The HVAC Marketing Plan

The Hidden Elements of a High-Converting HVAC Website (That Most Contractors Miss)

Nolen Walker — Mon, 02 Jun 2025 11:21:29 -0400

Are you tired of being buried in Google search results while the same 3 HVAC companies dominate your city? In this no-fluff episode of the HVAC Webmasters Podcast, Nolan and Jason break down exactly why your HVAC website isn’t converting — and more importantly, what to do about it.

We talk about:

Why ranking high on Google Maps has less to do with being “big” and more to do with digital brand signaling
How poorly built websites kill your rankings (and how to fix them)
The truth about WordPress, AI search, Google Gemini, and where HVAC contractors are leaving money on the table
The real impact of DataPins and how 90 seconds in the field can boost your rankings and keyword count
Why contractors who’ve been burned by shady marketers need to stop ranting and start rebuilding

This episode is for serious contractors who want to stop relying on broken promises, stop overspending on leads, and start dominating their local market. You don’t need to be a tech wizard — you just need the right foundation.

Learn more at www.hvacwebmaster.com

Why Most HVAC Businesses FAIL at SEO & How to Fix It!

Nolen Walker — Mon, 17 Feb 2025 15:51:37 -0500

Most HVAC businesses are doing SEO all wrong! If you think ranking on Google is just about backlinks, blogging, or AI-generated content, you’re missing the bigger picture. In this episode, we break down:

✅ Why local optimization is the key to HVAC SEO success

✅ How Google, Bing, and AI tools like ChatGPT & Gemini AI choose who ranks

✅ A real-world example of an HVAC company that lost its ranking—and what YOU can do to avoid the same mistake

HVAC Marketing Tips : Google Maps Rules You Can't Afford to Ignore!

Nolen Walker — Fri, 30 Aug 2024 11:24:33 -0400

In this episode, Nolan and Jason from HVAC Webmasters dive into the critical topic of HVAC SEO and why it's in a state of emergency.

They explore the importance of correctly setting up your business's Google Business Profile and discuss the pitfalls of using PO boxes, virtual offices, and home addresses for SEO purposes. Tune in to learn about the impact of location on your search rankings, common mistakes contractors make, and practical tips to ensure your HVAC business gets the best online visibility and local search results.

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Fix those bad google reviews before it's too late!

Nolen Walker — Thu, 09 May 2024 21:01:10 -0400

In this episode of the HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast we hear from Nolen Walker as he explains his method for maintaining good google reviews

The Real Reason HVAC Cities Pages Stopped Working on Google

Nolen Walker — Fri, 03 May 2024 13:58:28 -0400

Don't waste your time and resources! Nolen Walker speaks on some Google updates, and some common pitfalls to avoid.

Is Google Maps Rigged Against Rural HVAC Businesses?

Nolen Walker — Fri, 26 Apr 2024 16:56:00 -0400

Dominate your market, no matter the size! Nolen Walker speaks on ways you can boost your rural business.

HVAC Business Model 101: Be a Tech or Be a Boss (Podcast)

Nolen Walker — Fri, 22 Apr 2022 10:51:58 -0400

Every HVAC contractor has to decide on their business model at some point. For example, do you want to be a tech or a boss? An HVAC technician is an honest way to make a living but being a boss afford

How Not To Get Screwed By HVAC Marketing Agencies

Nolen Walker — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 18:02:21 -0400

Getting hosed by HVAC marketing agencies has become commonplace in 2020. There are so many scam artists in the digital marketing industry who promise things like getting into the Local Map 3-Pack. Unfortunately, promises in SEO are often intentional lies from the marketer to the consumer (the HVAC contractor, in this case). Having spoken with thousands of HVAC companies about their marketing experiences, many of them want to understand one simple thing: how to NOT get screwed by marketing agencies. The HVAC Marketing Plan podcast has decided to tackle this subject in today’s episode, and we hope you learn from it and apply it next time. Don’t Let Them Ruin Your GMB One tactic used by hack agencies is to ruin your Google My Business listing by attaching a separate website to it. These agencies will promise you a ranking within the Local Map 3-Pack and gain control of your business listing. They distort your online credibility by putting up a new website that is cheaply built and unprofessional. Not only do they not help your GMB rank in the 3-pack, but they hurt your overall web presence. The map rankings are based on relevance, prominence, and proximity, and research shows that stronger websites with good links help the listing rank … not cheap websites. So if any HVAC marketing agency tries this, shut them down ASAP. Don’t Trust Bulk SEO Packages If we’ve learned one thing from our HVAC clients, it’s that bulk SEO packages are not to be trusted. An agency that handles PPC, social media, web design and SEO is going to be horrible at SEO nine times out of ten. There’s a good reason for this too. It’s because most of these agencies put SEO on the back burner. Their real money is made through PPC campaigns which can be easily manipulated. For example, many PPC campaigns encourage HVAC companies to spend money on terms that are irrelevant to their business. As the campaign costs pile up, the quality of your web presence decreases. All of this time ignoring SEO only hurts your brand’s long-term trajectory. So if you want SEO, get it from somewhere like HVAC Webmasters, where we actually care about your livelihood and not just screwing you out of money. Don’t Screw Yourself, Either Because of the frequency in which agencies overcharge consumers, there’s a tendency to go too far in the other direction. An example of this is HVAC companies who want to pay $99 dollars for digital marketing and SEO. That’s far too little to help you rank on any search engine or generate any kind of quality HVAC leads. To be fair to yourself and your commitment to business growth, you need to spend between $600-$1,000 per month. The only thing $99 dollars will get you is a glorified hosting fee which ends up as a waste of time and money. Instead, focus on affordable SEO services that actually produce tangible results. You want leads, you want business. The “Organic SEO” Takes Too Long Myth Another myth in the SEO industry is that organic SEO takes too long. It no longer takes a full year to optimize your website online. In fact, if you do everything right, you can be optimized in less than 6 months, and maybe even within 3 months. People use this antiquated idea to encourage you to drain your bank account on PPC and Facebook ads. While those things can work if they are properly executed, they are nowhere near the ROI of SEO. Of course, it only matters if HVAC companies take SEO seriously by investing in reputation management and making a r...

Delivering Excellent Customer Service for HVAC During COVID-19

Nolen Walker — Thu, 30 Apr 2020 14:48:55 -0400

As an HVAC contractor, you probably depend a lot on word of mouth referrals and recommendations. But in a time when social distancing is a must and people are struggling to communicate, this can be a challenge for your business. Nonetheless, the current pandemic is an excellent opportunity to show your customers that your business is of value. One of the most effective ways to do that is to maintain a high level of customer service in these trying times. If you are able to give your customers great service and friendly interactions at this time, your business will reap the benefits both now and in the future. Now is the time to strike while the iron is hot so to speak because many businesses aren’t focusing on customer service right now. Owners have their minds on other things. But if you can be the HVAC contractor that didn’t forget about delivering an awesome customer experience during COVID-19, you will have won a loyal customer. In today’s post, we will be talking about the importance of customer service during this time as well as giving you some customer service tips that apply specifically to the current crisis. Still, it is important to realize that all the following tips revolve around thinking about the customer. And thinking about your customer is a practice that will serve you well no matter what is happening in the world. If at any time you would like to speak to an HVAC marketing expert, please feel free to contact us here at HVAC Webmasters. But for now, let’s discuss some customer service tips to remember. Communicate Clearly Communication is at a premium now that social distancing and quarantines are the norms. It is important that you let your customers know that you can still service all their HVAC needs, first and foremost. Secondly, it is crucial that you communicate with your clients how you intend to keep them safe even as you are in their homes or businesses working on their HVAC systems. You can accomplish both these feats simply by updating your social media pages and website. Outline the preventative measures you are taking against the spread of COVID-19. You can also send an email newsletter to your clients, reminding them that you are still available to service them and that you will observe the recommended 6-foot distancing suggestion, wear protective face and hand coverings and limit face-to-face interactions to only what is absolutely necessary. You can also emphasize these points anytime a potential customer calls you and inquires about your services. Understand Your Unique Position As an HVAC contractor, even you may not be aware of the unique position you are in. But the fact is that HVAC services can actually help to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Running a home or commercial HVAC system can actually stymie the spread of the virus within a building. This is a bit of information that you can leverage to help your customers. Again, you can use email newsletter campaigns or your social media pages to let people know that you can install filters for their heaters and air conditioners to help stop the proliferation of COVID-19. Let them know that they shouldn’t be afraid to run their HVAC systems and ...

