10 Best Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) Agencies (2026)

We compared 10 AEO agencies on services, pricing or minimums, case studies and Clutch reviews, plus red flags and an in-house option. Checked November 2026.

Updated on
September 27, 2026
Reading time
22 min read
10 Best Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) Agencies (2026)

The best AEO agencies in November 2026 are Petra Labs, iPullRank, Graphite, Discovered Labs, Omniscient Digital, NoGood, Avenue Z, Five Blocks, Go Fish Digital and Minuttia, ten firms that sell answer engine optimization as a core service rather than a footnote. We judged them on their own service pages, linked case studies, published pricing or minimums, and client reviews on Clutch.

AEO is the work of getting your brand named, cited and described correctly in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode. It matters because half of B2B software buyers now start their research in an AI chatbot, according to G2. If you'd rather run AEO in-house, there's a section on that below. Prices checked in November 2026.

Editor's note

How we evaluated these AEO agencies

We went through each agency's own site: its AEO or GEO service pages, case studies, published pricing or minimums, and where the team is based. Then we looked for client reviews on Clutch, Google and Trustpilot. For each one we noted:

  • What the agency does for AI search, and what it leaves to you
  • What it costs, or the minimum it lists
  • The proof: linked case studies and independent reviews

We didn't hire any of these agencies, and none paid to be listed. Case-study numbers are each agency's own claims. Review quotes are condensed from Clutch and link to the agency's profile.

Orchly is our product. It's AEO software you run in-house, not an agency, and we say where it falls short. Checked November 2026.

AEO agencies compared

From each agency's own site and Clutch profile, checked November 2026. Case-study results are the agency's own figures. "Not published" means the agency gives no price on its site.
AgencyHQAEO servicesPricing or minimumNotable case studyReviews
Petra LabsNew YorkTracking platform, content, PR, social, custom attributionFrom $15,000/monthNovig: 27x AI-referred traffic in 6 monthsClutch, 5.0 (3)
iPullRankNew YorkAI search audits, keyword portfolio, content plans, measurementNot published; $50,000+ minimum on ClutchTelecom brand: 712 to 3,235 AI Overview inclusionsNone on Clutch
GraphiteSan FranciscoPrompt research, citation-ready content, offsite and Reddit, technicalNot publishedWebflow: 2x sign-ups from LLMsNone found
Discovered LabsLondonAEO, SEO, Reddit, technical, own trackerFrom €6,995/month (6-month term)Gladia: 7x sales-accepted leads in 4 monthsClutch, 4.9 (4)
Omniscient DigitalAustinSEO, GEO, content, digital PR for B2B softwareFrom $120,000/yearConvert: AI citations up 140% in 60 daysClutch, 4.8 (6)
NoGoodNew YorkVisibility audits, content, digital PR, technical AEO, agentic commerceNot published; average retainer above $20,000/monthSteelSeries: 27x AI conversions year over yearClutch, 5.0 (3)
Avenue ZMiamiPR-led AEO: prompt mapping, earned media, content, technicalNot published; $10,000+ minimum on ClutchPrometeo: 357% AI visibility growthClutch, 4.7 (16)
Five BlocksNew YorkAI reputation: AIQ tracking on 8 engines, Wikipedia, entity, crisisNot published; $50,000+ minimum on ClutchNo public resultsClutch, 5.0 (2)
Go Fish DigitalRaleighGEO audits, passage optimization, technical SEO, digital PRNot published; $5,000+ minimum on ClutchNo AI search case studyClutch, 5.0 (13)
MinuttiaTallinnGoogle and AI search strategy, content, digital PR, Reddit, agent analyticsNot published; $5,000+ minimum on ClutchMeilisearch: 665% more LLM-driven trafficClutch, 4.9 (16)

How we picked

We started from the ten agencies on our September 2026 list and checked each one again. All ten still operate and still sell AEO or GEO on their own sites, so none were replaced. To stay on the list, an agency had to show:

  • AEO as a named service. A live service page for answer engine or generative engine optimization, not one line in an SEO menu.
  • Execution, not only reports. Content, digital PR, technical fixes or reputation work done by the agency's own team.
  • Public proof. At least one case study or client story, and we link the ones with AI search numbers.
  • A clear view of cost. Published pricing or a minimum where one exists. Where it doesn't, the table says so.
  • Independent reviews where they exist. We checked Clutch, Google and Trustpilot. Only Clutch had client reviews for these agencies, and two agencies have none.

