Increases rev by 171% and AOV by 130% after implementing SearchTides AI systems
About Valveman
Many buyers in this space are engineers who have relied on the same suppliers for decades. At the same time, a new guard of younger decision-makers is entering the workforce, and they’re searching, discovering, and buying differently.
CEO Gil Welsford knew ValveMan needed a long-term digital strategy that would keep pace with the shifts he’s already seen.
“We’ve rebuilt our site four or five times. We’ve worked with plenty of agencies, some good, some not as good. But what I needed was a partner I could trust to take ownership, and really care about revenue, not just vanity metrics” says Gil.
TL;DR Overview
650%
growth in AI referrals
171%
driven by improved AI visibility and search
130%+
jump in average order value (AOV),
attributed to higher-value products being surfaced and purchased after AI visibility gains
Breaking Out of Flat Growth
The AI Shift: Getting Found in ChatGPT
Gil had his “aha moment” when experimenting with ChatGPT. “One day I typed in, ‘I need to buy a ball valve.’ And ValveMan showed up. Now common practice, but this was the moment for me,” says Gil.
That single result underscored how fast buyer behavior was changing. Even engineers weren’t just Googling anymore, but asking AI directly for recommendations. With AI agents soon expected to make purchases autonomously, Gil knew that early visibility in these models could be a deciding factor in who wins the next wave of B2B commerce.
“I don’t even use Google myself anymore,” Gil adds. “I ask ChatGPT. Our customers, and eventually their AI agents, are going to do the same.”
That realization is what made him seek out a partner already working on the next wave of search marketing. Through a mutual connection, he was introduced to SearchTides.
Targeting Intent in the AI Era
Together, the teams launched a full MegaNav overhaul that emphasized product structure, faceted search, and categories designed to make sense to both buyers and search engines. It was a gamble, and Gil knew it: “Everyone told me it was too risky. But we trusted SearchTides to figure it out. And it worked! Visibility, traffic, and revenue have all gone up in less than 60 days,” says Gil.
When ValveMan rebuilt for usability, the payoff was twofold: a better experience for buyers, and a site that LLMs have increasingly seen as a trusted source. The results came quickly: ChatGPT referrals jumped by over 650% just a few months later.
“Appearing in LLMs for ‘ball valve’ looks good on paper, but it doesn’t always drive revenue,” says Gil. “The difference with SearchTides is they focus on the prompts that actually generate sales.”
A Partnership That Runs Itself
“I don’t have time to manage vendors at the task level,” says Gil. “I give high-level feedback and the team runs with it. That structure makes my job so much easier.”
Looking Ahead
“PPC ramps up and down instantly. [Showing up in LLMs] ramps slowly, but once it’s working, it keeps paying off. Even if we stopped tomorrow, we’d see benefits for months or years. With SearchTides continuing to push, that growth curve just keeps getting steeper,” he says.
For ValveMan, the partnership is about future-proofing the business in an industry that’s on the cusp of big change. By investing early in AI visibility and user-first design, ValveMan is positioning to capture today’s buyers where they increasingly are doing research (LLM’s), and tomorrow’s AI-driven purchasing.
“Revenue is the only metric that matters,” Gil says. “SearchTides understands that, and they absolutely deliver.”
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