So You’re Starting An HVAC Company | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 17:20:18 -0500

So you’ve taken the plunge and decided to start your own business in the heating and cooling industry. Congratulations! While there are miles ahead between you and a medium-sized company, good business sense will carry you through to the end. In our latest podcast, Nolen and Jason explain how frugal spending, do-it-yourself willpower, and cautious investments will make it so much easier to successfully launch your startup. Key Takeaways for HVAC Professionals * Don’t invest in extra tools before you’ve developed a client base!* Keep your recurring expenses as low as possible in the beginning.* As much as possible, do the call handling and scheduling yourself.* Zealously protect your customer calls.* Don’t skimp on essentials: tax work, insurance, legal, and marketing. How to Make a Clean Start We’re all about common sense at HVAC Webmasters. Yet over the years, we’ve seen so many heating and cooling startups enthusiastically speed out of the gate without an ounce of it. The signs are obvious: * Buying tools, trucks, and toys before securing steady leads* Overinvesting in staff without the necessary revenue* Handing over customer calls to an untrained, rude family member* Denying the need for proper tax work, insurance, and marketing That last point is especially difficult to see, because we know just how much heartache and frustration HVAC techs endure because they didn’t bother to invest in support services. Frankly, we’re tired of seeing it happen. That’s why we want to provide a simple guide for getting started in your new HVAC business! Tip #1: Stay Frugal So many heating and cooling services end before they even begin. What’s the number one reason? Finances. Just as poor financial compatibility dooms a large percentage of marriages across the United States, dumb spending practices kills thousands of startups every year. There are several areas HVAC startups struggle in, but let’s take a look at the top 3 ways you can give your finances a fighting chance! EARN BEFORE YOU BUY Unmerited optimism can sink a business faster than you can say “Where did our money go?” Many HVAC companies assume that homeowners will line up to use their services as soon as they incorporate, but that doesn’t happen. While it may feel tempting to buy extra tools at the start of your business, perform the following test first. Ask yourself, “Can I continue working without these tools this month?” Unless you absolutely cannot do your job without that fancy tool, hold off on buying it. That goes for that fancy new truck or service van too! Homeowners don’t care about your choice of vehicle (in most cases). As long as you dress neatly and keep your vehicle clean, clients will respect your skills enough to hire you in the future. HIRE OUT OF NECESSITY While it may be tempting to rent out an office space and feel it with spunky staff members, odds are your startup can function just fine without them. That may require you to occasionally pause during a service visit to take a call, but you’ll save tens of thousands of dollars by scheduling visits yourself. When you hire someone, hire out of necessity. When you start getting more service requests than you can fulfill by yourself, hire another tech. When you’re too busy to provide quality phone service, hire a customer service professional and train them.

True Client Stories: The $5000 Screw Job

Nolen Walker — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:42:59 -0500

Does it feel like your digital marketing company is trying to get away with something shady? Perhaps your marketing expenses seem to steadily climb without generating consistent leads. Hundreds, if not thousands of heating and cooling professionals are going through the exact same story. The only question is: How will your story end? In today’s HVAC Webmasters podcast, Jason and Nolen share some red flags that could shed some light on your marketing company’s sketchy practices. If you spot any of these tactics, it might be time to start shopping for a new marketing agency. Look for these following signs… SEO for HVAC Pros: Red Flags * Blackbox pricing covering up where your ad money goes* Sudden bumps in results immediately after you call to complain* No visible evidence that your website has changed* 3rd party expense reporting not directly from Google 3 Signs You’re Getting Cheated Marketing money is an amazing thing. On one hand, you can invest it into the perfectly tuned advertising campaign and earn a double return on your money! On the other hand, you can trust it to an enthusiastic management team, only to see it slowly disappear with little reward. Sadly, the latter story is one we hear all the time from HVAC professionals around the country. Unless you have the time, energy, and experience needed to execute your own marketing plan however, you’ll probably have to find a dependable company to handle it for you. You may have already chosen a team, and find yourself wondering if they really have your interests at heart. The easiest way to spot a shady firm is to look for these three red flags: * Blackbox pricing structure* Inconsistent payoffs* Lack of visible change in your website Does Your Reporting Come Directly From Google, or a Source Recommended By Your Marketer? Red Flag #1: Blackbox Pricing Money is the ultimate test of character. You can tell a lot about a company by how willing they are to share their spending habits! In the same way, you can quickly get a feel for a marketing firm through their pricing structure. If we could have our way, every digital marketing firm would have to bill month to month. That’s because monthly billing gives HVAC contractors the ability to examine results and judge whether their investment is paying off. It’s a challenging code to operate by (for a marketing business), but it motivates us to continually produce results! Annual Bundle Deals On the other side lies annual contracts. Annual billing (or even longer term contracts) takes away that flexibility from the client contractor and gives it to the marketing professional. Blackbox pricing further complicates the picture by preventing heating and cooling professions from seeing how their money is spent. Say you purchase an annual service package with website design, SEO, GMB, and PPC. The company quickly puts up a basic website, PPC campaigns start up, and results start coming in. Can you actually tell how much of your package budget was spent on each segment? That brings us to our next concern: reporting. 3rd Party Reporting When you invest money in Google Ads, your reporting should only come from one source. Can you guess where? Google Ads. Handing the crucial task of reporting over to anyone besides Google, you’re asking for trouble. Time and time again,

HVAC SEO Conference 2020 (Podcast)

Nolen Walker — Tue, 26 Nov 2019 17:48:07 -0500

The world of search marketing shifts and sways all the time. Even seasoned professionals work hard to keep up to date on the latest Google algorithm updates and industry strategies. That’s why our team invests the time, money, and energy to attend key conferences around the country. In our latest podcast, Nolen and Jason share some of the insights they accumulated from their latest conference adventures! If you’ve struggled to cultivate your online brand this year, be sure to listen in. Key Facts on SEO for HVAC Professionals * GMB plays a more active role now, allowing people to contact your business directly via messaging, phone, or Q&A entries. * SSL Certificates, custom code base, and mobile-ready design should be considered basics, but not every company provides these attributes.* Without a GMB account claimed and verified, it’s almost impossible to show up properly for local maps listings. New Light on GMB One of the most noticeable trends discussed these days is the rising prominence of GMB and the Knowledge Graph. Google My Business (GMB) is a free listing service that allows companies to show up in local searches. Businesses simply need to claim their free listing, provide their basic operational information, and verify their address with Google. Once the account is active, Google generates a Knowledge Graph with contact information, hours of operation, and uploaded photos for your company. Notice the buttons in the middle of the screenshot above. These enable streamlined communication with potential customers around the area. Not only can they easily call your business (even from the road), they can also request quotes via the messaging system. GMB creates high-value prospects without ever needing to send to your website. Optimization for GMB As the capabilities grow for your Google My Business account, so does the responsibility of ensuring your listing stays accurate and up to date. We’ve seen too many businesses lose valuable leads over the years because of discrepancies in their GMB listings. In fact, we witnessed one outside company (a roofing contractor) lose over $2 million revenue in a single year because of a suspended listing. It’s more important than ever to keep your account optimized. How can your business accomplish this? Initial Listing Setup * Make sure you’ve gone through the official verification process. * Use the same address (including abbreviations) for all other listings.* Update your GMB when you start offering new services.* Use your home address only if you don’t have an official office.* Answer as many GMB questions about your operations as possible. Ongoing Activities Good for HVAC SEO * Answer prospect questions in the Q&A section.* Create a short GMB post every week with new content or promotions.* Add team photos, interior views, exteriors shots, and job site pics.* Continue asking for reviews! Bad SEO for HVAC Professionals * Don’t try to mess with other HVAC company websites!* Do not create fake locations to try to expand your service area.* Do not offer any sort of incentives or discounts for client reviews. * Do not get rid of your website domain (barring legal reasons).* Do not leave your GMB vacant after verifying it.

