Case Study: Air Conditioning Business

Client Overview

Industry: HVAC / Air Conditioning (Residential, Commercial & Industrial)

This Air Conditioning company operates in a highly competitive local trade market, where customers increasingly rely on AI-powered search to decide who to call — often without clicking through traditional search results.

The Challenge

Local discovery behaviour had changed.


Customers were no longer just typing “air conditioning “location” into Google and scrolling. Instead, they were asking AI-powered platforms questions like:


  • “Who does air conditioning installation in “location”?”
  • “Who services ducted air conditioning near me?”
  • “Which air con company should I trust locally?”

Traditional SEO alone was not enough to secure visibility in:


  • Google AI Mode
  • ChatGPT
  • Other AI-driven recommendation environments

The challenge was to ensure the business was:

Understood, trusted, and recommended when AI makes the decision — not just ranked in classic search.

The Strategy

Digitaldoor implemented a next-generation local business marketing framework, focused on two core pillars:

1. Human Creativity (Trust & Clarity)

We refined and structured their digital presence to clearly communicate:


  • Service offerings (split, ducted, commercial, industrial, maintenance)
  • Local service areas
  • Experience, credibility, and professionalism

This ensured real customers could instantly understand what they do and why they should trust them.

2. AI Visibility (Understanding & Recommendation)

We then engineered AI-Ready Digital Architecture, including:


  • Structured service and location content
  • Clear entity and topical signals
  • Local authority building
  • Optimisation specifically for Google AI Mode and ChatGPT interpretation

This allowed AI platforms to accurately interpret, summarise, and recommend their Air Conditioning business for relevant local queries.

The Results

Strong Google AI Mode Performance

  • 7 keywords ranked Position #1 in Google AI Mode
  • 3 keywords ranked Positions 2–5
  • Only 5 keywords remained unranked, showing rapid expansion of AI visibility
  • No keywords fell beyond Position 10 in AI Mode during the reporting period

This confirms that our clients services are being actively selected by AI for local air-conditioning-related queries.

Exceptional ChatGPT Visibility

ChatGPT performance was particularly strong:


  • 12 out of 15 tracked keywords ranked Position #1 in ChatGPT
  • 1 additional keyword ranked Positions 2–5
  • Service-specific pages (installation, service, maintenance, ducted, commercial, industrial) were directly referenced by ChatGPT
  • Direct ChatGPT referral traffic was recorded, confirming real AI-driven discovery, not just theoretical visibility.

This indicates that our client is being treated as a primary authority by conversational AI.

Organic Search & Engagement

  • 15.7K total impressions
  • 125 total clicks
  • 124 engaged sessions from organic search
  • 69.3% engagement rate for organic visitors
  • High average organic engagement time, signalling high intent and relevance

Organic search remained the top engagement channel, reinforcing the quality of traffic being generated.

Keyword Improvements (Local Intent)

Most Improved Keywords highlights strong upward movement in high-intent local searches:


  • “air conditioner service “location”” → Position #1 (+6)
  • “air conditioning “location”” → Position #1 (+5)
  • “air conditioner “location”” → Improved from Position 14

These are exactly the terms AI platforms prioritise when recommending local trades.


Why This Matters

This case study demonstrates a key shift for local trades:


Visibility is no longer about being “ranked”. It’s about being chosen by AI.


Our client didn’t just improve traditional SEO metrics — they secured dominant AI-driven visibility across Google AI Mode and ChatGPT in their local market.

The Takeaway

By combining:


  • Human-centred service clarity
  • AI-Ready Digital Architecture
  • Next-generation local AI optimisation (AIO)

Our client positioned themselves as the default recommendation when customers ask AI about air conditioning services in their local market and surrounding areas.