just your website. People search on Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok. Wangard uses this approach for The Locklyn Apartments with great results. Putz reports more interest and leases. Structure your data with headings, bullet points, Q&As, and schema markup code that helps search engines understand your pages.
Social media presence matters for AI searches. Cottonwood Residential posts TikTok videos as part of their GEO plan. Katie Madeira, their digital marketing manager, recommends using targeted keywords in social posts but keeping a conversational tone. Six months ago, they posted a TikTok video for Cottonwood Lighthouse Point that earned 13,000 organic views and still appears on TikTok's "For You" page. Madeira knows that since GEO pulls from everywhere online, creating more similar posts helps their visibility.
