What a GEO or AI SEO agency should be selling
Generative engine optimization (GEO), answer engine optimization (AEO) and “AI SEO” are labels for work that tries to make a business easy for AI tools to find, read and mention. If you are new to the terms, see GEO vs SEO vs AEO and LLM optimization explained. The short version is that the work lives inside AI search optimization, and it is mostly ordinary good website work.
Google says so itself. Its guide to generative AI features says that optimizing for generative AI search is optimizing for the search experience, and thus still SEO. Google’s AI features page also says there are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, and no special schema to add.
That gives you a useful test. Anything an agency does should be explainable as one of these:
- Better page content: clear answers, real facts, prices or “from” prices, service areas.
- Access: crawlers can reach the pages that matter, and you chose what to allow. See AI crawlers and robots.txt.
- Accurate structured data and consistent business details.
- Measurement: a record of what AI tools say before and after.
If a proposal contains something that does not fit those, ask what it is and why it works.
Questions to ask before you sign
Use these in a call or by email. Good answers are specific. Vague answers are an answer too.
About the work
- “What exactly will you change on my site or listings?” You want pages, templates, files and profiles named. “We optimize for AI” is not an answer.
- “Which of these changes does Google or another AI company document as useful?” For Google features, the agency should be able to point to Google’s own pages. Google says good advice qualifies its claims as opinion based on data or experience.
- “What do you do that normal SEO does not?” There may be real answers, such as writing answer-shaped sections or checking AI crawler access. There should be reasons.
- “Do you add llms.txt or special schema for AI?” Google says Google Search ignores llms.txt, and that there is no special schema for generative AI. Both can be harmless, but they should not be sold as the lever. See llms.txt and schema markup for AI.
- “Who will do the work, and who is my contact?” One named person is better than a ticket queue.
About results and measurement
- “How will we measure a before and after?” This is one of Google’s own suggested questions. Good answers include a fixed list of customer questions checked in several AI tools on a set date, Search Console, and calls and form leads. Google points to the Generative AI performance report in Search Console for generative AI features on Google Search and Discover.
- “What results do you expect, and in what timeframe?” Another question from Google’s guidance. Honest answers come with ranges and conditions.
- “What would make this not work?” An agency that cannot name a risk has not thought about it.
- “What do your AI visibility tools actually measure?” Google says no third-party tool has access to its internal ranking or AI systems, and that some tools provide data that users misinterpret as being from Google. A tool that samples AI answers can still be useful as a log. It is not a window into Google.
- “Can you show me examples of previous work and share some success stories?” Also from Google’s guidance. Ask whether the client allowed you to contact them, and check any references. Google suggests asking past clients whether the SEO provided useful service.
About terms and access
- “What access do you need, and why?” For an audit, Google advises read access to Search Console, not write access.
- “Will you explain every change you make?” Google says that if an SEO has FTP access, they should be willing to explain all the changes they are making.
- “What happens if I stop?” Ask who owns the content, accounts and profiles, and whether there is a notice period or contract term.
- “What is not included?” Software, ads, content writing, photography and review management are often extra. Get it in writing.
Red flags
Walk away, or at least slow down, when you see any of these.
- A guarantee of placement. “We guarantee you will be recommended by ChatGPT.” Google says no one can guarantee a number-one ranking on Google and, if someone guarantees that their changes will give you first place, to find someone else. Nobody controls what ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, AI Mode or Perplexity recommend.
- “Approved by Google.” Google says some services imply that what they do is acceptable or approved by Google Search, that Google does not evaluate third-party services, and to be wary of such claims.
- Secrecy. Google says to be careful if a company is secretive or will not clearly explain what it intends to do.
- Unsolicited pitches. Google says to be wary of firms that email you out of the blue.
- Claimed inside knowledge. Google says third-party tools do not have access to its internal ranking data. A vendor who says it knows “the AI algorithm” is guessing.
- One trick sold as the answer. Schema, llms.txt or a “citation package” as the whole plan. Ahrefs’ May 2026 test found no major citation uplift from adding schema on its sample, and Google says Google Search ignores llms.txt.
- Paying for links, or being asked to link to the agency. Google says you should never have to link to an SEO.
- A report with no baseline. If the first report is a dashboard of new numbers with nothing to compare, you cannot tell what changed.
- Pressure to sign this week. Good work does not expire on Friday.
None of these proves bad faith on its own. A few together are a reason to ask harder questions.
How to compare two or three agencies
Ask each one the same questions, then lay the answers side by side.
| What to compare | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Scope in writing | Named deliverables, not “ongoing optimization” |
| Measurement | A baseline and a repeat check on dates you can see |
| Claims | Opinion framed as opinion; Google guidance cited, not misquoted |
| Access | Least needed; changes explained |
| Price and what is excluded | One-time versus monthly, plus software and content costs |
| Exit | What you keep if you stop |
| Examples | Real past work you can look at, or an honest “we have none yet” |
A ranked list such as “best answer engine optimization agencies” cannot do this comparison for you. Lists like that may be paid, self-published or out of date, and they do not know your business. We do not rank other agencies here.
Can you do this yourself?
Often, yes, for a small local business. The basics cost time more than money:
- Put facts in text on your pages (services, area, prices, hours).
- Check your robots.txt so search crawlers are not blocked.
- Keep your Google Business Profile and other listings consistent.
- Write down 10 questions customers ask and check how AI tools answer them each month.
If that sounds like too much alongside running the business, paying for help is reasonable. The point of the questions above is to pay for work you can see.
Where Magnet Mint fits
We are a Boston studio that builds websites for local service businesses and works with clients across the US, remotely. We are one of the options, and we would ask you to hold us to the same list. A few facts that answer the questions above: scope, price, timeline and approval stages are agreed in writing before work starts; one named person leads each project; and we promise structure, facts and a measured before and after, not placement. We do not yet have published case studies, so we cannot offer client references. A free demo shows how customers and AI assistants see your business today before you spend anything.
The GEO and AEO audit reviews your page map, service template, schema, crawl access and llms.txt. Price: from $750. Not included: domain and hosting, new photography, third-party software subscriptions (billed at cost), and AI usage above a plan allowance.
Published . Updated .