How to choose a GEO agency: what to check before you hire

Most lists of the best GEO agencies are written by agencies, and many put themselves first. This guide does not rank anyone. It sets out what to check, what to ask and what to avoid, so you can judge any agency, including us, on the evidence.

By AI Search Ranking. Published 6 November 2026. Last updated 6 November 2026. In Generative engine optimisation.

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The short answer

If you are working out how to choose a GEO agency, judge the work, not the list. Ask how they measure AI visibility, what they will change on your site and beyond it, and how they report results. A good agency answers those questions plainly, shows you real examples, and promises effort and method rather than outcomes.

GEO, or generative engine optimisation, is the work of getting your business named and cited in AI answers, such as ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google's AI Overviews. It overlaps heavily with SEO, so the best agencies treat it as an extension of good search work, not a separate trick.

Why the usual lists will not help you choose

We searched Google from the UK for "best geo agency uk" on 6 November 2026. Seven of the results on page one were lists or comparisons of agencies. Four of those seven were published by an agency that placed itself first.

That is not a reason to dismiss those firms. It does mean a ranking tells you more about who wrote it than about who would suit you. The same applies here: this guide is written by an agency, which is why it ranks no one and gives you criteria you can apply to us too.

AI assistants read these lists as well. When a buyer asks ChatGPT which agency to use, the answer is often built from the same self-ranked pages. A shortlist from an AI answer is a starting point, not a verdict.

What a GEO agency should actually do

Before comparing agencies, be clear about the work. A credible GEO engagement usually covers four areas.

Measurement. A fixed set of the questions your buyers ask, checked in each assistant separately, more than once, and reported over time.
Your own pages. Clear answers near the top of each page, consistent facts, structured information and the technical basics that let pages be found and indexed.
The wider web. Reviews, directory profiles, trade press, comparison articles and forums, because assistants learn about you from what others say as well as from your site.
The SEO underneath. Google says its AI features rely on the same core ranking systems as normal search2. A page that cannot rank is rarely cited.

If a proposal covers only one of these, ask why. If it covers none of them, and talks only about prompts or a proprietary score, be cautious.

The questions to ask

Google publishes a list of questions to ask before hiring an SEO, and most of them apply to GEO without change1. We have adapted them below.

How do you measure AI visibility? Ask which assistants they check, how many questions, how often, and whether each question is run more than once. AI answers change from one run to the next, so a single snapshot proves little. Ask to see a sample report.

What will you change, and why? Google advises asking for an explanation of anything you do not understand1. It also says you are responsible for the actions of any company you hire1. A good agency can tell you which pages it will change, what it will ask other sites to publish, and the reason for each.

What results do you expect, and over what time? Google suggests asking what results to expect, over what timeframe, and how success is measured1. Listen for honest ranges and clear measures, such as citations for named questions, enquiries and rankings for target pages.

Can you show examples of past work? Google recommends asking for examples and success stories1. For GEO, ask to see before and after answers for real questions, with dates, not just a chart of an index score.

How will we communicate, and will you share every change? Google suggests asking whether the agency will share all the changes it makes and the reasoning behind them1. You should be able to see every page edited and every outreach placement.

Do you know my market? Google lists experience in your industry, country or city as a question worth asking1. AI answers for UK buyers often cite UK directories, publications and forums that an agency based elsewhere may not know.

Warning signs

Some red flags are as old as SEO. Others are new to AI search.

Guaranteed citations or rankings. Google says no one can guarantee a first place ranking on Google, and that you should find someone else if an SEO guarantees it1. The same applies to a promise of being named by ChatGPT. Nobody controls these answers.
A special relationship with an AI company. Google warns about SEOs who allege a special relationship with Google1. Treat claims of privileged access to OpenAI, Google or any assistant the same way.
Secret methods. Google lists secrecy and unclear explanations as warning signs1. GEO done well is unglamorous and explainable.
Special files as the main deliverable. Google says you do not need new machine readable files, AI text files or special markup to appear in its AI features2. An llms.txt file can be harmless, but it is not a strategy.
A score you cannot check. Google says no third party tool has access to its internal ranking or AI systems2. A proprietary visibility score is an estimate. Ask what it is built from, and make sure you can see the underlying answers.
Mass produced content. Publishing hundreds of thin pages to cover every possible question is more likely to cause problems than citations. Ask how much new content they plan, and who checks it.
Being asked to link to them. Google says you should never have to link to an SEO1.

How to compare proposals

Put the proposals side by side and score each on the same points.

What to check	A strong answer	A weak answer
Measurement	Named questions, each assistant checked separately, repeated runs, reported over time	One score, method not explained
Scope	Your pages, the wider web and the SEO basics	Prompts or files only
Changes	A list of pages and placements, with reasons	"Our proprietary process"
Expectations	Honest ranges and clear measures	Guaranteed citations or page one
Evidence	Real answers with dates, before and after	A chart of an index score
Reporting	Every change shared, plus your own enquiry data	A dashboard only
Fit	Knows your market and buyers	Generic plan for any business

Price matters, but compare it last. A cheap plan built around a score you cannot check costs more than it seems.

Do you need a GEO agency at all

Not always. If your site has technical problems, weak pages or few reviews, a good SEO partner will fix those first, and that work also improves your chances of being cited. Google says there are no extra requirements to appear in AI Overviews beyond being indexed and eligible to show a snippet3.

A specialist helps most when your basics are sound but AI answers still favour competitors, or name you with out-of-date or wrong details. Our guide to GEO vs SEO explains where the two overlap and where they differ, and our guide to generative engine optimisation covers the work in more depth.

If you want to track visibility yourself before hiring anyone, our comparison of LLM visibility tools explains what each type of tool measures.

Common questions

What does a GEO agency do? It works to get your business named and cited in AI answers. That means clearer pages, consistent facts, mentions on other trusted sites, and regular measurement in each assistant.

Is a GEO agency different from an SEO agency? The work overlaps heavily, because AI features rely on the same core ranking systems as normal search2. The difference is mainly in measurement and in the extra attention paid to what other sites say about you.

Can a GEO agency guarantee results? No. No one can guarantee rankings on Google1, and nobody controls what an AI assistant says. Be wary of any agency that promises citations.

How long does GEO take to work? It depends on your starting point. Fixing inconsistent facts or a technical problem can show up quickly, while earning mentions on trusted sites takes longer. Ask each agency what it expects for your situation, and how it will show progress.

Should I trust a list of the best GEO agencies? Use it to find names, not to decide. Check who published it, whether they rank themselves, and what criteria they used.

Where to start

Write down five questions your buyers ask before they choose a supplier like you. Ask them in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google, and note who is named. Then send the same five questions to each agency you are considering, and ask how they would measure and improve your answers.

If you would like us to be one of them, our GEO service page explains how we work, and our method page shows how we measure before we recommend.

What we've seen in real audits

One business came to us after an agency had forecast a large number of enquiries from SEO and AI search, and then fallen far short. Looking back, the forecast seemed designed to win the work rather than to be met. The business is backed by private equity, so every forecast is reported to its investors and measured against return. A missed number was a real problem, not just a disappointment.

Our audit found gaps across the board: basic SEO issues, and almost no work aimed at AI answers. We rebuilt the forecast so it was realistic and achievable, and agreed it before starting. We then re-optimised every page for both SEO and GEO, put direct answers to buyers' questions at the top of each page, and published targeted comparison articles designed to be cited. Since then, the business has appeared more often in AI search, and it has met the enquiry forecast we set.