Website Optimization Strategies for Contractors
- Strengthen Local SEO: Update city pages, add authentic local content, and optimize your Google Business Profile for community visibility.
- Improve On-Site Performance: Refresh keywords, update content, boost page speed, and ensure mobile-friendly navigation for a seamless user experience.
- Maximize Visuals & Off-Site Signals: Use optimized photos, videos, reviews, links, and social engagement to build trust and improve search rankings.
Sustaining long-term growth is a process for any home services contractor. You know the importance of building relationships within your community, one customer at a time. Website optimization is a process, too. Once you have a strong website foundation in place, you’ll still need to update it from time to time, and that means taking a look at the core elements that play a role in ranking.
Website optimization for home service contractors should focus on the key areas we’ll focus on in this blog. By establishing core best practices and then analyzing and updating them over time, you’ll continue to grow your traffic and build your brand.
Update Your Local Keyword Optimization
Google is an always-changing playing field. You and your competition are in a constant battle for who ranks higher, and Google’s job is always simple. Which website delivers a better local experience for the searcher?
To know this, the search engine looks at your use of local keywords. That means your website should incorporate the names of the cities you service. For example, if you are working on your roofing company marketing, you may want to include phrases such as “Detroit roofing company” or “roofing company in Aurora.”
That’s not enough, though. You also need to ensure your content is locally centered. Google is smart enough to know if you are just putting terms into your site or if you are really a local company. Here are some strategies to update your content and deliver a truly locally centered website.
- Incorporate city pages. Build out the content on your website to include a city page for each of the major cities you service. This allows you to input details about each city and retrieve the relevant keywords for those communities.
- Use local language, terms, and names. Incorporate content that shows you know the area. For example, if you are working on your HVAC marketing campaign, you may want to include the highways you travel to get to your clients. For example, “We service all of the Cleveland area, up and down I-71, I-77, and I-480.” Incorporate street names, big destinations, and local terms for your area.
- Build out your Google Business Profile. Be sure your profile on Google includes a list of the cities you service. It should also include an accurate name, address, and phone numbers.
Local keyword use is a core component of home service contractor marketing. Remember to come back to your keywords on a routine basis to see how well you’re ranking. Make adjustments over time.
Build On-Page Optimization
The next core component of website optimization is your on-page efforts. That is, it’s the use of your keywords and technical SEO that enables you to rank well. Let’s be clear – on-page optimization incorporates a wide range of areas, and there’s no single specific step to take to rank highly. That’s why you should focus on refreshing and updating the following areas to ensure they are performing at the highest level for you. By keeping these areas consistently updated, search engines can easily navigate your site and accurately assess its value.
- Keyword research: You know the importance of authentic, targeted keywords that fit your business specifically. However, this is not a one-time process. You should be refreshing your keyword research each month, looking for new strings to target based on competition. Choose a marketing platform that helps you to stay ahead of trends like these.
- Content update: When was the last time you updated your homepage content? Sure, the information may still be the same, but if the content isn’t updated with an optimized strategy, it’s missing opportunities. Work to refresh the content to include more current figures and details, updated information on your company, and new details that help your content outshine the competition. Don’t stop at the homepage either.
- Page speed: Testing and optimizing page speed helps customers get to you fast enough. It also ensures the search engines can get to your site fast enough. Check your current page speed and ensure it is under 3 seconds ideally.
- Mobility friendly: Have a friend pull up your website on their mobile device. Ask them to find a specific product or service. For example, if you’re working on your remodeling contractor marketing strategy, ask them to pull up your page on flooring. How easy is it to get to? Does it look the way you expected? Ensure your site is moving fast and reliably.
Each one of these steps can help your business build a site that performs better. Website optimization updates to page content are not just about adding more pages or more content. You also need to go back and update what you’re already doing to ensure it’s still helping you rank.
Tip: Don’t Overlook Your Blog
One of the most important ways to keep the search engines interested in the content you have to offer is by keeping your blog moving. It’s the simplest way to target new keywords and reach a wider audience. Google loves fresh content, and the more you provide of it, the better your site will perform.
Improve Your Images and Videos
What people see on your website matters, too. That includes both the use of videos and images. These should be easy to understand and communicate the services that your business offers. Roofing company marketing should include roofing-related images, for example.
The images on your website should be professionally created. When possible, use authentic photos, including:
- Images of your company’s leadership
- Clear pictures of your office space or business headquarters, if you have them
- If you are a mobile service, a photo of your vehicle can help
- Incorporate photos of your sales team, especially if they visit your customers’ homes
Don’t overlook the importance of using videos on your website as well. Videos enable branding support and can be a critical component to providing an authentic level of engagement. People watch videos to learn about companies. Choose a range of videos to include, such as:
- Behind-the-scenes videos that showcase what happens during consultations, what the work process will involve, and what the follow-up services will include.
- Use before and after videos, especially in your remodeling marketing services. Use before and after photos and transformation videos that allow you to demonstrate the entire process within a few minutes.
- Testimonials are also important as they build trust in your customers.
Why do videos and photos matter to website optimization? There are two key areas to consider here. First, the videos and photos on your site communicate important messages to Google about your business. They incorporate tags and descriptions that provide valuable SEO support. In addition, you need to ensure your visuals are optimized so that they look great (creating a solid first impression) and that they load quickly. If there are any slowdowns in the loading process, customers will move on to the next site, and Google will ding your ranking.
If you haven’t updated your images in some time, now is the time to do so.
Optimize Your Offsite Efforts
We’re talking about website optimization, but what you do in your off-page optimization strategy also matters. You absolutely have to engage with your audience, and you can do that in several key ways to boost your website ranking. Here is a list of steps to take now to update and refresh your efforts to draw in more customers and clients.
- Get more links. A link-building campaign will help Google see the value of your site. It allows the search engine to recognize that other websites value yours. Use site directories, link-building campaigns with partnerships, and even local efforts with companies in the communities you serve.
- Get engaged on social media. Google likes to see people coming from social media to your website. To get that type of traffic, it may be time to update your social media efforts. Update your pages to be more reflective of your brand. Incorporate activities, contests, videos, and conversations with your followers. Get people talking.
- Citations: Seek out citations for your website wherever you can. That means ensuring your business is listed in local directories.
- Work on your online reputation management. This is something contractors must do, but often put off. If you don’t have a strong set of reviews online, launch an SMS campaign with your recent clients to request them. Reviews drive website optimization by increasing traffic.
All of these steps help, but perhaps the most effective strategy for your business is to ensure you are staying consistent with your brand. Website optimization does not matter if you cannot close the deal. For that reason, now may be the right time to consider tweaks to your brand image.
Get the Right Tools in Place to Maximize Your Marketing
Home services marketing is made easier when you use an all-in-one platform like Surefire Local. To get started, request a demo this week. We can help you deliver success across all areas of website optimization.
