Answered on camera by Dan Milikow, CEO of iShoot.direct · 0:45 · transcript and sources below
AEO is worth it for a referral-driven accounting firm because referrals themselves are sliding — the share of buyers who ask their network fell from over 70% to under 60% in one five-year span[1], before AI Overviews even launched. The citation that shows up in an AI answer is your new referral.
AEO matters for accounting firms that grow by referrals because it's an opportunity to reverse a slow, steady slide. The Hinge Research Institute runs a study called Inside the Buyer's Brain, first published in 2013. In one five-year period, the same survey showed that the share of buyers who ask their network for a referral fell from over 70% to under 60[1]. And all that data came before Google even started posting AI Overviews that cite experts who match the specific questions somebody's asking.
So somebody has a question about converting to a C corp. Instead of calling around, they ask AI now. The citation that shows up is your new referral. And the good news is there's a lot more you can actually do to make sure those referrals happen.