We also kept the mix wide on purpose: enterprise programs, B2B SaaS specialists, PR-led and reputation firms, and full-service shops.

Do you need an AEO agency or an AEO platform?

Orchly AI visibility overview showing AI Visibility Score, share of voice, sentiment, average position and a competitor leaderboard
Orchly's AI visibility overview

An agency makes sense when you have budget but no people. You pay for strategy, writers, PR contacts and someone accountable for the results.

If you have a marketer or two who can own AEO, you can run the same loop in-house. Orchly is an agentic AI search optimization platform: it tracks your visibility in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews every day through the engines' real interfaces, and its agents work on their own, on a schedule, to improve it. Gemini, Google AI Mode, Claude, Grok and Microsoft Copilot are paid add-ons, and it also tracks Meta AI and DeepSeek.

An agency hands you a team on a retainer. Orchly gives you agents that run the work end to end, for a software fee.

What Orchly's agents do

  • Analyze. Your AI visibility, competitors, citations, SEO and Search Console and GA4 data, on a schedule.
  • Track Google too. Keyword rank tracking checks your Google rankings daily by keyword, country and device, shows which competitors outrank you, and puts Search Console and GA4 data next to them. Ranking drops become tasks that agents like Article Refresh act on.
  • Write and refresh. They decide which pages to write or refresh, then do it in your brand voice and publish to WordPress, Webflow, Framer, Ghost or Sanity.
  • Keep Brand Brain current. Your brand facts, voice and positioning stay up to date, so content and fact checks use the right details.
  • Run outreach. They find the sites and people AI engines cite and send backlink and citation outreach from your inbox.
  • Join Reddit. They find threads worth joining and draft the replies.
  • Fix the site. The Site Health agent audits your pages for technical SEO and AI search issues and ranks the fixes.

You decide whether each agent runs on its own or waits for your approval.

Agencies can run client AEO on Orchly too, with a workspace per client and white-label reports.

Where Orchly falls short

  • Someone still owns the strategy. Orchly replaces the agency's execution, not the person who decides what your brand should be known for.
  • No media relationships. Outreach agents email the sites AI cites, but there's no PR team with journalist contacts like Avenue Z or NoGood.
  • Add-on engines. ChatGPT, Perplexity and AI Overviews are included. Gemini, AI Mode, Claude, Grok and Copilot cost extra.

Orchly pricing

  • Essential: $49/month for 25 prompts, 1 website and 1 user
  • Pro: $125/month for 100 prompts, 3 websites and 5 users, with AI traffic analytics and white-label reports
  • Enterprise: custom, with unlimited prompts, websites and users
  • There's a 7-day free trial, and yearly billing saves 25%. See Orchly pricing or start a free trial.

1. Petra Labs: best for enterprise AEO tied to revenue

Petra Labs dashboard

Petra Labs is a New York AEO firm that pairs its own AI search tracking platform with an embedded team that does the work and custom attribution that ties AI visibility to pipeline and revenue, which suits enterprise brands that need to prove AI search to a CFO.

The company calls itself "your AI search team." It started as a managed service and raised a $5.2M seed round led by Work-Bench in July 2026, with Afore Capital and Pathlight joining.

The work starts with a prompt map built from opt-in panel data and your own search data. Petra then tracks those prompts, has its team build content, place citations and run social, and measures the result with a custom marketing mix model.

According to Petra Labs, its Novig case study shows 27x more AI-referred traffic in six months. It has also published an end-to-end partnership with Zapier.

