Statistics show that 70% of consumers prefer to learn about a company through a blog post rather than an advert.
This is not surprising, given that blog posts provide potential customers with value, whereas adverts usually do not.
But blogging can do more than make customers happy. It can also dramatically improve your website traffic and SEO ranking. Further statistics show that adding a blog to your site can increase traffic by 434%.
If you are marketing plumbing and HVAC services online, this increase in SEO rankings and traffic is a valuable source of leads.
However, to achieve this kind of result, you have to implement an effective blogging strategy.
So where's the best place to start? Right here, because we're about to walk you through what you need to do to start leveraging blogging to boost your SEO rankings. Let's dive in!
Build Authority With Informative Content
One of the biggest benefits of blogging is it increases your authority. What's more, it does this in not one, but two ways.
Firstly, blogging increases your site's authority with Google and other search engines. As you build up a store of relevant content around plumbing and HVAC topics, Google will start to associate your site with these areas.
If you post content that is geared for search engine optimization, this will send signals to Google that you are an authority on plumbing and HVAC. In turn, Google will display your content in more related search results.
Building authority with Google is essential for driving traffic. However, authority is also important for your brand.
The more informative content you publish, the more this will show site visitors that you know what you're talking about when it comes to plumbing and HVAC work. In other words, you become the expert.
If visitors gain value from what they read, they'll come to trust your business. After a certain period, you'll stick out in their minds as the go-to when it comes to HVAC or plumbing problems.
In some instances, they might be able to use your free content to solve a problem. However, in many cases, they might need to call in an expert. And who's the expert again?
If you have been publishing helpful, authoritative content, then it'll be you.
Incorporate Keywords to Rise in Search
In order for your blog posts to appear in search results, they have to answer search queries that people are making.
What's more, they also need to be structured in a way that makes it easy for Google to see what the content is about, so Google can serve them up to people who are typing in related queries.
When it comes to blogging and digital marketing, one of the most important SEO strategies is keywords. Keywords are essentially search terms that you can target in your blog posts.
An example of this might be "how to fix a clogged toilet." People are searching for this, and you can answer their query by creating a blog post about fixing clogged toilets, that incorporates this keyword.
Besides this primary keyword, you'll also want to target a handful of secondary keywords, such as "unclogging a toilet" and "toilet unclogging services".
When it comes time to produce your blog post, you need to incorporate the keywords so that Google can pick up that the content addresses the question of how to fix a clogged toilet.
A best practice when it comes to keyword place is to have your primary keyword in the introduction, body, and conclusion. It should also appear in the title, tags, and meta description of your blog post.
The secondary keywords should be sprinkled through the post wherever they fit in contextually.
When placing keywords, be aware that more is not necessarily better. Yes, frequent mentions of your keyword is good for SEO rankings. However, if it's repetitive or jarring to the reader, this isn't beneficial. What's more, if you go overboard with the keywords, Google might even penalize you for what is known as "keyword stuffing".
Target Local Audiences
Getting more traffic is something everyone wants, and you might be thinking "But how can my small blog compete with the giant sites that're out there?" Well, fortunately, it doesn't have to.
If you do end up outranking some mega sites, that's great. However, you don't have to achieve this to gain leads.
If you implement effective local SEO strategies, you'll be able to hone in on leads within your area. Ultimately, these are the leads you want. Unless you serve the entire country with your services, having a lead in Wyoming is not much use if your plumbing or HVAC business is based in Seattle.
Instead, you want to make sure that people in need of HVAC and plumbing info in your area are coming to your site. By implementing locally-focused search engine optimization you can show Google that it should display your content to people searching for plumbing or HVAC info in your surroundings.
Local SEO is something you will need to do sitewide. However, once you have done this, your content will start to rank in local searches.
Gain Ranking Power Through Link-Building SEO Strategies
Another important element of search engine optimization is link-building.
Blog posts offer a perfect opportunity for link building.
You can add internal links in various places on your site. However, blog content gives you lots of real estate in which to work in additional internal links, as well as external links where appropriate.
Want Help Boosting Your SEO Rankings?
Blogging is one of the most effective long term marketing strategies for boosting your SEO rankings and gaining new leads. Through blogging, you can build both brand and site authority, target keywords, and practice killer link building.
However, blogging (and the SEO strategies that go with it) takes time and expertise. Do you feel like you have too much on your plate to worry about this as well?
If so, we can help. Here at Plumbing & HVAC, we offer a 360-degree solution for all your digital marketing needs.
What's more, if you only want help with your SEO rankings, we also provide stand-alone organic search visibility services.
