WebMax Canada says AI pivot drove 35% growth and award nominations

WebMax Canada says it rebuilt its business around AI-assisted search and visibility, then used that work to launch SpottableAI.ca and fuel about 35% growth. The Victoria-based agency is now nominated for several 2027 Canadian business and marketing awards as it pushes a human-led model in a fast-changing search market.

Why it matters: - WebMax Canada’s shift shows how a small agency can respond to AI-driven changes in search instead of being displaced by them. - The company’s experience matters for contractors, trades, construction firms and other businesses that rely on online discovery to win work. - SpottableAI.ca is aimed at helping businesses understand how they appear in AI-assisted search and where they may be missing from recommendations.

What happened: - WebMax Canada says it rebuilt its approach after co-founder Susan Jones worried two years ago that AI could upend the business. - The Victoria, British Columbia-based company developed SpottableAI.ca as an AI visibility system. - WebMax Canada says business is up about 35%. - The company has been nominated across several 2027 national Canadian business, digital marketing, SEO and technology award programs. - The nominations include categories tied to small business, marketing, artificial intelligence, digital innovation and emerging search.

The details: - WebMax Canada says it studied how AI search is changing, what Google is changing and what still matters in traditional SEO. - The team also spent time with clients and prospects on job sites, roadsides, shop floors and in direct conversations. - The company says that research focused on one question: what makes a customer trust one company enough to call it instead of another. - WebMax Canada tested new approaches on its own business first and kept the methods that worked. - Those methods were folded into the company’s website, SEO and visibility services. - SpottableAI.ca is designed to show businesses how they appear in AI-assisted search, where the gaps are, what may prevent them from being surfaced, cited or recommended, and how to stay prepared as search changes. - WebMax Canada says its work is now 100% human-led, even though the company uses AI every day. - Jones said, “AI is part of how we work now, but it does not run the work. People still lead the strategy, the decisions and the client relationship.” - Jones said the company integrates AI where it makes sense and leaves it out where it does not. - Some of the 2027 award nominations are tied to work connected to SpottableAI.ca. - WebMax Canada says it has served Canadian businesses since 2016. - The company works with clients in Victoria, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and other communities across Canada. - Its client base includes owner-operated and growing businesses in construction, trades, industrial and resource sectors, home services and professional services. - WebMax Canada provides website design, SEO, Google visibility, digital marketing and AI visibility services. - The company says SpottableAI.ca came directly out of that work. - SpottableAI.ca is also intended to help businesses understand how AI tools see them, what needs to change and how to stay ahead as search and the internet evolve. - More information is available at WebMax.ca and SpottableAI.ca.

Between the lines: - The story frames AI less as a threat to search agencies and more as a forced repositioning toward AI visibility and recommendation readiness. - WebMax Canada is using its own business as a proof point for a service line that could appeal to companies worried about losing visibility in changing search platforms. - The award nominations suggest the market is rewarding that pivot, not just the technology behind it.

What's next: - WebMax Canada says it will keep refining its human-led system as search and AI continue to change. - The company is likely to continue promoting SpottableAI.ca as part of its website, SEO and visibility offering. - The 2027 award programs will determine how far the nominations translate into industry recognition.

The bottom line: - WebMax Canada turned an AI disruption scare into a growth story, a new product and national award attention.