HVAC Marketing Tips to Boost Your Online Visibility
November 3, 2021
Your HVAC company’s visibility online can make or break your success
It used to be that an HVAC company’s success was solely based on how they performed in the field, how many of their clients told their friends about them and how many people saw their television ad or heard about them on the radio. And while some of these things are still critical to any HVAC company’s success, much of the exposure a typical HVAC company will get these days happens online.
When people are looking for an HVAC service, like air conditioning replacement or furnace repair, most aren’t looking at a phonebook or asking a friend or coworker for a referral. Most of those people are now looking for an HVAC company to work with online, and the key to your success is being visible to those people.
The unfortunate reality is that simply having a website or a Facebook page isn’t enough to be visible online. Visibility takes work, and if you want that work to pay off, you need to know where to focus your efforts.
5 HVAC marketing tips for increased online visibility
#1. It all starts with having the right website
Your website is your business’s hub online, and it’s where most HVAC companies decide to drive their traffic to. But it’s important that you know that not all websites are made equal, and if your website looks unprofessional, takes forever to load, isn’t informative enough or has a bunch of irrelevant content, it’s not going to do you any favors.
The kind of website you have will affect your bounce rate, which is the rate at which people come to and then immediately leave your website without visiting any other pages. This rate can play a role in how your website is ranked by search engines, so it’s an important thing to think about, and the wrong kind of web layout or content can absolutely hurt your visibility online.
Responsiveness is another aspect of your website that can affect your visibility online. These days, desktop search is a much smaller piece of the puzzle than it used to be, and a lot more people are searching using their smartphones or tablets than ever before. When you design your website, it’s essential that it’s designed to look just as good and work just as well on a mobile device as it does on a desktop computer.
#2. Get to the top of search results
When someone googles “HVAC company near me” in your local area, you want your business to not only show up on the list but to be at the top of that list. The sad fact is that not many people look past page one of search results; in fact, most people will choose from only the top few listings!
So if your business isn’t listed on page one, chances are, you’re missing out on a good number of leads that could turn into paying clients.
There are two basic ways to get to the top of search results, the first being paid ads. Google reserves the first few spots in the SERP for pay-per-click ads, and they can be a great way to gain exposure when you’re first starting out online. But the more cost-effective, long-term way to get to the top of search results is through HVAC SEO (search engine optimization).
Through SEO, you can climb to the top of the organic search results, which means that you won’t have to continue relying on paid ads to get the visibility you need. While there’s a lot that goes into SEO, the basics are keyword research, content marketing and link building.
#3. Claim your listings
Whether you’ve signed up for them or not, you’ll find that your business probably has listings across many different review platforms and directories online. All of these listings could potentially lead people to your business, and it behooves you to claim and optimize them.
The information in these listings is pulled in by algorithms, which can do a lot but also have a lot of limits. For instance, when you move to a new location or change your phone number, there’s no way for those algorithms to know that, which means that you may have inaccurate or outdated information out there on those listings.
Not only will updating your business listings ensure that people can get ahold of you regardless of where they found you online; it also helps to establish, maintain, and preserve trust in your business. If someone ends up calling a number that’s no longer in service trying to find you, they’ll either think that your business is no longer in operation or that you’re too lazy to update your contact information — either way, it doesn’t send a good message.
#4. Establish your business on social media
In this day and age, there are so many great ways to connect with your clients that go beyond your website, and social media is powerful because it offers one of the most personal ways to connect.
Social media allows for all different kinds of interactions with your clients and future clients online that aren’t available through your website. It will also allow you to show a different side of your business, one that’s maybe a little less professional but a lot more personable, which will make people feel more connected to you.
At the very least, social media is where people are largely at, which means that it’s where you should be, too, and it’s a great avenue for gaining more visibility and exposure for your brand.
#5. Get more reviews
One of the best ways an HVAC company can gain exposure online these days is through reviews. That good old-fashioned word of mouth that so many HVAC companies have relied on for years and years is now largely being replaced by online reviews. Reviews give people a glimpse into what it might be like to work with your business, and you might be surprised to learn just how heavily people weigh reviews when determining whether or not to work you.
Generating reviews doesn’t to be a long, drawn-out process, and it doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as asking for them. A lot of people just don’t know how valuable a review can be for a local business and don’t think about writing one on their own. But if you tell them how important it is for your online reputation and visibility, you’ll find that the vast majority of your clients will be happy to write them.
Need help with gaining more visibility for your HVAC company online? Learn about our HVAC marketing solutions!
Originally published on 1/14/20
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