Bringing in new customers as an HVAC company is certainly not an easy endeavor. Likely the most challenging aspect of this process involves getting your website to be towards the top of relevant results on search engines like Google and Bing. Most individuals who require HVAC services will first perform a Google search before selecting one of the top results. If you want your HVAC business to garner long-term success, getting to one of the top spots is essential. The following offers an in-depth guide on how to run and manage a successful SEO campaign.
Why Your HVAC Business Needs to Invest in SEO
While it would be great if most homeowners in your area thought of your HVAC business first when they need service, this level of brand recognition isn’t really possible for HVAC businesses, which is one reason why performing local SEO is so important. To understand just how important SEO is, you should know that Google is essentially the new Yellow Pages.
In the past, it was possible to bring in new customers by creating a Yellow Pages ad, after which you would simply wait for calls from customers requiring HVAC services. Today, over 97% of people search for local businesses on the internet. While some of these customers use the Bing and Yahoo search engines, the majority use Google.
Performing a local SEO campaign can also help you garner free traffic. Once pages on your HVAC website reach the top of relevant search results, the amount of organic traffic your website receives should increase substantially. An SEO campaign is also beneficial because of how quickly it can produce results.
Implementing local SEO means that you only need to reach customers in your immediate vicinity, which ensures that the HVAC companies you’re competing against are the ones in your area. Many HVAC companies still don’t use search engine optimization, which gives you a leg up on the competition.
What Your HVAC Business Should Optimize For
There are two methods you can use to rank your HVAC website on Google, which include Google search results and Google Maps. Listings on Google Maps will show up as local listings that can target nearby customers. In comparison, Google search rankings are centered around users who are interested in learning more about your HVAC business and the services you provide.
It’s highly recommended that your website is optimized for Google search rankings as well as Google Maps. You can get your website to show up on Google Maps by creating a Google My Business listing. If you create one of these listings, make sure that your company’s phone number, name, and address is correct to avoid losing business.
Steps for Running a Successful Local SEO Campaign
While there are many methods you can use to run an effective local SEO campaign, the following details the most important steps, which include everything from choosing the right keywords to implementing backlinks and citations in the right locations.
Select the Right Keywords
The initial step in creating a great local SEO campaign involves making a list of keywords that accurately describe the HVAC services your business offers. Along with keywords like “HVAC services”, you might also want to focus on keywords like “heating”, “air conditioning”, and “emergency service”. After you’ve created a lengthy list of potential keywords, you can use platforms like Google AdWords to help with optimization.
Keep in mind that it’s not 100% necessary to create or pay for a Google ad campaign. You should, however, take full advantage of the free Google Keyword Planner that you’ll gain access to with an AdWords account. The keywords you’ve chosen can be placed into the keyword planner, which will help you keep track of the amount of traffic that each keyword drives. You’ll also be given suggestions on related keywords that you could add to your list and use in your local SEO campaign.
All keywords you place in a list can be separated into two distinct categories, which include buying intent keywords and research intent keywords. Buying intent keywords are designed to appeal to people who need HVAC services immediately. When a user searches for “heater repair in NYC”, there’s a good chance that their heater has malfunctioned and needs to be repaired. These keywords tend to bring about quick results, which is why you should position them on your service pages and homepage.
As for research intent keywords, these are designed for prospects who are currently just shopping around and may be interested in having an HVAC business they can contact for a future issue. While this individual may not require HVAC services at the moment, this doesn’t mean that they won’t eventually. These keywords are typically lower priority compared to buyer intent keywords but should still be implemented into blog posts and FAQs.
Optimize Your Chosen Keywords
Now that you have a lengthy list of keywords, you should begin to optimize for these keywords in two locations, which include your website and your Google My Business page. When looking at your Google My Business page, keep in mind that the info on this page will be displayed in the “Map” area of your Google local listing.
Having a well-optimized Google My Business page can help you rank higher in relevant search results. Make sure that every detail you include on this page is accurate, after which you will be tasked with verifying the information you’ve given Google.
When placing your business hours in your Google My Business page, it’s important that the office hours you include are accurate and consistent with every other web listing you’ve made. If you provide emergency repairs on a 24/7 basis, this info should be listed in a completely separate paragraph.
When optimizing your website for your local SEO campaign, your primary pages should be optimized with buying intent keywords. Website optimization involves everything from title tags and meta descriptions to headers that are written as H1 and H2 with HTML coding.
When adding written content to your site pages, this content should incorporate your primary keywords. Make sure that no web page is too lengthy if you want customers to remain interested in the services you offer. As touched upon previously, your core service pages are the most important pages of your website and will be the first place potential customers go when they enter a relevant search term.
Create Backlinks and Citations
Now that you’ve created the base components of your local SEO campaign, it’s highly recommended that you focus on citations and backlinks, both of which will allow you to increase your Google rankings and boost your site visibility. Citations are online directory listings that include your address, phone number, and business name. These listings can be placed in local directories, national directories like Facebook, or HVAC company directories. Most directories are free to use.
As for links, it’s essential that you’re able to obtain inbound links from authoritative websites, which will add a level of credibility to your HVAC business and improve your rankings. Getting other websites and companies to add links to your website requires building relationships, which can take some time.
Track and Analyze Your Results
Once your local SEO has been implemented, the work isn’t over just yet. If you want the campaign to be a success, it’s necessary that you measure the campaign’s performance, identify areas that might not be performing well, and make corrections or changes to further improve your SEO. There are several techniques you can use to measure SEO performance, the primary of which is to use a tool like Google Search Console to track the performance of your webpages and Google My Business page.
You can also choose to track the traffic that enters your website with Google Analytics. This option allows you to view traffic for every page as well as the percentage of visitors who have entered your website via Google search. Google Analytics reports should be referenced and analyzed on a monthly basis.
Another technique for measuring performance involves conversions, which occur when a visitor to your website performs an action like asking for a free estimate or calling your offices. With Google Analytics, it’s possible to track phone and web conversions, which gives you the opportunity to determine which option is driving the highest number of conversions.
Running a successful local SEO campaign can help your HVAC business bring in new customers, grow your brand, and boost conversion rates. However, there are many moving parts that must be implemented correctly if you want your campaign to be a success. Instead of spending a considerable amount of time creating a campaign on your own, consider contacting Dagmar Digital Marketing, which you can learn more about at dagmarmarketing.com. At Dagmar Digital Marketing, you can select full local SEO services to benefit from competitive analysis, citations, content strategy creation, and many more SEO features.
Images by Depositphotos
