For buyers
Generative engine optimization agency: what it does and how to choose one.
What a generative engine optimization (GEO) agency actually does, seven criteria to compare agencies on, and how FirstNamed works.
A generative engine optimization agency does 3 jobs: it measures what AI engines say about your company, changes what they read, and watches the answers afterwards. Compare any agency on 7 criteria, from raw answers to response times. Nobody can guarantee a place in an answer, so judge the evidence and the written commitments.
What does a generative engine optimization agency do?
A generative engine optimization agency, also called a GEO or AEO agency, works on what ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude and Google AI Overviews say when your buyers ask about your category. The engines write one answer and name a few companies in it. The agency's job is to make sure you are one of them, and that what is said about you is true.
- Measure. Ask the buyer questions in each engine, several times, and record who is named, in what order and with which sources.
- Change what the engines read. Technical fixes (crawler access, structured data), answer pages in your markets and languages, and earned mentions in the publications the engines quote.
- Watch. Engines change what they say without notice, at any hour. Someone has to check and act.
How this differs from search engine work is covered on the GEO vs SEO vs AEO page of ToBeFound, which FirstNamed is part of.
How do you choose a generative engine optimization agency?
Put the same seven questions to every agency on your list. The right-hand column is the answer that should make you walk away.
| Criterion | What to ask | A good answer | A red flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Evidence | Can I see the raw answers you measured? | Every answer, dated, per engine, with the sources the engine cited | A score or a dashboard and nothing behind it |
| 2. Fixed questions | Which buyer questions, and are they fixed before the work starts? | A list agreed with you and kept the same each month | Questions that change from one report to the next |
| 3. Promise | What do you promise? | The work, the measurement, the evidence and the response times | A guaranteed position in ChatGPT or Gemini |
| 4. Team | Who does the work after I sign? | The people who briefed you lead it, and you are told who is on it | A hand-off to juniors you never met |
| 5. Response time | Who acts when an answer changes at 3 a.m.? | Written response times, nights and weekends included | Office hours only, or no number at all |
| 6. Conflicts | Do you work for my competitors? | A clear rule per category and per market | An answer that avoids the question |
| 7. Confidentiality and exit | Is there an NDA, and who owns the data when we stop? | An NDA before the first call; the data is yours | No NDA, or no answer on who owns the data |
If you are buying for a large organization, choosing an enterprise GEO agency goes through eight questions in more depth.
What does FirstNamed do?
FirstNamed is a private GEO and AEO agency without a sales team. We work for a small number of companies at a time, and the person you brief leads the work. Three engagements, prices in euros excluding VAT:
- Private Audit, €3,500 one-off. Up to 100 buyer questions, three runs each, in five engines; two markets and up to ten named competitors; a 90-day roadmap; delivered within 10 working days. Credited in full if you start the Retainer or Private Office within 30 days.
- The Retainer, €7,500 a month. Monthly work in up to three markets, earned mentions, daily answer checks seven days a week, and a person who responds within four hours at any hour. Three-month minimum.
- Private Office, €15,000 a month. Up to six markets and languages, hourly checks on your 25 most important questions, a person within one hour day and night, and a correction plan the same day when an engine gets something wrong. Six-month minimum.
The team travels to your office when needed; travel, accommodation and other costs are billed separately and agreed in writing first. Every engagement is detailed on engagements and fees, and the conflict rule is on why we take one client per category.
How does FirstNamed answer the seven criteria?
| Criterion | Our answer |
|---|---|
| 1. Evidence | The monthly dossier contains every answer measured, per engine and market, with cited sources and every change we made. |
| 2. Fixed questions | The question set is agreed before the work starts; the Audit covers up to 100 questions. |
| 3. Promise | No position is promised. The agreement commits us to the work, the measurement, the evidence and the response times. |
| 4. Team | The core team leads every engagement itself; everyone on it is named to you before they start. |
| 5. Response time | Four hours on the Retainer and one hour on Private Office, at any hour, in writing. |
| 6. Conflicts | One client per category, per market. The people on your answers never work on a competitor's. |
| 7. Confidentiality and exit | An NDA is signed before the first call, and we never name a client without written consent. |
When is an agency the wrong choice?
If your budget is below €3,500, or you would rather do the work in-house, an agency like ours is not the right fit. ToBeFound, which FirstNamed is part of, sells a €390 audit and publishes a free guide, and its page on AI search optimization sets out a 30-day plan your own team can follow. FirstNamed is for companies where a wrong AI answer costs real money.
Asked by buyers.
What is a generative engine optimization agency?
An agency that measures what AI engines such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Claude and Google AI Overviews say about your company, changes what they read, and keeps watch over the answers. It is also called a GEO or AEO agency.
How much does a generative engine optimization agency cost?
It varies by agency, and we publish only our own prices: a Private Audit at €3,500 one-off, The Retainer at €7,500 a month and Private Office at €15,000 a month, all excluding VAT.
Is GEO the same as AEO or AI SEO?
In practice, yes. GEO, AEO, AI SEO and LLM SEO are different names for the same work: being one of the companies an AI answer names.
Can an agency guarantee that ChatGPT will recommend us?
No. Nobody controls what an AI engine says, so an agency that promises a position is guessing. Look for commitments to the work, the evidence and the response times.
How is a GEO agency different from an SEO agency?
SEO aims for a position in a list of links; GEO aims for a mention in a written answer. The base work overlaps. The test is whether the agency measures raw answers from the AI engines or only Google rankings.
How long until we see results?
The Private Audit is delivered within 10 working days and gives you the measurement. The Retainer adds a monthly evidence dossier with the raw answers, so you can follow movement month by month. We do not promise a position at a given date: results depend on the engines and on other sites, which is why the Retainer has a three-month minimum.
Can we do this ourselves instead?
Yes, if someone has the time and can edit your site. The 30-day plan on ToBeFound's AI search optimization page needs no special software.
Where do we start?
With a thirty-minute private briefing under NDA, about your market and your buyers. A person replies within four hours, and it costs nothing.
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