The verdict in three sentences
For a commercial real estate advisory in Tokyo, SEO remains the channel that captures precise searches from occupiers and investors, while AEO/GEO (being present in the answers of AI assistants like ChatGPT) shapes the shortlist a corporate real estate director builds before ever visiting a website. Both rely on the same material: genuine market research, a named team and public transactions, in Japanese and English. The right split depends on your current profile, and for AI it is measured through a dated record of answers to the same questions, month after month.
What do your clients ask AI assistants, and why do some firms appear?
An Asia-Pacific real estate director who must house 150 people in Tokyo, a European family office looking at office buildings in Tokyo and Osaka, a logistics group searching for a warehouse in the Kanto region: all of them now put complete questions to AI assistants like ChatGPT. For example: "Which advisors help foreign companies lease Grade A offices in Marunouchi?", "What is the average office rent in Minato in 2026?" or "Who advises on logistics warehouses around Tokyo, in English?".
A firm appears in these answers when the assistant finds consistent, verifiable information about it on the web: a clearly described specialism, research publications cited by others, a named team, transactions made public, mentions in trade press and professional directories. A discreet firm whose English site runs to three pages has little chance of being cited, however good it is. Nobody can promise that an AI assistant will recommend your firm: you can only make your expertise legible and track what is said.
SEO or AEO/GEO: the comparison for a Tokyo advisory
| Criterion | SEO | AEO/GEO |
|---|---|---|
| What it targets | Positions on searches such as "office for lease Shibuya" or "office leasing advisor Tokyo" | Presence and accurate description of the firm in answers from AI assistants like ChatGPT |
| Time to effect | 4 to 12 months depending on competition | Variable, often several months, hard to predict |
| Market budget (2026 ballpark) | JPY 300,000 to 1,000,000 a month, about USD 2,000 to 6,700 | Diagnostic JPY 450,000 to 1,500,000 (about USD 3,000 to 10,000), tracking JPY 200,000 to 600,000 a month (about USD 1,300 to 4,000) |
| Metrics | Impressions, clicks, enquiries in Search Console and the CRM | Share of answers citing the firm, accuracy of the description, sources cited |
| Risks | Machine-translated content, outdated listings | An inaccurate description spreading, results shifting month to month |
| Content dependency | Service pages, districts, research | The same, plus consistency of external mentions |
The ranges reflect typical quotes from agencies and consultants in Tokyo, converted at roughly JPY 150 to USD 1. Japan's rules on real estate brokerage and the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI), overseen by the Personal Information Protection Commission, apply to your listings and forms: only show properties you genuinely hold a mandate for and transactions that are already public. This is not legal advice.
Where to invest, depending on your situation
| Firm's situation | Suggested priority | Why |
|---|---|---|
| New firm, little recognition | SEO first, on niche searches | AI assistants draw on what already exists: you need published pages and research first |
| Established brand in Japan, weak in English | AEO/GEO and English pages | Foreign decision makers ask AI assistants in English and the description is often incomplete |
| Regulated or sensitive content (investors, funds) | Diagnostic before producing anything | Check what is said about you before publishing more |
| Limited budget, under JPY 300,000 a month | Local SEO and one market report every six months | A single strong asset feeds both channels |
| Several business lines (offices, logistics, investment) | Both, by line | Questions put to AI assistants differ sharply by line |
| Firm cited wrongly or with old data | AEO/GEO urgently | An inaccurate description costs mandates without you knowing |
How to measure, and what a diagnostic covers
SEO is measured with Search Console, analytics and the CRM: impressions, clicks, attributed viewing or meeting requests. AEO/GEO is measured through a dated record: the same 20 to 40 questions, asked in Japanese and English to AI assistants like ChatGPT at a fixed interval, with each answer archived, the firm's presence or absence, the accuracy of its description and the sources cited. Without that record, any improvement is just an impression.
In broad terms, a diagnostic covers the current state of answers on your key questions, a comparison with 3 to 5 competing firms, the consistency of your public information, the state of your English and Japanese pages, and a recommended split between SEO and AEO/GEO. At Kolonell this diagnostic is priced on quote: request a free quote.
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Illustrative example: Shiba Gate Advisory, a fictional 12-consultant firm specialising in office leasing for foreign companies. Option A, SEO only: JPY 500,000 a month for 12 months, JPY 6,000,000 in total (about USD 40,000). Option B: an AEO/GEO diagnostic at JPY 900,000 plus a quarterly record at JPY 300,000, so 900,000 + 4 × 300,000 = JPY 2,100,000 (about USD 14,000), alongside a reduced SEO effort. With an assumed average fee of JPY 4,500,000 per mandate, option B pays for itself with the first attributable mandate, while option A needs two. The firm starts with the diagnostic to learn which channel it is genuinely missing.
FAQ
Has AI made SEO obsolete in Tokyo?
No. Precise Google searches remain a major channel for office leasing, and AI assistants partly draw on the same pages. The real question is the budget split, for example 70% SEO and 30% AEO/GEO for an established firm.
How much does an AI visibility diagnostic cost?
On the market, expect about JPY 450,000 to 1,500,000, roughly USD 3,000 to 10,000 depending on the number of questions and languages. At Kolonell it is on quote.
Should we work in Japanese and English?
Yes if you target foreign occupiers: the same question often gets a different answer depending on the language. A record of 20 questions in each language is a realistic starting point.
Can we publish our transactions?
Only those already public and with the parties' consent. Five verifiable deals are worth more than 30 vague references.
How do we know the work is paying off?
Compare the dated records every 1 to 3 months: share of answers citing the firm, accuracy, sources. On the SEO side, track attributed enquiries in the CRM.
Find out how AI assistants describe your firm. A record of what AI assistants like ChatGPT say about your advisory today, in Japanese and English, with a recommended SEO and AEO/GEO split. Request a diagnostic quote: reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
