How to Compare AI Search Optimization Vendors

The best AI search optimization vendor for you is the one that shows real answers from the assistants your buyers use, explains clearly what it will change, and makes no promises it cannot keep. Compare vendors on coverage, transparency, the quality of their content work, pricing terms and honesty, not on bold claims or the size of their score.

The five-point scorecard

Score each vendor from 1 to 5 on these areas. Weight them based on what matters most to your business.

1. Coverage

Which assistants do they track? ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity, Copilot and Google AI Overviews behave differently. A vendor that only checks one may miss where your buyers actually are. Also ask how often answers are checked and whether you can add your own prompts, competitors and locations.

2. Transparency

Can you see the actual answers and cited sources, or only a single “visibility score”? Scores are handy, but you need the raw answers to understand why you appear or not, and to check the vendor’s work.

3. Content quality

Ask for examples of content they produce. Is it specific, accurate and useful to a reader? Or is it thin, repetitive text stuffed with keywords? Poor content can hurt your reputation with readers, and assistants have little reason to cite it. Check whether you approve content before it is published.

4. Pricing and terms

Look for clear monthly pricing, the option to cancel, and a clear list of what each plan includes. Long lock-in contracts for a fast-changing field are a risk. Compare cost against how many prompts, assistants and pieces of content are included. Our pricing guide for AI recommendations shows typical models.

5. Honesty

This is the most important filter. Score a vendor low if they claim any of the following:

• “Guaranteed” mentions or rankings in ChatGPT or Gemini.
• An official partnership or certification with OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, Microsoft or Perplexity that you cannot verify on those companies’ own sites.
• The ability to “submit” or “inject” your brand into AI training data.
• Paid placement inside AI answers.
• Results by a fixed date.

AI answers come from training data and live web results. Visibility is earned through content, mentions, consistent facts and technical access. A vendor who says otherwise is either confused or misleading you.

Questions to ask on a sales call

1. Can you show me what ChatGPT and Perplexity say today for three of my target questions?
2. What exactly will you do in the first month?
3. Where will the content you create be published?
4. How will I know if it is working, and what would make you recommend we stop?
5. Who on your team writes and reviews the content?
6. Do you use any tactics like review generation, forum posting or link buying? (The right answer for fake reviews and forum seeding is no.)

Software, agency or both?

Software tools are cheaper and let you see data any time, but you do the work or rely on built-in content features. Agencies do more by hand and cost more. Some businesses use a tool for tracking and an in-house writer for content. Our article on choosing an AI SEO agency covers the agency route in more detail.

Run a short test before committing

Use any free check or monthly plan to compare the vendor’s view of your market against your own manual checks. If the data matches what you see and the recommendations are specific, that is a good sign.

Where Keboost fits

Keboost tracks your prompts across ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity and Copilot, shows real answers, competitors and sources, and creates and distributes focused content. Plans are €29 (Starter) and €99 (Professional) per month, cancel anytime, with no guaranteed-ranking claims. Run a free AI visibility check and score us with the same scorecard, or compare plans.