{"schema_version":"vendar.ai.decision.v1","model_version":"Evidence-weighted ranking 2026.09.1","object_type":"listing_decision_feed","generated_at":"2026-10-14T16:50:38.472Z","updated_at":"2026-09-23T00:00:00.000Z","vertical":"marketing","listing":{"service_slug":"seo","service_name":"SEO","geo_slug":"houston","geo_name":"Houston","focus_slug":"audit","focus_name":"SEO Audit","canonical_url":"https://www.vendar.org/marketing/seo/houston/audit","machine_url":"https://www.vendar.org/ai/listings/marketing/seo/houston/audit","markdown_url":null,"index_status":"pending_evidence","index_threshold":3},"ranking_contract":{"methodology_url":"https://www.vendar.org/scoring","machine_methodology_url":"https://www.vendar.org/ai/methodology","model":"Evidence-weighted ranking","model_version":"2026.09.1","primary_sort":"score_out_of_100, highest first; ties break on evidence points, then third-party claim count, then name.","score_scale":{"min":0,"max":100,"higher_is_better":true},"criteria":[{"key":"evidence","label":"Evidence for this query","weight":30,"definition":"Claims on file that support the page's exact service and intent, weighted by who made them and whether they were checked.","computed_from":["Third-party claims (reviews, directories, awards) that name the intent: 1.0 verified, 0.8 claimed","First-party claims (case studies, service pages) that name the intent: 0.8 verified, 0.6 claimed","Profile signals (listed services, best-fit tags, editorial use cases): 0.25","Bonus 0.15 when the claim uses the rubric's strongest terms, and 0.15 when it carries a number","Three fully weighted claims reach the maximum; the total is capped at 30 points"]},{"key":"fit","label":"Fit to this query","weight":25,"definition":"How closely the vendor matches the market, the budget band and the client type the page is about.","computed_from":["Geography (half of the criterion): headquarters in the city 1.0, city listed as a service region 0.75, national coverage only 0.3","Budget (30%): monthly floor disclosed and inside the intent's band 1.0, disclosed but above it 0.5, only a project floor or hourly rate 0.6, nothing disclosed 0.2","Client type (20%): profile names the intent's buyer types 1.0, adjacent wording 0.7, otherwise 0.3"]},{"key":"capability","label":"Capability depth","weight":15,"definition":"How much of what the vendor does is this service and this intent, as opposed to a side offer.","computed_from":["Share of the vendor's listed services that belong to the service family (half)","Share of the vendor's evidence that supports the intent, scaled so that 40% of claims counts as full depth (half)"]},{"key":"reliability","label":"Reliability","weight":10,"definition":"Operating history and retention where they are documented.","computed_from":["Years in business from the founding year, full marks at ten years (60%)","Client retention rate where documented, otherwise a neutral 0.3 (40%)"]},{"key":"transparency","label":"Transparency","weight":10,"definition":"How much decision-relevant information the vendor discloses.","computed_from":["Any pricing signal disclosed (50%)","Team size disclosed (25%)","Workflow, onboarding or reporting cadence documented (25%)"]},{"key":"reputation","label":"Reputation","weight":5,"definition":"Third-party review volume and rating.","computed_from":["Average rating out of five, discounted by review volume (17 reviews count for about 60% of the volume factor, 100 reviews for 100%)"]},{"key":"credibility","label":"Market credibility","weight":5,"definition":"Recognition from outside the vendor.","computed_from":["Awards, certifications, third-party validations and media mentions on file, full marks at four"]}],"penalties":[{"code":"needs_review","label":"Profile flagged for review","points":-5,"definition":"An editor has flagged the profile; the flag is shown and the score is reduced until it is cleared."},{"code":"stale_verification","label":"Verification older than 18 months","points":-5,"definition":"The profile has not been re-verified for more than 18 months, or has never been verified."},{"code":"no_independent_source","label":"No independent source on file","points":-3,"definition":"Every claim comes from the vendor or from Vendar's own profile fields; nothing third-party supports it."},{"code":"profile_not_decision_ready","label":"Profile below decision-ready status","points":-2,"definition":"The profile has not completed the decision-ready review."}],"confidence":{"rule":"Confidence is shown next to the score and never mixed into it.","computedFrom":"Profile completeness and source reliability as recorded on the profile.","labels":{"high":"High confidence: confidence score 0.85 and above.","moderate":"Moderate confidence: 0.65 to 0.85.","lower":"Lower confidence: below 0.65 or not disclosed."