The AI Visibility Gap
Every Illinois plumber tracked by VerifiedNode has a website. Zero of them have implemented JSON-LD structured data.
That sentence contains the entire problem. 660 plumbers across Illinois show 100% website presence, which puts the state far ahead of the national average of 16.2% across 66 tracked states and verticals. But a website without structured data is, from an AI assistant's perspective, largely unreadable. Plumbers in Illinois have built storefronts with no signs.
JSON-LD is the markup language that allows AI systems like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews to parse what a business does, where it operates, and whether it's credible. Without it, conversational search engines cannot confidently surface a contractor in response to a query like "find a licensed plumber near me in Chicago." The business exists online. The AI simply cannot confirm what it is.
Across all Illinois contractors tracked by VerifiedNode, JSON-LD adoption sits at 11%. That figure already exceeds the national average of 1.2% across all 66 tracked states and regions. Illinois looks like a leader by that comparison. Zoom into plumbers specifically, and the rate drops to 0%.
The consequences show up directly in the scores. Illinois plumbers average 37.2/100 on the AI Trust Score, with a median of 35.0/100. The scoring model weights three categories: Identity (25 points, covering business name, address, and phone consistency), Legitimacy (35 points, covering reviews, ratings, and license verification), and Readability (40 points, covering website quality, JSON-LD structured data, and mobile-friendliness). Readability is the largest single category, and it's where Illinois plumbers are leaving the most points unclaimed.
The tier breakdown makes the gap concrete:
| Score Tier | Range | Share of Illinois Plumbers |
|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 80-100 | 0.8% |
| Good | 60-79 | 11.5% |
| Fair | 40-59 | 75.6% |
| Below Average | Below 40 | 12.1% |
Only 0.8% of tracked plumbers reach Excellent. More than 12% score below 40, a threshold where AI systems have minimal signal to work with. The overwhelming majority, 75.6%, are clustered in Fair territory: present online, but not optimized for the way AI engines now evaluate and recommend service providers.
The median score of 35.0 tells you something important. Half of all Illinois plumbers score below 35. That's not a fringe problem confined to a few outdated businesses. It's the baseline condition for the industry in this state.
Illinois plumbers are not invisible because they lack effort. They're invisible because the technical signals AI systems rely on are absent from their digital presence. Every plumber competing for AI-referred customers is starting from the same structural disadvantage.
Check where you stand at /find, or browse the full Illinois plumber directory at /plumber/illinois/.
What AI Models Check
The AI Trust Score is built on three categories. Understanding how each one is weighted explains why Illinois plumbers, despite universal website presence, average only 37.2/100.
Identity: 25 points
Identity covers NAP consistency: whether your business name, address, and phone number match across Google Business Profile, directories, and your own website. Discrepancies here are common and costly. A plumber listed as "ABC Plumbing" on Google but "ABC Plumbing & Drain" on Yelp creates conflicting signals. AI systems treat inconsistency as a reliability problem, not a formatting quirk.
Legitimacy: 35 points
Legitimacy measures review volume, star ratings, and license or insurance verification. Illinois plumbers average 4.67 stars, which is a strong signal. The review volume picture is more complicated.
The average review count is 28.0, but the median is 0.0. That median tells you that more than half of all 660 tracked plumbers have no reviews at all on the platforms VerifiedNode monitors. The top 10% of performers average 44.0 reviews. For AI systems that use social proof as a legitimacy signal, the gap between a plumber with 44 reviews and one with zero is not a minor disadvantage. It's close to invisibility.
Readability: 40 points
Readability is the heaviest category and the most actionable. It evaluates website technical quality, mobile-friendliness, and JSON-LD structured data. JSON-LD is where Illinois plumbers have the most exposure.
Every Illinois plumber tracked by VerifiedNode has a website. Zero have implemented JSON-LD structured data. That 0% adoption rate among plumbers specifically contrasts with the broader Illinois average of 11% across all contractor verticals, and with electricians in the same state, who show 33% JSON-LD adoption and a significantly higher average score of 51.0/100.
Having a website satisfies a basic presence requirement. It does not make your business AI-readable. JSON-LD tells an AI system precisely what your business is, what services you offer, where you operate, and what credentials you hold. Without it, a conversational AI responding to "find a licensed plumber in Chicago" cannot confirm the most basic facts about your business from your website alone.
