How to Structure Your Nonprofit Website for GEO

 

 

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is a fast-emerging field within search that’s becoming increasingly vital for nonprofit success. As AI continues to evolve at a rapid pace, staying ahead of these changes is essential.

In this article, you’ll get a clear introduction to GEO for nonprofits: what it is, why it matters, and how it can help your organization thrive in an AI-driven search landscape. We’ll break down the basics and give you the knowledge you need to start leveraging GEO to achieve impact in this new era.

 

What is GEO Search?

GEO Search refers to creating AI-optimized content for AI-driven rankings. It can also encompass other generative tools and methods, such as ChatGPT, Claude, and SearchGPT. We’ll focus on the search engine aspect and changes you can make to optimize your website for AI in search, across all forms of generative engines.

 

Why GEO Matters for Nonprofits

Nonprofits understand that appearing in search, building awareness, securing donations, and inspiring action require strategy and investment. But with the rise of zero-click searches, AI often delivers information directly, rather than sending users to campaign or donation pages.

Optimizing for GEO helps nonprofits influence how AI interprets their content, improving the chances that both informational and action-oriented pages appear together.

 

SEO: What You Need to Know

Many people don’t know that ChatGPT is one of the fastest-growing search engines in 2025. When we think about OpenAI’s ChatGPT, we tend to consider it as a transactional, conversational model or digital assistant. But we also use ChatGPT to search for information.

Outside of the rise of ChatGPT as a search engine, most traditional search engines like Google and Bing are now leveraging AI within the search engine results pages (SERPs). We’re entering a true zero-click era of search, and it can be detrimental to nonprofits that rely heavily on organic search for campaigns and support.

So, what does your nonprofit need to know about these AI trends, specifically search engine optimization?

 

SEO is Changing. Fast.

SEO is not what it once was. Optimizing for SEO used to mean writing quality content for audiences, while also making sure the right elements, formatting, and keywords were used. When SEO best practices were followed, the content ranked well with search engines and appeared higher on results pages.

SEO has evolved gradually over the years, but with the rise of AI, significant changes and new practices are essential to drive results. Success now depends on creating people-first content that demonstrates authority. Nonprofit organizations that haven’t adapted their practices to align with AI’s influence may notice lower performance without knowing where to attribute the changes, which is why it is critical to keep up with this evolving technology.

 

AI-Generated Content Ranks Lower in Search.

While it may seem counterintuitive, AI-generated content doesn’t rank well in AI generative environments like Google. ChatGPT and other AI content tools are convenient, but human-generated content still performs higher, even if the content “sounds good” or meets objectives. That’s because AI relies on pattern recognition to guess the next best word or phrase to use, and AI in GEO does the same.

Essentially, AI recognizes AI rather than authentic, authoritative content written.

To clarify the concept, consider this: Does AI ever use the backspace key? Probably not. AI is simply an interpretation of the human environment, but it doesn’t behave the same way. So, when we write with more creativity, authenticity, personality, or brand tone, we are signaling to AI that we are human, and AI search still ranks for humans.

 

Why Website Design Matters with GEO

GEO rankings aren’t only based on authenticity or the quality of your content. Accessibility is crucial. When creating or updating a website, there’s always a balance between visually appealing design and the user experience (UX).

If something looks great, but is hard to navigate or read, users will click away, driving up bounce rates, lowering rankings, and potentially losing engaged supporters. The same applies to the AI experience on your site: if it isn’t accessible and readable to AI, your generative AI search performance will suffer.

We don’t have to create cookie-cutter sites with left-to-right text and sections that flow perfectly, but we do need to consider how the code powering these designs reads for an AI search tool.

For example, AI programs, like a Large Language Model (LLM), read web content. LLMs can’t access content in a design feature like an accordion or toggle box, because it is hidden, not just on the page, but in the coding. The LLM can only see the section header text, potentially leading to bias through AI assumption. In other words, when context/content is missing, your website may rank lower in search because the LLM can’t see the content it is missing to qualify it as authoritative, valuable content.

 

5 Tips to Optimize a Nonprofit Website for Generative AI Search

As AI use increases, the cross-platform share of search shifts. Meaning, as more people search on nontraditional platforms, like social media, ChatGPT, or voice assistants, the competition on traditional platforms like Google increases.

A recent study by AutoGPT found that in October 2024, ChatGPT had overtaken Bing’s search share, with ChatGPT owning roughly 4.33% of the market, and Bing falling to 1.97%. Google holds an astonishing 83.54% of the total share.