True Client Stories: Almost Great HVAC Marketing

Nolen Walker — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 15:17:06 -0500

Do you find your business shackled to the same sort of non-productive marketing firm every couple of years? Time and time again, we hear stories of heating and cooling professionals regretting their relationships with shady sales-oriented marketers. Despite this, HVAC technicians continue to fall for the same old tricks. Let’s try to put a stop to that today! Jason and Nolen discuss the story of an HVAC professional who never seems to escape from lousy marketing deals. Listen in for helpful lessons on finding a capable online team! Key Lessons to Learn for HVAC Professionals * Marketing teams that hard-sell results tend to provide none. * Accountable pricing and billing make for stronger marketing results.* It’s rarely a good idea to sign on for annual or year plus contracts. Something’s Shady We’re back with another “Bob” for this story. Bob finds himself with a very well-to-do HVAC company. However, he’s continually unsatisfied with his marketing firm’s results. As he shops around, he contacts a familiar page 1 company: our team at HVAC Webmasters. As Nolen answers, he quickly recognizes Bob. He’s already talked with him three times before! A Familiar HVAC Marketing Ride It turns out, Bob had called the Webmasters multiple times before, only to turn to a firm with a more flashy sales routine. We’re fine with contractors partnering with other firms, of course. Bob however, was finding himself in the exact same situation: unsatisfied with his current results. Clearly, his criteria for choosing the right firm to handle his HVAC company marketing clearly wasn’t working. Bob isn’t alone either! Shady Companies Hide Cost Per Click Markups by Managing Google Ads Billing For You. How to Spot a Sham Thankfully, there a plenty of red flags that can help you spot a marketing sham when so many others buy it hook, line, and sinker. Many firms resort to the same old tactics to extract a profit without putting in the effort to grow their clients’ businesses. Here’s a few ways they do it: Ways to Spot a Shady Marketing Company * They’re quick to bundle everything together in one package, one price.* They push hard for annual contracts with upfront payments.* The company salesforce is larger than the rest of the business. * All your interactions begin and end with a sales specialist or relationship manager. * You hear buzzwords in every other sentence, and you rarely understand them.* The company guarantees precise levels of traffic or leads. Look closely at your next marketing company prospect. Examine how they talk, how they price, and how they bundle. They Speak in Weird Buzzwords Sales professionals tend to speak in a buzzword-heavy, high-energy routine that’s quick to promise results. You might hear phrases like “social fortress” that sound flashy, but never get fully explained. Most digital marketing salesmen have just enough knowledge to sound like they know what they’re talking about. The most dependable professionals can easily explain their services, in clear terms. They Promise Specific Search Numbers Have you ever spoken with a marketing professional who promised an exact return on your investment? While some marketing fields can use predictive fields to determine an estimated ROI,

True Client Stories: I Failed Online So I’m Joining a Franchise…

Nolen Walker — Thu, 31 Oct 2019 17:03:24 -0400

Franchises off some alluring benefits to HVAC professionals just starting off, but not all brands are created equal. Is joining on truly the best move for your business, or could you earn better growth through other means? Jason and Nolen reveal a true tale about a heating and cooling contractor thrust into this difficult choice. Be sure to listen in if you’ve considered joining a franchise. Helpful Lessons for HVAC Professionals * The main value of franchise marketing is brand recognition.* Franchise marketing doesn’t work if your community isn’t familiar with the brand your company operates under. * Always check to see if the franchise already ranks well organically! Joining a Franchise Starting an heating and cooling company is tough work! Raising it off the ground into a developed brand is an even more difficult task, with many professionals never overcoming the challenge. That’s what makes joining a franchise such an enticing solution for HVAC professionals. By taking on the name and guidance of a parent brand, they gain access to certain marketing perks that could help them earn more leads. Joining a Franchise: The Pros Brand recognition is huge when it comes to online marketing. When people search your brand directly in Google, their odds of converting into customers jumps way up over keyword searches. Many fresh-faced contractors are particularly keen to win that recognition when they sign up as a franchisee. In addition to this brand access, many franchises offer specialized marketing tools for connecting with potential leads. These may include email templates, physical collateral (like pamphlets), and other digital marketing resources. This makes it easier for technicians who have little to no experience with advertising online. Joining a Franchise: The Cons First, franchise brands take a percentage of your income. That money typically doesn’t come out after taxes either; it comes from your gross profits. This means tens of thousands of dollars withdrawn every year. You’ll feel the loss during seasons of aggressive growth, and you’ll definitely notice it during slow seasons. Parent brands also exercise significant control over their franchisees. This could mean your company is obligated to only work with certain marketing agencies, or that you have to pay fees for help from the parent brand. It might seem like a lot of money, but it could add up over time. Franchising Decision Time The guiding principle and goal behind franchising is to strengthen the overarching brand while providing better sales for the ground level contractors. In theory, an HVAC professional who becomes a franchisee should earn more money than they did before because people are comfortable with the brand. This natural raises a crucial question: What if no one is familiar with the franchise brand? If no one in your community recognizes the brand you’ve associated your services with, then they have no built up trust with that name. Even worse, that means that the brand has little-to-no organic presence in local search. If homeowners and commercial clients can’t even find your website, then how are they going to hire your services? Adding to this concern is the fact that many franchises tight...

Understanding Your HVAC Brand Online (Podcast)

Nolen Walker — Fri, 25 Oct 2019 15:16:36 -0400

In 2021, Branding for HVAC companies isn’t the same as it was two decades ago. When it comes to creating exposure for your HVAC business, nothing fights more challenging for your company than your online brand. If you want to earn more clients (who doesn’t?), you’ll need to understand Google’s local search process and how people find your brand. On today’s podcast, Jason and Nolen dive into some of the general strategies behind online branding. Be sure to listen in if your business has struggled to make headway in local search ranking! Keep an ear open for these essential tips too. Tips for HVAC Professionals: * Even Google needs help separating your business from others. * The search engine uses E-A-T to gauge your brand suitability. * Traditional advertising sees increasingly low ROIs. * Many companies see zero brand visibility without a GMB listing. * Google (currently) sees your website’s age as your company age. The Makeup of Your HVAC Brand What is an “online brand” for an HVAC company? * The Domain Name (or .com) * The Google My Business Listing * All Company Reviews * Blogging and Other Content Updates * Branded / Direct Searches * Citations * Google Map Postings * Social Media Accounts / Activity Google examines all of these signals to determine the value (or suitability) of your online brand. Keep in mind; the search engine has thousands of similar business listings to sort through and hundreds of millions of related pages on top of those! So even the catchiest brand name can get lost in the overwhelming number of industry competitors. Let’s break down these branding facets into three different categories: Identity, Ability, and Activity. Establishing Online Brand Identity Your Target Branding Tools * GMB Listing * Domain Name * Citations * Social Media (Accounts) Despite popular opinion to the contrary, Google is not an all-knowing force of the industry. The search engine’s understanding is limited to the information that users provide. Google can’t produce data from anything. So if you think that Google knows about your 3rd generation plumbing company and overwhelming client satisfaction rate, you might be dead wrong. A Star Brand is Born Google My Business Makes it Easier to Earn Traffic! Most (if not all) company online brands begin with listings and citations. Physical location, company age, operating hours, industry type, service area, and other data paint an essential portrait of your business. You’ll want to provide this data to as many established citation companies as possible. When it comes to local search, the ideal place to kick off your brand is Google My Business (GMB). GMB listings are essential for appearing in local search results, but they also provide helpful interaction capabilities with potential clients via the Knowledge Graph tool. According to consumer research, 56% of search users who interact with your GMB listing use it to visit your website. Additionally, 24% use them to call your business directly (Statista).