What they offer

  • Queries. Prompt maps from panel data and integrations with your existing data sources.
  • Tracking platform. Presence, sentiment and competitors across the major AI engines, split by persona and product line.
  • Full-stack execution. Copywriting, technical audits, programmatic AEO, earned media placements and social.
  • Attribution. Multi-touch attribution and marketing mix modeling built for each client.

Where it falls short

  • High floor. Engagements start at $15,000 a month, so smaller brands are priced out.
  • Petra doesn't publish the list of engines it tracks.
  • It's a young company, and its public proof is mostly its own case studies and three Clutch reviews.

Client reviews

Petra Labs has three Clutch reviews, all 5.0, from clients it also features on its own site. One reviewer, from Zapier, rated cost 4 out of 5.

“I came to Petra because I didn't want to manage another channel. The expertise is real, which matters in a space this noisy.” (Source)

“They made AI search something I could actually see and measure, not a black box.” (Source)

“They usually find the right balance between speed and quality.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Engagements: from $15,000/month, according to Petra's solutions page
  • Typical programs: $250,000 to $600,000+ a year, depending on brands, query competition and attribution setup
  • Sales-led, no trial.

2. iPullRank: best for enterprise technical AI search strategy

iPullRank dashboard

iPullRank is Mike King's New York agency, and its AI Search Strategy Program suits large, technically complex sites that need a measured plan for AI Overviews, AI Mode and ChatGPT before they scale the work.

It frames the work as "relevance engineering": content strategy, technical SEO, user experience, digital PR and distribution tuned so AI systems can find, read and cite a brand. The site now pairs that with "resonance design," the creative side of the same program.

It also gives a lot away. The AI Search Manual and the free Qforia query fan-out tool are both public.

The AI Search Strategy Program comes in three tiers. According to iPullRank, one telecom client went from 712 to 3,235 AI Overview inclusions year over year.

What they offer

  • Emerging (3 months). A technical review, content audit, keyword portfolio capped at 1,000 keywords and a 90-day plan.
  • Growth (12 months). A full technical audit, omnimedia content audit and plan, content optimizations, a measurement plan and monthly reporting.
  • Elite (12 months). Adds passage-level content briefs, competitive analysis across ChatGPT, AI Mode and Copilot, and ongoing assurance that fixes stay in place.
  • Keyword matrix. Maps the synthetic fan-out queries behind each prompt to your pages and scores the passages.

Where it falls short

  • Pricing isn't published, and Clutch lists a $50,000+ minimum project.
  • Programs lead with audits and roadmaps. Hands-on content work comes from a pool of credits, so check how much writing and PR is in scope.

Client reviews

We found no client reviews: iPullRank's Clutch profile has none, and we found no Google or Trustpilot reviews to quote.

Pricing

  • Programs: Emerging, Growth and Elite, priced on request
  • Minimum: $50,000+ per project, according to its Clutch profile

3. Graphite: best for research-led AEO

Graphite dashboard

Graphite is a research-led growth agency based in San Francisco, with a team spread across North and Latin America, and it suits tech companies that want AEO decisions backed by data rather than playbooks.

It's run by CEO Ethan Smith, and its AI research team is led by Chief AI Officer Gregory Druck, PhD. The research goes out under Five Percent, and a lot of AEO debates in 2026 cite it.

Its line on AEO is blunt: "Great SEO is free AEO. Offsite is the real difference." The AEO service builds a fixed prompt set from sales calls, support tickets and Reddit, typically 200+ queries a quarter, and optimizes against it.

According to Graphite, its Webflow case study doubled sign-ups coming from LLMs and grew Webflow's LLM share of voice 94%. Its homepage also names n8n and Hinge Health as clients.

What they offer

  • Prompt research. Real buyer questions from sales calls, help centers and forums, fixed as a quarterly benchmark.
  • Citation-ready content. What to create on your site and off it to become the consensus answer.
  • Offsite and Reddit. Prioritizes the publishers and communities that shape your money prompts.
  • Technical work. Structured data, entity markup, internal links, crawlability and page architecture.
  • Sentiment. How AI engines describe and compare your brand, and what to fix.