As users shift their search behavior, nonprofits should consider capitalizing on the growth of AI platforms, like ChatGPT and Google’s generative AI. If you are running paid ads, you pay per click, even if it doesn’t convert. Because AI models are conversational, they interpret language and determine user intent more quickly and accurately than a traditional search engine might. Your chances of being found by donors who are ready to take action now are greater when the search results align with their goals. Generative AI search does just that.

GEO for nonprofits: Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s review ways to improve your website.

 

1. Write & Refine for Topical Authority

Write authentic, informative website copy that solves the problem, answers the question, or provides the value your users are looking for. Your messaging should prioritize clarity over cleverness, avoid industry jargon, be written at an appropriate reading level for your audience, and give people (and AI) enough context to understand what they’re reading.

For example:

“We need your help. Donate today to help teachers grow professionally!” 

The message above is missing crucial information about the problem. In this case, AI programs and potential donors might make false assumptions about teachers’ ability to grow professionally because we haven’t explained why donations impact their professional development.

The message, re-written for clarity and authority:

“Every year, teachers miss out on growth opportunities due to limited time and increasingly smaller professional development budgets. Your donation can change that–every gift helps a teacher pay for continuing education programs that power their professional growth.”

This shift in messaging provides context by defining what teachers may need to grow professionally, why they need help, and what your donation will do to solve the problem.

Leverage Natural Language Processing Tools for Semantical Understanding

Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a technology that allows AI systems and search bots to understand, analyze, and interpret human language. AI uses NLP to guess what your content means based on your word choice, sentence structure, and context.

Using the previous messaging example, let’s explore how Google’s AI views the original message and the fuller edited version.

In the first example, Google’s AI simply sees the call to action as “help teachers” but doesn’t know how or why. Without the necessary context, Google would serve this content to a broad audience, which would lead to low conversion rates.

In our expanded content, we’ve added meaning and purpose, and we’ve given AI more signals to work with, so it better understands our messaging.

For fun, take the list of entities that Google’s NLP engine found and form short sentences with it.

In the illustration above, you see that you can mix and match entities to get a few extra signals, such as:

• Teachers’ salaries
• Teachers’ access to reading materials
• Teachers’ consulting opportunity 

AI operates by guessing what’s needed to finish the sentence. With our list of entities from NLP, we’re no longer limited to one or two potential signals. Now, AI has the context to create phrases with the entities:

• Teachers need access to donations for better opportunities.
• Teachers get donations for consulting.
• Teachers’ salaries prevent access to reading materials.

To recap: Make sure your content provides as much context as possible, not just for AI, but also for the end user. Adding context helps readers understand the content and take the next action. This is critical for nonprofits, as we want our audiences to engage, donate, and share!

 

2. Ensure Semantical Coding

This section may be most useful to developers or tech-savvy people, but it is a good overview of how to use semantical coding and why it matters. Semantical coding, or semantic HTML, simply means writing to describe the meaning and purpose of the content rather than just how it looks.

In HTML, we work with a defined set of tags, such as <h1> for a top-level heading (the largest and most important) or <button> for interactive buttons. While having a basic understanding of these tags is useful, many websites still fail to use semantic HTML, meaning their code doesn’t properly convey the structure and meaning of the content.

Here’s an example of how a modern website may build a banner for its homepage:

This code means:

We have a group that we’re calling banner, within the banner, we have:

• A column
• Heading level one
• Text
• A button
• Another column
• An image in the column

At first glance, it reads well and seems semantic, but problems arise when starting a new section. A <div> can group content together, but it doesn’t tell AI exactly what the content means.

This is where semantic tags come in. The first tag that developers should understand and use is the <section> tag. Unlike div tags, a section tag specifies the start and end of a group of content. For example, you can have 500 divs in a section, but a section must start with <section> and end with </section>.

The coding example above is also missing ALT text. AI can usually interpret an image on its own, but it’s more reliable if we tell AI what the image represents. That way, it can confirm whether it’s interpreting the image correctly. Adding ALT text is one of the best ways to provide that clarity.

For example:

Let’s say our image was a picture of a woman smiling and wearing a red shirt. We may say in the ALT text, “Young woman with a bright smile, wearing a red t-shirt with white letters spelling the word happiness across the middle of the t-shirt”.

AI may say, “A woman who is smiling, wearing a t-shirt that’s red”.

What if our campaign is about happiness? Since we’ve provided the extra context in the ALT text, AI would understand that happiness is an important focal point. ALT text also gives search engines meaning and keywords, which can help your website rank in traditional search.

And, ALT text is critical to accessibility. People with visual impairments rely on screen readers to navigate the web and your content. Adding ALT text ensures your site is accessible and easy to understand.

