An SEO ranking case study from Good At Marketing shows the keyword, the position, the date and where the position was measured, so you can check each claim yourself. A ranking does not tell you whether SEO brought in customers. This page covers MBMI Metal Buildings and a personal injury law firm we work with in Boca Raton, and says where each record stops.
What a ranking result has to show
I have done SEO since 2008, and the claim I distrust most is “we got you to number one” with nothing attached. Before you accept a ranking claim, ask for these six details.
| Part | What it should say | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Keyword | The exact search phrase, not a category | Check each wording separately, such as attorney and lawyer |
| Position | The rank on a named date | A rank with no date cannot be checked |
| Source | The tool or report the position came from | Search Console reports an average position, which can differ from a single check |
| Window | The start and end of the time period | Months to first result is the number buyers plan around |
| Business outcome | Calls, leads or sales from that traffic | Rankings are a means, not the goal |
| Who | The client by name, or a plain description | An unnamed client cannot be asked |
If a claim is missing one of these parts, treat it as unproven.
Two dated results
The XO private aviation case study has its own page with weekly conversion numbers.
MBMI Metal Buildings, national SEO. I put it this way: “MBMI was my first national number one, for ‘Steel Buildings’ and ‘Metal Buildings’, and it took 12 to 16 months.”
Personal injury law firm, Boca Raton. On October 15, 2026, Perplexity listed a personal injury law firm in Boca Raton we work with, with a link to its site, for a pedestrian accident search in Boca Raton. That is a result in an AI answer, not a Google ranking, and it is one prompt on one day.
Our legal marketing page covers what we do for law firms.
How long a number one takes
MBMI took 12 to 16 months for two national keywords. I cannot use that result to predict how long another site will take, because rankings depend on how Google treats each site. We do not promise a position or a date. Our guide to what to expect from SEO explains the stages, and the SEO services page lists what the work covers.
How we measure AI visibility
We measure AI visibility three ways each month: referral traffic in GA4, and live buyer-style prompts in ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini, with every answer and URL saved.
When someone asks ChatGPT who to call, the business it names is the one that gets searched next. We do AI visibility alongside SEO, never instead of it.
What SEO costs
Our SEO pricing begins at $1,000 to $1,600 a month and tops out near $3,500 in crowded markets. The pricing page lists our services. Our guide to how much SEO costs for a small business sets out the ranges. Our founder leads SEO strategy.
Related reading
- Is SEO dead? What AI Overviews did to clicks and what still works
- How to choose an SEO company: 20 questions to ask and red flags to avoid
- SEO vs Google Ads: which should a local service business fund first?
Next step
The free audit comes first, then a 15-minute call. We meet by Google Meet or Zoom.
FAQ
What should a ranking case study include?
This is the standard we aim for: the keyword, the position on a stated date, the tool the position came from, the time window, and the client by name or a plain description. If a business outcome such as calls or sales is not stated, treat the case as a ranking claim only and ask us for the rest.
How long did it take to reach number one for MBMI?
Our founder’s own account is that MBMI took 12 to 16 months to reach number one for “Steel Buildings” and “Metal Buildings”, his first national number one. Those were national terms. A different market, keyword or starting point can take less or more time, so ask for a timeline built on your own site.
Do you guarantee a first-place ranking?
No. A ranking depends on how Google treats a page, so any guarantee of a first-place position is a claim to question. Ask any provider for the dated positions and the source of each number, so you can judge progress without taking its word for it.
How do you measure results from ChatGPT and other AI engines?
A single AI answer on a single day is a snapshot, so read any such claim with its date. Each month we read AI referral traffic in GA4 and test buyer-style prompts in the main AI engines, saving every answer and URL.
What does SEO cost at Good At Marketing?
Monthly SEO pricing runs from $1,000 to about $3,500, depending on how competitive your market is. Ad spend is paid to Google and is not part of that range. The pricing page lists our services, so check it before you compare us with another provider.
Can I see results for a business like mine?
Start with the free AI-visibility audit, then book the 15-minute call. On the call, we can discuss whether either example is relevant to your business. The two results on this page come from different fields, so a business like yours may not be among them.
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