Where it falls short

  • No public pricing. Everything runs through a sales conversation.
  • Bring your own tracker. Graphite analyzes "data from your tracking tool" and adds manual logged-in checks, so you may still pay for AEO software.

Client reviews

We found no client reviews for Graphite on Clutch, Google or Trustpilot.

Pricing

  • Engagements: custom quote
  • Its Webflow partner listing shows a $10,000 starting price, which is the only public figure we found.

4. Discovered Labs: best for growth-stage B2B SaaS

Discovered Labs dashboard

Discovered Labs is a London-based AEO and SEO agency for B2B SaaS, and it suits Series A and later software companies that want AI search tied to demos and pipeline on month-to-month terms.

It was co-founded by growth marketer Liam Dunne and Ben Moore, a former Stanford AI researcher. It sells AEO, SEO and Reddit marketing, and it's still one of the few AEO agencies with a full public price list.

Every retainer includes audits with its own AI visibility tracker, 90-day plans, fully handled editorial, monthly reporting and a dedicated pod. Retainers run month to month with 30 days' notice, and three- or six-month commitments lower the rate.

According to Discovered Labs, its Gladia case study shows sales-accepted leads up 7x in four months.

What they offer

  • Establish. Up to 20 content units a month, a technical audit, a brand consistency audit, 2 landing-page optimizations and Reddit engagement scaled to 10 mentions a month, from a 4-person pod.
  • Compete. Up to 30 units, net-new comparison and integration pages, quarterly content audits and 20 Reddit mentions a month.
  • Outlier. Programmatic pages, original research each quarter and a 7-person pod with an engineer.
  • Search Visibility Diagnostic. A 90-day plan across Google, ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini and AI Overviews in six business days.

Where it falls short

  • Content is capped by units. A net-new landing page costs 7 of Establish's 20 units.
  • It's built for B2B. Consumer and ecommerce brands aren't the focus.
  • Prices are in euros, so the dollar cost moves with the exchange rate.

Client reviews

Discovered Labs has four Clutch reviews averaging 4.9.

“Their willingness to experiment and try new things impressed us, in a space our team didn't know well.” (Source)

“They were a small group of smart, hungry marketers who knew how SEO and AEO worked. We had no dashboard to see upcoming articles.” (Source)

“Their project management is superb.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Establish: €7,995/month month to month, €7,495 on 3 months, €6,995 on 6 months
  • Compete: €12,995/month month to month, down to €10,995 on 6 months
  • Outlier: from €15,995/month
  • Diagnostic: €4,370 one-off, credited to your first month if you sign within 14 days

5. Omniscient Digital: best for B2B software content programs

Omniscient Digital dashboard

Omniscient Digital is an organic growth agency for B2B software companies, based in Austin, Texas, and it suits teams that want AEO run inside a full SEO, content and digital PR program.

Its pitch is getting B2B brands "recommended across AI and search engines," then turning that into pipeline. Research comes first: interviews with your sales and customer success teams, recorded sales calls and voice-of-customer data, before any keyword or prompt is picked.

Programs run across strategy, owned content, digital PR, and analytics. A shared dashboard tracks pipeline, AI share of voice and citation share next to organic traffic.

According to Omniscient Digital, its Convert case study grew LLM visibility 81% and AI citations 140% in 60 days, and OnBoard became the most visible brand in AI search for its category, with 88% more AI visibility.

What they offer

  • Market-led research. SME interviews, sales-call analysis and competitor benchmarks turned into a growth blueprint.
  • Owned content. Strategy, briefs and production, refreshed as the data changes.
  • Digital PR. Mentions and links that feed both search and AI answers.
  • Measurement. Pipeline, AI share of voice and citation share in one dashboard, with weekly reviews and quarterly business reviews.

Where it falls short

  • B2B software only. Consumer and ecommerce brands should look elsewhere.
  • AEO comes inside a broader organic program. It's not sold as a standalone sprint.
  • The floor is high for a startup at $120,000 a year.

Client reviews

Omniscient Digital has six Clutch reviews averaging 4.8.

