Earn AI Citations
With A Proven
AI SEO Consultant
I’m Paul Hoda, an AI-focused SEO consultant in the UK who has worked in search since 2005. I help brands become a source that ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google’s AI features can find, trust and quote, with a specialism in dental and health. I run every project personally.
What Does an AI SEO Consultant Do for Your Business?
Generative engines assemble an answer from sources they can reach, parse and believe. An AI SEO consultant works out why your brand is missing from those answers, or described wrongly, and fixes the causes. Some people call it GEO (generative engine optimisation) or AEO; underneath, it is still the same careful work as classic SEO Consultancy.
The job splits into three layers that language models and AI search features lean on:
- Technical SEO: pages that Googlebot, Bingbot and AI crawlers such as GPTBot and OAI-SearchBot can fetch, with key text in the HTML rather than hidden behind scripts.
- Content and on-page SEO: direct, self-contained answers, specific facts and clear headings that a model can lift into a reply without losing meaning.
- Authority: a consistent entity, meaning the same name, facts and expertise repeated by reputable third parties, so assistants feel safe mentioning you.
Usually one layer is the weak link. I identify it, repair it, then strengthen the other two. For a broader view of the role, see how a general SEO consultant works.
Signals that AI search is passing you by
- Clicks fell after AI Overviews appeared on your key queries
- ChatGPT names three rivals and never you
- Assistants quote out-of-date prices or services
- Your firewall or CDN quietly blocks AI crawlers
- Important pages are not indexed in Google or Bing
- Nobody can say how visible you are in AI search
Each point has a traceable cause. If classic rankings slipped too, start with the main reasons rankings decline.
AI SEO Consultant Results and Growth
AI answers draw heavily on sites that already perform in search, so these figures matter. Each comes from Search Console, comparing clicks before and after my involvement. They show real people arriving from Google, not inflated impression counts.
Your AI SEO Consultant: Paul Hoda
I’m Paul Hoda, an independent consultant based in London, working with clients across the UK. My route in was practical: repairing computers, writing code and building websites, then search engine optimisation from 2005. Every shift since, from mobile-first indexing to generative answers, I have tested on live sites rather than taken on trust.
That matters for AI search, because many visibility problems sit in places marketers rarely look: robots.txt rules, bot settings at the CDN, server-rendered text and structured data. I can inspect those myself and hand developers exact fixes.
My own site has stayed on Google’s first page for crowded terms such as SEO expert for many years. I apply the same discipline to AI visibility: build what deserves to be cited, then measure honestly whether it is.
- 2005 start in search
- 5.0 average on Google
- Family-run, UK-wide clients
- +250% mean organic growth
A Selection of Past and Present Clients
Which Services Does an AI SEO Consultant Include?
The mix changes with each site, but these are the levers I pull to make a brand easier to retrieve, understand and cite, in AI tools and in ordinary Google results. All of it comes from one specialist, with no agency margin added.
AI Visibility Audit
I test how assistants and AI Overviews currently describe your brand, which sources they lean on, and where rivals are mentioned instead, then rank each gap by likely value.
Prompt & Query Research
Customers type longer, conversational questions into AI tools. I map those prompts alongside classic keywords and match each one to a page that can answer it.
Answer-Ready Pages
Lead with the answer, then the detail. Descriptive headings, short definitions, tables and FAQs make passages easy for a model to extract and attribute.
Technical SEO & Site Health
Robots.txt and CDN rules for GPTBot, OAI-SearchBot, PerplexityBot and Google-Extended, server-rendered text, schema markup and indexing in both Google and Bing.
Content Worth Quoting
Original data, named authors, clear sourcing and firm opinions give AI systems something specific to cite instead of a generic summary they could write themselves.
Entity & Brand Consistency
Organization and Person schema, matching profiles and directory listings, and one consistent set of facts, so models resolve your brand as a single, clear entity.
Mentions & Digital PR
Coverage on the reviews sites, trade press, forums and lists that AI answers repeatedly draw from, earned on merit rather than bought.
Measuring AI Visibility
A fixed set of prompts checked over time, AI referral sessions in GA4, and Search Console trends, reported together so you see direction rather than noise.
Penalty & Drop Recovery
When clicks drop, I separate AI Overview click loss from genuine ranking loss, technical faults or update damage, and plan the response accordingly.
Who I Work With as an AI SEO Consultant
The best fit is a business whose customers already ask AI tools for advice before buying, and which wants one experienced person to own the response. Healthcare is a good example, as I explain in how AI is changing medical search.
Dental & Private Clinics
Patients now ask assistants about implants, aligners and veneers before booking. Clinics with accurate, clinician-reviewed pages and strong local signals are the ones those answers can safely point to.
Ecommerce Brands
Retailers whose products surface, or fail to, when shoppers ask AI Mode or ChatGPT for comparisons, needing clean product data, schema and genuine reviews.
Software & SaaS Companies
Software firms whose buyers ask for tool shortlists and head-to-head comparisons, and who need honest comparison and documentation pages that models can reference.
