Digital visibility is no longer only played in Google. A new study published by Fiverr on 21 September 2026 shows that 67 % research specialists interviewed are seeing an increase in GEO-related demands, optimisation for general motors, against 56 %] for traditional Google SEO. At the same time, 69 % UGC freelancers report an increase in demand for content created by real people.
These two figures actually tell the same transformation: companies want to be found by artificial intelligence without losing human confidence. For a creator, coach, consultant or independent, the right strategy is therefore neither to replace the SEO with the GEO nor to replace its voice with the AI. It consists of making its expertise easier to understand, cite and verify, while retaining the human evidence that makes it want to trust it.
Information verified on 22 September 2026. The figures presented here come from 2026 Holiday Marketing Index of Fiverr, published on 21 September. They should be interpreted as the observations of hundreds of highly rated freelancers interviewed in eight countries, not as an exhaustive measure of the global market as a whole.
What Fiverr has actually measured
Fiverr interviewed freelancers specialized in UGC, SEO, GEO and e-commerce to understand the applications received as they approached the end-of-year business period. The most striking result is research: 67 % of the specialists surveyed say they are seeing an increase in demand for GEO, against 56 % for Google ranking optimization requests.
The GEO, for Generative Engine Optimisation, refers to practices designed to make information sufficiently clear, credible and usable to be more likely to be taken up or cited in responses produced by systems such as ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews or other response engines using artificial intelligence.
However, it would be wrong to conclude that the SEO has become useless. In the same study, 61 % interviewees continue to view Google SEO as the best long-term investment. Fiverr explicitly recommends not to oppose the two disciplines: traditional SEO builds authority and the discovery of the site, while GEO seeks to make this authority exploitable in the responses generated by the AI.
This shade is important. GEO is not a magic button to enter ChatGPT. Generating engines rely on sources, search systems, authority signals and web-based information. A technically weak, unbelievable or full of generic content does not suddenly become unavoidable because a few paragraphs have been rewritten for the AI.
The paradox of 2026: more d
Perhaps the second lesson in the report is even more interesting for creators. Fiverr indicates that 69 % freelancers specializing in UGC content interviewed are seeing an increase in demand as parties approach. The UGC, or user-generated content, here refers to videos and content that adopt the codes of a real person using, explaining or recommending an offer.
The creators interviewed use artificial intelligence themselves massively: 76 % ss is used in particular for scripts, 45 % for ideation and 41 % for research. Yet 76 % also say that they are being asked more by their clients for advice and expertise.
This is a particularly useful signal. IA reduces the cost of producing a text, idea or first script. It does not automatically reduce the value of a lived experience, proven expertise, an assumed opinion or an identifiable person.
The easier the content becomes to produce, the more valuable the evidence of competence, experience and identity becomes.
This is the point of view VIFLY : the next battle of visibility does not oppose the human to the AI. It contrasts evidence-rich digital presences with generic presences that nothing really makes it possible to distinguish.
Being quoted by an AI is not enough: we still have to turn the discovery into trust
Imagine a human resources consultant specializing in coaching small businesses. For several years, she has published specific articles on interviewing, retention and organizing teams. Its pages contain direct answers, examples, a clear identity, an update date and consistent information on its activity.
When a prospect asks an AI engine how to prepare an annual maintenance in a small structure, its contents have more usable material than a general page. If cited, a new stage begins: the prospect must understand who it is, what it proposes and how to work with it.
This is where logic visibility → understanding → trust → action → opportunity becomes concrete. A quote in an IA response has little commercial value if the person who then looks for the professional arrives on a confused profile or finds no obvious way to take action.
A LinkHub VIFLY can serve as a central destination for organizing content, offer and call to action. If the activity works by appointment, VIFLY Booking can naturally extend the route to a reservation. The aim is not to replace the site or referencing, but to reduce friction between discovery and action.
Example: an independent trainer visible in IA responses
An artificial intelligence trainer publishes a very complete sheet on data security when using generative tools. The page responds specifically to common questions, cites official sources, explains limitations and is regularly updated.
An AI may consider this resource relevant for certain requests. But if the name of the trainer is missing, if no page describes his expertise and if his training offer is not found, the visibility obtained does not provide almost any opportunity.
In contrast, a structured presence on VIFLY, linked to its resources and a clearly described offer, helps the visitor understand what is behind the source. GEO can facilitate discovery; The commercial structure turns this discovery into a possibility of contact.
Example: a coach who uses the AI without becoming interchangeable
A coach can use the AI to prepare a Reel plan, search for frequent objections or reformulate an introduction. If it then publishes a fully generic text, with the same expressions and advice as hundreds of other accounts, productivity gains may be paid for in differentiation.
On the contrary, she can start from a situation actually observed in her activity, tell what she has learned, explain a nuance that her experience allows her to see and use the AI only to structure the message. The final content remains identifiable.
The distinction is important: using the AI to speed up creation does not oblige to delegate the point of view.