Another frequently overlooked, but important, semantic tag is <nav>. Many people wrap their navigation menus in <div>, but the <nav> is the correct semantic tag. It tells AI that this area is for navigation. Just like <div> tags, many opt to use <div> for their navigation wrappers, but <nav> is semantic and is far more readable. Pair the <nav> with the <section> and you’re building a cleaner GEO website.

For more information on semantic HTML, Mozilla’s MDN documentation website is a great place to start.

 

3. Prioritize Contextual Linking

Use strong internal linking patterns that provide context. For example, if you’re writing about major scientific discoveries in the United States, you could link to another page on your site about a notable female scientist from the U.S.

This expands the reader’s understanding of the topic and increases your topical authority for generative AI search. The easiest way to build contextual links is to connect to relevant internal (and external) pages that support your claims or add clarity to otherwise vague subjects.

 

4. Implement Schema

Like NLP, AI systems use schema to understand the content on your site. NLP is how AI interprets language, whereas schema gives AI explicit instructions. Schema is structured data (a special code) that spells out exactly what your comment means.

Schema is used for a wide range of purposes, like improving accessibility. It can also be used to earn rich snippets (enhanced search results that show extra details beyond the title, URL, and description text) on search engines.

A rich snippet might be a feature in search, showing expanded information and appearing higher than other organic results, or a smaller element, like a star rating icon displaying under a page result.

In our NLP example, we showed that adding context to your content gives AI more to work with; schema can do the same thing, but more directly. Rather than relying on a guess from AI through NLP analysis, schema allows you to write word-for-word what it is that you’re trying to achieve.

For example, on a website, we can use schema to define the organization, operating hours, physical office address, phone number, email, and more.

For a service listed on a site, you can define key information like pricing, service descriptions, images, authors, and more. Better information means better GEO.

 

5. Leverage Third-Party Websites for Trust

Another way to enhance GEO is through the use of backlinks. Backlinks are links from an external website linking back to your website or page. Backlinks build better GEO for nonprofits because they leverage domain authority (trust), and gaining trust is important to attract loyal donors.

If a trustworthy website like Forbes uses a backlink to your site, AI will recognize your site as trustworthy, making it more likely to rank in AI-generated results. Backlinking involves more than some of the other strategies, as the external site must agree to link to yours.

A few ideas to get backlinks:

• Reach out to journalists and suggest a post on their site
• Pitch your site or link as an additional resource to add context
• Suggest your website as a replacement for broken links to your competitors’ pages
• Hire a PR or SEO agency that focuses on backlinking (especially if your site is new and doesn’t have strong authority yet)

 

Bonus Tip: LLMs.txt

Finally, let’s explore an exciting proposal in the SEO and AI space: LLMs.txt, instruction files that direct AI systems and LLMs on how they can use your site.

Like robots.txt, a text file that tells search engine crawlers what they can and cannot access on your site, LLMs.txt is an instruction file that tells LLMs like ChatGPT, Claude, and Google’s Search Generative Experience which content on your site they can or cannot use for training and analysis.

Right now, it’s still in the proposal stage, meaning it’s not universally adopted. However, if adopted, it would give website owners a standardized way to communicate with AI engines and more control over how their content is used.

For example, you could tell LLMs, “You can use these blog posts to inform answers, but don’t touch this gated research report,” or “Always include attribution when referencing this dataset.”

Why does this matter for nonprofits? Because, if adopted, it could be a game-changer for GEO. The option to explicitly guide AI on how to use your content in responses means nonprofits can implement strategies to improve visibility. Organizations that clearly outline what content is fair game (and provide the right context) tend to show up more in generative answers.

It’s like giving AI a roadmap, rather than hoping it stumbles upon your site and correctly interprets your content. In short, more authority and less guessing.

Why is it so exciting? In testing versions of this approach, early adopters have already seen significant growth in AI visibility.

Keep an eye out for news about LLMs.txt. If it becomes widely accepted, adopting it early on could give your nonprofit a significant edge in the GEO game.

 

Interested in GEO, but don’t know where to start?

As exciting as new technologies are, these topics can also be overwhelming. For nonprofits running with a small staff or few specialists, it can seem impossible to just keep up. In this article, we may have answered, “What is GEO search?”, but implementing new strategies for it can be harder.

At Media Cause, we specialize in helping organizations like yours stay ahead of the curve with website development, SEO, and digital strategy that performs in today’s AI-driven search landscape. We want to be your go-to source on GEO for nonprofits!

Whether you need a full site rebuild that’s future-proofed for generative AI search, or just some SEO fine-tuning to make sure your content still ranks in AI search engines, we’re here to help.

Ready to make sure your nonprofit isn’t left behind in the generative search era? Let’s start building a strategy to get your mission in front of more people, wherever they’re searching. Get in touch with us today!