What is the difference between SEO and GEO?
SEO optimizes a website to rank on a search engine's results page, where the user picks from a list. GEO optimizes a firm to be named inside a generated answer, where the engine picks a few sources. SEO measures rankings and clicks; GEO measures citations and mentions.
| SEO | GEO / AI search visibility | |
|---|---|---|
| Output | Ranked list of pages | One answer naming 3–4 firms |
| Who chooses | The user | The engine |
| Primary metric | Rankings, clicks, map-pack position | Citation rate across engines |
| Strongest signals | Relevance, links, GBP, technical health | Entity consistency, answer-first structure, mentions, reviews |
| Backlinks | Meaningful | Weak (0.22 correlation) |
| Unlinked mentions | Minor | Strong (0.66 correlation) |
| Content that wins | Comprehensive, keyword-mapped | Direct answer first, then depth; fresh |
| Schema | Helpful | Necessary |
| Where clients see it | Google results page | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, AI Overviews |
How much do SEO and GEO overlap?
Most of the foundation is shared: technical health, Google Business Profile, directory consistency, reviews, and well-structured practice pages. GEO adds answer-first structure, schema depth, mention-building and citation tracking. A firm doing SEO properly is roughly two-thirds of the way to GEO.
The shared foundation is why buying them separately costs more than it should. Our tiers include both because the work is done on the same pages, the same profiles and the same reviews. See pricing.
Where they diverge
SEO can win with long, comprehensive pages. GEO needs the answer in the first paragraph. SEO rewards links. GEO rewards being talked about. A page can rank first on Google and never be cited, which is what the engine grid on our audit shows most firms.
Should a law firm do SEO or GEO first?
Both, in one program, starting with the shared foundation. If forced to choose: a firm with no map-pack presence starts with local SEO; a firm already ranking but absent from AI answers starts with GEO. Most mid-tier Los Angeles firms are the second case.
- Not in the map pack, few reviews, no schema: foundation first (Foundation tier).
- Ranking on page one, not cited by AI: answer-first rewrites, entity fixes, mention building (Growth tier).
- Serving a language community: native pages are the biggest lever in both channels (Community tier).
What do SEO and GEO cost for a law firm?
Industry pricing for law firm SEO runs $1,500 to $8,000 a month depending on firm size, with a national average near $7,500. GEO sold as an add-on runs $3,000 to $6,000 a month. Isonn includes the AI layer in tiers of $2,000, $3,500 and $5,000 because the work overlaps.
Ask any agency selling GEO separately what specifically differs in the deliverables. If the answer is 'we add llms.txt and some schema', you are paying twice for one set of pages.