GEO: do it yourself, hire an agency or use a tool?
Reliability, time, budget, implementation: an honest comparison of the three ways to work on your visibility in AI assistants.
By Sébastien Monnier · · 5 min read · Lire en français
Should you work on your visibility in AI assistants yourself, hand it to an agency, or use a tool? All three are valid. Here is an honest comparison, with the time and budget to plan for, so you can choose based on your situation.
The comparison
| Criterion | Yourself, by hand | An agency | A measurement tool (like Recoia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measurement | A few questions asked now and then | Depends on the agency | Every question, several times, on 4 assistants, every 2 weeks |
| Statistical reliability | Low (isolated answers) | Variable | Margin of error shown, raw answers available |
| Recommendations | You have to work them out | Yes, tailored | Page to create, comparison with the recommended pages, action plan |
| Implementation (write, publish) | You | The agency | You or your agency |
| Time required | 2 to 4 hours a week for a serious measurement | Meetings and sign-offs | 30 minutes a week to read and decide |
| Budget | Your time | Depends on the agency, often several hundred euros a month | From €39 excl. VAT a month (pricing) |
| Who it suits | Curiosity, first steps | Businesses without the time or skills in-house | Businesses and agencies that want to steer with numbers |
Table compiled on 26 September 2026. Agency budgets vary widely: ask for a detailed quote.
Doing it yourself: the right method
If you start on your own, avoid the classic mistake of asking a question once and drawing a conclusion. Instead:
- List 10 real customer questions (service + city).
- Ask each one 3 times to each assistant, in a private browsing window.
- Record in a spreadsheet: cited yes/no, with a link yes/no, competitors cited.
- Repeat the exercise a month later, on the same days and at the same times.
It can be done, but it takes time: 10 questions × 3 times × 4 assistants = 120 answers to read every time.
Agency and tool: complementary
An agency brings writing and implementation; a tool brings measurement and proof. Many agencies use a tool to track their clients and show the effect of their work. That is who our Agency plan is for (white label, monthly reports).
Our advice
| Situation | Sensible choice |
|---|---|
| You just want to know where you stand | Free test |
| You have time to write your pages | Tool + you |
| You have neither the time nor the wish to write | Agency (ideally with measurement) |
| You are an agency | White-label tool for your clients |
Updated 26 September 2026.