State of AI Visibility:
Ontario Overview
Comprehensive algorithmic audit across all trade verticals statewide.
We analyzed 11,094 businesses across Ontario. The findings reveal a critical digital divide: 95% of businesses remain invisible to AI assistants like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and AI-augmented search engines.
Only 8% of the market reaches "AI-Ready" status—the minimum threshold required to appear in AI-generated recommendations. Plumbers lead with 14% compliance, while HVAC-R lag critically at just 0%.
This disparity represents an immediate opportunity for businesses ready to act.
Trade Landscape
Trade-by-Trade Disparities
Our analysis spans 9 trade verticals across the state. The radar chart visualizes performance gaps between industries.
Plumbers currently show the highest average score at 43/100, with 14% of businesses reaching AI-Ready status.
HVAC-R show the lowest average score at 28/100, a 15-point gap. 0% of businesses in this sector reach AI-Ready status.
This data represents a market snapshot. Score differences may reflect industry maturity, sample size, or sector norms.
AI Visibility by Trade
Average score indicates relative AI visibility by trade
Leaders vs Laggards
Click a trade to view the full report
The Complete Picture
The Gap Between Web Presence and AI Visibility
The table below reveals a troubling reality: 75% of businesses have a website, yet only 5% use Schema.org markup—the technology that enables AI to understand and recommend a business.
This 70-point gap represents businesses that invested in their online presence but remain invisible to new search interfaces. It's like having a storefront with no sign.
- Avg Score: composite indicator including reviews, Schema, and technical signals
- AI-Ready %: businesses above the 75/100 threshold
- Competition: market saturation level in that sector
This table contains detailed data best viewed on a larger screen. Please switch to desktop to view.
| Trade | Businesses | Avg Score | AI-Ready | Website | Schema | Competition | Top Performer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbers | 977 | 43 | 14% | 72% | 6% | Medium | Rico's HVAC Service and Installation Inc 88/100 | |
| Electricians | 1,086 | 37 | 7% | 67% | 2% | Medium | Ontime Electrician Toronto & GTA | Professional Electrician Toronto 88/100 | |
| HVAC | 1,020 | 41 | 10% | 73% | 7% | Medium | Ingenium Intuito group corp. 88/100 | |
| Roofers | 657 | 40 | 12% | 75% | 5% | Medium | Aquamaster Basement Waterproofing Toronto 88/100 | |
| Painters | 299 | 41 | 10% | 77% | 2% | Medium | Nourvue Painting Co 88/100 | |
| Landscapers | 906 | 37 | 6% | 70% | 4% | Medium | Tumber & Associates Ltd. 88/100 | |
| General Contractors | 1,288 | 36 | 7% | 66% | 4% | Medium | Maserat Developments 88/100 | |
| Foundation | 179 | 40 | 9% | 69% | 3% | Medium | Postech Screw Piles Ottawa 85/100 | |
| HVAC-R | 1 | 28 | 0% | 100% | 0% | Low | Janik Refrigeration 28/100 |
Score Distribution
What the Distribution Reveals
The market median score is 35/100, with an average of 39. This skewed bell curve shows that 35% of businesses fall below the median.
Green bars (scores 81-100) represent "AI-Ready" businesses—those appearing regularly in AI recommendations. Red bars (0-20) show businesses that are completely invisible.
Strategic Implications
- Reaching the top 20% means dramatically higher visibility
- Each 10-point increment significantly improves recommendation rates
- The majority of the market remains vulnerable to disruption by optimized competitors
Score Distribution
The Performance Gap
The Visibility Snowball Effect
The gap between top performers and the rest is striking—and it's widening.
The Top 10% average a score of 80 compared to just 24 for the bottom half of the market. This 56-point gap translates to massive visibility differences.
The Review Multiplier
Even more telling: leaders accumulate 8.2x more reviews than their competitors. Reviews generate trust, trust generates clicks, clicks generate more reviews. It's a virtuous cycle for some, vicious for others.
Businesses in the bottom 50% aren't just behind—they're actively becoming less visible every day relative to the competition.
Reviews & Visibility
The Score-Review Correlation
Each dot represents a business, colored by trade vertical. The scatter plot reveals a clear correlation: more reviews generally mean higher scores.
Three Distinct Zones
-
Upper-right quadrant (high score, many reviews): These businesses dominate AI responses and capture the majority of new customers.
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Middle zone: Businesses with potential but limited visibility. A modest investment could propel them to the top.
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Lower-left quadrant: Virtually invisible. These businesses depend entirely on word-of-mouth and existing customers.
Score vs Review Volume
City Rankings
Geographic Ranking
Below: the top 10 cities and bottom 5 cities in Ontario by average AI visibility score.
Ariss leads with a score of 59/100 across 6 businesses analyzed.
Strathroy Caradoc shows the lowest average at 22/100, a 37-point gap from the leader.
What This Means
- Low-scoring markets represent a differentiation opportunity for local businesses willing to invest in their visibility.
- A 37+ point spread between cities suggests significant regional variation in digital adoption.
Geography isn't destiny. A well-optimized business in a "weak" market can easily outperform competitors from major cities.
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