AI Visibility Index · ,

TL;DR: Homeowners stopped Googling and started asking ChatGPT. 87% of HVAC contractors don't show up in those answers. It's not because you're not good at HVAC. It's because AI engines don't know you exist. The fix is technical but doable: claim your online citations, lock down schema markup, and build structured business data where AI can actually find it.

Why This Happens (The Technical Truth)

ChatGPT and Perplexity don't crawl the web like Google does. They don't have a fresh index of every business in your city. Instead, they pull from 2-3 canonical data sources that are months or years old: Apple Maps, Google Business Profile, specialized trade databases, and publicly linked citations.

If your business information is scattered, incomplete, or missing from those sources, the AI models simply don't know you exist. When someone asks "best HVAC companies in Phoenix," the model pulls from what it was trained on. If you're not in that dataset, you're not in the answer.

Here's what's different from Google: Google's algorithm is forgiving. It can infer that your website, reviews, and local presence add up to a real business. AI models are literal. They pull from structured, confirmed data sources only. No structured data = no visibility.

This is why plumbing companies with 200 Google reviews still don't show up in ChatGPT. Google treats them as legit. ChatGPT has never heard of them because they're not in the datasets the model was trained on.

How to Fix It (4 Steps)

Step 1: Audit Where You Stand (Do This First)

You need to know your actual visibility score before you can improve it. Run the free 90-second audit at mentionedinai.com. It queries ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Google AI Overview with 10 prompts a real homeowner would ask ("best HVAC repair near me," "emergency AC tech this weekend," "furnace replacement specialists," etc.).

The audit returns a score 0-100 and shows you which queries cite you and which don't. Average score across HVAC contractors is 32/100. Most are under 20 (invisible). You'll see immediately whether you're the problem or not.

Step 2: Claim and Optimize Your Citations

Start with the ones that matter to AI models: Google Business Profile, Apple Maps, Angi/Angie's List, BBB, and industry-specific databases like AirAdvice (for HVAC techs). Ensure all of them have:

• Exact legal business name (not variations)
• Consistent phone number (single number across all profiles, not multiple)
• Exact service area (radius or list of cities, not vague)
• License numbers and certifications (NATE, EPA, state license)
• Service categories (cooling repair, emergency repair, preventive maintenance, etc.)

The consistency is key. AI models compare data across sources. If your name is "HVAC Pro" on Google and "HVAC Professionals LLC" on Angi, they may not match them to the same business.

Step 3: Build Schema Markup on Your Website

Your website needs LocalBusiness schema that tells search engines (and AI models that read web pages) that you're a real HVAC company. This isn't optional anymore. Most HVAC websites don't have it.

At minimum, your schema needs:

• Business name, address, phone number
• Service category (HVAC Contractor)
• Service area (cities you serve)
• Aggregate review rating (if you have 30+ reviews)

If you have the chops, add ServiceArea schema and ProfessionalService schema. Most AI models now read schema to cross-reference citations. If it's on your site AND in your citations, you're credible.

Step 4: Monitor and Repeat (Monthly)

Your score moves every 30 days. Competitors are adding citations and schema. Your score can drop if they don't. Get a monthly subscription to Mentioned so you're not flying blind. The Pro plan tracks 3 competitors and shows you exactly what they did that bumped them up.

Common Mistakes (What NOT to Do)

Mistake 1: Skipping the Free Audit

You can't improve what you don't measure. Too many contractors assume they're invisible without checking. Run the audit first. It takes 90 seconds and you get a PDF with your exact score in 5 minutes.

Mistake 2: Treating AI Visibility Like Google SEO

You can't rank for AI visibility the same way you rank on Google. Keywords don't matter. PageRank doesn't matter. What matters is whether the AI model has found you in a credible data source. This is a data completeness problem, not a ranking problem. Fix your citations first, schema second, content third.

Mistake 3: Only Updating Google Business Profile

Google Business Profile is important, but it's not enough. AI models pull from 4-5 sources. If you're missing from Angi, BBB, or Apple Maps, some AI engines won't cite you. Every citation counts.

Mistake 4: Setting It and Forgetting It

Your competitors are moving. They're claiming citations, building schema, collecting reviews. If you don't monitor your score monthly, you'll slip backward while they move forward. What works today might not work in 6 months.

How Mentioned Helps

Mentioned is the only tool that tracks AI visibility specifically for HVAC contractors and other local service businesses. It audits you across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and Google AI Overview, ranks your score against competitors in your market, and tells you exactly which citations are missing and which schema fields need fixing.

Free audit shows where you stand. Monthly subscription ($97-$297/mo depending on how many competitors you want tracked) keeps you in front of the shift. Founder cohort (closes July 4) gets special pricing and priority support.

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Run the free audit. 90 seconds. No credit card. See your actual visibility score before you spend money on anything else.

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