Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about Generative Engine Optimization
What is Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)?
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is the practice of making product information easier for AI systems like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity to understand, trust, cite, and recommend. For marketplace sellers, that means clearer facts, better structure, complete attributes, stronger entity signals, and visual proof that supports the listing.
How does GEO relate to AI SEO?
AI SEO is a broad synonym for improving visibility inside AI answers. GEO is the sharper method FirstShelf uses: improving the facts, structure, entity signals, platform fit, and visual evidence AI systems use when they compare products.
How is GEO different from traditional SEO?
Traditional SEO helps you rank in search results. GEO helps your products get understood and recommended inside conversational AI answers. Search engines rely more on ranking signals and links, while AI systems care heavily about factual coverage, attribute completeness, readability, trustworthy context, and whether product evidence matches the buyer's constraints. Most sellers need both.
Does this improve my platform's search ranking (Etsy, Shopify, etc.)?
No. FirstShelf focuses on GEO across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and other AI systems. This is about being easier to understand and recommend in generative AI experiences, not directly optimizing marketplace search algorithms. That said, clearer structure and stronger product details can also support traditional search performance.
I don't sell on Etsy. Does this work for me?
Yes. FirstShelf works for Etsy, Shopify, WooCommerce, Amazon, your own website, and more. GEO focuses on how AI models process and cite product information, which is largely platform-agnostic. Whether you sell handmade jewelry, digital planners, vintage clothing, beauty products, furniture, or services, the audit looks for the signals that make your offer easier to understand.
What product categories do you support?
We support digital products, physical handmade items, vintage and collectibles, fashion and apparel, home decor, beauty and cosmetics, electronics, food and beverages, and more. The audit adapts to category-specific product facts, buyer constraints, and visual evidence so recommendations stay relevant to what you sell.
What is the FirstShelf Score?
The FirstShelf Score is our 0-100 GEO metric that estimates how ready your listing is to be understood, cited, and recommended by AI systems. It combines semantic density, structure quality, entity authority, platform compliance, product-attribute coverage, trust cues, and visual evidence into one view of AI recommendation readiness.
What are GEO Fixes?
GEO Fixes are the clear issues we surface after an audit. They draw on measurable signals such as fact density, quote-friendly sentences, spec completeness, variant clarity, readability, trust cues, semantic coverage, and image-copy alignment so you can see exactly what to improve.
How does the AI analyze my listings?
Our system analyzes your product title, description, tags, and optional images using specialized AI workflows. We evaluate semantic context, information density, product-attribute coverage, structural formatting, entity clarity, platform fit, metadata quality, and text-image alignment to identify weak recommendation signals.
What does the visual GEO audit do?
Our image audit checks whether your product images support what your listing claims. It looks for text-image mismatches, missing visual proof, brand consistency, and image quality so AI systems have stronger evidence to trust and recommend your listing.
How does AI image generation work?
Available on Pro and Premium tiers, our AI image generation creates optimized product visuals based on your listing information. The system translates your product details into visual prompts and generates images designed to enhance AI citation potential. Generated images are stored in your account for download and use in your listings.
Is my data secure?
Yes. We implement industry-standard security measures including TLS/HTTPS encryption for all data in transit, encryption at rest for stored data, secure password hashing, and row-level security ensuring you can only access your own data. We follow GDPR compliance principles and never store your product data longer than necessary. Your listing content is processed for analysis but not used to train AI models or shared with other users.
What happens to my product images?
Uploaded images are stored securely in encrypted cloud storage. They are used only for visual analysis and remain private to your account. We use time-limited signed URLs (10-minute expiration) for secure access. Generated AI images are stored in your account until you choose to delete them. You can request deletion of all your images at any time.
Do you share my data with third parties?
We share data only with essential service providers needed to operate the platform: Supabase (database and storage), LemonSqueezy (payment processing), AI model providers (for analysis—they process but don't retain your data), and Resend (email delivery). We never sell your data to advertisers or data brokers. See our Privacy Policy for complete details.
How long until I see results?
You can see your FirstShelf Score and recommended fixes immediately after an audit. External AI visibility can take longer because each AI system depends on crawl access, indexing, merchant data, marketplace pages, and its own refresh cycle. We recommend applying the fixes, re-auditing the listing, and monitoring AI visibility over time instead of expecting instant placement.
Do you guarantee results?
No. We do not guarantee citation frequency, AI placement, marketplace ranking, or sales outcomes. AI behavior changes over time and is outside our control. The FirstShelf Score estimates recommendation readiness, but it does not guarantee outcomes. What we provide is actionable, data-driven guidance to improve the signals AI systems can read.
Does this comply with platform policies?
Yes. We focus on white-hat GEO. We only suggest improvements to your product titles, descriptions, tags, and supporting content that stay within normal e-commerce platform guidelines. We never recommend keyword stuffing, misleading claims, or anything likely to violate platform terms.
What if I'm not tech-savvy?
No coding or technical knowledge needed. Our dashboard provides clear, actionable recommendations explained in plain language—like 'Add material information to your title' or 'Include dimensions in your description.' Everything can be implemented by copying text into your e-commerce platform's listing editor. Most optimizations take less than 5 minutes per listing.
Will this affect my existing platform SEO?
GEO and platform SEO work independently, and our optimizations are not designed to hurt your existing rankings. Clearer descriptions, better structure, and stronger factual coverage often support both AI visibility and traditional search, but platform ranking changes are never guaranteed.
How does it handle seasonal trends?
Our AI adapts keyword suggestions based on current trends and seasonal patterns. The system monitors AI recommendation patterns and updates suggestions to match what users are searching for throughout the year. You can refresh your optimization suggestions anytime to catch seasonal opportunities like holiday shopping, back-to-school, or summer trends.
What are the differences between pricing tiers?
Free tier: 5 audits and 5 text optimizations per month—great for trying the service. Pro ($18/month): 50 audits, 20 text optimizations, 10 visual optimizations, and 10 image generations—ideal for active sellers. Premium ($30/month): 99 audits, 50 optimizations, 20 visual optimizations, 30 ChatGPT previews, 20 image generations, plus advanced features like competitor analysis and citation supply chain mapping—for power users and agencies.
What happens if I hit my monthly limits?
When you reach your monthly limit, you'll see an upgrade prompt. You can upgrade to a higher tier anytime for increased limits. Unused allocations don't roll over to the next month. Limits reset at the beginning of each billing cycle. If you only occasionally need more capacity, consider upgrading for one month then downgrading.
Can I cancel my subscription anytime?
Yes. You can cancel your subscription at any time through your account settings. Upon cancellation, you'll retain access to paid features until the end of your current billing period. After that, your account reverts to the Free tier with its associated limits. Your audit history and saved data remain accessible.
Do you offer refunds?
All subscription fees are non-refundable except as required by applicable law. We encourage you to try the Free tier first to ensure FirstShelf.AI meets your needs before upgrading. If you experience technical issues that prevent you from using the service, contact us at hello [at] firstshelf [dot] ai and we'll work with you to resolve the situation.