HVAC Marketing On The Cheap (Podcast)

Nolen Walker — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 17:47:31 -0400

Almost every business begins with little to no funds for marketing. As a result, even experienced companies can experience a dry season. However, a few steps could make all the difference in the coming years instead of battening down the hatches and doing nothing. Today, Jason and Nolen discuss how to start up your HVAC marketing plan even if you don’t have lots of funds. They’ll focus primarily on growing your search presence, which gradually creates a steady influx of HVAC leads for your business. So if you’re operating on a tight budget, be sure to listen in. HVAC Marketing Tips for Professionals: * Always begin by setting up your Google My Business account. * Buy a cheap template site to start developing your online presence. * Start asking for client reviews, and never stop! * Register your domain as close to your name as possible. Avoid generics. Low Budget Marketing Let’s not waste time. There’s an ideal way to do online search marketing, but sometimes a tight budget prevents people from choosing the best. That’s life. Thankfully, you don’t have to sit on your hands and hope that business will pick up enough to start getting online clients one day! The following HVAC marketing plan focuses on free and extremely low-cost solutions that will build a foundation for your brand. We need to be extremely clear: you (probably) will not notice tremendous results from the start. However, your business will be in a much better place six months from now if you faithfully follow this process. Here we go. Step #1: Get Listed in GMB Google My Business (GMB) offers free listings to help your business get started in local search. These listings are essential if you want any organic leads. According to a recent publication by Search Engine Journal and extensive research by Merkle, “Organic search produced 23% of all site visits in Q2 2019.” However, without registering your company with GMB, your company is unlikely to earn any leads from Google. Steps for Registering Your GMB Account * 1. Go to google.com/business/ and get started. * 2. Submit your company name, location, and industry information. * 3. Set your service radius from your business address (or home). * 4. Submit your contact information. * 5. Choose a method to confirm your listing with Google, then confirm. Step #2: Build a Cheap Website There’s a couple of sweet spots for getting the biggest bang for your marketing budget (or lack thereof) when it comes to website design. On the low end of the spectrum, we’ve found that it’s usually better for startups to begin with a free template design or something dirt cheap. There’s no illusion of fanciness or complicated optimization. Many HVAC companies start experiencing problems when they move beyond the $100 threshold. Of course, you’d expect somewhat higher results and capabilities from a $300 website, but most companies who offer those design packages use a cheap template anyway. So you might as well save the money and invest it in another part of your business. Source:

Should You Halt SEO During Slow Seasons? | Google Search Trends

Nolen Walker — Thu, 03 Oct 2019 11:13:37 -0400

Of all the Google search trends we observe at HVAC Webmasters, one of the most alarming is seasonal drop offs. Not consumers dropping off of the search engine, but HVAC companies dropping off of the front page. Ranking changes happen, but many heating and cooling professionals inflict this problem on themselves. “Should I halt my HVAC SEO efforts during the slow seasons?” Today, we’re going to answer this very important question, and why you should almost never abandon search engine optimization altogether. Be sure to listen in if your company ever struggles to earn sustained lead generation. Key Points to Hold Onto * Google doesn’t recognize the seasonal shifts for HVAC businesses.* Seasonal PPC campaign changes are okay, but neglecting SEO isn’t.* Continued efforts during slow seasons could net you better rankings! Fighting the Natural Urge Google search trends show it and HVAC professionals know it: the heating and cooling industry naturally booms during the hot and cold seasons. That’s why so many businesses strip down to a skeleton crew in the spring and fall. Since business starts to lag during these months, you’d be forgiven for thinking that your online marketing can follow suit. PPC campaigns and social media work can handle the downtime. Organic SEO is another story! Extended periods of inactivity typically result in serious rank drops. When the slow period ends and the busy season roars back to life, your website will face an uphill battle to recoup the traffic losses. More Compelling Reasons When marketing stops, ranking power gradually drops too. Instead of stopping there however, let’s explore some key Google search trends that provide more compelling reasons to continue your organic SEO efforts during the slow seasons. When the Competition Takes a Break… The fabled Tortoise and Hare story teaches the dangers of untimely breaks. On the flip side of that story, we learn that when the competition takes some time off, it’s a wonderful opportunity to gain some ground! Google search trends teach us that many HVAC professionals take some time off from marketing during the spring and fall seasons. That’s the perfect time to rank up in local search! Continue writing your keyword-rich blog articles. Take some time to update and enhance your service pages for a stronger user experience. Keep collecting reviews! As competition naturally starts to fall in local search rankings and your brand starts to climb, you’ll be in prime position for the next busy season! HVAC SEO Still Earns Leads While volume may start to drop as part of the seasonal Google search trends, consumers still need their heating and cooling services! Nowhere is this more true than in Texas and other warm climates, where high temperatures naturally extend far into the fall. Homeowners and businesses continue to experience part failures, even if it’s on a smaller scale. With fewer competitors actively courting these consumers, that’s more revenue for your business to pursue. These clients contribute to your reviews too, sharpening your image for the upcoming busy months. Even in the spring and fall, consumers continue to research replacement options for their furnaces and air conditioning units. If you start planting seeds during the off season, there’s a good chance you’ll earn some very valuable replacement leads in the fu...

The Dirty Secrets of HVAC SEO in 2020 Revealed | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Wed, 18 Sep 2019 15:22:25 -0400

If there’s anything we’ve seen in the year 2019, it’s more of the same from sleazy HVAC SEO companies. We hear all sorts of stories and tales from contractors across the US, but a handful of common tactics seem to pop up pretty consistently. Tune in as Jason and Nolen discuss digital marketing red flags to avoid in 2020. Be sure to listen in if you’re looking to expand your HVAC business next year! Useful Tips on HVAC SEO * $300 a month simply can’t support sustained work on a website. * Stick with month to month pricing! Long term, flat fee contracts often backfire if your digital marketer isn’t motivated to perform.* SEO for HVAC should produce results within two to three months. Tricks from SEO Companies It’s a sad truth of our industry. The handful of well-intentioned, productive services often fall beneath the waves of sophisticated money grabbers. Experienced sales pros learn to sway businesses with high reaching claims and confusing verbiage. So many people get burned every year by shady SEO companies, that many HVAC contractors swear off online marketing altogether. We don’t want that to happen for your business! After all, online marketing provides many valuable opportunities to connect with lifelong customers. So let’s make sure that the sad tale of all these hardworking professionals is not your story in 2020. Below, we’ve outlined some of the most common tricks used by SEO companies to trick contractors. Learn these trends, then use the knowledge to weed out candidates for your HVAC marketing team. Trick #1: The $300 Pricetag Somewhere in the last decade, the $300 online marketing pricetag rose into popularity. It because so commonplace, that our team receives questions about it all the time. “These other HVAC SEO companies offer a $300 monthly package. Why don’t the Webmasters do the same?” Because a package priced at $300 (or less) simply doesn’t work. For such a small sum, digital marketers can’t afford to provide a comprehensive or sustained effort towards your website, let alone PPC campaigns and citations. Results continue to shrink as that price edges towards the $99 dollar threshold. How many experienced web designers do you think can produce a front page ranking site for less than $100? Zero. $300 Per Month Will Not Cover All the Activities Necessary for Productive SEO. Why the Low Price? “That doesn’t make sense.” you might say. After all, why would a business advertise their services at such a low price if they can’t produce results at that rate? First, it’s easy for a company to buy a cheap (or even free) WordPress template and lightly customize it for a client. Second, they only have to accomplish enough work to convince the client that results are on the way. A $300 package may also be used to coax a business into purchasing other services. More often than not however, the low price point simply covers a single “specialized” marketing service. Listen for fancy buzzwords that sound convincing, but don’t actually provide results. Red Flag Phrases from Cheap SEO Companies * “For only $300/month, I can provide website development,

