25x Mention Rate Increase in AI Search
3rd
In Brand Mentions, Beating Top Legacy UK Competitors
3.7x
Higher Citation Rate Than Competitors (11.2% vs 3%)
25x
Increase in mention rate
“We achieved fast results by using Athena content suggestions to optimise for GEO. Achieving the same through Google search would not have been possible in such a short timeframe, given the competitiveness of the industry and our new domain.”
Customer Story
Buried is a top-rated SEO & GEO agency that has helped brands like Nike, Sky, and Tesco improve visibility, drive traffic, and increase conversions. Combining deep expertise in AI search, content strategy, and performance-led execution, Buried consistently delivers measurable results across both traditional and AI-driven search, in a world where earning customer attention is more complicated than ever.
When SEO and GEO agency Buried launched in 2025, they were surrounded by giants in every direction. They weren't deterred by their fledgling domain with low authority. Instead, Buried leveraged AthenaHQ to execute an ironclad GEO strategy and dramatically increase their AI search visibility. In just four months, Buried surged past established agencies in their highly competitive market to drive a 300% increase in leads and cement their standing as a leading SEO and GEO authority.
Competing Against Established
Agencies With a New Domain
Competing in organic search as a new agency is exceptionally difficult. The landscape is dominated by established brands with strong domain authority, extensive digital content, and teams of in-house experts in organic search optimization.
However, it was critical for Buried as a GEO agency to earn citations and presence in AI search, despite starting from zero.
A fledgling domain with no existing authority competing against established UK agencies.
Leveraging GEO for Faster
Visibility Than Traditional SEO
Rather than focusing entirely on SEO, Buried decided to expand their organic search strategy to GEO, an emerging channel with lower competition and faster visibility potential. It included a batch of service pages and clustered blog content, specifically designed to perform in generative engines.
Athena played a central role in execution:
- Identifying priority topics and prompt opportunities
- Analyzing competitor visibility across target prompts
- Highlighting content patterns that drive citations and mentions
Buried then aligned its content to these insights, ensuring every page was optimised for AI search visibility, not just Google rankings. To support this, Buried documented and shared their methodology around the optimization process, creating guides such as their prompt research framework.
“We achieved fast results by using Athena content suggestions to optimise for GEO. Achieving the same through Google search would not have been possible in such a short timeframe, given the competitiveness of the industry and our new domain. Within 4 weeks, we were already generating traffic and enquiries from our content.”
From New Entrant to
Top 3 in Brand Mentions
In just four months, Buried surged past established agencies in their highly competitive market to drive a 300% increase in leads and cement their standing as a leading SEO and GEO authority.
Buried ranks in the top 3 for brand mentions across "GEO agency" topics, beating top legacy UK competitors. They are among the top 2 most cited agencies for GEO-related informational content, with a citation rate of 11.2% versus the 3% competitor average.
The results demonstrate how a new agency with a fledgling domain can leverage GEO to rapidly build authority and drive business growth, outpacing competitors who relied solely on traditional SEO.
25x
mention rate increase
11.2%vs 3%
citation rate vs competitors
300%
increase in leads
How to Replicate These Results
Quick Buried Shoutout
Interested in other winning stories?
10x Increase in Citation Rate
GEO became Rootly's #1 growth pillar. With ~10x citation rate growth and +126% mention rate on non-branded prompts, Rootly transformed AI Search into an executive-level operating channel.
$126k
Incremental Equivalent Media Value Captured
2.5x
Lift in Non-Branded Mentions
50% Increase in Demos from AI Search
Lago achieved a 50% increase in demos from AI Search after implementing Athena. With 11x growth in AI Overview impressions and exploding citations, Athena became their command center for GEO.
11x
AI Overview impressions growth (3% → 33%)
2x
Citation rate growth (3.5% → 17%)
3x Share of Voice in 3 Months
Nuvadermis grew Share of Voice 3x in 3 months, with on-page citation rate climbing to 20%+ against a 4% category average, taking share from scar treatment heavyweights.
20%+
On-page citation rate (vs 4% competitor average)
5x
Citation rate vs scar treatment category average