Local & Professional Services
Advisers, clinics and specialist firms that want to be the name an assistant suggests when someone asks who is reputable in their field or area.
In-House Teams & Agencies
Marketing leads who need a seasoned adviser to separate GEO hype from evidence, check vendor claims and brief developers, without a new full-time hire.
Should You Hire an AI SEO Consultant or an Agency?
Plenty of agencies have added “GEO” to their service lists in the past two years. Before signing, ask who will actually change your site, how long they have done search, and whether they can show how they measure AI visibility.
An agency could be right when
- You need large volumes of content produced every month
- Paid media and SEO must be bought from one supplier
- Several stakeholders expect a dedicated account team
- Budget allows for project management on top of delivery
An independent consultant fits when
- You want AI search advice grounded in two decades of SEO
- Technical causes need diagnosing, not just reporting
- You would rather speak to the person doing the work
- Rolling terms suit you better than a 12-month contract
Already paying for GEO?
I can audit what your current provider is doing for AI visibility, check whether it is measurable, and suggest where effort should move.
| Comparison | Paul Hoda, AI SEO Consultant | Typical GEO Agency | Budget Freelancer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who does the work | Me, from audit to implementation | Frequently a junior team using AI tools | Unknown, sometimes resold work |
| Experience | Search since 2005, AI search since it arrived | Often new to SEO before the AI wave | Rarely deep on technical causes |
| Communication | You talk to the specialist directly | Updates relayed by account staff | Unpredictable response times |
| Contracts | Rolling monthly agreement | Minimum terms of 6 to 12 months are common | Short gigs with no follow-through |
| Technical SEO | Crawler access, rendering and schema fixed hands-on | Often left as a recommendation | Mostly generic AI checklists |
| Cost | From £1,000 monthly, nothing added for overheads | Higher retainers to fund sales and staff | Low entry price, unclear value |
How Does the AI SEO Process Work, Step by Step?
Five stages, each with a defined output, so you always know what has been tested, what has changed and what comes next.
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1 Day 1
Free AI Visibility Check
I run a handful of buyer prompts through the main assistants and review how your site performs in Google.
You get: a short, frank summary, free of obligation.
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2 Weeks 1–2
Audit & Prompt Mapping
Crawler access, rendering, schema, entity data, content and third-party mentions are examined in depth.
You get: an audit plus a prompt set and baseline to measure against.
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3 Week 3
Priorities
Findings are ordered by effort against likely impact, with quick technical wins first.
You get: a 6 to 12 month plan covering AI and classic search.
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4 Ongoing
Fixes & Content
I make changes directly or brief your developers and writers, then verify each one after release.
You get: crawler fixes, schema, rewritten pages and outreach.
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5 Monthly
Tracking & Adjusting
Prompt results, referrals and rankings are reviewed monthly, and the plan shifts as the platforms do.
You get: a monthly report showing trends, not one-off screenshots.
SEO Case Studies: The Foundations AI Search Draws On
Strong organic visibility is the base layer AI answers are built from. Click a keyword to verify the live Google position, or open the full write-up.
Chris Bowers & Sons®: 300% Growth
Top Google position for:
apple trees for saleSee it on Google ↗A leading UK nursery with a deep catalogue of fruit trees. Over two years of SEO, organic traffic rose by 300% and the site gained page-one positions across its niche, covering hundreds of related searches. That kind of topical depth is what makes a brand a credible source.
Scichart®: 165% Growth
Top Google position for:
wpf chartsSee it on Google ↗SciChart, a leading chart development company, asked me to widen its reach for technical developer searches. Organic Google traffic is up by about 165%, with rankings climbing steadily since the work began.
How Much Does an AI SEO Consultant Cost per Month?
In the UK, an experienced independent consultant typically charges £1,000 to £5,000 per month for ongoing AI and classic search work, depending on scope. My fees begin at £1,000 per month, and I confirm a figure only after checking your site and current AI visibility for free.
AI SEO retainer
from £1,000/month
- Monthly planning and hands-on changes
- Technical SEO, structured data and content
- Prompt tracking across major assistants
- Reports on AI referrals, rankings and leads
- One point of contact: me
What shapes the fee?
- How crowded your topic is in AI answers
- Your site’s size and technical health
- How much new content and PR it needs
- The speed you want to move at
How I work with you
- No fixed-term contract
- All changes stay with you if we stop
- Every task logged with its reason
- Candid advice, including what not to buy
Can an AI SEO Consultant Get You Into AI Overviews?
Most AI search tools retrieve live web pages before writing a reply. Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode work from its own index, while ChatGPT search, Perplexity and Copilot fetch results from search indexes and their own crawlers. If a page is not indexed, fast and clear, it is rarely in the pool being read.
So GEO is not a replacement for SEO. Ranking well, being discussed on reputable sites and publishing precise, expert pages remain the strongest signals. AI-specific work then sharpens how those pages are structured and how your brand is described.