“Their industry expertise, experimental approach and the quality of the work impressed us. The price can be a bit steep, but I know what we're paying for.” (Source)

“They were super easy to work with and clearly knew their stuff.” (Source)

“They taught our team how LLMs work, though the writing itself could have moved faster.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Full-service engagements: from $120,000/year, according to its homepage
  • Clutch lists a $5,000+ minimum project and $100 to $149 an hour, which likely covers smaller scoped projects.

6. NoGood: best for growth brands that want AEO plus paid and social

NoGood dashboard

NoGood is a New York growth agency, with hubs in Miami and Dubai, that sells AEO as a full service, and it suits funded consumer, SaaS and fintech brands that want AEO alongside paid, social and creative.

It uses Goodie, an AEO platform, as its monitoring and content tool under a contracting agreement. Its AEO page lists ChatGPT, AI Overviews, AI Mode, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude and Copilot, alongside Google Search.

The service runs on four pillars: visibility intelligence, content and owned media, earned media and digital PR, and technical AEO. Agentic commerce work, such as product feed and PDP audits, is now on the list too.

According to NoGood, its SteelSeries case study drove 23x more AI search traffic and 27x more conversions from AI platforms year over year. Nike, MongoDB, Intuit and Oura appear among its client logos.

What they offer

  • Visibility intelligence. LLM visibility audits, prompt research, competitive analysis and monitoring.
  • Content. AEO content development, intent analysis and dynamic copy updates.
  • Earned media. Digital PR, citation building, social citation strategy and reputation management.
  • Technical AEO. Schema, site architecture and technical audits.
  • Agentic Commerce Optimization. Feed and product page work for AI shopping.

Where it falls short

  • Premium retainers. NoGood says its average retainer is above $20,000 a month.
  • AEO is one service among many, so ask who on the team owns it day to day.
  • Monitoring runs on Goodie, a third-party tool, so your data sits in a partner's platform.

Client reviews

NoGood has three 5.0 Clutch reviews. They cover paid media, SEO and lifecycle work rather than AEO, and we left out the newest one because it comes from Goodie, NoGood's own AEO tech partner.

“Their team is full of experts, and they're always learning.” (Source)

“NoGood's performance has been impressive.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Retainers: monthly, quoted per brand
  • Average retainer: above $20,000/month, according to NoGood's homepage FAQ

7. Avenue Z: best for PR-led AEO

Avenue Z dashboard

Avenue Z is a PR-led agency based in Miami, with offices in New York and Orlando, and it suits fintech, consumer and emerging tech brands where press coverage shapes what AI says about them.

That PR angle matters, because AI engines lean on third-party coverage. Its AEO work connects prompt mapping, earned media, AI-ready content and technical fixes into one program, reported through its own AIVx framework.

Avenue Z lists itself as a tech partner of Profound, Peec AI and Writesonic, among others. It says it tracks ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Google AI Overviews and AI Mode.

According to Avenue Z, its Prometeo case study shows 357% AI visibility growth and 867% more monthly AI referral traffic for the fintech, starting from a 7% baseline.

What they offer

  • Prompt and journey mapping across AI search and assistants.
  • PR and authority building in the publications AI engines rely on.
  • AI-ready content. FAQs, listicles and thought leadership built for retrieval and citation.
  • Technical optimization. Schema, entities and site structure for AI Overviews and AI Mode.
  • AIVx reporting. Citations, prompt coverage, engine-level visibility and category benchmarks.

Where it falls short

  • Pricing isn't published. Clutch lists a $10,000+ minimum.
  • Check the tactics. The Prometeo work lists llms.txt among the fixes, and Google says its Search ignores llms.txt files.
  • Most Clutch reviews cover PR, social, email and SEO rather than AEO.

Client reviews

Avenue Z has 16 Clutch reviews averaging 4.7. One financial services client said it would like to see Avenue Z expand its AI search optimization work further.

