Ready for to capture more local search traffic that can garner business for your roofing company? Of course; that’s why you’re here!
Before jumping into, I must clarify, SEO for a roofing business (or any business) is not a sustainable or scalable customer acquisition model, and for that reason in my own home service businesses, I focus on paid advertising and brand building and let SEO be the by-product. If you’re interested in they ‘why’ behind this philosophy I’ll add some links to the bottom.
That said, Local SEO can bring some ‘icing on the cake’.
Let’s break down what factors influence local seo for roofing businesses.
Proximity
Local SEO is about being… LOCAL.
Simply put proximity matters. If you’re 25 miles away from where the local user is searching, are you REALLY the local company they want? Maybe, but most likely they are looking for a business that lives in the same local community.
For that reason some small businesses are opening ‘satellite’ offices in areas closer to the their desired customers. I personally know multiple HVAC businesses that have leased space in a strip mall close to target residential neighbors. They utilize the space as a ‘training center’, but their primary motivation for doing so is to get a verified location Google.
Time Online
Ever see a business website that just pops up everywhere and you can’t figure out why? It seems like they do no SEO, and have an outdated website, yet they show up for every search query.
It probable has something to do with the age of their business.
This factor can’t be manipulated and I believe Google realizes businesses that have stood the test of time are likely the ‘best’ results to serve.
Branding
If you’ve googled anything ‘roofers’ you’ve certainly noticed that Homeadvisor, Yelp, BBB and the similar show up near the top. There’s no magic SEO sauce that they have, they simply have very large established brands, and highly engaged website users.
It’s easy for Google to monitor branded search traffic, users typing the brand name directly into Google, and it’s hard to manipulate as Google can detect unique users and their online behavior.
As a roofing contractor, you too can build your own brand offline, and it will resonate in the online world. One strategy I like is running radio ads telling listener to ‘Google your brand name’.
Reviews & Reputation
Google’s mission is simple, they want to serve their users the most useful and relevant information to their users. If someone is searching for a roofer, the ‘best’ result would certainly be one that is reputable.
For that reason the most Reviews matter. Build reviews customers on Google Local, and other review platforms. While much of the focus is on Google local, I believe reviews across the web are a impactful factor.
User Generated Content Published on Your Google Local Profile
Google Local is not just about about reviews.
Google gives users the option to publish photos of your business. Encourage your customers to upload photos of their projects, your team on the job site, or them with your company sign.
You can even incentive your staff with bonuses if one of their projects leaves a review with pictures.
Content On Your Website
Google likes content rich websites that add value to users and provides them with information.
Be sure to include a good bit of content on your website explaining your processes and answering common questions.
Name / Address / Place Citations
I have this one last for a reason. Nearly every ‘seo guy’ says you need NAP citations on 10,000 websites… seriously? There’s not even 100 legitimate websites to get citation from; do you think Google cares about citation on the other 9,900 spam sites?
Yes citations matter, so it is good to keep the name, address and phone consistent, but there is no need to chase a high count of citations.
Instead foster relationships with your customers who will share your name, phone number, and maybe address publicly online. That citation in a real user forum, is more valuable than any that could be ‘created’.
Related Links:
Is SEO Dead? Dissecting The Trend Of Search Platforms & User Behavior