The shift to AI search: how customers find tradies has changed.
Get found by customers searching for tradies in your area. Put your business front and centre when people search on ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI recommend local services.
AI Search converts 3 - 9X higher than SEO. The results are almost instant - and SEO takes months.
How customers find tradies has changed
Traditional Google searches are being replaced by AI assistants. When someone needs an emergency plumber at 2am or a sparkie for a commercial fit-out, they're asking AI, not scrolling through pages of search results.
Old way: Search engines
Customer searches "emergency electrician Melbourne," scrolls through 10 Google results, clicks a few websites, compares prices, reads reviews, then maybe calls.
New way: AI recommendations
Customer asks "Who's the best emergency electrician near me?" and AI responds with one or two trusted recommendations, complete with pricing, availability, and booking link.
What we optimise
Trust signals
Real customer reviews, completed job counts, response times, and industry certifications. AI recommends businesses it trusts based on verifiable data.
Pricing clarity
Call-out fees, hourly rates, emergency pricing, and typical job costs. When AI knows your pricing structure, it can recommend you for the right budget.
AI platforms recommending your business
ChatGPT
Millions of Australians use ChatGPT daily. When they ask for trade recommendations, your optimised business profile makes you the top answer.
Google AI Overview
Google's AI summaries appear at the top of search results. AEO ensures your business is featured in these premium positions with direct booking links.
Perplexity AI
Growing fast with users who want direct answers. Perplexity cites sources and provides contact details—perfect for trades looking for quality leads.
Voice assistants
Siri, Google Assistant, and Alexa pull from AI-optimised data. When someone asks their phone for a tradie, you're the voice recommendation.
Industry platforms
ServiceSeeking, hipages, and True Local are building AI search. Your AEO foundation works across all platforms that adopt AI recommendations.
Future AI tools
New AI search tools launch monthly. AEO future-proofs your online presence so you're discoverable regardless of which platform dominates.
radies need AEO to work for them in a specific way
Local service areas matter
Unlike online businesses, you can't service everyone. AEO set up for your business means AI only recommends you to customers in your actual service area-no wasted enquiries from 200km away.
Emergency vs planned work
AI needs to know if you handle emergencies, your after-hours availability, and response times. Critical for plumbers, sparkies, and locksmiths.
Licensing and compliance
AI verifies licenses before recommending trades. Your master electrician license, plumbing registration, or builder's license becomes a competitive advantage.
Job type specificity
Not all plumbers do gas fitting. Not all sparkies do data cabling. AEO helps AI understand exactly what you do and don't do - better leads, less time-wasting.
How we set it up
Business audit
We map your services, pricing, service areas, and unique selling points. One detailed session covers everything AI needs to recommend you confidently.
Data structuring
We format your business info in the way AI engines expect - schema markup, knowledge graphs, and structured citations across the web.
Review optimisation
We help you collect and structure customer reviews so AI can verify your reputation. More verified reviews mean higher AI recommendation priority.
Content creation
We build AI-readable content about your services, completed projects, and expertise. Not fluff - specific, factual content AI trusts.
Citation building
We ensure your business info is consistent across directories, industry sites, and local platforms. AI cross-references before recommending.
Ongoing monitoring
We track which AI platforms recommend you, what queries trigger your appearance, and continuously optimise based on real performance data.
See How AI Sees Your Business
We'll review how your business appears in AI search, which competitors are already being recommended, and what's needed for your business to show up first.