Foundation: a GEO audit that ends with a prioritised roadmap
Foundation is CitedLift's GEO audit (GEO: generative engine optimization, the work of being found, described accurately and recommended in AI answers). In 2-3 weeks we map your market, research what your buyers ask, review the proof behind your claims, measure how ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews answer 30-50 of your buyers' prompts, check how you are described, and check whether your site is technically ready. Then we turn the findings into a prioritised roadmap and walk you through it on a call.
At the end you have three things: a measured baseline of where you stand in AI answers, the reasons behind it, and a roadmap of what to fix first. Foundation costs from €1,500, one-time.
Foundation at a glance
Foundation: scope, timing and terms
| What it is | A one-time GEO audit: research, measurement and a prioritised roadmap |
| Duration | 2-3 weeks |
| Price | from €1,500, one-time |
| Payment | 50% on signing, 50% on delivery |
| AI engines measured | ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Google AI Overviews |
| Prompt set | 30-50 buyer prompts |
| You receive | A prioritised roadmap as a written report plus a task spreadsheet, and a 60-minute walkthrough call |
| Who runs it | Founder-led, from the Netherlands; specialists join where the roadmap needs them |
| After Foundation | Your own team executes the roadmap, or we do in Growth |
| Outcome guarantee | None. We commit to the measurement, the work listed on this page and full transparency on how we reached each recommendation |
Who Foundation is for
Foundation is built for B2B and ecommerce companies in Europe, usually founder-led or with a small marketing team, that want to know how AI engines and Google present them to buyers before they spend money fixing it.
It fits when:
- your buyers research suppliers in ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini or Google before they contact you;
- you have real expertise and proof, but you are not sure AI answers reflect it;
- you want a plan your own team can execute, or a scoped starting point for Growth.
When it's not the right fit
- You want a guaranteed ranking or a guaranteed mention in a specific AI engine. We don't offer outcome guarantees.
- You only want a quick read on whether AI mentions you at all. The Free AI Visibility Check covers that.
- You are looking for social media management, Meta campaigns, email marketing or outbound LinkedIn lead generation. We don't offer these.
What a GEO audit includes: the seven parts of Foundation
Each part answers one question about how buyers find and judge you. Together they show where you stand and what to do first.
1. Market and niche map
What we do: map the markets and niches you sell into and rank them by demand, fit and competition.
What you get: a clear view of where to focus first. The rest of the audit, and later the roadmap, concentrates on the niches worth winning.
2. Buyer demand research
What we do: research what your buyers ask Google and AI assistants when they look for a supplier like you.
What you get: the buyer questions and prompts behind the rest of the audit. The prompt set for the AI visibility baseline comes from this research, and we agree it with you before we measure.
3. Expertise and proof review (E-E-A-T)
E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness, the qualities Google's search quality rater guidelines describe.
What we do: review what you can credibly claim, such as track record, credentials, client evidence and publications, and where that proof is visible: on your site and on third-party sources.
What you get: the claims you can back up, the places where proof is missing or hard to find, and which proof to make visible first.
4. AI visibility baseline
What we do: run 30-50 buyer prompts across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews, and record whether you are surfaced, how you are described and which sources are cited.
What you get: a baseline that shows where you appear, where other suppliers appear instead, and what each engine says about you. If you continue with Growth, the same prompt set is re-measured every month, so progress is measured against this starting point.
5. Narrative check
What we do: compare how the web and AI engines describe you with what you actually do.
What you get: the specific mismatches and inaccuracies to correct, and where in the roadmap they are addressed.
This is a common problem: 37% of marketers say competitors are mentioned more often than their brand in AI answers; 30% say their brand is described inaccurately. Source: Semrush, survey of 481 marketers, June 2026.
6. Technical readiness
What we do: check whether search engines and AI crawlers can reach, read and index the pages that matter, and whether your structured data describes those pages accurately.
What you get: the technical fixes that block visibility, ranked inside the roadmap.
7. Prioritised roadmap, plus a walkthrough call
What we do: turn the findings from the six parts above into one prioritised roadmap, and walk you through it on a 60-minute call.
What you get: the roadmap as a written report plus a task spreadsheet your team can work from, the primary execution track we recommend if you continue with Growth, and answers to your team's questions on the call.
How the 2-3 weeks run
Foundation takes 2-3 weeks, counted from the day we have the signed agreement, the first payment and the access listed below.
