Prove an answer moved
The hardest part of AEO is attribution. Use a fixed prompt, a fixed engine, and a before/after capture to show that a change actually moved the answer.
Generative answers are noisy; they can shift for reasons unrelated to your work. To claim credit for a change you need a controlled comparison: the same prompt, the same engine, before and after.
Capture the baseline answer, including the exact text and citations, before you ship. Then rerun after the change ships and compare like for like. If other prompts moved at the same time, flag that so you do not over-claim.
The output is a simple before/after: the answer, the mention, the competitors, and the citations. That artifact survives scrutiny far better than a dashboard screenshot, and it is what makes AEO reporting defensible.
Do this
- Capture the baseline answer and citations.
- Ship one change tied to the deciding source.
- Rerun the same prompt on the same engine.
- Record the before/after and note any confounders.
Related: Visibility tracking · Citation · Pricing · All lessons