HVAC SEO Strategies for 2020 | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 12:58:55 -0400

What does the online marketing landscape look like as we advance towards 2020? What sort of HVAC SEO strategies can your company use to climb the ranks even higher this year? Nolen and Jason discuss some helpful tips to increase local search visibility and earn more leads. If you’ve struggled to make page 1 rankings in Google Search, be sure to listen in! Helpful Points for HVAC Companies * Original content is still important, but it’s a baseline now.* Collecting reviews is more essential than ever.* Make sure your Google My Business account remains active. A New Baseline for Marketing Original content. That’s a concept businesses live and die by, but also a practice that’s become the norm for those looking to perform well in local search. While everyone can and should pursue original content that provides real value for consumers in their target market, it’s simply expected now. In other words, quality content is the new baseline. To actually win front page rankings and develop a consistent pool of website traffic, roofing contractors have to go above and beyond that baseline. Thankfully, there are plenty of tools at your disposal to rise above the competition and let your brand stand out. Some of them are free tools from Google, while others may require a little investment from your company. Google My Business Activity It’s one of the easiest resources to access, yet so many businesses fail to claim their free Google My Business (GMB) account. If you haven’t claimed your business listing, you’re liking missing out on hundreds of potential customer impressions! Fill out as many boxes as possible, as Google will be more likely to present your business during a local consumer search. GMB accounts come with a number of fun tools to showcase your company. The portal allows businesses to upload original company photos, videos, and infographics. You can also create updates and promotions that show up whenever someone searches your company name. It takes only a few minutes to upload a photo, write some catchy insights about common heating and cooling challenges, then send out the post for viewing in local search! Be sure to post on a regular basis, as GMB posts disappear a week after crafting them. All posts can be viewed from your archives, but Google only shows recent releases in search engine results pages (SERPs). Posts are Also a Great Means of Showing Internal Company Life. You can upload images to serve as your company cover and office exterior shots. Just be careful that the photos you post represent your company well. As of now, there’s currently no way to ensure that your favorite photos are the ones actually showing up in local SERPs. Review Management and Collection Apart from your company website and content optimization strategy, nothing impacts local search like customer reviews. As such, all great SEO strategies work to incorporate a steady influx of client feedback. Google used to favor reviews from its own portal (Google Reviews), but now it prefers them from a variety of sources. You’ll notice that many of the top industry performers work hard to consistently gather reviews from their customers. You’ll find these companies standing out in local service packs, earning premium leads for some of the most popular services. As you can see, even a little effort goes a long way when it comes to reviews.

Why Choose HVAC Webmasters? | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Tue, 20 Aug 2019 12:09:34 -0400

Why do hundreds of contractors partner with the Webmasters’ digital marketing team? Because we deliver results! In our latest podcast, Jason and Nolen take some time to describe the HVAC marketing industry and explain why our services continue to produce better rankings, better traffic, and better leads for businesses across the US. We’ll also explain why so many HVAC companies have a terrible experience with other digital marketing services. If you’ve struggled to find a performance-driven (and honest) marketing team in the past, be sure to listen in! Key Points to Listen For * Most companies start HVAC SEO at a disadvantage.* Businesses optimize for a fraction of the keywords they could.* Local map rankings depend on a variety of optimizing facets. Why the Webmasters? It’s a question we hear all the time. Digital marketing represent a significant investment for businesses. On top of that, so many companies have been completely and utterly let down by marketers in the past. Put simply, there’s bad blood between contractors and digital marketing agencies. Then again, HVAC contractors continue to come back to SEO professionals for the same reason that heartbroken singles soldier on in the search for love. Online marketing is a necessity that very, very few contractors can afford to go without. If you’re going to target consumers online, you need professional talent on your side. The Difference With Our Team We don’t like the marketing bull either. It’s why Nolen and John founded the Webmasters in the first place, and why we continue to let contractors test our results on a monthly basis. Accountability motivates us to produce consistent results, recognize areas for improvement, then deliver even better results! Of course, contractors don’t come to us because we try harder. We actually produce outstanding leads for our clients. Heating and cooling professionals under the Webmasters consistently rank higher, earn more traffic, and generate more clients than the vast majority of their local competitors. Our seasoned HVAC SEO professionals carefully research the search industry to keep up to date with the latest opportunities. That’s why we developed Righteous Reviews, which we’ll talk about later. We keep our clients ahead of the rest in their local search, and that makes all the difference. Some HVAC Marketing Pros Try to Exploit the Search Industry Knowledge Gap. Overcoming Industry Norms Custom schema-coding, extensive keyword-optimization, and fantastic design, all wrapped up in a beautiful website. Over 200 unique points of search engine optimization work together to produce fantastic ranking improvements for each of our clients. Yes, we’re proud! Unfortunately, these results aren’t the industry norm when it comes to digital marketing companies. We’ve talked to hundreds, even thousands of contractors from across the United States. The vast majority of them have scars (and grudges) from their previous online marketing services. But why do so many businesses report having terrible experiences? Perhaps the answer lies in the industry’s abysmally low standards for accountability. The average business owner doesn’t possess tremendous man hours and research history of digital marketing professionals. This makes it easy for marketers to spin wild claims about Google, local search, Facebook, and other crucial staples of the web.

Why Regular Work on Your Web Effort is Important | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Mon, 29 Jul 2019 17:57:33 -0400

When it comes to creating a functional HVAC SEO plan, many heating and cooling professionals settle for piecemeal strategies. Today, Nolen and Jason discuss why SEO is so often an all-or-nothing venture. Cohesive effort makes for lasting results. If your HVAC business struggles with creating traffic online or converting clicks into leads, be sure to listen closely! Key Points to Listen For: * SEO for HVAC requires consistent updates and fresh content.* HVAC SEO is a wholistic effort. Piecemeal plans fall flat.* Geotagged Reviews and Check-ins create fantastic growth potential.* SEO Solutions only work when they get used consistently. Lining Up Your HVAC SEO Ducks True or false: website content lasts forever. While old adages may suggest that whatever content you post online lasts forever, don’t listen to them. Your content may last as long as your domain does, but it could lose its potency long before then. In reality, websites need to to faithfully make SEO updates if they wish to keep ranking on the front page of Google Search results. * “That’s okay. We post to our company blog every month. We’re fine!”* “But My HVAC company earns reviews for every job we complete.”* “When our site was created, we used a lot of hot keywords.”* “Our social media presence will keep us going indefinitely.”* “We’re enjoying fantastic success. We don’t need to make updates!” At the HVAC Webmasters, we’ve heard all of these responses (and more). It comes from the mindset that one single element of SEO can carry the rest without any extra effort. Unfortunately, not even the most sophisticated blog, reviews platform, keyword strategy, or social media campaign can create lasting HVAC SEO success by itself. It takes a little bit of everything to preserve your rankings, especially for those ranking #1 in Google Search! Why Lose Premium Listings By Failing to Complete Regular SEO Updates? Your Key HVAC SEO Ingredients The big list of SEO to-do’s is one we recite pretty often at HVAC Webmasters. If you’ve listened to our podcasts before, you’ll know that we’re very found of reviewing the basics of search engine optimization. What does it take for a heating and cooling professional to be successful online? * Custom Website Development* Fresh Coding* Keyword-rich Pages* Blogging* Reviews (from a variety of sources)* Google My Business Listings* Citations* Social Media Presence Remember, all of these activities contribute towards your overall online marketing success. There’s a natural order to these, which we’ll touch on later. The key is to create a cohesive plan for all these elements to work in harmony. That’s why HVAC contractors who rely on multiple vendors for their SEO updates so often experience muddied results. Customer Questions Make for Great Blogging Topics! HVAC SEO – A Winning Strategy So how can you put together a functional SEO strategy and make it easier for your business to consistently rank for those hot keywords? As we mentioned earlier, there’s a natural order for optimization.