- Start. You sign, pay the first 50%, and give us read access to Google Search Console and analytics (GA4), a list of your main competitors, and a 45-minute interview with your company's founder.
- Research and measurement. We work through parts 1-6: market, demand, proof, the AI visibility baseline, narrative and technical readiness.
- Delivery. You receive the roadmap and we walk you through it on the call. The second 50% is due on delivery.
Why a GEO audit includes SEO and technical readiness
Google's generative AI features rely on its core Search ranking and quality systems; from Google's perspective, optimizing for them is still SEO. Source: Google Search Central, AI optimization guide, documentation updated 10 July 2026.
So being crawled, indexed and ranked is part of the audit, not a separate project. Foundation checks search demand and technical readiness next to the AI visibility baseline, and the roadmap treats them as one plan. How the two disciplines relate is covered in GEO vs SEO.
The research behind the method
We built Foundation's measurement on our own study of AI answers, published on bearleap.space.
- In buyer-style tests of 77 companies drawn from the public ESA BIC Noordwijk incubatee and alumni listings, the target company wasn't surfaced in 79.7% of 231 answers; 49 of 77 were never surfaced.
- Only 1.2% of 1,798 logged citations pointed to the companies' own websites.
- 8 of 29 companies failed a bare-name test; all 8 resolved once one clause of context was added.
Source: own study, 77 companies from the public ESA BIC Noordwijk incubatee and alumni listings, tests on 25 and 26 August 2026. Read the ESA BIC Noordwijk AI visibility study.
What the study changed in Foundation
| Finding | What Foundation checks because of it |
|---|---|
| Most target companies were not surfaced | We measure before we recommend: the AI visibility baseline comes first |
| Very few citations pointed to the companies' own websites | We review proof and narrative across third-party sources, not only your site |
| Bare-name failures resolved once context was added | We check whether AI engines connect your name with what you actually do |
The sample comes from one incubator ecosystem, so we use these figures to explain the method, not as a benchmark for your company. The study is independent: ESA BIC Noordwijk did not commission or endorse it.
Price and payment
Foundation costs from €1,500, one-time. You pay 50% on signing and 50% on delivery. The price follows the market you sell into, not where your company is registered or the language of your site. The final price depends on market, language and scope, and is fixed in the agreement. See full pricing.
Not included in Foundation
- Executing the roadmap: that is Growth, or your own team.
- Google Ads and website projects: separate services, quoted separately.
What we don't do: social media management, Meta campaigns, email marketing or outbound LinkedIn lead generation.
After Foundation: Growth or your own team
Foundation ends with a roadmap you own. There are two ways forward.
Your team executes it. The roadmap is a prioritised plan an in-house team can work from.
We execute it in Growth, from €1,250 a month. Growth starts with one market and one language, the same prompt set re-measured monthly, one primary execution track chosen in Foundation, and a monthly strategy call. You approve every piece before it ships. Execution tracks: AI & organic visibility · Authority and third-party evidence · Local search · Shopping. Growth has a 3-month minimum, then runs month-to-month with 30 days' notice.
For the full picture of the service, see AI visibility services.
Questions about the GEO audit
How is Foundation different from the Free AI Visibility Check?
The Free AI Visibility Check is a quick, free read: 10 buyer prompts, results in 48 hours. Foundation is the full GEO audit: 30-50 buyer prompts across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews, plus market, demand, proof, narrative and technical research, and a prioritised roadmap. If you are unsure whether you need the full audit, start with the free check.
Which AI engines does the audit cover?
ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google AI Overviews. The same buyer prompts run in each engine, so you can see how each one presents you.
Do you guarantee we will appear in AI answers?
No. AI engines choose their own sources, and no agency controls that choice. We commit to the measurement, the work listed on this page and full transparency on how we reached each recommendation.
What do you need from us to start?
Read access to Google Search Console and analytics (GA4), a list of your main competitors, and a 45-minute interview with your company's founder. The 2-3 weeks start once we have these, the signed agreement and the first payment.
Do we have to continue with Growth after Foundation?
No. The roadmap is yours. Your team can execute it, or we can in Growth, which starts from the priorities and the primary execution track chosen in Foundation.
Does the price depend on our market?
Yes. The price follows the market you sell into, not where your company is registered or the language of your site. The final price is fixed in the agreement. The pricing page shows current prices.
Start with a call
Tell us your market and your buyers, and we'll tell you whether Foundation is the right first step.
Run the Free AI Visibility Check: 10 buyer prompts, results in 48 hours, free.