Increase Leads With These Proven HVAC Internet Marketing Strategies
Clement Foo
Senior Digital Content Manager
It is common knowledge that the needs of the average customer are constantly changing. However, bear in mind that it is the contractors who are willing to change their HVAC marketing strategy with the times who will benefit the most. If you adapt these strategies to the evolving nature of consumer need, chances are that you can enjoy higher traffic of phone calls, along with more leads and bookings. It is important to note that the strategies that might have been effective just 2 or 3 years back might not even be relevant today. Below are some HVAC marketing strategies that have been proven to increase the number of leads and booked appointments.
The Modern Consumer
In this day and age, with such advancements in technology, it is very difficult for businesses to rely on word of mouth. If HVAC businesses relied solely on their customers to do the talking, they would not be able to keep up with the rest of the industry. In order to keep up with the times, business owners need to know that modern HVAC consumers are much more impatient and seek immediate services. The expectations of these customers is that their inquiries and appointment requests have to be answered immediately with immaculate customer service. If they are unsatisfied in any way, they would most definitely try to find a service provider that can meet their demands instead.
In fact, it has been shown that more than 50% of American customers have stated that they consider changing companies if they experience more than two incidences of unsatisfactory customer service. Almost half of these ‘loyal’ customers also admitted to switching to a company that is more relevant to their needs as well. It is also worth noting that the typical consumer in this day and age spends 8.8 hours looking at digital content and most HVAC customers visit a company’s website before they choose a contractor.
Invest in Building a Better Website
As mentioned above, updating your HVAC website to create a seamless user experience is incredibly essential because it creates an impression for the consumer. As such, you have to be willing to make changes to your website so that it better suits your customers’ needs. There are some pretty simple strategies that you can undertake in order to make your website an absolute moneymaker.
- HTTPS: In this climate that is rife of digital security issues, it is critical that your website is completely secure. Using HTTPS can help your search engine ranking and will increase the level of trust that your customers have in your company as well.
- Speed of your website: One thing that consumers hate is a website that lags. The speed of your website definitely affects your bottom line. This is especially so for mobile devices as more and more people are making the switch to using mobile platforms. Research and surveys have shown that consumers will not wait more than 3 seconds for your website to load. Thus, it is best that you consider building a website that is compatible with mobile devices and optimized for SEO.
If you are in the HVAC business, you should know that being one with the times means that your website has to be mobile-friendly. In fact, this is one of the main ranking factors in the Google algorithm. Note that more than 50% of HVAC customers access these websites from a mobile platform. If you were a customer, you should not have to search for information on the website because it should be readily available. Furthermore, you should place your company’s contact number in a location on the website where all visitors can see easily.
The Importance of Search Engine Marketing
Running a website can be difficult when you want to increase the amount of traffic that your company receives. One extremely effective strategy is to use search engine marketing. This is a perfect method to advertise your services and products to homeowners because they will be able to find your company online when they are searching for a HVAC provider. Some of these marketing strategies include SEO and pay per click advertising.
It is also worth noting that 93% of consumers start looking for HVAC businesses using a search engine. People who use the internet should know that if your business does not turn up on the first page of the search, chances are that customers will never hear of you. There are many search ranking signals and some of the most important signals include the following:
- Schema markup
- Speed of website
- Age of your domain
- Optimized images
- Good and relevant content
- Customer user experience
Every page in your website can help you to improve your ranking as long as you utilize the proper relevant keywords. Therefore, it would benefit your business to have as much content as possible as this increases the chances of satisfying a wider range of consumers.
Using Google Ads
If you are searching for advertising suggestions for HVAC, you can consider Google Local Services advertisements. They are easy to use and also the first thing that comes up when someone searches for similar services in your location. With more people using search engines, it is getting more and more difficult for your services to pop up from organic search results. Therefore, using Google Local Services ads and PPC ads can help your company show up on the first results page.
To achieve this, you simply have to apply for a Google Guarantee. However, rest assured that you will only be charged for every qualified lead and when your customer searches for the service you provide in a particular geographical location.
Making Use of Video
If you run a HVAC business, you should definitely capitalize on the fact that most customers do not know how to change their own HVAC filter. Most modern consumers will look for video tutorials or instructional how-to videos to help them in this process. 86% of American YouTube state that they regularly make use of the video sharing platform to learn new things. YouTube is also the second-largest search engine in the world. This is because it is fairly simple to use and videos help consumers, who are largely visual to retain information more effectively. It also helps to increase the conversion rate up to 80% when you place links to videos or actual videos on your website. The important thing is to create relevant and engaging videos that appeal to a large demographic.
If you decide to place videos on your website, you should limit these videos to no more than 2 minutes because consumers like videos that are short and sweet. You should also place these videos on service pages that are more popular or place them in your blogs. In order to increase viewership, you should post these videos to both your website and your YouTube channel. Posting your videos to your social media accounts will help increase conversion rates as well.
Auditing Pay-Per-Lead Investments
You might be tempted by marketing platforms such as Yelp and HomeAdvisor because they are the first few search results when you search for HVAC services. However, there are many different factors that you have to take into account when you are choosing whether or not to invest in these pay-per-lead options. If you want to find out if your current investments are helping your business, calculate the return on marketing expenditure and see if there are more pros than cons. This process is not difficult and can help you to save a huge sum of money in the long run.