“It feels less like working with a vendor and more like having an extension of our marketing team. They understand how AI-generated results are changing search.” (Source)

“At times we were finalizing campaign emails too close to launch.” (Source)

“Avenue Z was responsive and organized.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Engagements: custom project or retainer
  • Minimum: $10,000+ per project and $150 to $199 an hour, according to its Clutch profile

8. Five Blocks: best for AI reputation management

Five Blocks dashboard

Five Blocks is a New York reputation management firm that now applies two decades of search reputation work to what AI says about companies and executives, which suits Fortune 500s, regulated companies and high-profile leaders.

Its AIQ platform polls eight engines daily: ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity, Grok, Claude and AI Mode. It captures each answer, the sources cited, sentiment and narrative themes, and runs the same prompts for named peers.

Then the team works on those sources: Wikipedia and Wikidata, third-party coverage, owned pages with clean schema, and entity infrastructure. Five Blocks says changes to high-authority sources can reach retrieval-based engines within days.

What they offer

  • AIQ monitoring. Daily answers from 8 engines, tied back to the sources that shaped them.
  • Wikipedia strategy and entity optimization, done within Wikipedia's guidelines.
  • Crisis management. Live reputation crises and recovery for brands and executives.
  • Partner work. Runs alongside PR firms, communications teams and law firms.

Where it falls short

  • Not a growth agency. The goal is accurate, favorable descriptions, not more pipeline from category prompts.
  • Discreet by design. Five Blocks doesn't publish its client list, case-study numbers or pricing, so vetting takes more calls.
  • Clutch lists a $50,000+ minimum project.

Client reviews

Five Blocks has two 5.0 Clutch reviews, both from 2021, about search reputation work before AIQ existed.

“Five Blocks is the best reputation management company out there.” (Source)

“Business is back on track, and we're no longer getting the poor press treatment we were getting.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Engagements: custom, not published
  • Minimum: $50,000+ per project, according to its Clutch profile

9. Go Fish Digital: best for ecommerce and consumer brands

Go Fish Digital dashboard

Go Fish Digital is a full-service marketing agency based in Raleigh, North Carolina, with offices in Massachusetts, Washington DC, Phoenix and San Diego, and its GEO service suits ecommerce and consumer brands that want AI search, SEO and digital PR from one team.

Its GEO service mixes semantic site audits, page- and passage-level optimization for AI Overviews and ChatGPT, technical SEO fixes and digital PR for brand citations.

It also built its own tools. Barracuda scores pages against 14 factors drawn from Google's patents, and an AI Overview Analyzer audits how often your pages appear in AI Overviews.

What they offer

  • Semantic content audit. Maps how AI systems read your authority on key topics and where the gaps are.
  • Passage-level optimization. Structure, fact density and similarity scoring against AI-generated answers.
  • Technical SEO for AI discovery. Schema, IndexNow, sitemaps and internal linking.
  • Digital PR. Mentions on "authoritative, LLM-friendly sources."

Where it falls short

  • No AI search case study. Its published case studies cover paid, SEO and social wins.
  • GEO sits beside SEO, paid, reputation and web design, so confirm how much of the team is dedicated to it.
  • Most of its Clutch reviews date from 2020, before AI search work.

Client reviews

Go Fish Digital has 13 Clutch reviews averaging 5.0, most of them about SEO and web projects from 2020.

“They were fantastic and very responsive.” (Source)

“We don't have to go to several agencies. We work with one that can do it all.” (Source)

“It would help to get more context behind some steps in their implementation plans.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Engagements: custom proposal
  • Minimum: $5,000+ per project, according to its Clutch profile

10. Minuttia: best for content-led AEO in B2B SaaS

Minuttia dashboard

Minuttia is a B2B SaaS content agency that now sells Google and AI search strategy together, and it suits established software companies that want AEO and SEO run through one content program.

The mix includes human and AI-assisted content, digital PR, Reddit participation and agent analytics, which shows how AI crawlers and agents see your site. Clutch lists its headquarters in Tallinn, Estonia.

It's selective. Its "who we serve" page turns away teams that want to "commit $1K per month" for a test, companies without product-market fit, and those cutting headcount.

