Question 1

Google says AEO and GEO are still just SEO. Is that true?

Accepted Answer

On Google's own surfaces, that is accurate. Google's guidance on AI features reflects how their system retrieves and cites content. But Google does not control ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, or Siri. Each of those platforms has its own retrieval architecture, its own citation logic, and its own ranking signals. Optimizing for Google's AI features using traditional SEO practices will not make your brand visible on the platforms where AI-referred traffic converts at 6x the rate of organic search. They are separate channels that require separate work.

Question 2

Is GEO a real thing or just a buzzword?

Accepted Answer

It is real. Generative engine optimization is the practice of building the signals that get your brand cited in AI-generated responses from ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews, and other AI search surfaces. The term is new. The underlying mechanics, how retrieval systems find, evaluate, and cite content, are well documented. We have been doing this work since before the term existed. Our AI SEO and GEO service is the full practice across every AI surface where your buyers are searching.

Question 3

How do you measure AI search visibility? My rank tracker doesn't show it.

Accepted Answer

Rank trackers measure where you sit on Google's list. They do not measure whether AI systems are retrieving, citing, or recommending your brand. We track AI visibility across dimensions that rank trackers were not built for: whether your brand is recognized as an entity, whether your content retrieves against the sub-queries models actually generate, and whether you appear in AI responses across platforms. Our AI Search Visibility Assessment is the diagnostic starting point for brands that want to know where they actually stand.

Question 4

Is AEO just SEO with a new name?

Accepted Answer

No. Traditional SEO gets your page ranked on a list. Answer engine optimization gets your content selected as the answer. AI systems decompose a buyer's question into sub-queries, retrieve passages that answer each one, and assemble a response. Your content has to be structured at the passage level for that selection process. That is different work than optimizing for Google's ranked list. Our AEO service builds content specifically for how AI systems decompose and answer questions.

Question 5

I'm ranking well on Google but invisible in AI answers. Why?

Accepted Answer

Because Google rankings and AI citations are driven by different factors. Google ranks pages. AI systems retrieve passages. A page ranking first on Google may never appear in a ChatGPT response if no individual passage on that page cleanly answers one of the sub-queries the model generated. The factors that drive AI citation, entity recognition, passage-level structure, parametric presence in training data, are not the same factors that drive Google rank. That gap is exactly what our AI SEO and GEO practice addresses.

Question 6

How do I find out what AI is saying about my brand?

Accepted Answer

Ask it. Open ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini and ask about your brand in a way that does not prompt a web search. What comes back is your parametric presence, what the model already believes about you from training data. Then ask questions a buyer would ask and see if your brand appears in the answer. That gives you a rough baseline. Our Context Map is the systematic version: a full diagnostic across every AI surface of what is being said, what sources are shaping those answers, where the gaps and inaccuracies are, and what to fix first.

Question 7

How do I create content that AI actually cites?

Accepted Answer

Structure it so each section answers one specific question completely enough to stand on its own. AI systems do not retrieve whole pages. They retrieve passages. A passage that answers one question with specificity and attribution will get cited. A passage that covers three topics in flowing prose will not. Every claim needs a named source. Every section needs a clear semantic center. That is what we mean by citation-ready content, and it is a structural discipline, not a volume play.

Question 8

How is social search optimization different from social media management?

Accepted Answer

Social media management is about engagement, posting cadence, and audience growth on a platform. Social search optimization is about making your social presence findable and usable by both human searchers and AI retrieval systems. When someone searches TikTok, YouTube, or Reddit for a recommendation, and when AI systems mine those platforms for consensus about your brand, your social presence needs to be structured for discovery, not just engagement. Our social search optimization service builds that structure.

Question 9

Do you also do traditional SEO?

Accepted Answer

Yes. AI search optimization does not replace traditional SEO. It extends it. Search engines still matter. They are how your buyer confirms what AI recommended. When AI tells your buyer to check you out, they Google your name. You need to be there. We do traditional search engine optimization alongside AI search optimization because both surfaces need to tell the same story about your brand.

Question 10

What does a fractional CMO do that a marketing consultant doesn't?

Accepted Answer

A consultant delivers recommendations. A fractional CMO makes decisions, manages vendors, and owns outcomes. The engagement is executional, not advisory. Our fractional CMO service has AI search fluency built in, which means the person making your marketing decisions understands how retrieval systems, parametric presence, and entity signals work, not just traditional marketing channels.

Plate Lunch CollectiveHawaii-based strategic marketing consultancy for hospitality, tourism, and restaurant brands.

Overview

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Position a New Hawaii Restaurant Concept

Launch a Resort or Hotel Campaign

Refresh a Tourism Operator's Brand

Scale Digital Marketing for Hospitality Brands

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Solid for our team

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Computer Vision alternatives

Overview

Key features

Pricing

Use cases

Position a New Hawaii Restaurant Concept

Launch a Resort or Hotel Campaign

Refresh a Tourism Operator's Brand

Scale Digital Marketing for Hospitality Brands

Pros & Cons

Pros

Cons

Battle record

Last battle

Reviews

Use it every day

Solid for our team

Use it every day

Skeptical, then convinced

Skeptical, then convinced

Does the job

Q&A

Ask a question

Computer Vision alternatives

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