Readability carries 40 points because structured data is now a prerequisite for confident AI attribution, not an optional enhancement. The top 10% of Illinois plumbers average 64.8/100. The bottom 50% average 29.1/100. The 35.7-point gap between those groups is driven primarily by Readability failures, specifically the absence of structured data that AI systems require to parse, verify, and surface a contractor.
The fix is specific: JSON-LD implementation, NAP audit, and review generation. None of these require a website rebuild. All three directly address the categories where Illinois plumbers are losing points.
Check your current score at /find and see where your profile stands against the Illinois baseline at /plumber/illinois/.
Score Distribution: Where 660 Illinois Plumbers Actually Stand
The histogram tells a precise story. Nearly half of all Illinois plumbers occupy a single 10-point band.
| Score Range | Contractors | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 10-19 | 5 | 1% |
| 20-29 | 133 | 20% |
| 30-39 | 310 | 47% |
| 40-49 | 123 | 19% |
| 50-59 | 35 | 5% |
| 60-69 | 44 | 7% |
| 70-79 | 6 | 1% |
| 80-89 | 4 | 1% |
| 90-100 | 0 | 0% |
310 plumbers, 47% of the entire tracked population, score between 30 and 39. Another 133 score between 20 and 29. Combined, two-thirds of Illinois plumbers are compressed into a 20-point window that sits entirely below the Fair tier threshold.
At the top end, the ceiling is striking. No plumber in the dataset scores above 89. Only 4 reach the 80-89 band. Six reach 70-79. The Excellent tier (80-100) captures just 0.8% of contractors. The Good tier (60-79) adds another 11.5%. That leaves 87.7% of Illinois plumbers in Fair territory or below.
Illinois Plumbers vs. Every Other Vertical
Plumbers at 37.5 average are not the worst performers in Illinois, but they are not gaining ground on the verticals that matter.
- Electricians: 51.0 average (33% JSON-LD adoption)
- Landscapers: 42.5 average
- Roofers: 37.4 average
- Plumbers: 37.5 average
- General Contractors: 30.5 average
The electrician gap is the most instructive comparison. A 13.5-point difference in average score maps almost directly onto a 33-percentage-point difference in JSON-LD adoption. Electricians in Illinois implement structured data at 33%. Plumbers implement it at 0%. That single technical variable explains most of the scoring gap between two verticals that otherwise operate in similar competitive conditions.
Roofers at 37.4 are essentially tied with plumbers. Both verticals share the same Readability problem: low structured data adoption, weak review accumulation. The difference is decimal-level, not structural.
Illinois vs. Peer States
Illinois plumbers at 37.5 trail three comparable markets:
- New York: 40.1 average (14% JSON-LD adoption across contractors)
- Ontario: 39.6 average
- Pennsylvania: 38.6 average
The margin is not large, but the direction is consistent. Every state that outperforms Illinois carries a higher JSON-LD adoption rate. New York's 14% adoption rate corresponds to a 2.9-point score advantage over Illinois. The correlation is not coincidental: Readability carries 40 points in the scoring model, and structured data is its primary driver.
The Review Gap
The distribution problem is not limited to Readability scores. Legitimacy scores show the same compression at the bottom.
The top 10% of Illinois plumbers average 44.0 reviews. The bottom 50% average 3.0 reviews. That is a 17.7x gap in social proof between the contractors AI systems can confidently recommend and the contractors they largely ignore.
The median review count across all 660 tracked plumbers is 0.0. More than half have accumulated no reviews on the platforms VerifiedNode monitors. A 4.67-star average rating looks strong in isolation, but a rating without volume carries almost no weight as a legitimacy signal for AI systems calibrated to evaluate both quality and credibility at scale.
The top 10% average 64.8/100. The bottom 50% average 29.1/100. That 35.7-point gap reflects the cumulative effect of missing structured data, thin review profiles, and inconsistent identity signals operating simultaneously.
Review the full Illinois picture at /resources/state-of-the-market/illinois/ or check every tracked plumber in the state at /plumber/illinois/.
Action Steps: How to Close the 27.6-Point Gap
The top 10% of Illinois plumbers average 64.8/100. The state average is 37.2/100. That 27.6-point gap is not driven by factors outside your control. It maps directly onto three scoring categories with specific, addressable fixes.
Start with the highest-leverage category first.