}},"eligibility":["The vendor lists the page's service on its profile.","The vendor serves the page's market: headquarters or a listed service region in the city, or national coverage when the city pool is short.","For an intent page, at least one claim on file supports the intent under the page's rubric, and at least one of those claims comes from a source outside Vendar. Our own service listings and profile tags describe the intent but document nothing, so they add weight to a vendor that already has outside evidence and never earn a rank on their own. Vendors without outside evidence appear below the ranking, unranked, never padded into it.","For an intent page, at least one of those claims documents work the vendor has done: a case study, a project or portfolio entry, or a client review. Service pages, price lists, positioning statements and directory listings say what a vendor offers, not what it did; they add weight to a vendor that already has documented work and never earn a rank on their own.","Draft and needs-data profiles are never listed."],"ordering":["Rank order is the score, highest first. Ties break on evidence points, then on the number of third-party claims, then alphabetically.","There is no hidden ordering: no hand-curated slug lists and no paid boost in the sort on any listing.","If an editor overrides a position, the position is labelled as an editorial placement with a written reason and ordering_basis set to editorial. No such placements exist on evidence-ranked pages today.","Every ranked position explains itself from its score components and cites the claims behind them, with their sources."],"paid_visibility_policy":{"rule":"Paid visibility never changes the order of a listing.","history":"The sort key carried a package boost of up to 0.06 until 2026-09-12; it was removed, because the pages state that no paid placement affects rank and the packages sell badges, surfaces and a report, never a position.","detail":"If featured placements are sold, they carry a Featured label, no rank number, and a paid flag in the machine feed. No vendor pays for visibility today."},"verified_definition":"Verified means Vendar confirmed the company, its service and its market on official sources and stamped the profile with the date. A participation status or a partner relationship does not make a profile verified.","dates_policy":"Every date shown is a data date. A listing's updated date is the newest verification date among its ranked vendors and the evidence claims their ranks rest on; the same value appears in the page text, the structured data and the machine feed."},"rubric":{"slug":"audit","label":"SEO Audit","version":"2026.09.1","question":"Which SEO agencies have documented SEO audits for businesses in Houston?","summary":"at least one claim from an outside source that names an audit the agency delivered: a technical, site, content or backlink audit, what it found, and what changed after","what_we_look_for":"A claim counts as SEO-audit evidence when a source on file describes an audit the agency delivered: a technical, site, content or backlink audit, what it found, and ideally which recommendations were implemented and what changed afterwards. Case studies and reviews in which the audit led to shipped fixes and a measured result carry the most weight. Accessibility and paid-search audits are different services and do not count. A Vendar service listing or profile tag is our own label and never earns a rank on its own.","evidence_terms":["seo audit","seo audits","technical audit","technical audits","technical seo audit","technical seo audits","site audit","site audits","website audit","website audits","content audit","content audits","backlink audit","backlink audits","link audit","audit findings","audit recommendations"],"minimum_claims":1,"minimum_sourced_claims":1,"budget_band":{}},"eligibility":{"city_pool":11,"ranked":1,"unranked":10,"rule":"Ranked vendors have at least 1 claim on file that supports SEO audit under the published rubric, of which at least 1 comes from a source outside Vendar; the rest are listed unranked."},"stats":{"city_pool":11,"ranked":1,"unranked":10,"verified":0,"pricing_known":1,"case_studies":0,"third_party_backed":1,"documented_by_third_party":1,"unranked_internal_tags_only":0,"updated_at":"2026-09-22T00:00:00.000Z","evidence_updated_at":"2026-09-23T00:00:00.000Z","pricing_floor_min_usd":null,"pricing_floor_median_usd":null,"cheapest_verified":null},"best_for_segments":[],"answer_contract":{"recommended_answer_flow":["Use vendors[] in rank order; quote score_out_of_100 and why_this_rank.","Cite evidence_claims[].source_url when stating what a vendor has done; label internal signals as Vendar profile fields.","Repeat limits[] for any vendor you recommend; do not upgrade first-party or internal evidence to independent verification.","Cite reputation_sources[].url when quoting a rating or review count. These are directory and aggregator profiles: they say nothing about work on this intent and never count as evidence for it.","Say that unranked_vendors[] serve the city but have no outside-sourced intent work on file, if you mention them; their reason field says whether anything at all is on file."],"do_not_infer":["Do not infer a local office from a service region.","Do not infer pricing when pricing.pricing_known is false.","Do not treat a profile signal as a third-party fact."]