A third-generation HVAC family outpacing a VC-backed rival
Cover feature for a regional focus section. Two phone interviews, three site visits, two family members quoted. Reposted by the local chamber of commerce.
Multi-location · Home services · 2024
Page two to AI Overview. A first in two decades of business.
A multi-location, third-generation home services operator in a major Texas metro, with eight-figure revenue, was losing the search fight to a VC-backed competitor. Six months of earned press, GEO, and creator work across every location put them at position 2 for their category's core "AC repair [metro]" query, cited in AI Overviews, and off Yelp ads entirely.
The challenge
Decades of trust, stuck on page two.
When the company's general manager first spoke with us in August 2024, he opened with a number: $6K a month on Yelp ads, zero traceable attribution. The ads drove calls he could not tie to bookings, a call volume that had not moved in a year, and a rising sense that the company was paying for the privilege of renting Yelp's inbox. The business itself was healthy. Several locations across the metro, eight-figure revenue, a third-generation family team with more than two decades in market. But the digital shelf did not reflect any of that.
The rival was a two-year-old VC-backed HVAC startup that had raised a large round and was spending hard on Google Ads, SEO content farms, and review-gating tactics. They ranked position 1 and 3 for "AC repair [metro]" in August 2024. Our client ranked position 14. When the GM's daughter asked ChatGPT which HVAC firm in the city had the best reputation, ChatGPT named the competitor and added "backed by major tech investors" as a trust signal.
That was the moment the GM called us. Not the Yelp spend. The ChatGPT answer. His exact words were: "I have been the most trusted shop in my neighborhood for over twenty years and Google has never told anyone. Now an AI is telling people we do not exist."
"We are not against a VC-backed competitor on service. We are behind them on whether the search algorithms and the chatbots know we are here. That is a marketing problem, not an operations problem."General managerThird-generation, multi-location home services operator
What we did
Six moves over six months.
The program ran across every location under one partner-led plan. It was a regional press push, a full GEO refit, a creator partnership, and a utility content play. No Google Ads, no Yelp, no wire services. Everything on the earned side.
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Rebuilt each location's Google Business Profile.
One GBP per location, each rebuilt. New categories, real photos of each shop (not stock), service attributes rewritten to include the exact phrases people type into Google. Q&A on each GBP seeded with the 12 questions local homeowners ask about AC in August. Reviews routed to the profiles with weak ratings first.
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Shipped LocalBusiness and Service schema per location.
A LocalBusiness entity in JSON-LD for every location. Service schema for AC repair, installation, emergency service, and seasonal tune-up per location. An llms.txt file at the root of the client's site with the key facts about each location. ChatGPT picked up the first of them inside two weeks.
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Built an answer-shaped content cluster.
Nine articles on local AC repair subtopics, written to match the way homeowners in the metro actually ask questions. "Why is my AC blowing warm air in 100-degree weather?" "How big of an AC unit for a 2,100 sq ft home?" Each piece was 1,200 to 1,800 words, linked to the sizing tool (below), and structured with FAQ schema for AI Overview citation.
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Placed the family story in the metro's daily newspaper.
Daniel pitched the business reporter at the metro's daily newspaper on the third-generation-versus-VC angle. Two phone calls, three site visits, and two months later a feature ran on how a third-generation HVAC family was outpacing a VC-backed rival. It was the cover feature of a regional focus section.
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Partnered with a local home-services TikTok creator.
A 200K-follower local creator who does home-repair content for renters and homeowners. Four videos over three months, each based on a real service call (filmed with homeowner consent). Combined reach: 2.4 million. Drove 280 direct bookings tied to creator tracking codes.
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Launched a free AC sizing tool.
A simple calculator on the client's site that takes square footage, ceiling height, and window count and returns a recommended ton size plus an estimated install range. It earned 42 backlinks in the first four months (the city's subreddit, two regional realtor blogs, a local home-buying guide, and a national HVAC trade publication). It also became the most-cited URL in AI Overviews for local "what size AC for my home" queries.
The results
Six months in, every lever moved.
#2
"AC repair [metro]" position
4/7
AI Overview citations, tracked queries
41%
Increase in "near me" calls
$0
Yelp spend (from $4,200/mo)
By month four, the client held position 2 for "AC repair [metro]" and position 1 for three long-tail local AC queries. The AI Overview citation count climbed from zero to four of seven tracked queries by month five. Most importantly for the operator, the phone volume shape changed. Calls specifically saying "Google recommended you" or "I saw you on [the creator's] TikTok" went from two per week to 31 per week across all locations.
The Yelp budget was cut in week two. The monthly spend that went to Yelp ($4,200, down from $6K after a negotiated reduction the previous spring) was redirected into the earned program. The feature in the metro's daily newspaper ran in month three and was reposted by the local chamber of commerce, an HVAC industry newsletter, and a home-improvement subreddit.
"We stopped paying for ads that we couldn't see. People now call us because Google said we were the trusted shop in their neighborhood. That has never happened in all our years in business."General manager, multi-location home services operator.
Press placements
Coverage landed during the six-month engagement.
The HVAC firms realtors quietly recommend in the metro
Feature by the publication's Texas residential reporter. The client named as one of four HVAC operators realtors pass along to buyers during inspection remediation.
How independent HVAC shops compete with PE roll-ups
Trade feature on the operational and marketing tactics independent operators use to hold share. The client cited as a case example with Daniel quoted as a source.
Local services businesses beating their VC-funded competition
Regional business-journal analysis piece. The client one of three operators profiled. Digitize credited as the PR partner in the acknowledgments.
Honesty section
What surprised us.
Two things. The sizing tool. We scoped it as a backlink magnet, expecting maybe 10 to 15 links and modest AI Overview pickup. It pulled 42 backlinks and became the single biggest source of AI citations for the client, beating the press pieces. Second, the AI Overview citation was faster than we predicted. Our planning doc said month five to six. It showed up in month three for the first query. Google's AI Overview engine seemed to weight the combination of LocalBusiness schema plus regional press coverage heavily, faster than we had modeled. We have updated our multi-location playbook on the back of what we saw here.
About this case study
Common questions.
How long did this engagement take?
Six months, from September 2024 to March 2025. First press placement landed in week five. Position-2 ranking held steady by month four. AI Overview citations began appearing in month three.
What did it cost?
Engagement fees are confidential, and this program predates our current pricing. Comparable multi-location programs today run as an Enterprise Program, from $30,000 a month with a six-month minimum. The client also cut $4,200 a month in Yelp ads in week two, which offset part of the investment from the start.
Could you do this for our multi-location brand?
Often, if the story is there. The strategy call tells us. We ask: is the brand established with real history in its markets, is the competitor a VC or PE-backed rival, and is there a regional or national story an editor would buy. If two of three are yes, the playbook usually works. If there is no narrative wedge, we will tell you that.
Why don't you name the client?
Client confidentiality. The engagement and results are real, and the general manager's quote is used with approval. We withhold the company name, city, and other identifying details. A reference call is available once a proposal is on the table and a one-page NDA is signed.
Did you write the newspaper feature?
No. We pitched the angle to the metro's daily newspaper and the reporter wrote it independently. The coverage was earned, not paid. The reporter made three site visits and interviewed two family members before filing. We shared a data sheet on the regional HVAC market during the pitch to help the angle land.
How do I know the AI Overview citations are real?
We track seven high-value queries weekly with screenshots and share them in the monthly report. We can show you the tracker on the strategy call. For privacy, we do not publish the screenshots here because they expose the client's and competitor's names.
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