Contractor Marketing Channel Checklist
Marketing requires multiple different channels working together towards getting you a conversion. You can’t just use one marketing channel and expect to get results. You need to be ready for every type of customer regardless of where they are in the conversion process.
What is a Marketing Channel?
Marketing channels are tools or resources (like a salesperson) that are used to build a connection between the customer and the company. HVAC businesses should be using multiple marketing channels to generate leads and start booking appointments. Each channel can serve a unique purpose or share a common purpose with other channels. For example, direct mail and PPC campaigns may be working together to get new leads in a zip code where you want to get more appointments.
Do you have everything you need to make your HVAC company the best version of itself? Make sure you have everything we’ve listed below on our marketing channel checklist.
What Marketing Channels Should HVAC Companies Use?
1. Mobile and SEO-Friendly Website
You already have a website, but are you implementing good website practices? In 2021, mobile devices generated 54.4% of global website traffic. That means people are constantly searching up and visiting your website on their phones, so your website needs to work for those customers. In other words, it needs to be responsive. If they can’t get your website to work on their phone, why would they trust you to work on their HVAC system? First impressions are everything, so make sure your website is ready for every device of all sizes.
Along those lines, your website should be implementing good SEO practices. In order for people to look at your website, they need to be able to find it first. An effective SEO strategy will help you get to the top of search results.
2. Active Social Media Accounts
Social media is a great tool for building awareness of your company. It’s free and there is already a huge audience spending time on the platform just waiting for you to grab their attention.
While posting on social media, remember that most sites can be indexed by Google. This means that what you post on social media can help Google determine the relevancy of your website. So you need to keep your content informative, relevant, and professional. Don’t let that scare you from having fun. If you aren’t enjoying your posts chances are others won’t. Once you start posting, keep your accounts active. It’s not a good look if a customer goes to your Facebook page and the last post was from years ago.
Social media accounts also help build up your website’s backlinks. Backlinks are when another domain links to your website. Google takes backlinks into account when deciding where your website should rank overall.
But what social media should HVAC companies be using? What about listing websites? Here are a few to keep in mind:
- Google My Business (Required)
- Facebook (Required)
- Yelp (Strongly Recommended)
- Twitter (Optional)
- Instagram (Optional)
- YouTube (Optional)
- Angi, Formerly Angie's List (Optional)
3. Email Your Customers
Email can also be utilized to keep in touch with your current customers. Keep your customer database up-to-date with accurate emails so that you can send reminders about any maintenance or check-ups your customers might need.
Maybe they have been thinking about how they need to do something with their AC and your email was the motivation they needed to call. Or maybe they scheduled an appointment with you a year ago and they totally forgot your company’s name. Good thing you are keeping in touch!
Whatever your goal is, emails can work together with your other marketing channels to achieve them.
4. Direct Mail Campaigns
Just because the digital world is continuing to grow doesn’t mean that direct mail is dead. Companies around the world still use direct mail for customer retention, gaining new leads, brand awareness, and more. You can utilize postcards, flyers, and more to send to your customers and get the ball rolling on scheduling appointments.
Don’t take our word for it. Here are some direct mail statistics from Finances Online:
80% of consumers act on direct print mail advertisements.
77% of consumers say print drives a higher level of recall.
82% of consumers trust print ads the most when making a purchasing decision.
5. PPC Ads
Are you running pay-per-click (PPC) ads for your HVAC company? If not, it is definitely something you want to look into. Google processes about 63,000 search queries every second. That’s almost 2 trillion searches a year. Although it’s a lot, it’s probably not surprising considering you and everyone you know uses Google! So why not advertise on it?
Unlike other forms of digital advertising, PPC campaigns only have you pay if someone clicks on your ad. You can choose from multiple different types of ads, but your most common search ad will near the top of a Google search. This means that even if someone doesn’t click on your ad, they are still seeing your name and associating you with that search.
PPC ads are easy to start and you will start seeing results in no time.
6. Local Service Ads
Local Service Ads launched in 2015 and since then, only a few types of companies have been able to advertise there. Luckily, contractors, plumbers, and HVAC companies like yourself qualify!
Unlike PPC ads, Local Service Ads don’t rely on keywords. Instead, the location of the search and the relevancy of your company determines how an ad shows up. To run ads you first must be verified by Google, which is a big part of why users like the local service section. Customers are more willing to take a risk with a company they don’t know if Google has verified that the company has proper paperwork, passed background checks, and has real reviews you can trust.
7. Trained Employees
This is a short tip since you already know your employees are trained experts. However, start training your employees to look at and think more about your marketing.
After a service repair, they should be reminding customers to leave a review so your company’s online presence is a little more trustworthy. Make sure your employees are aware of what marketing you are running, what it looks like, and if you are currently offering any deals or specials. This will help with your brand image.
How Can My Marketing Channels Work Together?
You know that your company revolves around the seasons. That means that your marketing needs to be seasonal as well. Make your messaging relevant to the season so the customers feel more of a connection and urgency to schedule an appointment.
Think more than just summer and winter. You could have a pre-summer campaign to focus on check-ups and maintenance that people may want before they start using their AC units daily. If it’s the middle of the summer and you know there is a hot week coming up, change your social media and PPC ad copy to reflect that and put emphasis on the repair services you offer. During the slower seasons, you could use your channels to focus on attic fans, indoor air quality systems, and more.
If you rely on the same marketing material all year long or need help perfecting any of the marketing channels mentioned above, Hudson,Ink is here to help.
For over 20 years Hudson,Ink has been helping contractors like you utilize all the marketing tools available to get you more leads while maintaining your current customers. By focusing only on companies like yours, we have been able to perfect our techniques and services while keeping up-to-date on all the current marketing trends.
Reach out today to learn how we can help take your company to the next level.