108 Days In: What Changed for a Veteran-Owned HVAC Company Since the First 45

In September we published the first 45 days of a local SEO engagement for a veteran-owned HVAC company in a small North Carolina city. In October we printed the first 30-day update. This is the second. Same numbers, same sources, same order, and every one that went the wrong way is here.

Every number below was pulled on November 5, 2026, 108 days after day one (July 20). Google’s search data was available through November 3 that morning, so the search windows end there. The Google listing numbers cover the full month of October and come from a synced copy of the listing’s own performance report, not from Google’s dashboard directly.

This is still a visibility update, not a results post. It shows what Google shows. It does not show what the phone did. There is no tracked phone line on this company’s website, so we make no claim about jobs or sales.

This month is mixed, and more of it went down than up.

The Numbers, Then and Now

The two tracked searches. On October 1, a rank tracker had the company in first place for the “veteran owned HVAC + their city” search and for its own business name. At the tracker’s latest check, November 2, the business name was still first. The veteran-owned search was 12th, on page two. Google’s own data disagrees: over the latest 28 days Search Console shows that search at an average position of 2, on 22 impressions. The two sources measure differently. We are printing the slip anyway, because the tracker is the source the first post used.

Searches on page one. In October we explained that we could not rebuild the first post’s filter, so we wrote one rule down and used it from then on. It removes searches for services the company does not offer, other companies’ names, searches outside the area it serves, and searches that are not a request for service (training, parts, cost questions, single words like “heating”).

Last month we printed 151 searches on page one for the 28 days ending October 4, with 123 in first place. Re-counted today on the same rule, that window reads 151 and 121. Google revises recent weeks, so small shifts like that are normal. The latest 28 days, October 7 to November 3, come to 135 on page one, 92 in first place. Before any filtering the counts were 202 then and 189 now.

Search impressions. Over 28 days, United States impressions went from 3,437 (September 7 to October 4) to 11,466 (October 7 to November 3). Over two weeks they went from 2,095 (September 21 to October 4) to 6,013 (October 21 to November 3). Both earlier windows read exactly the same today as they did last month.

Search clicks. Over the same 28-day windows, United States clicks went from 22 to 15. Over two weeks, from 12 to 11.

Clicks from the Google listing to the website. July 29, August 41, September 16, October 6.

Views of the listing on Google Maps from a desktop computer. July 24, August 46, September 33, October 44.

Calls from the Google listing. July 7, August 2, September 3, October 6.

Direction requests. July 74, August 44, September 26, October 37.

Total listing interactions. July 110, August 87, September 45, October 49.

Reviews. The listing now has 71 reviews, all five stars, and every one has a reply. It was 67 last month. The reviews are the company’s own work, earned on the job. Our part is the replies and the follow-up.

The home page and the articles. Last month we printed the home page’s position and impressions, and reported that none of the articles had been shown in search yet. This month the page-by-page report returned no data at all, including for windows that read fine in October. We could not check either one, so we are leaving both out instead of guessing. We will try again next month.

What Went Up

• Search impressions: 3,437 to 11,466 over 28 days. More on what those are below, because they are not all good news.
• Calls from the Google listing: 3 in September, 6 in October. That is three more calls. It is not a trend.
• Direction requests: 26 to 37. Desktop Maps views: 33 to 44. Total interactions: 45 to 49.
• The business-name search held first place.

What Went Down

Searches on page one fell from 151 to 135, and first-place searches from 121 to 92, on the same written rule. This is the first month the page-one count has gone backward.

Search clicks fell from 22 to 15 over 28 days, while impressions more than tripled.

The likely read, not a finding: most of the new impressions are not local searches. The single biggest search in the latest window was “mini split maintenance,” with 879 impressions at an average position of 67, which is page seven. The page-one list also filled with mini-split maintenance searches naming towns in other states. Google appears to be testing the site on broad, faraway searches it will never win, deep in the results where nobody clicks. That would explain more impressions, fewer clicks and fewer local first places at the same time. We have not proven it.

The veteran-owned search dropped from first to 12th in the tracker. The likely read, not a finding: a tracker checks once, from one spot, on one day, and Search Console still averages this search near the top for the month. So it may be one bad reading. It may also be the start of a real slide. Next month’s check will tell.

Clicks from the listing to the website fell again, from 16 to 6. Listing views fell from 232 to 215, and the listing showed up in fewer searches, 169 to 144, most of that on phones.

The likely read, not a finding: calls and direction requests rose in the same month, so people who found the listing did more with it. Fewer of them went on to the website. Heating season brings more people who want to call now, not read. One month cannot prove that.

What We Are Doing Next

1. Finding out why the veteran-owned search slipped in the tracker, and making sure one page on the site clearly owns it. That is part of the ongoing local SEO work.
2. Getting the articles in front of Google. The list of pages the site hands to Google still reports one error, the same as last month. That is still open.
3. Keeping the offer open on call counting. The owners can put the website’s number on a tracked phone line, the same kind our own AI receptionist runs on. That is their choice. Until a tracked line is in place, these updates report what Google shows and nothing more.
4. Pulling all of this again in about 30 days.

For a longer run of the same method, see our 60-day case study on our own site.

Common Questions

Why would my impressions go up while my clicks go down?

Usually because Google started showing your site for searches far down the results, where people do not scroll. For this company, impressions over 28 days went from 3,437 to 11,466 while clicks went from 22 to 15. The biggest new search was shown at an average position of 67. More impressions only help when they are on page one, for searches in the area you serve.

Is a bigger impressions number good news for a local business?

Not on its own. Impressions count how often Google showed your site, anywhere in the results, to anyone. A local HVAC company gains nothing from being shown on page seven to people in other states. Look at how many searches you are on page one for, in your own area, and whether clicks and calls move with them.

Why did my ranking drop from first to page two in one month?

Sometimes it is a real slide, and sometimes it is one bad check. Here, a rank tracker put a search at 12th on one day, while Google’s own data averaged the same search near position 2 across the month. Check more than one source, and wait for the next reading before you change anything on the site.

Why do two ranking reports show different positions for the same search?

Because they measure different things. A rank tracker checks once, from one location, on one device. Search Console averages every time a real person saw your site over the period. A single check can catch a bad day. An average can hide one. When they disagree by a lot, report both and watch the next reading.

My Google listing calls went up but website clicks went down. Is that bad?

Not necessarily. In this case calls went from 3 to 6 and direction requests from 26 to 37, while clicks to the website fell from 16 to 6. People who want help now often call straight from the listing. It only becomes a problem if total calls fall, and the only way to know total calls is to count them.

Do more five-star reviews mean my marketing is working?

No. Reviews come from doing good work and asking every customer. Those reviews are the company’s own work. Its count went from 67 to 71 this month, all five stars, all with replies. A marketing company can help with replies and follow-up. It should not take credit for the reviews.

How long before an HVAC company sees results from local SEO?

Visibility usually moves within weeks. Calls and jobs take longer and are harder to prove. At 108 days, this company has more page-one searches than when it started, but this month several numbers slipped. Anyone promising a straight line upward in the first few months is selling something.

What should I ask my SEO company to show me every month?

The same numbers, from the same sources, for the same length of time, including the ones that fell. Ask for the dates of every window and what the numbers do not prove. Ask what they could not check and why. This update has a short list that went up, a longer one that went down, and two it could not check.

Want the same numbers pulled for your business, up or down? Book your free audit and we will show you what Google shows today. You can also call (920) 383-3387.