Sure, there might still be a few people out there that use the Yellow Pages when they need plumbing services, but those people are few and far between today. Instead, people are searching for a local plumber online. Positive word of mouth and referrals are always a great source of new business, but if you really want to grow your clientele it’s necessary to have an online marketing strategy in place.
Here are a few online plumber marketing “musts” today:
A good website
A plumber website is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s a “must have.” Sure, you might be listed in directories that can be found online, but people that search are looking for more information than an address and phone number. They want to know the history of your company, who works there, and the services provided. If you don’t have a website it can be a turn off, especially to an audience that grew up using the Internet. In addition to including all of the aforementioned information, the website should have a visually pleasing design, easy to use navigation, and be responsive – meaning that it can be viewed across devices (including smartphones and tablets).
SEO/PPC
When someone is searching for a plumber online, they’ll probably “Google it” which means that it’s important to be found towards the top of a Google (and Yahoo! and Bing) search results page for your keywords. In order to be found, it’s recommended to invest in plumber search engine marketing, which is comprised of search engine optimization (SEO) and pay per click advertising (PPC). An SEO campaign is comprised of activities aimed towards improving the presence of a website in the organic (non-paid) section of a search engine results page. PPC involves making payments directly to the search engines in exchange for a prominent spot on the search engine results page. PPC listings are shown in the “Sponsored” section of the page.
Claim local profiles
Because plumbing companies are local businesses, it’s important to claim and update profiles in all of the local directories online to ensure that the information people find in these directories is correct. Start with all of the search engine local directories, since these listings appear at the top for local searches. It only takes a few minutes to register, update your profile, and verify the listing. You’ll also want to check all of the other, smaller directories. Yext is a great tool that allows you to update multiple listings at once.
Social media
In addition to checking out your website, potential customers are going to browse your social media profiles, too. It’s important to create profiles on the major social networks (Facebook and Twitter) and keep the profiles active. A good way to keep followers engaged is to post plumbing tips from your company blog. If you want to increase your exposure in social media, social advertising is a paid option that allows you to target a very specific audience.
We live in an online world today which is why online marketing is so important for plumbers. It shouldn’t replace traditional advertising tactics, which are still effective when targeting a local audience, but should instead be integrated with traditional advertising.
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