The Best Way To Spend Your HVAC Paid Ads Money | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Tue, 02 Jul 2019 14:52:57 -0400

HVAC contractors deal with heavy competition, especially when it comes to service-related keyword ranking. That’s why so many businesses turn to paid ads, which offer the benefits of pinpoint targeting and bypassed competitors. In our latest podcast, Nolen and Jason talk about creating a successful, cost-effective marketing plan to maximize the return on your ad investment. If you’ve considered experimenting with paid ads, or if you’ve only claimed mediocre returns in the past, be sure to listen in! Look for These Key Topics * How to Prepare for Paid Ad Campaigns* Understanding the Average Lead Journey* Smart Paid Ads Strategy for Beginners * Getting Cost-Effective Results from Your Ads Preparing for Paid Ads As with any part of your online marketing strategy, your paid ads require a firm starting position to launch off of. That foundation is your HVAC SEO (search engine optimization). If you haven’t taken care of these organic search elements yet, you’ll need to do so before attempting paid ad campaigns. Essential Organic Search Elements * Website Creation* Codebase Development* Design – Graphics and Navigation* Content Writing* Google My Business – Registration* Citation Listings* Reviews Integration Once you have a professional website for leads to pour into, then you can kick off your paid ads! Before we dive into practical starting points for your advertising, we need to re-examine the lead development process. You’ll Need a High-Performance Website for Your Paid Ads to Direct To. Understanding the Course of Lead Development In their discussion, Jason and Nolen discuss how even the buying process for a bottle of shampoo may last as long as 3 months. If something so menial requires such a long decision process, it’s only natural that HVAC leads might take even longer to transform into actual business. After all, this is a significant investment we’re talking about! Here’s how a typical non-emergency lead might progress. First, the consumer encounters an element from your company’s marketing program. That might be the product of your SEO for HVAC keywords, social media advertisements, or even word of mouth marketing. When they begin their search for their heating and cooling service, they recall your marketing and visit your site. The initial visit may only last for a few minutes. Fast forward to later in the week or even months in the future, and the consumer returns to your website once more. This time they take longer, visit a couple of service pages, then leave. At this point, they may turn to your social media page and citation sources to examine your company’s reviews. Finally, they revisit your website one more time and make the call to your office! Google Analytics Provides Valuable Insight on User Behavior.

How to Optimize for HVAC Brands Online

Nolen Walker — Fri, 28 Jun 2019 17:31:22 -0400

There are thousands of keyword variations in the service industry, but HVAC contractors generally only pursue a tiny fraction of them. It’s easy to think that the key to success is ranking high for “AC repair” and “compressor leak repair”, but there’s are other paths[Read the Full Article]

Buying Leads: Pros and Cons for HVAC Businesses | The Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 16:44:15 -0400

Most HVAC contractors have a love/hate relationship with their lead services. In this podcast, Jason and Nolen explore the potential perks of buying leads, along with the sometimes disastrous pitfalls. Whether you’ve purchased leads in the past or are considering a service in the near future, you’ll gain some essential insights into the pros and cons of lead gen companies. Look Out for These Key Points * Does buying leads create long-term or short-term opportunities?* Do lead services contribute towards your brand development?* What expenses come out of buying leads?* How good is the lead quality? What Does Buying Leads Mean? Developing a client base takes time, money, and lots of effort. It may take years to develop a comfortable directory of loyal customers. For businesses longing for that initial stimulus of growth, buylings leads presents a very attractive, fast solution. Here’s how it works… How Lead Buying Works * Step #1: An HVAC contractor hires on a lead generation company.* Step #2: The lead gen company connects them with potential customers by phone or email.* Step #3: The contractor accepts or rejects the client, who may or may not decide to do business with the contractor. * Step #4: The contractor renders payment to the lead generating company. What is the Most Popular Pay-Per-Lead Company? Pay-Per-Lead (PPL) companies range from household names to somewhat sketchy businesses. While there are numerous PPL companies out in the market, you’d have a hard time finding a more recognizable name than HomeAdvisor. The business employs untold numbers of sales force personnel and boasts a vast array of contractors. How Much Do Companies Pay for Leads? That depends on the particular service you utilize for your leads. We’ll use HomeAdvisor as an example. According to the HomeAdvisor Pro How It Works page, HVAC contractors pay a mix of annual, monthly, and variable fees in exchange for leads. Keep in mind, the company does not guarantee any of these leads will convert into customers. To quote from their website, “You will be charged for each lead you receive, whether or not you ultimately win the job…” What Costs Can I Expect? * Annual Subscription Fees* General Industry Leads Costs (“Market Match”)* Brand Specific Leads Costs (“Exact Match”)* Supporting Service Costs When people request your company specifically through HomeAdvisor, your company may pay an even higher lead cost rate. You can set monthly target budgets, but lead costs may exceed that number. Questions to Ask When Buying Leads There are two primary concerns your HVAC business should consider when buying leads. First, you’ll need to consider the pricing structure of the service. Some companies quote a relatively low per lead cost, but quietly zing you with additional fees. Others charge higher rates, but do a much better job of outlining what that money buys. The even more essential question you need to ask is: “How does your company qualify these leads?” Is your money actually going towards connecting with ready-to-buy consumers,

PPC vs Organic SEO

Nolen Walker — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 15:59:41 -0400

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PaiX2ak4IQ

Does Your HVAC Website Convert? | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Wed, 03 Apr 2019 17:55:30 -0400

Heating & cooling contractors often wonder why their website doesn’t bring in as many leads as they hope for. Most of the time it is the result of low click volume which is a product of poor web design, codebase, and search engine optimization. But what about advertising? For contractors running PPC campaigns, the low click volume could originate from a poorly managed advertising strategy on Google, Facebook, or elsewhere. Despite these common occurrences there are instances in which traffic is coming in but leads are not. In cases like this, the problem is with conversion rate optimization. If your website is frequently visited but is not converting those visitors into leads then there is work do be done. Here are some of the reasons websites don’t convert: Call To Action Every high conversion website has a clear and convincing call to action. There are too many websites that simply don’t have their basic information listed on the header and footer of their homepage. Every visitor should know who you are, where you are, and what you do. Those three things are non-negotiable. It is not enough however to simply list a phone number. The text must be sized correctly so that users can easily see it. You want the phone number to be big and in the face of the prospective customer. You also want the phone number to be clickable on mobile devices by integrating click-to-call functionality. This way, mobile users can become leads with a simple click making it more convenient than ever to generate new clients online. Personalization An underrated factor in website conversion rates is personalization. What do we mean by that? Have you ever been to an HVAC website that has stock photos or low quality photos? These kinds of images may currently be on your website. What you may not have considered is how a lack of personalization can impact conversions. Visitors who see personable contractors are more likely to call than those who see stock photos or images of angry-looking HVAC employees. This concept is more rooted in traditional marketing than digital marketing but the two merge in this instance. Consumers who have a level of comfort with the business are going to be more likely to engage with them which manifests itself in the form online leads for HVAC. Site Speed Optimization Visitors who bounce off your page immediately will not convert. One of the most typical reasons for an especially high bounce rate is site speed. When sites fail to load within 3 seconds most visitors will bounce. This is particularly true of visitors who access the site through mobile which accounts for more than half as of 2019. Speeding up your website can really help conversions but achieving higher speeds takes some technical sensibilities. For one, your site can’t have too many large files on it, including images that may slow down loading speed. Furthermore, your HVAC site must have clean codebase which means no obtrusive JavaScript or excess WordPress plugins from 3rd parties. Clean designs tend to load fast, increasing conversions. How SEO & Website Conversions are Related We mentioned earlier in this post that most failing websites don’t have a conversion problem as much as an SEO problem. But the reality is that these two things are inherently connected. Google ranks websites at least partially based on how users behave on them. To put it more simply, if your website is poorly designed and lacks clear calls to action, it is unlikely to rank well in the first place.