1. Readability: 40 points maximum
Readability is the largest single category in the scoring model, and it's where Illinois plumbers have the most exposure. JSON-LD adoption among plumbers in this state is 0%. Every point available from structured data is currently unclaimed.
Adding JSON-LD markup to your website tells AI systems exactly what your business is, where you operate, and what services you offer. This is not a rebuild. It's a code addition that takes a developer hours, not weeks. For context: Illinois electricians implement JSON-LD at 33% and average 51.0/100. Illinois plumbers implement it at 0% and average 37.5/100. That 13.5-point gap in average scores tracks almost directly onto that structured data difference.
After JSON-LD, audit your site for mobile-friendliness and page speed. Both factor into the Readability score and both are table-stakes for AI-readable web presence.
2. Legitimacy: 35 points maximum
The average Illinois plumber has 28.0 reviews and 4.67 stars. The 4.67 rating is solid. The review volume is not.
The median review count across all 660 tracked plumbers is 0.0. The top 10% average 44.0 reviews. The bottom 50% average 3.0 reviews. That 17.7x gap in review volume is a direct legitimacy signal gap. AI systems use review volume alongside rating to assess credibility at scale. A strong star rating without volume carries minimal weight.
Building a systematic post-job review request process, text or email, can move a plumber from 0 reviews to above the 28.0 state average within a single busy season. License and insurance verification on your profile adds additional Legitimacy points that most Illinois plumbers have not claimed.
3. Identity: 25 points maximum
NAP consistency (business name, address, phone) across Google Business Profile, Yelp, and other directories is the most overlooked category because it feels administrative. AI systems treat discrepancies as reliability failures. Audit every directory listing and resolve any name or address variation before addressing the other two categories.
What moving up the distribution actually means
310 contractors (47%) are currently clustered in the 30-39 band. Only 44 contractors (7%) reach the 60-69 band. Moving from the 30-39 range to the 60-69 range is the difference between being invisible to AI-powered search and being surfaced as a credible option. The 30-39 band represents a business that exists online. The 60-69 band represents a business an AI can confirm, verify, and recommend.
All three fixes combined (JSON-LD, review volume, NAP audit) address every scoring category. The 27.6-point gap between the state average and the top 10% is bridgeable through exactly these actions.
Check your current score at /find.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an AI Trust Score?
The AI Trust Score is a 100-point rating that measures how confidently AI systems can identify, verify, and recommend your business. It breaks into three categories: Identity (25 points, covering business name, address, and phone consistency), Legitimacy (35 points, covering reviews, ratings, and license verification), and Readability (40 points, covering website quality, JSON-LD structured data, and mobile-friendliness). Among 660 Illinois plumbers tracked by VerifiedNode, the average score is 37.2/100. Check yours at /find.
How do AI systems find and recommend contractors?
Conversational AI tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews parse structured signals from your digital presence to determine whether your business is credible and relevant to a query. Review volume is one signal: the top 10% of Illinois plumbers average 44.0 reviews, while the bottom 50% average 3.0 reviews, a 17.7x gap that directly affects how AI systems weigh legitimacy. NAP consistency, license verification, and structured data all factor in alongside reviews.
What is JSON-LD and why does it matter for plumbers?
JSON-LD is a structured data format that tells AI systems precisely what your business is, where it operates, and what services it offers. Without it, a website is largely unreadable to a conversational AI responding to a query like "find a licensed plumber in Chicago." Among Illinois plumbers specifically, JSON-LD adoption is 0%. Illinois electricians, by comparison, implement it at 33% and average 51.0/100, a 13.5-point scoring advantage that maps almost directly onto that structured data difference.
How do Illinois plumbers compare to other states?
Illinois plumbers average 37.5/100, trailing New York (40.1), Ontario (39.6), and Pennsylvania (38.6). Every state that outperforms Illinois carries a higher JSON-LD adoption rate: New York sits at 14% adoption across contractors, compared to Illinois's 11% overall and 0% among plumbers specifically. The pattern is consistent: structured data adoption and average score move together.
How many Illinois plumbers are actually visible to AI search?
Only 0.8% of the 660 tracked Illinois plumbers score in the Excellent tier (80-100). Another 11.5% reach Good (60-79). The remaining 87.7% are in Fair territory or below, clustered primarily in the 30-39 band, which represents a business that exists online but cannot be confidently surfaced by an AI system. See the full state breakdown at /plumber/illinois/.