Most AEO pitches stop at "we'll get you cited by ChatGPT." This page goes deeper. The methodology, the deliverables, the 90-day arc of a real engagement, and how we measure whether any of it is working.
A real question
And yes, we still do SEO.
Every AEO engagement has SEO underneath it. The foundation layer we just described is SEO, mostly. Schema, site architecture, crawlability, content quality, internal linking. The same work that helped you rank on Google for the last decade is the work that helps AI engines cite you now.
That's why we offer both. Most clients hire us for the combined engagement because the same underlying work powers both outcomes. Some clients hire us for just AEO and keep their existing SEO agency. That works too. We'll coordinate, share what we're seeing, and stay in our lane.
The line we won't cross is selling AEO as a replacement for SEO. Anyone who tells you traditional search is dead is selling you something. SEO is the foundation. AEO is the new layer on top. You don't get one without the other.
The arc of an engagement
What the first 90 days actually look like.
Engagements have a natural rhythm. Some of this happens in parallel, some sequentially. What follows is roughly how the first three months unfold for a typical client.
Weeks 1-2
Audit and baseline.
We pull your current visibility across every major AI engine for the queries that matter in your category. You'll see exactly where you stand, who's being cited instead of you, and which queries are most winnable. The prompt map and foundation audit land in your inbox by end of week two.
Weeks 3-6
Foundation work begins.
Schema implementation, entity cleanup, technical fixes. In parallel, we start restructuring your highest-priority existing pages. Most clients see their first incremental citation lift in this window, just from foundation fixes alone.
Weeks 6-10
Content production ramps up.
New AEO-optimized pages start shipping. Q&A content, comparison pages, vertical-specific assets if applicable. Third-party authority work kicks in around week eight, once your owned content has enough depth to point at.
Weeks 10-13
Measurable lift, ongoing optimization.
By the end of the first 90 days, most clients are seeing meaningful, measurable citation lift across at least two of the major AI engines. This is also where the work shifts from setup mode into ongoing optimization mode. Refining what's working, fixing what isn't, expanding into adjacent prompts.
Methodology
AEO is three layers stacked on a foundation.
Most agencies focus on one layer and call it AEO. We work all three, because none of them function on their own. If your foundation is weak, the content layer can't carry it. If the content layer is thin, the authority layer has nothing to point at. The three reinforce each other or none of them work.
01
Foundation
Entity clarity, schema, technical SEO, knowledge graph presence. The infrastructure AI engines need before they can confidently name you. Without this, every layer above it leaks.
02
Content
The pages AI engines actually quote when they answer questions in your category. Built around real prompts your customers ask, structured for retrieval, written for humans first.
03
Authority
Mentions, citations, and references on the third-party sources AI models train on and pull from. Reddit, forums, expert roundups, industry publications. Real signal in real conversations.
What you get
The actual deliverables.
Most agency service pages list activities. This one lists outputs. These are the artifacts that show up in your inbox, your shared drive, and your dashboard during an engagement.
01
A prompt map of your category
A working document of every meaningful question your customers ask AI engines in your space. Built from competitive research, customer interview synthesis, and ongoing query monitoring. This isn't a static list. It grows and gets re-prioritized as new prompt patterns emerge.
Why it matters: Prompt research is the new keyword research. Every piece of content we build, every page we restructure, every citation we chase, traces back to this map.
02
A foundation audit and fix list
A line-by-line review of your existing site through the lens of AI retrieval. Schema gaps, entity clarity issues, knowledge graph holes, technical SEO problems blocking citation. Each item gets a priority and a path to fix.
Why it matters: Most sites we audit have foundational issues that no amount of new content will fix. We get the floor right before we build anything on top.
04
New content built for AI retrieval
Comparison pages, "best of" listicles, deep Q&A pages, original research. The kinds of content AI engines actually quote when they answer questions in your category. Volume depends on your engagement tier.
Why it matters: Some categories have content gaps your existing site can't fill. We build the missing pieces with proper structure baked in.
05
Third-party authority placements
Real mentions in the sources AI engines pull from. Reddit discussions, industry forums, expert roundups, publications. Earned and genuine, not paid placements that get flagged as inauthentic.
Why it matters: AI engines weight off-site signals heavily when deciding who to cite. Owning your own site isn't enough.
06
A weekly citation dashboard
Live tracking of where you're being named across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, and Grok. Which queries are pulling you in, which models cite you most, and how the numbers are trending week over week.
Why it matters: AEO without measurement is a guessing game. The dashboard is how we know what's working and how you know we're earning the retainer.
How we measure it
The metrics that actually mean something.
Traditional SEO metrics don't translate cleanly to AI search. Here's what we track instead.
1
Citation rate
How often you appear in AI-generated answers across ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude, and Grok for the prompts in your map. Broken down by engine, by query type, and by competitor share of voice.
2
Citation quality
Not all citations are equal. A passing mention is different from being named as the top recommendation. We score and track citation quality, not just frequency.
3
Prompt coverage
What percentage of your prompt map is your business currently winning on, partially appearing in, or completely absent from. This is the clearest view of where the opportunity is.
4
Source share
When AI engines do cite you, which pages on your site are they pulling from. Tells us which content is actually doing the work and where to double down.
5
Referral traffic and conversion
Visitors arriving from AI assistants, what they do once they land, and how they convert. AI-referred traffic often converts higher than traditional search, and tracking it separately matters.
6
Competitor citation share
For every prompt that matters in your category, who's getting cited and how often. The fastest way to see where you're winning, losing, and where there's open territory.
Engagement fit
Who this is built for.
AEO works best for certain kinds of businesses. We'd rather say it straight than have you find out three months in.
You're a good fit if you are
A business whose customers do real research before they buy
Operating in a category where people are starting to ask AI for recommendations
Already doing some SEO and want the next layer built on top
A founder or marketing lead who can move fast on content decisions
Willing to commit at least a few months. AEO compounds, it doesn't snap
Common questions
Common questions from real estate investors.
01.
Do I need to be in every market, or just my main ones?
02.
How does this work with my existing PPC?
03.
My city has big national franchises buying up all the ad space. Can AEO actually compete?
04.
How fast will I see results?
05.
What if I work in a market that has multiple types of investors (flippers, wholesalers, buy-and-hold)?
See where you stand today.
Free AEO audit delivered on a 15-minute strategy call. We'll show you exactly how AI engines see your business right now, what's working, what isn't, and what it would take to fix.
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