🔍GEO/AEO Research Assets (Required 10-min prep)
The One Rule: Never explain GEO/AEO. Demonstrate it.
Four Prompts to Run (Screenshot Everything)
| Prompt | What You're Hunting |
|---|
| "Who does [pile testing / NDT inspection / Phase 1 ESA] in [region]?" | The Absence — Are they present? |
| "Best geotechnical consultant in [city]" | The Substitute — Who is listed? |
| "[Competitor] vs alternatives" | Sharpest asset — competitor owns comparison |
| "[Company] reviews" | Misrepresentation — What does AI say? |
The Hook Mystery
"This morning I asked ChatGPT who does pile testing in [region]. It named three firms. [Pause, drop volume] You weren't one of them."
The Pain Amplifier
"Your buyers are PMs building a shortlist before an RFP goes out. That's starting with an AI query now. If you're not in the answer, you're not in the RFP — and you never find out you were excluded."
🏗️Industry Context
Specific Pain Points for Engineering/Field Services
- Invisible losses: You don't get a rejection letter when you're excluded from AI-generated shortlists
- Procurement-driven buyers: Engineering buyers start with research before ever reaching out
- Relationship dependency: Most firms rely on repeat clients; no system for new client acquisition
- Technical credibility gap: AI often cites outdated or incorrect info about capabilities
- Comparison shopping: Buyers increasingly ask "[Competitor] vs alternatives"—are you listed?
Buyer Profile
- Project Managers sourcing for upcoming work
- Procurement officers building qualified vendor lists
- Engineers researching technical capabilities
- General contractors vetting subcontractors
🎯Talking Points
The Invisible Loss
"You never find out you were excluded" is the strongest line for engineering firms. They can't fix what they can't see. AI search exclusion is invisible until demonstrated.
The RFP Problem
"By the time an RFP hits your inbox, the shortlist is already made. Your buyers are building that shortlist with AI queries—'who does NDT in Calgary,' 'best geotech consultant.' If you're not in the answer, you're not in the consideration set."
Competitor Comparison Theft
"When someone asks '[Competitor] vs alternatives,' they're at the comparison stage. They're about to choose. And [Competitor] is owning that answer—getting handed those buyers for free. I can show you who's listed as alternatives to them."
Technical Credibility
"What AI says about your technical capabilities might be outdated or plain wrong. I found firms where AI attributes services they don't even offer. Your reputation is being described by algorithms you've never spoken to."
🚫Objections & Responses
"We get all our work through relationships/referrals"
Response: "I believe you—this industry runs on relationships. But the referral gets checked now. Someone gets your name, types it in to see if you're legit, and reads whatever comes back. Have you seen what comes back? That's really what I want to show you."
"PMs know who we are"
Response: "Existing PMs do. But the new PM—the one who just transferred from another division, the one managing their first major project—doesn't. They're asking ChatGPT. And ChatGPT doesn't know you exist. That's who we're talking about."
"We're too busy for new clients anyway"
Response: "Then you're exactly who I'm calling. You want to pick your clients, not take whoever shows up. When you own the AI answer, you get inbound from qualified buyers, not whoever's desperate. It lets you be selective."
"We've been in business 30 years"
Response: "That's exactly why this matters. Your reputation took decades to build. What AI says about you was assembled from Reddit threads and old directory listings—not your actual work. I'm calling to show you how you're being described to new buyers."
📋The Ask
On these calls, the close is the screen share, not the sale.
The Permission Ask
"I'm not going to pitch you on the phone. I've got four screenshots of what AI says about your firm and where it's pulling it from. Fifteen minutes on a screen share. If it doesn't bother you when you see it, we're done, I won't call back. Sound fair enough?"
Call Goal
Book a 15-minute screen share to demonstrate the AI search gap live. Not a pitch—a demonstration. Once they see the competitor named instead of them, the conversation shifts.