How We Score Contractor Visibility
Our scoring system measures how discoverable, verifiable, and AI-ready your business is. Here's exactly how it works.
SEO Is Dead. AEO Is Everything.
Traditional SEO optimized for Google's blue links. Those links are disappearing. AI assistants—ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Siri—now answer questions directly. They don't show 10 results. They recommend one or two businesses.
This shift from Search Engine Optimization to Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) changes everything. AI crawlers scan your digital presence looking for structured, machine-readable data. If they can't verify your credentials, you don't exist.
Our score measures exactly what AI systems look for when deciding whether to recommend your business.
How AI Crawlers See Your Business
They Scan Everything
AI crawlers index your website, Google Business Profile, reviews, and structured data. They cross-reference everything.
They Read Code
JSON-LD structured data tells AI exactly who you are, what you do, and where you operate. Without it, you're invisible.
They Rank Trust
Verified licenses, consistent data, and strong reviews signal legitimacy. AI recommends businesses it can trust.
The Verification Score
We score businesses from 0-100 across three categories. Each point is earned by meeting specific, verifiable criteria.
Identity
25 PTSCan AI confirm you exist? We verify your Google Maps presence, physical address, phone number, and website. These are the basic signals that prove you're a real, operating business.
Legitimacy
35 PTSAre you trustworthy? We analyze your reviews, verify data consistency across sources, and check for license signals. These prove you're established and reliable.
AI Readability
40 PTSCan AI understand you? We scan for structured data (JSON-LD) that makes your credentials machine-readable. This is what AI assistants use to recommend businesses.
Claimed Page Boost: +35 pts
Businesses that claim their audit page earn a significant boost to their Legitimacy score. This signals active engagement with your online presence—something AI systems weight heavily when making recommendations.
How Points Are Earned
Every point in our scoring system maps to a specific, verifiable signal. Here's the complete breakdown.
Identity Signals
25 pts maxGoogle Maps Listing
Your business appears on Google Maps with a verified Place ID
Physical Address
A real street address is listed (not just a service area)
Phone Number
A contact phone number is publicly listed
Website URL
Own domain with HTTPS = 4 pts · HTTP only = 2 pts · Platform sites (Wix, GoDaddy) = 1 pt
Legitimacy Signals
35 pts baseGoogle Rating
4.5+ stars with 50+ reviews = 7 pts · 4.0+ stars = 5 pts · 3.0+ stars = 3 pts
Requires at least 3 reviews for statistical significance
Review Volume
100+ reviews = 7 pts · 10+ reviews = 5 pts · 5+ reviews = 3 pts
Data Consistency
We cross-check your website against Google Maps: matching phone (+3), business name (+3), and location (+2)
Professional Website
Your own domain (e.g., yourbusiness.com) vs. a template site (e.g., yourbusiness.wixsite.com)
No Structured Data Penalty
Websites without JSON-LD structured data receive a penalty—shows lack of professional web presence
License Verification
Active license confirmed and documented—the gold standard for contractor credibility
Available for verified members
AI Readability Signals
40 pts maxStructured Data (JSON-LD)
Machine-readable code that defines your business name, phone, address, services, hours, and service area
High quality (complete info) = 20 pts · Partial = 10 pts
LocalBusiness Schema
Specific business types (Plumber, Electrician, HVAC, RoofingContractor) that AI recognizes
With complete data = 15 pts · Partial = 7 pts
Social Metadata (OpenGraph)
Proper sharing tags so your business displays correctly when shared on social media and in AI summaries
Why this matters: Template website builders (Wix, Squarespace, GoDaddy Sites) typically don't include proper structured data. AI systems can't extract reliable information from these sites—so they skip them when making recommendations.
Score Caps & Verification Tiers
Unclaimed Maximum
The theoretical max for businesses that haven't claimed their page. Most unclaimed pages score 20-45.
Claimed Cap
Claimed pages can reach up to 90 points. The +35 boost for claiming is capped to prevent gaming without verification.
Verified
License verification unlocks the full score. Verified contractors can exceed the cap with documented credentials.
What AI Looks For in Structured Data
When AI crawlers scan your website, they extract specific fields to understand and recommend your business. Here's what we check.
Business Identity
- Business name
- Phone number
- Email address
- Street address
- GPS coordinates
- Website URL
Services & Coverage
- Service catalog / offerings
- Areas of expertise
- Service area / cities served
- Price range
- Payment methods accepted
- Languages spoken
Trust Signals
- Licenses & certifications
- Professional memberships (BBB, trade associations)
- Year founded
- Number of employees
- Customer reviews & ratings
- Social media profiles
Rich Content
- Business description
- Logo image
- Photos of work
- Operating hours
- Individual customer reviews
- Aggregate rating
The more of these fields your website includes in structured data, the higher your AI Readability score—and the more likely AI assistants will recommend you.
Where We Get Our Data
Google Maps
We pull your business listing, address, phone number, website, reviews, and rating directly from Google Maps—the same source AI assistants query when answering questions about local contractors.
Your Website
Our crawler scans your website's source code to find structured data (JSON-LD), verify information consistency, and check for AI-readable markup. We analyze exactly what AI crawlers see—nothing more, nothing less.
State Licensing Boards
For verified members, we confirm active license status with state regulatory databases. This is the gold standard for contractor verification and contributes directly to your Legitimacy score.
For Marketing Agencies & Web Developers
If you manage websites for contractors, our scoring system tells you exactly what's missing. Use audit pages to:
- Audit client websites — identify missing structured data and SEO gaps
- Prove your value — show before/after scores when you implement proper schema
- Win new business — run free audits for prospects and show them what they're missing
- AEO-ready deliverables — ensure every site you build is optimized for AI discovery
What This Score Measures
The Verification Score measures how discoverable and verifiable your business data is—not the quality of your work. A contractor with 30 years of experience and zero online presence will score lower than a new business with complete credential documentation.
A low score means AI systems, customers, and banks can't confidently verify your credentials—not that you're a bad contractor. Our goal is to make you visible to the systems that matter.
Get Verified Today
Get your credential page. Prove you're licensed, insured, and responsive—to anyone who asks.
One-time verification. 30-day money-back guarantee.