SEO, GEO and UGC: three different layers of the same strategy
The SEO mainly helps a page to be discovered and understood by traditional search engines. GEO seeks to increase the capacity of information to be recovered, understood, synthesized and possibly cited in a generative response. The UGC and incarnate content work more with social proof, identification and trust.
These three dimensions should not be treated as three marketing modes that would replace each six months.
A good page can simultaneously respond to research intent, provide facts that are sufficiently explicit to be understood by an AI and contain convincing human evidence for a reader. Good video content can create the discovery on networks and then lead to this page.
The consequence for a small business is reassuring: it is not necessary to rebuild its entire strategy whenever a new acronym appears. Above all, the quality and consistency of published information must be improved.
- An offer must be described precisely.
- Expertise must be demonstrated by useful and not only affirmed content.
- Important facts must be verified.
- The pages must respond quickly to the questions they promise to address.
- The identity of the person or enterprise must be clear.
- The visitor must know what action will be followed.
Nuances and points of vigilance: let's not transform GEO into a new magical SEO
The Fiverr report provides an interesting signal on commercial demand, but it has limitations. Interviewees are freelancers present on Fiverr and very well rated. They describe what they see in their clients. The percentages therefore do not mean that 67 % of all companies are currently investing in GEO.
Second vigilance: GEO practices remain rapidly evolving. AIA systems are changing, their research and citation methods are changing and the companies that operate them do not publish all of their selection mechanisms. No one can seriously guarantee a permanent quote in ChatGPT or another AI.
Third vigilance: GEO is already attracting its share of artificial recipes. Mechanically adding FAQs, repeating expressions or producing hundreds of pages with an AI is not a credibility strategy. If the content does not have any original information, source or identifiable expertise, its format is not enough to give it value.
Finally, SEO remains essential. Fiverr himself recalls this in his study, and his own GEO guide presents it as a complementary layer rather than a replacement. A technically inaccessible or absent page of search systems leaves with an obvious handicap to be taken up elsewhere.
What to do now? The VIFLY plan in seven actions
- Choose ten questions actually asked by your prospects. Not ten keywords invented to fill an editorial calendar. Start with questions heard on an appointment, by email or in comments.
- Create a reference answer for each important question. Answer quickly, then add explanations, examples, nuances and sources when the subject requires it.
- Add human evidence. Experience, demonstration, concrete case, method, capture, data or professional point of view allow to differentiate your content from a generic synthesis.
- Name the primary sources. For an update, go back to the official announcement. For a number, identify the original study. This improves both human confidence and verifiability of your content.
- Refresh time sensitive information. Prices, availability, regulation and functionality change. An explicit verification date helps the reader understand the freshness of the page.
- Structure the post-discovery. A person who discovers you via Google, ChatGPT, Instagram or TikTok must immediately understand your activity and know where to go. Your profile, offers, LinkHub and booking system must tell the same story.
- Measure business results, not just quotes. Being mentioned by an AI is interesting. More qualified visits, requests or reservations are more important.
To deepen this logic, the blog VIFLY brings together methods to transform visibility into concrete actions. The aim is not to optimize for a machine at the expense of people, but to build information that is sufficiently clear for both.
The real opportunity: becoming an identifiable source in a web filled with synthesises
Perhaps the most interesting figure in the Fiverr study is finally neither 67 % for GEO nor 69 % for UGC. It's the combination of the two.
On the one hand, companies are seeking to be more present in artificial intelligence systems. On the other hand, they continue to invest in real people capable of embodying a message, advising and building trust.
This combination gives the self-employed a fairly clear direction: use the AI to increase your capabilities, but build a presence that can be attributed to someone.
Your advantage will probably not come from producing more paragraphs than your competitors. It will come from your ability to publish specific information, show why it deserves trust and offer a logical follow-up to the person who discovers you.
The General Web therefore does not remove the need for personal brand, reputation or expertise. On the contrary, it can make them more important. When thousands of content can be synthesized in seconds, the question becomes: which sources should be retained, and who should be selected?
FAQ: GEO, SEO and visibility in AI
What is GEO?
The Generative Engine Optimization brings together practices designed to make information more easily exploitable and citable by response engines and search tools using artificial intelligence. It completes the SEO rather than replaces it.
Is GEO replacing SEO?
No. In the Fiverr study, 61 % experts interviewed still regard Google SEO as the best long-term investment. Both approaches can work together.
Should we write especially for ChatGPT?
It is better to write first to answer a real question correctly. A clear structure, verifiable facts, sources, identifiable identity and up-to-date information are useful for both readers and d.
Why do human content remain important if IA produces content?
Because producing content and creating trust are two different problems. The Fiverr study simultaneously shows an increase in GEO applications and an increase in demand for human UGC, while the creators themselves use the AI widely in their work process.
How can an independent start without a large budget?
He can start by documenting his customers' questions, publishing solid answers about his field, citing his sources, showing his experience and organising a clear route to his offer or reservation. The quality of information counts more than the artificial multiplication of pages.