Nobody can promise a mention in a particular answer, as responses vary by user, wording and day. What can be done is to make your brand the easiest reliable source to choose. For the full service detail, see my dedicated page on AI SEO for ChatGPT.
Foundations AI answers depend on
- Indexing in both Google and Bing
- Text served in HTML, not only via JavaScript
- Answers placed near the top of each page
- Accurate Organization and author schema
- Mentions on sources assistants already cite
- A repeatable way to measure progress
AI SEO Consultant: Common Issues Solved
When a brand is absent from AI answers, the reason is usually ordinary and fixable. A security rule written years ago may be refusing AI crawlers. A pricing page may still show last year’s figures, which a model then repeats with confidence. Or the only detailed descriptions of your company may live on a competitor’s comparison page.
The fix starts with evidence: server logs to see which bots visit, prompt testing to see what assistants say, and a review of the pages and third-party sources they cite. From there the order of work tends to be obvious.
Issues I regularly find and resolve include:
- GPTBot blocked by accident
- CDN bot challenges
- Script-only page text
- Missing Organization schema
- Conflicting brand facts
- Anonymous authors
- Answers buried mid-page
- Outdated prices online
- Pages missing from Bing
- Few third-party mentions
- Thin comparison pages
- Untracked AI referrals
How AI SEO projects are run
The work is done online and fits around your team. You get a shared prompt tracker, a written monthly report and direct email and phone contact with me, and I coordinate with your developers through whatever ticketing system you already use.
Crawler access and structured data are often quick to put right. Entity consistency and third-party coverage take longer, because they depend on other websites updating what they say about you.
If you want to know where you stand today, ask for a free AI visibility check. I will show you how assistants currently describe your brand, which sources they rely on, and what I would change first.
Common Questions for an AI SEO Consultant
How much does an AI SEO consultant cost?
Experienced independent consultants in the UK usually charge £1,000 to £5,000 per month for ongoing work. My retainers start at £1,000 per month on rolling terms, and the exact fee follows a free check of your site and how AI tools currently present your brand.
What is the difference between SEO, GEO and AEO?
SEO earns rankings in search results. GEO, generative engine optimisation, aims to get your brand used and cited in AI-written answers. AEO, answer engine optimisation, is a close cousin focused on direct answers. In practice they overlap heavily, and GEO without solid SEO rarely works.
Can you guarantee my brand will appear in ChatGPT or AI Overviews?
No, and you should be wary of anyone who does. AI answers change with the wording of a prompt, the user and the date. I improve the conditions that make citations more likely and report honestly on what changes.
Should I block GPTBot and other AI crawlers?
It depends on your goals. GPTBot gathers training data, while OAI-SearchBot fetches pages for ChatGPT search, and Google-Extended controls Gemini training use without affecting normal Google Search. Many brands allow the search bots and decide separately on training. I help you set rules that match your intent.
How do you measure AI search visibility?
I track a fixed set of buyer prompts across the main assistants over time, monitor referral sessions from tools such as ChatGPT and Perplexity in GA4, and watch Search Console, which blends AI Overview and AI Mode clicks into its normal figures. Together they show a reliable trend.
Is an agency or an independent consultant better for AI SEO?
If you need high content volume across many channels, an agency may suit. If you want an experienced specialist who can find technical causes and speak to you directly, a consultant usually offers better value. My guide on vetting an SEO specialist covers the questions to ask either way.
How long before AI visibility improves?
Technical fixes such as unblocking crawlers can take effect once pages are recrawled, often within weeks. Changes that depend on reputation, like new third-party mentions, usually take several months to show in answers, and some models update their knowledge far less often.
Does adding an llms.txt file help?
It is cheap to add, but there is little evidence that major AI search tools rely on it today. I treat it as optional, and spend the effort first on crawlability, clear content and genuine mentions, which demonstrably matter.
How does this page differ from your AI SEO for ChatGPT service?
This page explains how I work as a consultant across AI search and classic SEO. The Rank in ChatGPT with AI SEO page sets out that specific service in more detail, including what is included and how it is delivered.
What do you need from me to start?
Access to Google Search Console, GA4, Bing Webmaster Tools and your CMS, plus a list of the questions customers ask before buying. If you can share server logs or CDN settings, I can check which AI crawlers already reach your site.
Grow Faster With an AI SEO Consultant
Thank you for reading. Search is changing quickly, but the brands that do well in AI answers tend to be the ones that were already easy to find, understand and believe. I would be glad to help yours become one of them.
We are a family-run business, and clients stay because the work pays off, not because a contract holds them. You deal with me directly, and I judge every task by whether it brings you closer to more enquiries and sales.
Shortcuts and hype do not last in this field. Clean code, accurate facts and expertise that others confirm are what search engines and language models reward, and that is what I build.
Ask for a free AI visibility check and see how assistants describe your business today.
With respect,
Book a Free Call With Your AI SEO Consultant
Your customers are asking AI tools and Google the same questions. Tell me about your business and goals, and I’ll outline a plan to strengthen your visibility in both, with measures you can follow month by month.