AEO for communications consultancies: AI search visibility ranking
How AI search engines rank communications consultancies by visibility and citations. 20 brands measured quarterly across Google AI Mode: which brands the AI names in answers, which domains it cites as sources, and how the leaders compare. Communications consultancies advising brands on corporate messaging, executive visibility, media strategy, crisis response, and stakeholder communications. Composite score: 70% visibility (% of AI answers naming the brand) + 30% citation rate (% citing the brand's domain). Full methodology →
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When AI engines are queried about Communications consultancies, Edelman consistently emerges as the leader. With a visibility rate of 25.0 percent, Edelman is prominently recognized, followed closely by Weber Shandwick and FleishmanHillard. These brands frequently appear in AI-generated responses, indicating their strong presence and reputation in the industry.
The prominence of these brands in AI-generated rankings is influenced by frequent citations from sources like the-square.co, shadow.inc, and odwyerpr.com. These domains, which include both review and industry-specific information, contribute significantly to the topic authority the AIs recognize in these consultancy brands.
For buyers evaluating this list, it is important to consider factors that AI engines weigh heavily, such as recent reviews and third-party validations. Ensuring the consultancy has topical authority in your specific area of interest can further guide a well-informed decision, given the data-driven emphasis on these criteria in AI results.
At a glance
What we observed in this category
Edelman and Weber Shandwick share the top position with identical visibility scores of 25.0%, each more than double the 12.5% held by FleishmanHillard and Burson at ranks 3 and 4. The category average visibility sits at just 3.8%, making the gap between the top two and the rest substantial. Ten of the twenty brands audited hold a composite score of zero, indicating that the majority of the category has no measurable AI presence across either visibility or citation signals.
FTI Consulting presents the clearest divergence between visibility and citation in this dataset. It holds 0.0% visibility but 25.0% citation, the highest citation figure in the category, giving it a composite score of 7.5 despite never appearing as a named recommendation. FGS Global and Kekst CNC each hold 12.5% citation with zero visibility, suggesting AI is pulling content from or about these firms without surfacing them as direct answers. The top four by visibility all carry 0.0% citation, meaning being named and being cited are effectively separate phenomena here.
Every brand in the top ten lists Google AI Mode as its top engine, indicating the entire category's AI footprint is concentrated on a single platform. The top cited sources include odwyerpr.com, a specialist PR industry publication, alongside generalist platforms such as linkedin.com and youtube.com. The presence of sites like the-square.co, shadow.inc, and percepture.com among top cited sources suggests AI is anchoring on niche or third-party content rather than brand-owned domains when generating citations in this category.
Movers & shakers since last refresh
Biggest visibility risers
-
Burson 0% → 12% · rank #17 → #4+12pp
Biggest visibility fallers
-
FGS Global 12% → 0% · rank #3 → #6-12pp
The AEO ranking
| # | Brand | Visibility | Citation | Top engine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
edelman.com
|
25% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Edelman shares the top visibility score of 25.0% with Weber Shandwick, more than six times the 3.8% category average, but carries zero citation percentage. |
||||
| 2 |
webershandwick.com
|
25% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Weber Shandwick matches Edelman exactly at 25.0% visibility and 0.0% citation, producing an identical composite score of 17.5 with no differentiation between the two leaders. |
||||
| 3 |
fleishmanhillard.com
|
12% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
FleishmanHillard holds 12.5% visibility and 0.0% citation, placing it at half the visibility of the joint leaders and at or above the category average by a wide margin. |
||||
| 4 |
bursonglobal.com
|
12% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Burson is the category's biggest riser, jumping 13 places from rank 17 to rank 4 with a visibility delta of 12.5%, though its citation rate remains at 0.0%. |
||||
| 5 |
fticonsulting.com
|
0% | 25% | Google AI Mode |
FTI Consulting is the only brand in the top five with zero visibility but leads all brands on citation at 25.0%, signalling AI references its content without naming it directly. |
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| 6 |
fgsglobal.com
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
| 7 |
kekstcnc.com
|
0% | 12% | Google AI Mode |
| 8 |
ruderfinn.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 9 |
hotwireglobal.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 10 |
bcw-global.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 11 |
icrinc.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 12 |
h-advisors.global
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 13 |
mbooth.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 14 |
porternovelli.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 15 |
hoffman.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 16 |
sardverbinenn.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 17 |
brunswickgroup.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 18 |
teneo.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 19 |
hillandknowlton.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
| 20 |
apcoworldwide.com
|
0% | 0% | Google AI Mode |
Sources AI engines trust in this category
Across the 8 buyer-intent queries we ran on communications consultancies, these are the domains Google AI Mode cited most often. If you're not on this list — or if your competitors are — that's a concrete PR / linkbuilding target.
How to read this AEO ranking
Four things worth knowing before you act on the numbers above. These are the same definitions across every industry page — for category-specific observations, see the What we observed section above (where available) and the per-brand insights inline in the ranking.
Visibility = being named
A brand's visibility % is the share of AI answers that mention it by name in the response prose. This is who AI engines actively recommend to the buyer. More on visibility →
Citation rate = being trusted
Citation rate is the share of AI answers that include the brand's domain as a clickable source link. This is what the AI treats as authoritative evidence, different from being named. More on citation rate →
Top engine differs by brand
The "top engine" column shows which AI surface each brand performs best on. Big gaps between a brand's score across engines usually points to specific content or schema gaps. How AI engines pick sources →
AEO rankings move month to month
AI engines re-crawl and re-rank on shorter cycles than classical search. We re-audit every brand on this list at least every 90 days and refresh this page automatically. How AI search ranking works →
Run an AEO audit on your own communications consultancies brand
The brands above were curated from public market-leader lists. Want the same answer engine optimisation measurement against your own brand — including the queries you appear on, which competitors get named instead, and a prioritised fix list? Run a free preview.
Frequently asked about AEO for communications consultancies
Who leads AI visibility in the communications consultancies category?
Edelman and Weber Shandwick share the top position with identical visibility scores of 25.0% and composite scores of 17.5, well above the 3.8% category average.
Which brand has the highest citation rate in this category despite low visibility?
FTI Consulting holds the highest citation percentage at 25.0% while recording 0.0% visibility, suggesting AI cites its content as a source without recommending it as a named answer.
What sources does AI cite most for communications consultancy research?
The top cited sources include odwyerpr.com, linkedin.com, and youtube.com alongside niche sites such as the-square.co, shadow.inc, and percepture.com, with no brand-owned domains appearing in the top cited source list.
Which brand has seen the biggest recent movement in AI visibility?
Burson rose 13 places from rank 17 to rank 4, recording a visibility delta of 12.5 percentage points, making it the largest single-period riser in the category.
How much of the communications consultancies category has zero AI presence?
At least ten of the twenty audited brands hold a composite score of 0.0, meaning half the category records no measurable visibility or citation in Google AI Mode.
Which engine dominates AI coverage for this category?
Google AI Mode is listed as the top engine for every brand in the top ten, indicating the entire measured AI footprint for this category sits on a single platform.