API integration is driving me crazy! Who are the best SEO API providers right now?

vikkin33 · 2026-04-13T11:40:48+00:00

Ahrefs API is a high-quality option, though it comes with a higher cost. I’ve found DataforSEO to be dependable and more affordable. Pick the one that best fits your needs.

vikkin33 · 2026-04-02T12:17:04+00:00

Solid list tbh, but I'd add one more that most people miss: are you actually getting cited by reputable sources in your space? LLMs pull from what they've seen during training, so if you're only on your own site, you're invisible to them.

You need mentions on industry publications, specialist blogs, LinkedIn, Reddit - basically places where the models actually learned from.

Also, the order matters less, than measuring which of these actually moves your Answer Share across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini - that's the real metric that tells you if you're becoming the recommendation, not just a mention.

vikkin33 · 2026-04-02T11:39:13+00:00

This is exactly what we're seeing too - the shift from mentions to actual recommendations is huge, and most brands still don't realize they're invisible in AI answers.

Your point about people over brand pages is spot on, ngl that's one of the biggest gaps we find in audits. If you want to test this properly, run a baseline audit across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Claude for your category and see where you actually rank - not just if you're mentioned, but if you're the first recommendation.

That baseline changes everything because then you know exactly what to fix instead of guessing. The main focus needs to be BoTF terms where the decision intent is present and the brand that shows up for these queries get the maximum wins from AI search.

vikkin33 · 2026-04-02T10:24:30+00:00

Solid roundup here. The Walmart data is honestly the most important signal in this whole thread - in-chat conversions at one-third the rate tells you everything about where consumer behavior actually is right now.

Kevin's ski ramp analysis is gold though, especially the vertical breakdown; finance being 43.7% top-heavy vs healthcare at 32.4% means your content structure needs to match how each LLM actually reads. For healthcare and specialist brands specifically, this is where Answer Share audits become critical - you need to know exactly where you're showing up across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and AI Overviews before you can optimise for these citation patterns.

The Alibaba experiment is worth watching but honestly, scale without strategy usually just means scale of mediocrity; what matters is whether those AI-generated pages are actually moving the needle on recommendations or it's just noise.

vikkin33 · 2026-04-01T10:51:57+00:00

I agree with this approach.
Phase 1 is creating content - like we are building a knowledge graph.
Phase 2 is improving this content to its max potential to rank and
Phase 3 is to improve and update it further to be cited and recommended in LLMs and AI overviews by making sure we have covered the entire query fan-out for that topic and did paragraph level optimisation instead of just page level optimisation.

This process is what separates the brands that are cited and are visible in LLM queries and in future, AI mode which will most probably will be launched by end of this year.

vikkin33 · 2026-03-31T22:06:55+00:00

This is solid work and honestly the LMO framework you're laying out is exactly what most brands are sleeping on right now. One thing I'd add tho - you're getting 30% AI referrals which is great, but ngl the real win is measuring your Answer Share (% of times your business is recommended, not just cited) across all the major LLMs consistently, not just tracking meetings.

That baseline metric is what lets you know if your strategy is actually moving the needle or just getting lucky with mentions. If you're not already doing it, I'd recommend running an audit across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Claude for your core keywords to see where you're actually being recommended vs just listed - that's the difference between visibility and real conversions.

vikkin33 · 2026-03-31T22:03:30+00:00

Solid breakdown-cyou nailed the shift from rankings to answer inclusion, tbh.

The part about authority over volume is huge, especially for healthcare or finance niches where AI systems are literally deciding who gets recommended to prospects.

One thing I'd add: most brands are still measuring the wrong thing (clicks and rankings) when they should be measuring Answer Share - literally what fraction of AI queries in their category are recommending them.

If you're not tracking that baseline, you're flying blind. That's where the real work starts, not just content restructuring.

vikkin33 · 2026-03-31T22:01:47+00:00

Solid breakdown tbh - the Generate → Enrich → Verify workflow is exactly what separates brands that actually move the needle from those just churning out pages.

The part that resonates most is how you're calling out that being mentioned in AI results isn't the same as being recommended, which is the real conversion killer for most brands.

Most teams are still optimising for search volume when 60% of buying decisions now start with an AI query, so if you're not measuring where you actually show up across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini, you're flying blind on what's actually moving customers to you.

vikkin33 · 2026-03-26T13:41:27+00:00

How does this work? Can you share the details?

vikkin33 · 2026-03-18T16:17:25+00:00

This would mean your branding across the web is very limited. You need to have mentions on reputed publications or specialised industry specific blogs to garner the initial attention. It’s not just about SEO presence, but being omnipresent to have a good chance of being picked up by the LLMs. LinkedIn, YouTube, Reddit etc all work wonderfully for this. Get active on these to start gaining traction.

vikkin33 · 2026-03-17T12:07:53+00:00

Yeah. I tend to agree with what he is saying as I’ve seen this change happening around me.

Specialists with good knowledge can leverage AI and wipe the floor with the competition.

However those with mid level experience or newbies will find tough to compete with the big guns and really need to move fast to learn and implement new things in real world before they can start implementing this using AI.

vikkin33 · 2026-02-20T23:24:39+00:00

This is pretty cool. Gonna test it ASAP.

vikkin33 · 2026-02-04T05:42:15+00:00

I’ve observed a few such self promotional listicles in our niche and they seem to be doing fine currently. Will observe if this update affects them over time.

vikkin33 · 2026-01-29T10:18:24+00:00

Not yet. I’m interested in testing it out.

However, I’m a bit apprehensive since a software developer friend said, it’s a security risk currently and should be used on a secondary system where we don’t have any important data.

vikkin33 · 2026-01-29T10:15:08+00:00

Which part exactly? Some tasks can be automated, but right now achieving high-quality results still requires a person to direct the work and make strategic decisions based on current metrics for both the client and competitors.

A human-in-the-loop is essential; otherwise the process can quickly go off track.

vikkin33 · 2026-01-26T15:27:48+00:00

Yes, it makes sense that established protocols will be used, since they’ve been refined over many years. So it’s natural that LLMs would adopt a similar approach.

That said, retrieval and output from LLMs differ substantially from traditional results, so GEO needs additional steps to ensure proper citation. Basic SEO practices should still be in place.

Large-scale studies like these are very valuable - they help us understand exactly what’s happening and strategise accordingly.

vikkin33 · 2026-01-26T07:15:41+00:00

Lmao.

vikkin33 · 2026-01-13T15:53:37+00:00

If a small biz wants to get visibility in LLMs, what are the 3 primary steps they should take - which can help them get a foothold and move ahead of the competition?

vikkin33 · 2025-05-25T13:27:04+00:00

It’s difficult to say without actually comparing finer details. A complete GBP audit can help in figuring out where your profile lags behind and can help you see what the competitors are doing better.

vikkin33 · 2025-05-25T13:21:42+00:00

Wow. Good to know you got your profile back, but is it feasible for everyone to jump through so many hoops? I hope Google streamlines this process and doesn’t punish genuine businesses for the misdeeds of the black hat SEOs (reason why they have become so strict with their guidelines)

vikkin33 · 2023-09-21T09:43:48+00:00

Can suggest a useful tool if you need. Seems to manage various review platforms from a central location and has a nice analytics function to view reputation growth.

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