Avoid The Buying Leads Pitfall, Invest in Your Own Brand | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Tue, 26 Mar 2019 16:41:38 -0400

Buying a lead is not the worst idea an HVAC contractor can think of. After all, leads drive your business. The problem is that in our experience when HVAC contractors do buy leads, the leads are expensive and the contractor is unhappy with the lead. But the issue with buying leads actually expands even further beyond the frequency of dissatisfaction associated with them. Buying leads on their own is a pitfall for you company and dissuades you from investing in the type of marketing resources that progressively increase your brand visibility and generate sales organically and in a manner that can be sustained over a longer period of time moving forward. “I Hate My Lead Source” If you are an heating & cooling contractor who has uttered these words you aren’t alone. In fact you are merely one of thousands of your contemporaries who share the same sentiment. Although leads as a concept are not foolish since the goal of every business is to make profit, the practice of lead buying is inferior to the theory. This is mostly due to poor quality lead distributors who offer “shared” leads rather than exclusives. But even with the best of the worst, leads can become a pitfall for HVAC companies who are climbing uphill vs local competitors. “I Want More Leads” Despite the well-documented disgust with lead sources many contractors continue to buy them. Why? Because at the end of the day they still want more leads. Because securing a lead brings money to their business it becomes a cyclical desire for the company. The profit is just enough to seem like it’s worth it for the heating & cooling business. Getting more leads can be a challenge especially with sources offering shared leads. Worse yet, it often distracts contractors from other forms of marketing that will actually end up producing more sales over the long-run. Shifting Mentality: Invest in Yourself When you purchase a lead from a platform it is them who benefits most. When the consumer purchases your services, the allegiance is to the lead platform and the lead platform is where they will likely return when they need another. This is true even of paying for clicks on Google Ads, Facebook, etc. The reality is that you are investing in these platforms (other people’s platforms) instead of your own. The goal should shift towards investing in your own brand and growing the allegiance of consumers towards your own likeness. This way, you will generate sustainable business for your company and not shell out hard-earned funds to conglomerates. Custom Website First thing you’ll need is a custom website with schema markup. A website can be the central hub of your HVAC company and create a foundation for subsequent web work. Most websites today are built with templates, either from a WordPress theme market or from DIY website builders like Wix, Weebly, and SquareSpace. While they have their advantages of course, they don’t have the type of long-term potential that custom sites do. They are limited in terms of organic optimization as well as long-term control of your brand which is what we want to avoid. Google My Business Nobody will take your company seriously without a Google My Business page. You might ask how this is different than a lead platform since you are investing in Google rather than yourself. First of all, you are not investing money. Google My Business is free to claim and match with your Google Maps listing. Second, GMB listings can be linked to your main website so that your own web property becomes associated with the Google listing as well as the Google Reviews and Google Maps placement that comes along with it. All of this is free of charge for companies. Search Engine Optimization The best leads actually come from organic clicks on Google. Ranking for terms like “ac repair” and similar phrases can drive searche...

They Can Optimize Their Own Site But Will They Optimize Yours? | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Wed, 13 Mar 2019 11:02:45 -0400

When HVAC contractors look for marketing services online they usually search Google. The companies that come up in those searches have clearly optimized their own websites which is why they are ranking on page one and why you clicked on them. But just because their own site is optimized doesn’t mean they will optimize yours (to the same degree) if and when you become a client. Independent researchers noted specific cases where client websites did not meet even close to the standard set by the company website. This dynamic is very misleading to prospective customers who are expecting the same type of optimization effort on their own site. Pitfalls of working with SEO companies are not new. Lip service is a fairly common occurrence for web geeks. Understanding how to weed out the bad ones can pay off in the end. Aggregate Reviews Achieving Maps placement is important but it is not possible without reviews. Google prioritizes HVAC businesses that have established a reputation through reviews. Generating reviews is not an easy task necessarily but it is a relatively simple one. As a client of HVAC Webmasters your website includes our Righteous Reviews widget which allows customers to leave a review directly on your website which is than distributed to Google, Facebook, or Yelp. Also, the widget populates existing reviews of your company from those same platforms and displays them for all visitors to witness. The best way to get someone to leave a review on your website is to ask in person. Deep, Heavy Content Websites that optimize typically have deep, heavy content. That means multiple in-depth pages explaining different aspects of their services. That means weekly or monthly blog posts that provide valuable and informative reading material on the subject matter. A one page website will never optimize to its potential. For Google to acknowledge a website as an authority on a topic, it must showcase its relevance over and over again. Good content is not a one time action, it must be written and published consistently including with relevant internal links to enhance user experience. Maps Placement For HVAC companies many clicks will come from Google Maps. The Local 3 Pack appears on search results for HVAC related queries and if you are properly optimized can generate a substantial number of leads. Since The 3 Pack is showcased above traditional organic results, customers are more likely to click them. It is estimated that close to 70% of searchers click organic results over PPC ads but Google Maps listings are included as part of “organic” results. The best part about being included on the Local Map Pack is that you’re likely to also be on regular organic results. Organic Clicks As a full digital marketing agency our team provides advertising services in addition to SEO. We help HVAC contractors with their Google and Facebook ad spend and attempt to maximize revenue from that technique. While ads can certainly be helpful, organic clicks still provide the greatest ROI which is why we believe so strongly in them at HVAC Webmasters. Because organic results are achieved through a series of optimization tasks they do not require the same kind of fixed payment that PPC advertising does. SEO is sustainable so organic clicks will continue to yield profit over time. Is Your HVAC Website Optimized? Sometimes contractors don’t know whether or not their site is optimized. They certainly are aware of the amount of leads they are generating but may not be able to identify what is working and what is not working on a website. That’s why Google Analytics and Google Search Console are very important too...

Shame Tactics That Big Marketing Companies Use: The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 17:22:33 -0500

Marketers will use every trick in the book to mislead wide-eyed contractors for financial gain. Here are some of the most common ones. #1 The Shell Trick The shell trick started when “real SEO” quit being done. This occurrence took place around 2014 when Google’s algorithm raised its demands for what it took to rank a webpage online for relevant keywords. Fast forward to 2019, and implementing quality SEO is more difficult than ever. As a result, marketers have offered packages that breakdown costs into different shells. They will say that SEO costs x amount, mapping costs x amount, PPC costs x amount, etc. There is no all-inclusive packages with the shell trick which is its inherent problem. Big marketing firms will shame customers who are unwilling to invest in each shell. When SEO is done right, it includes all aspects of it and doesn’t need to be broken down into a bunch of different categories in its pricing structure. #2 The Glorified Hosting Fee Marketing companies often present their services as a detailed procedure involving in-depth website management and optimization. The reality for many is that their payment is a glorified hosting fee. You receive a decent-looking template website that is rarely worked on and are then sent monthly reports generated by 3rd party tools like SEMRush, AHRefs, MOZ, or others. Many of these reports are confusing but do enough to appease the average HVAC contractor for the time being. Not because the HVAC contractor is gullible or unintelligent but because they are being mislead by professional manipulators. Worse yet, big marketing institutions will shame companies who question the results of their services. #3 Blackbox Billing If you pay $5,000 to invest in a PPC campaign, many marketers will hold on to $3,000 of it, claiming that it is going towards your other parts of the shell in the aforementioned shell trick. Since you pay the marketer directly, and not Google Ads, you are at their mercy. There is no transparency involved with these transactions but it does cause HVAC contractors to get screwed out of their hard earned money. If you ask why you aren’t performing well, many marketing companies will shame you into spending more. The worst part is that the $3K being redistributed does not actually go towards quality work (in most cases) so there is really no advantage whatsoever to working with these kinds of SEO firms in 2019. HVAC Webmasters: A Transparent Alternative At HVAC Webmasters, we do SEO the right way. Never once have we utilized any of the tactics listed above, nor have we shamed contractors into believing that their lack of spending is the reason why marketing services lack quality. As an all-inclusive SEO agency, we perform everything from custom website design to full search engine optimization, which is all included in our SEO package. We even do custom coding, schema markup, content writing and marketing, as well as regular site work. Having worked with HVAC companies for the better part of the decade, we have built a great rapport with the industry and understand how to best market those services.

