By Steve Merrill, Founder of WRKNG Digital | September 30, 2026
AEO is new, so everyone with an SEO deck now claims to do it. These five questions separate the agencies who understand AI visibility from the ones who slapped a new label on old work.
I've watched founders sign agencies on buzzwords and regret it. Ask these before you sign. The answers tell you fast whether they know what they're doing.
1. How do you measure AI visibility?
A real AEO agency tracks mentions and citations across assistants like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI, not just keyword rankings. If they only talk rankings, they're doing SEO with a new name.
Ask to see how they'd report your progress. Vague answers are a red flag.
2. What exactly will you change on my store?
The honest answer covers structured data, feed hygiene, review markup, and citable content. Structured data is the foundation of AI readability.
If they can't name specific technical changes, they don't have a method.
3. Can you show a before-and-after?
Ask for a real example of a store they made more visible to AI, with the specific fixes and the result. Named specifics beat case-study fluff.
We show clients exactly what ChatGPT and Perplexity see before and after. Any serious agency should.
4. How do you handle product feed and schema?
AI recommendations hinge on clean feeds and valid schema. An agency that glosses over the feed is missing where recommendations are actually decided.
The feed is the version of your store AI reads. They should treat it that way.
5. What do you not promise?
A trustworthy agency is clear about what it can't guarantee. Anyone promising you'll definitely rank first in ChatGPT is selling you something.
We don't promise specific results. We promise what our team will actually do. Look for that honesty.
How we chose these questions
Each question is designed to expose whether an agency has a real AEO method or is relabeling SEO work. We ordered them from the most revealing to the most decisive filter, honesty about limits.
Further reading
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I ask an AEO agency before hiring them?
Ask how they measure AI visibility, exactly what they'll change on your store, whether they can show a real before-and-after, how they handle product feed and schema, and what they refuse to promise. These questions separate agencies with a real method from those relabeling old SEO work.
How can I tell if an AEO agency is legitimate?
A legitimate AEO agency tracks mentions and citations across AI assistants, names specific technical changes like structured data and feed fixes, shows real before-and-after examples, and is honest about what it can't guarantee. If they only talk keyword rankings or promise guaranteed AI rankings, be skeptical.
Is AEO just SEO with a new name?
No, though some agencies market it that way. AEO focuses on getting cited and recommended by AI assistants, which depends heavily on structured data, feed hygiene, review markup, and citable content. Traditional SEO overlaps but is measured by rankings, while AEO is measured by AI mentions and citations.
Want to know if AI assistants can actually find and recommend your store? Get a free AI-visibility read on your Shopify store at WRKNG Digital. We show you exactly what ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI see when they look at your products.
