The short answer
Do not start two projects. Fix the shared foundation first, because neither works without it. If your search results are healthy and assistants still skip you, the gap is AEO work: answer pages, consistent facts and measurement. If your site is slow, unindexed or broken, start with SEO. Ask any provider what each deliverable is and how it will be reported.
The one-paragraph version
SEO is about earning visibility in search results. AEO and GEO are about being named inside an AI answer. They share most of their foundations, and they are measured differently. The comparison, including what Google says about the labels, is in AEO vs SEO vs GEO, and the terms themselves are in the glossary as answer engine optimization and generative engine optimization.
Which situation are you in?
Find the row that sounds most like you. It tells you where attention goes first.
| Your situation | Lean toward | Why | What we would check first |
|---|---|---|---|
| Site is slow, partly unindexed or broken | SEO and technical fixes | Nothing else works without a readable, indexed site | Indexing and speed (see my site is slow) |
| Healthy rankings, but assistants skip you | AEO | The foundation exists. The gap is evidence | Answer pages and consistency of facts |
| Little traffic and no mentions anywhere | SEO first, AEO after | There is nothing for assistants to cite yet | Core pages and search visibility |
| Buyers ask long, specific questions before calling | Add AEO sooner | Question-style research is where assistants help buyers | Which questions your customers actually ask |
| Local service business | Both, with local accuracy first | Listings feed maps and assistants alike | Profile and directory accuracy |
| Very small budget | Foundations plus one strong answer page per key question | Highest return for either | Your three most valuable customer questions |
For the SEO side of the picture, see how long SEO takes and why isn't my page on Google.
How to avoid paying twice for the same work
A common risk is AEO being sold as a separate project that turns out to be the same page edits as the SEO work, relabeled. Before agreeing to a scope, ask for each deliverable to be listed by name.
- Technical fixes (indexing, speed, mobile layout): this belongs to SEO and helps both. It should be one line item, not two.
- Page rewrites: if the same page is being improved for ranking and for quotability, that is one rewrite.
- Answer pages for specific customer questions: this is the AEO-led work, and it should be written from real details about your business.
- Fact consistency across profiles and listings: shared by both, and usually a one-off clean-up followed by a quick check each month.
- Measurement: SEO in Search Console and analytics, AEO in a fixed monthly question test. Two reports, one source of truth for each.
Ten questions to ask any provider selling AEO
- 1What exactly will I receive each month? Ask for a list of deliverables, not a list of benefits.
- 2Which of those would also be in an SEO plan, and am I being charged for them once?
- 3How will you measure whether it worked, and how many times do you test each question?
- 4Which assistants will you test, and why those?
- 5Will you share the raw answers, not just a score?
- 6What do you do if an assistant says something wrong about us?
- 7Do you promise mentions or positions? If so, based on what evidence?
- 8Which pages will you change, and will I approve them before they go live?
- 9What do you need from us, and when?
- 10What happens to the work if we stop?
Any promise of a guaranteed position or mention in an assistant should end the conversation. Nobody outside the assistant companies can control it. The ownership and ending-a-plan terms for Webtec work are written in your proposal, so ask your project manager rather than relying on a summary here.
Reading your reports: which one is moving?
Keep two separate views so a good number in one is not mistaken for progress in the other. For search, use Search Console and your analytics: impressions, clicks and enquiries from organic search. For AEO, use the answer sheet from your monthly test, and read measuring AI visibility for how to run it without fooling yourself.
Do not expect them to move together. A page can rank well and still be skipped in an answer, and a page can be quoted without ranking first. When your monthly report shows one up and the other flat, that is information about where to spend the next hours, not a contradiction. If you cannot tell which number is which, read your monthly report is the place to start.
A worked example of splitting a modest effort
Example: Twenty hours a month
A B2B software firm has about 20 hours a month to spend. It puts 8 on technical fixes and content updates that help both channels. It puts 8 into writing and refining four answer pages for the questions prospects ask in sales calls. It puts 4 into the monthly assistant test and fixing profile inconsistencies. After three months it compares organic clicks in Search Console with how often it is named and which pages are cited, then rebalances. No share is fixed, because nobody knows the right split for every business, and the firm records the reason for each change.
When to ask us
If you are not sure which to prioritize, send a request through the support form. Include your site address, your top three customer questions, the proposal or email you are weighing (as a Google Drive or Dropbox link) and any current SEO or AEO reports. Say what you are trying to decide, such as "SEO only, AEO only or both." We will say plainly where attention is best spent and why. Pricing is on our pricing page, and SEO pricing explains what is included. Never send passwords.
Your project manager can answer questions about timing and scope. Plan terms are written in your proposal.
