The verdict in three sentences
For a cybersecurity firm in London, SEO captures two very different kinds of demand: the emergency ('incident response London 24/7') and the planned purchase ('CREST penetration testing London'), each of which carries revenue. AEO/GEO comes in at the stage where a CISO or CIO asks an AI assistant like ChatGPT for a list of providers for a managed SOC or NIS2 readiness, and that list is built from what is published about you. Most established firms do well to keep SEO as the base and audit their AI visibility, without ever buying a promise of ranking or mention.
Where CISOs look: Google searches and AI questions
Buyers of cybersecurity are CISOs, CIOs, risk directors and sometimes legal teams after an incident. They check certifications actually held, the team's expertise, the availability of an incident hotline and the way the firm works.
| Buying stage | Typical Google search | Typical question to an AI assistant |
|---|---|---|
| Emergency | 'cyber incident response London 24/7' | 'who should we call in London after a ransomware attack?' |
| Penetration testing | 'CREST pen testing company London' | 'which London firms do web application penetration testing?' |
| Managed SOC | 'managed SOC provider UK' | 'outsourced or in-house SOC for a 500-employee company?' |
| Compliance | 'DORA ICT risk consultancy London' | 'which provider can help a payments firm prepare for DORA?' |
| Certification | 'ISO 27001 implementation consultant London' | 'how long does ISO 27001 take in the UK?' |
| Baseline | 'Cyber Essentials Plus certification body London' | 'Cyber Essentials or Cyber Essentials Plus for a public sector tender?' |
The two investments side by side
| Criterion | SEO | AEO/GEO |
|---|---|---|
| What it targets | Service, emergency and certification searches | Provider shortlists, comparisons, explanations |
| Time to effect | 4 to 9 months, longer on 'penetration testing London', heavily contested | 2 to 6 months to see the description change, irregularly |
| Market budget (2026 ballpark) | GBP 2,000 to 6,000 per month with a London B2B agency | GBP 2,500 to 6,500 for an audit, then GBP 1,000 to 3,500 per month |
| Metrics | Qualified enquiries, hotline calls, meetings | Share of answers naming the firm, accuracy of certifications stated |
| Risk | Generic pages competing with the large consultancies | A certification or client wrongly mentioned and repeated |
| Control | Your site and your links | Third-party sources: directories, trade press, certification bodies |
These ranges come from typical quotes by London B2B agencies and public agency rate pages. Kolonell's work is on quote.
Five situations, five choices
| Situation | Recommended split | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Firm founded less than 2 years ago | Precise service pages, technical biographies, Google profile, then an AI check | Without factual traces, AI assistants do not name the firm |
| Established brand holding CREST or ISO 27001 | Service SEO + AI visibility audit | Check that certifications are attributed correctly |
| Clients in financial services | Compliance review of content before release | Financial promotions fall under the FCA, clients expect rigour |
| Heavy emergency workload | Local SEO and a visible hotline first | Emergency searches do not go through a long comparison |
| Limited budget, under GBP 2,000 per month | 6 to 8 accurate service pages, quarterly AI record | Better to be accurate on a few services |
On content, show no clients or incidents without written consent, and claim only accreditations actually held. Your forms and emails fall under the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018, the ICO's oversight and PECR for cookies and marketing email, and the Equality Act 2010 supports a WCAG 2.2 AA target. This is not legal advice.
What counts as evidence of results
For SEO: Search Console by service group, hotline calls, qualified enquiries and meetings from organic search. For AI: a dated record of answers to a fixed list of 30 to 50 buyer questions, asked every month, with the share of answers naming the firm, the accuracy of certifications and services mentioned, and the apparent sources. A diagnostic covers, in broad terms, those questions, the state of current answers, gaps between your site and third-party sources, the SEO baseline and sensitive content. No serious provider promises a ranking, or a mention by an AI assistant.
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Illustrative example: Thameside Cyber Partners, a fictional 25-person firm in Shoreditch, sells managed SOC services and penetration tests. Assumptions: SEO retainer at GBP 3,000 per month, AI visibility audit at GBP 4,000, average first-year SOC contract value of GBP 60,000.
Annual cost: 3,000 × 12 + 4,000 = GBP 40,000, or 40,000 / 60,000 ≈ 0.67 of a SOC contract. If the first record shows the firm appears in 2 answers out of 40 and one of them credits it with a certification it no longer holds, the first spend goes to correcting sources, before any new content.
FAQ
Should a cybersecurity firm favour SEO or AEO/GEO?
SEO remains the base, especially for emergencies and certification searches. AEO/GEO is justified once your buyers shortlist through AI assistants, which a record of 30 questions lets you check.
How much does an AI visibility audit cost in London?
As a 2026 ballpark, typical agency quotes run from GBP 2,500 to 6,500. Monthly tracking often sits between GBP 1,000 and 3,500.
Can we name our clients and engagements?
Only with written consent, and without any detail that could identify a weakness. A client wrongly named in an AI answer is a commercial and contractual risk.
How long for results on 'penetration testing London'?
That search is heavily contested: often allow more than 9 months, with no guarantee. More specific searches, such as a type of application, move in 4 to 6 months.
Do certifications help a firm get named?
They help when they are actually held and verifiable on the certifying body's site. One dated page per certification limits errors when the information is repeated.
Find out how AI assistants describe your firm. We record what AI assistants like ChatGPT tell CISOs about your firm and compare it with your SEO baseline. 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.