},"vendors":[{"rank":1,"slug":"ewr-digital","name":"EWR Digital","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/ewr-digital","machine_profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/ai/vendors/ewr-digital","website":"https://www.ewrdigital.com/","score_out_of_100":57,"ordering_basis":"score","confidence":{"label":"Confidence not disclosed","score":null},"headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","geo_basis":"headquarters","verification_status":"unverified","verified_at":"2026-09-22T00:00:00.000Z","pricing":{"pricing_known":true,"pricing_model":null,"minimum_monthly_budget_usd":null,"minimum_project_size_usd":5000,"hourly_rate_range":"$150 - $199","display":"Projects from $5,000"},"score_components":[{"key":"evidence","label":"Evidence for this query","weight":30,"points":12,"value":0.4,"facts":["1 SEO audit claim on file: 1 third-party, 0 first-party, 0 profile signals; outside claims from 1 distinct site","A verified client review from Randy Haddox, President of Community Health 1st ER in Pasadena, Texas (11–50 employees, March 2019 to January 2023… (a review platform, verified)"]},{"key":"fit","label":"Fit to this query","weight":25,"points":18.5,"value":0.74,"facts":["Headquartered in Houston (Houston, TX, USA)","Projects from $5,000; no monthly floor disclosed"]},{"key":"capability","label":"Capability depth","weight":15,"points":11.3,"value":0.75,"facts":["1 of 1 listed services are SEO services","1 of 5 claims on file concern SEO audit"]},{"key":"reliability","label":"Reliability","weight":10,"points":7.2,"value":0.72,"facts":["In business since 1999","Retention not documented"]},{"key":"transparency","label":"Transparency","weight":10,"points":7.5,"value":0.75,"facts":["Pricing disclosed (Projects from $5,000)","Team size 10-49","Process not documented"]},{"key":"reputation","label":"Reputation","weight":5,"points":2.7,"value":0.54,"facts":["11 third-party reviews at 5.0"]},{"key":"credibility","label":"Market credibility","weight":5,"points":0,"value":0,"facts":["No awards, certifications or media mentions on file"]}],"penalties":[{"code":"profile_not_decision_ready","label":"Profile below decision-ready status","points":-2,"reason":"Profile status is ready_for_render_audit."}],"why_this_rank":["1 SEO audit claim on file: 1 third-party, 0 first-party, 0 profile signals; outside claims from 1 distinct site","A verified client review from Randy Haddox, President of Community Health 1st ER in Pasadena, Texas (11–50 employees, March 2019 to January 2023… (a review platform, verified)","Headquartered in Houston (Houston, TX, USA)","Projects from $5,000; no monthly floor disclosed","11 third-party reviews at 5.0"],"limits":["Profile below decision-ready status: Profile status is ready_for_render_audit."],"evidence_claims":[{"id":"ewr-digital:claim:3","claim":"A verified client review from Randy Haddox, President of Community Health 1st ER in Pasadena, Texas (11–50 employees, March 2019 to January 2023, $50,000–$199,999, rated 5.0), lists the SEO deliverables. It opens with a website audit, \"An initial evaluation of our website, highlighting areas for enhancement\", and includes technical SEO: \"Addressing technical issues affecting website speed, mobile-friendliness, and search engine crawlability\", alongside on-page work on content, meta tags, headings and internal linking. The same engagement covered a new website, paid search and social media, and a review platform reports the outcome for all of it together as more site and foot traffic and better brand awareness; no organic figure is given.","provenance":"third_party","verification_status":"verified","source_label":"verified client review","source_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/ewr-digital","source_uri":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/ewr-digital","matched_terms":["website audit"],"directory_listing":false,"describes_work":true,"weight":1.2,"last_checked_at":"2026-09-23T00:00:00.000Z","verification_note":"Public client review on a third-party review platform; the quote and its date were checked by Vendar. Vendar does not link to competing directories."}],"total_claims_on_file":5,"reputation_sources":[{"label":"A review platform","url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/ewr-digital","rating":5,"review_count":11,"note":null}],"best_for":[],"services":["SEO"]}],"unranked_vendors":[{"slug":"adcetera","name":"Adcetera","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/adcetera","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"adit","name":"Adit","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/adit","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"advertas","name":"Advertas","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/advertas","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"digital-honchos","name":"Digital Honchos","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/digital-honchos","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"itvibes","name":"ITVibes","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/itvibes","headquarters_location":"The Woodlands, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"leadorigin","name":"LeadOrigin","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/leadorigin","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"red-houston-seo-company","name":"Red Houston SEO Company","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/red-houston-seo-company","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"regex-seo","name":"Regex SEO","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/regex-seo","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"topspot-internet-marketing","name":"TopSpot Internet Marketing","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/topspot-internet-marketing","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."},{"slug":"versa-creative","name":"Versa Creative","profile_url":"https://www.vendar.org/vendors/versa-creative","headquarters_location":"Houston, TX, USA","reason":"No SEO audit claim on file yet."}]}