AI SEO means two different things, and agencies often blur them. One is using AI to do SEO work faster. The other is getting your business found and named in AI answers from ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google. A good AI SEO agency should do both, and be clear which is which.

I do this work for clients and on my own site, where I've made over 7,000 SEO changes. Here's what Google has said about AI-written content, the red flags I'd look for in an agency pitch, and the questions I'd ask before signing.

Two meanings of AI SEO

The first meaning is AI as the tool. Research, briefs, internal links, titles, technical fixes and content refreshes can all go faster with AI, and the volume a small team can handle goes up a lot.

The second meaning is AI as the audience. Your buyers now ask chatbots and AI search which business to hire. If those answers don't name you, ranking well in classic results isn't the whole story any more. An agency that only talks about one of these is selling half the job.

What Google says about AI-written pages

Google Search Central's guidance on generative AI content was last updated on 1 October 2026, and it's worth reading in full before you hire anyone. The key line: using generative AI tools to generate many pages without adding value for users may violate Google's spam policy on scaled content abuse.

The spam policy itself defines scaled content abuse as many pages generated mainly to manipulate rankings rather than help users, no matter how it's created. Its examples include AI pages without added value, scraped content run through synonyms or translation, and content stitched together from other pages without adding anything.

Google also warns that generative models don't retrieve facts. They predict a likely sequence of words, so their output can contain made-up details. It says to fact-check and review all AI-generated content before publishing, and that this applies to title elements, meta descriptions, structured data and image alt text as well as the page itself. Google even points readers to sections 4.6.5 and 4.6.6 of its Search Quality Rater guidelines, which deal with scaled content and low-effort pages.

• Not banned: using AI to research, structure and draft.
• The problem: many pages that add nothing for readers, however they were made.
• Always check: facts, titles, meta descriptions, structured data and alt text.

Where AI earns its keep in SEO

Used well, AI takes the slow, repetitive parts of SEO off a person's desk. It can sort thousands of search queries into themes, draft briefs, spot pages that compete with each other, suggest internal links and flag titles that don't match what people search for. A person then decides what to change and checks it.

Used badly, AI becomes a page factory. The difference isn't the tool. It's whether someone with judgement is reviewing every change before it goes live, and whether each page gives a reader something they couldn't get elsewhere.

Red flags in an AI SEO agency pitch

If I heard any of these in a sales call, I'd end it politely.

• A promise of hundreds of new pages a month with no word on who checks them.
• Location or keyword pages that only swap one word between them.
• Rewriting competitors' content with AI and calling it original.
• No named person responsible for fact-checking.
• Guaranteed rankings, or guaranteed mentions in ChatGPT.
• Reports that show rankings but never show clicks, enquiries or AI answers.

Questions to put to any AI SEO agency

These questions separate agencies that use AI well from those that use it to cut corners.

1. Where exactly do you use AI in your process, and where do people take over?
2. Who fact-checks pages, titles and structured data before they go live?
3. How do you check whether ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google's AI answers name my business?
4. What would you change on my site in the first month, and why those pages?
5. How will you report results, and can I see the same numbers in my own Search Console?

What I do on my own site first

I don't recommend anything I haven't tried on lilachbullock.com. Every AI SEO change I suggest to a client has run on my own site first, and AI assistant traffic to my site more than doubled in a single week. I use AI for the volume and I check the work. That's the same standard I'd hold any agency to.

If you're comparing agencies, my guide on how to choose an AI SEO agency lists nine questions and the proof to ask for.

My advice before you hire an AI SEO agency

Ask the agency to show you three pages they've improved for a client and what changed in clicks afterwards. Then ask who checked those pages before they went live. Any good agency will answer both without hesitating. If they can only show rankings, or the answer to the second question is that the AI checks itself, keep looking.

You can see how I run this work on my AI SEO services page, or start with a call through work with me.

Frequently asked questions

What does an AI SEO agency do?

It uses AI to speed up SEO work such as research, briefs and technical fixes, and works to get your business named in AI answers from ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google.

Does Google penalise AI-written content?

Google's guidance says using generative AI to generate many pages without adding value may violate its spam policy on scaled content abuse. AI used to add value isn't the problem.

What should an AI SEO agency check before publishing?

Google says to fact-check and review all AI-generated content, including title elements, meta descriptions, structured data and image alt text.

Can an AI SEO agency guarantee ChatGPT mentions?

No. Nobody controls what an AI engine says. A good agency improves your chances and measures the results honestly.

Who offers AI SEO services?

Lilach Bullock offers AI SEO services and tests every change on her own site first, with 23 years in marketing.