Live Case Study · Month 01
Building AI search visibility for NorthGrid Electrical.
A NICEIC-registered commercial electrical contractor in Bamber Bridge, Lancashire, specialising in EICR testing for housing associations, facilities management, and aviation. We started working together in May 2026.
01 — The Client
About NorthGrid Electrical.
Founded by
Matt
Industry experience
15 years
Base
Bamber Bridge, Lancashire
Certification
NICEIC-registered
Specialism
Commercial EICR
Primary sectors
Housing associations, FM, aviation
Engagement tier
Foundation
Started
May 2026
02 — The Starting Point
Where NorthGrid was when we started.
Matt has been in the electrical industry for 15 years. NorthGrid Electrical Ltd is the company he set up to focus specifically on the commercial side of the work — EICR testing, compliance inspections, and electrical installation for housing associations, facilities management contractors, and aviation clients. Quality of work is not the issue. NICEIC certification, deep industry knowledge, real specialism.
The issue is the same one most genuinely skilled tradesmen have: their work is excellent, their reputation is local, and their next customer can't find them. Commercial EICR contracts are won partly on procurement decisions made by people who Google before they call. Increasingly, those same people are asking ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google AI Overviews 'who does commercial EICR in Lancashire?' before any of NorthGrid's competitors have figured out how to be the answer.
That's the gap we're closing.
03 — The Work
What we're doing about it.
01
AEO foundations
Schema markup across every page identifying NorthGrid as a NICEIC-registered commercial electrical contractor with specific knowledge of EICR testing, housing association work, FM work, and aviation compliance. Structured FAQ pages engineered for AI extraction. llms.txt at the root explicitly directing AI engines to the most important content.
02
Local citation building
Active NICEIC profile, Trustpilot, Yell, Bark, and trade-specific commercial directories. NAP consistency across every listing. GBP claimed, optimised, and posting weekly. Five core citations established in the first month, growing to fifteen by month three.
03
Targeted commercial content
Two AEO-optimised pages per month answering the specific questions procurement managers at housing associations and FM companies actually ask. 'What does a commercial EICR cost?' 'How often should a housing association schedule electrical testing?' 'What's the difference between domestic and commercial EICR?'
04
Monthly AI visibility tracking
Five tracked queries run through ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google AI Overviews on the first of every month. Screenshot-captured. Same queries, same time, every month. The line we're trying to move is visible and reproducible.
04 — Where We Are
Month 01 — what's done, what's pending.
Done in month 01
- Schema markup deployed across the existing website
- llms.txt published
- Google Business Profile claimed, optimised, first two weekly posts live
- AI visibility baseline captured — five queries across four engines, screenshots filed
- First three citations live (NICEIC, Trustpilot, Yell)
- Tracked-keyword set agreed with Matt — 14 commercial EICR queries
Pending — to report on next month
- First Google ranking movement (Search Console data settles by month 02)
- First measurable AI visibility delta vs baseline
- Backlink outreach round 1 — five target sites
- Page 2 of new content (housing association EICR FAQ)
- Commercial competitor benchmark report
05 — Data
Performance data.
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| AI engine visibility (Month 01 baseline) | Captured · awaiting Month 02 to measure delta |
| Google Search Console rankings | Baseline established · settling for Month 02 report |
| Google Business Profile views | Baseline established · 47 views Month 01 |
| Citations live | 3 of 5 target citations |
| Calls from website | Tracking installation in progress — pending Month 02 |
| Form submissions | Pending content launches (Month 02) |
| Backlinks from outreach | Outreach launches Month 02 |
Updated 27 May 2026. Next update: 27 June 2026. Every metric is screenshot-backed in the monthly report sent to Matt directly.
06 — What Next
The 90-day plan.
01
Month 02
First measurable AI visibility delta. Two new AEO-optimised commercial content pages live. Backlink outreach round 1. First competitor benchmark refresh.
02
Month 03
Second AI visibility delta — by this point we expect at least one of ChatGPT or Google AI Overviews to be citing NorthGrid for the easier-to-rank commercial queries. New content compounding. Backlink round 2.
03
Day 90 review
Full 90-day report. Comparison of every tracked metric vs Day 01 baseline. Joint decision with Matt on whether to upgrade to Growth tier for content expansion.
07 — Reflection
Why we're publishing this case study from day one — not month six.
Agency case studies are almost always written six months in, after results are clear, with the inconvenient parts of the early months quietly edited out. We've decided to write this one from day one. Matt knows that. He's reviewed every paragraph on this page before publication.
The case for publishing early is simple: it's the only honest way to do it. If we wait until results are good, we're hiding the early months. If results never get good, we just delete the page. Either way, the reader can't trust what they're looking at.
If you're reading this in 2027 and the metrics are good — that's because the work compounded over time, which is what SEO and AEO are supposed to do. If you're reading this in month two and the metrics are still pending — that's because SEO and AEO take time, which is also true. Either way, you see exactly what's happening.
Want this kind of case study for your business?
If you're a UK tradesman in a trade we don't yet serve, we're actively looking for our next client. Start with a free AEO audit.