According to Minuttia, its Meilisearch case study shows 665% more LLM-driven traffic and 2,700% growth in LLM-driven conversions. It also reports 60+ B2B SaaS clients and a 94% average client retention rate as of June 2026.

What they offer

  • Google and AI search strategy built around business goals.
  • Content. Technical, multi-format writing, plus AI-first content reviewed by humans.
  • Digital PR and Reddit. Content-driven mentions on authoritative sites and human-led Reddit participation.
  • Agent analytics. Reporting on how AI systems discover and read your pages.

Where it falls short

  • SaaS only. The playbook is built for software companies.
  • No published pricing, and the site says small budgets aren't a fit.

Client reviews

Minuttia has 16 Clutch reviews averaging 4.9.

“What impressed us most is their adaptability and real depth in SEO and GEO. There's room to go deeper into CRO and product-led content.” (Source)

“I can trust Minuttia to do what's right for my company, which you rarely get from other providers.” (Source)

Pricing

  • Engagements: quoted per client
  • Minimum: $5,000+ per project and $100 to $149 an hour, according to its Clutch profile

What a good AEO agency should deliver

Whoever you hire, ask for these in writing:

  • Prompt tracking across engines. A fixed set of buyer prompts, tracked on a schedule in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, AI Overviews and AI Mode, with share of voice against named competitors.
  • Citation and source analysis. Which pages AI cites for your prompts, and which of those mention competitors but not you. That list drives the rest of the work.
  • Content restructuring. Clear answers, comparison and pricing pages, fresh data. Updating what exists, not only publishing more.
  • Digital PR and mentions. Real placements on the publications, review sites and communities AI already trusts.
  • Technical and crawler access. AI crawlers aren't blocked, and your key pages render and get indexed.
  • A reporting cadence. Monthly at minimum, with AI referral traffic and conversions next to visibility. To see the tracking side first, here's how citation tracking works.

Red flags

  • "Guaranteed #1 in ChatGPT." AI answers change by user, location and day. Nobody controls them, and Discovered Labs states plainly on its pricing page that it doesn't guarantee rankings or citations.
  • llms.txt as the fix. Google's guide to generative AI features in Search says you don't need llms.txt, AI text files or special markup to appear, because Google Search doesn't use them.
  • A page for every fan-out query. The same guide says creating separate content for every query variation, fan-out queries included, mainly to manipulate AI responses violates Google's spam policies.
  • Fake mentions. Seeded Reddit posts and paid "reviews" are a bad sign. Google's guide says seeking inauthentic mentions isn't as helpful as it might seem.
  • No baseline. If the agency can't show your starting visibility before work begins, you'll never know what they changed.

Which one should you choose?

  • Enterprise, and you need revenue attribution: Petra Labs. For a technical strategy and measurement plan, iPullRank.
  • B2B SaaS: Discovered Labs for growth-stage teams on month-to-month terms, Omniscient Digital for a full content and PR program, Minuttia for content-led AEO.
  • Research-backed tech brands: Graphite.
  • Press and reputation shape your AI answers: Avenue Z for PR-led growth, Five Blocks for reputation, Wikipedia and executives.
  • Consumer and ecommerce: NoGood, or Go Fish Digital for GEO, SEO and PR from one team.
  • You have a marketer who can own it: run AEO in-house with Orchly, where agents do the tracking, content, outreach and site fixes, from $49/month.

Frequently Asked Questions

Shivam Kumar
Written by
Shivam Kumar
Founder, Orchly

Shivam Kumar is the founder of Orchly.ai, a platform that helps brands understand and improve their visibility across search engines and AI-powered discovery platforms. He has over a decade of experience in SEO, product marketing, and growth, and writes about AI search, generative engine optimization (GEO), and organic growth strategies.

Isla Bennett
Reviewed by
Isla Bennett
Head of Growth, Orchly

Growth and marketing professional with experience in SEO, content strategy, and organic growth. Started my career as a freelance marketer helping businesses improve their online presence through SEO and content marketing. Currently Head of Growth at Orchly.ai, focusing on helping brands improve their visibility across search engines and AI-driven discovery platforms.