Why is being cited and mentioned by AI valuable for my brand?
When ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, or Perplexity answers a buyer's question, the brands the model names get evaluated. Brands the model does not name effectively don't exist for that buyer. Citation in an AI answer is the new equivalent of ranking on the first page of search: it is how today's buyers learn which vendors solve a problem and which to shortlist. A brand with strong citation share gets pulled into the conversation; a brand with none has to spend more on paid demand to get considered at all.
Are AI searches really replacing traditional search?
Buyer behavior is shifting fast. Public studies from Gartner, BrightEdge, and others project that traditional search volume will drop materially over the next several years as users move research-style queries (long, comparison, and how-to questions, the kind that drive Business-to-Business and considered purchases) into ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity. Google itself now answers many of those queries inside its AI Overview panel without sending the click downstream. Classic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is not dead, but the surface where buyers form opinions has expanded beyond the ten blue links. Brands that aren't visible on the new surfaces lose the consideration step entirely.
What is the difference between SEO, AEO, and GEO?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) optimizes for ranking inside classical search engines like Google and Bing, where the result is a ranked list of links. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) optimizes for being the source an answer engine quotes when it composes a direct answer, including Google's AI Overview, Bing Copilot answers, and standalone answer surfaces. Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) optimizes for being cited and named by generative Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity when they generate longer-form responses. The three overlap in practice (structured data, clear authorship, answer-first content, and crawler accessibility help all three); the differences are in measurement and in which surfaces get the most weight.
Will classic SEO alone get my brand cited by AI engines?
No. Classic Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is necessary but not sufficient. AI engines reward signals that traditional ranking does not weight heavily: server-rendered Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) that AI crawlers can read without JavaScript, JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data) structured data that names entities and relationships, answer-first extraction blocks, citations and footnotes that substantiate claims, and visible authorship with real expertise. A site that ranks well in Google can still be invisible to ChatGPT or Claude if its primary content only appears after JavaScript runs, if it lacks Organization or Product structured data, or if the prose buries answers under marketing copy.
Are the tier prices truly fixed?
Yes. Fixed scope, fixed price, written down. The only variable is sites with more than the scoped number of brands or subdomains - we'll flag any scope concern by email before sending an invoice.
How do I pick between Pulse, SXO Audit, and Enterprise?
Pulse is a fast temperature check on generative-engine citations - a good fit when you want to see where you stand before committing to a full project. SXO Audit is the flagship: the complete SEO + AEO + GEO + entity + off-site audit with a prioritized fix backlog. Enterprise is for multi-brand operators who need a coordinated read across their portfolio of up to 3 brands.
How is this different from a traditional SEO audit?
Traditional SEO audits focus on google.com. We test Google, Bing, Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Claude - then score citation share per prompt. The SEO work is included; it's just a subset of the surface we cover.
What does the JSON-LD schema pack include?
Per-page, paste-ready JSON-LD blocks for your highest-value URLs. Each page is classified (Article, Product, Service, FAQPage, HowTo, Organization, Breadcrumb, Review, etc.), populated with your scraped content, and pre-validated against the Schema.org validator and Google's Rich Results Test.
Will I have to jump on a sales or onboarding call?
No. The entire engagement is asynchronous. Intake is a web form. Scope confirmation, clarifications, and follow-up questions all happen by email. You can run the whole engagement on your own schedule.
Do you offer ongoing retainers or subscriptions?
No. Web Cited sells one-time audits only. No managed services, content production, link building, or tracking subscriptions. If you need those, we can recommend specialists - we don't take referral fees.
Can you work under a DPA / NDA / MSA?
Yes. We sign standard enterprise DPAs and NDAs, and we can work under a buyer-paper MSA if one is required. We do not bill for legal review.
Who runs the audit?
A senior practitioner - not a junior account handler. See About for our positioning.