Organic SEO Is Your 24/7 Employee For Your HVAC Company: The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 09:33:38 -0500

Prior to the internet, HVAC companies would employ people to hand out flyers door to door. While this strategy might’ve been somewhat effective in 1969, you could not work an employee more than the maximum number of hours in a day because of federal and state level regulations. But what if HVAC companies could have a 24/7 employee who generated leads at all times of the day and night? They can by investing in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). That’s right, SEO serves as an effective employee for HVAC contractors who are looking to acquire customers in their local service area. Whether it is Google Maps or organic results, SEO can pay major dividends for companies in 2019. Best of all, SEO never turns off, making it a non-stop lead generator for heating and cooling companies. Organic SEO consists of many elements. One of the most important for HVAC is local SEO. Since HVAC companies are usually local, targeting consumers within in a defined radius creates the most favorable ROI. But local SEO is not the only aspect of optimization. On-page, Off-Site, and Technical SEO also collectively influence a company’s search visibility. Obviously, the more well represented you are on Google SERPs the more valuable of an “employee” that SEO becomes. Think of it like a salesperson who converts at a high rate. You would pay them more than the person who only gets one lead per 1,000 consumers. The great thing about SEO, is that once you establish rankings, the lead generation process can become an ongoing asset. Why Organic SEO Works 24/7 Consumers have never before in history had so much access to A) an internet connection and B) a device on which to access it. Most public places have WiFi connections, and most Americans have a mobile device of some kind on their person. Even at times when people are away from a WiFi connection, phone carriers allow for internet access through their servers. The bottom line is this, a considerable amount of consumers can now access the net 24/7. What this means is that a search for HVAC services can happen at literally any time, and with SEO, your search results will be there waiting for when it does happen. The higher the search ranking, the more times users will view and click on your search result, and ultimately enter the sales funnel. Organic works 24/7 because of: * Consumer Behavior * Mobile Devices * WiFi Connections Is Organic SEO Cost Efficient? A 24/7 employee would presumably by expensive, right? Wrong. Organic SEO is one of the most inexpensive employees you will ever have on the payroll. While some digital marketing campaigns require an ongoing investment like PPC Google Ads and Facebook Ads, SEO is far less of a financial burden. The best part is that once established, its ROI becomes astronomically higher than that of any kind of paid advertising. That is because its cost is so much lower. Keep in mind that like with any other kind of marketing investment, SEO is dependent on quality. Proper optimization will yield substantial ROI in typical cases, but poorly executed SEO can end up as money down the drain. Preventing inferior SEO companies from selling you their services is easier than you might think. There are multiple red flags to look for when evaluating a potential SEO company for your heating and cooling business. Here’s why good SEO is cost efficient: * Low Cost * Ongoing ROI * Sustainable Growth Planning The Right Organic SEO Strategy Knowing that the quality of an SEO strategy can make or break its effectiveness, HVAC contractors should understand what it takes to plan a strategy that is projected to succeed. A proper SEO strategy consists of keyword research, URL structuring, and high quality content writing. Other supplementary factors also play a role,

Why Marketing Companies Abandoned Real SEO: The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Nolen Walker — Thu, 14 Feb 2019 12:14:31 -0500

Marketing companies have mostly abandoned the fundamentals of SEO in favor of less effective but more salesworthy tactics. Find out the nuances of why these companies are leading clients down the path of most resistance and what can be done to steer clear. HVAC Webmasters has been marketing for contractors for the better part of the last decade and we’ve seen it all when it comes to search optimization.

Old School Networking is Dumb

Nolen Walker — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 09:23:19 -0500

Old School Networking is Dumb

How You See Your HVAC SEO vs. How Google Sees It

Nolen Walker — Fri, 01 Feb 2019 10:49:49 -0500

Summary: Sometimes contractors have a false perception of a quality website. What you see as a website that looks good to your eyes might not even rank in the top 20 for its target keyword. The best websites can be easily crawled by Google and[Read the...

HVAC SEO Doesn’t Work for You Because You Don’t Work SEO

Nolen Walker — Fri, 25 Jan 2019 10:06:27 -0500

HVAC SEO Doesn’t Work for You Because You Don’t Work SEO

My Google Ranking Suddenly Dropped: What Now?

Nolen Walker — Fri, 18 Jan 2019 10:37:16 -0500

My Google Ranking Suddenly Dropped: What Now?

HVAC Website Templates: Pros & Cons

Nolen Walker — Thu, 10 Jan 2019 14:46:04 -0500

As a heating & cooling contractor, managing a website can be a headache, much less designing one yourself. Over the past number of years, 3rd party website builders have made it possible for the average person to create DIY-esque websites.

Only The Marketing Man Shall Pass

Nolen Walker — Thu, 03 Jan 2019 16:24:08 -0500

Marketing is the key to any HVAC business. Nolen Walker, a former home service business owner himself knows there’s 3 fundamental things every contractor needs to succeed: Low Cost Leads Phone Calls Market Branding Thoughts of a Marketing Purist Identi...

Seasonal PPC for HVAC Contractors

Nolen Walker — Fri, 21 Dec 2018 10:25:23 -0500

HVAC companies should approach PPC campaigns differently based on the season. After all, most consumers are looking for different services in the winter than they will be in the summer. Depending on the climate of your service area,

Eat, Sleep, & Market Online

Nolen Walker — Fri, 14 Dec 2018 10:45:43 -0500

Marketing can be a constant asset for your HVAC company. The goal for contractors is to generate leads. If you don’t have leads, you don’t have business. Each day when you wake up, the goal should be to have so many leads that you can’t[Read the Full A...

HVAC Websites: How Long Until They Rank?

Nolen Walker — Wed, 05 Dec 2018 16:17:38 -0500

Brand new domains have little chance of ranking on Google page one prior to the 6 month mark. While special circumstances exist that serve as outliers to this general principle, the majority of heating & cooling websites won’t rank in the top 10 for at...

SEO Title Tags for HVAC Contractors: Best Practices

Nolen Walker — Thu, 29 Nov 2018 12:15:23 -0500

What is an SEO Title Tag? A title tag is a segment of HTML code that signifies the title of a webpage. They appear as the clickable portion of a search result on search engine results pages (SERPs). To ensure your title displays properly on[Read the Fu...

Marketing for Multiple HVAC Business Locations

Nolen Walker — Wed, 21 Nov 2018 10:30:57 -0500

The component of local SEO that causes the most confusion across the board is marketing for multiple locations. When you, as an HVAC company, have multiple legitimate locations, there are challenges that come along with properly optimizing a website to...

HVAC Marketing Guide for Contractors (2019)

Nolen Walker — Thu, 15 Nov 2018 17:35:17 -0500

2019 will present marketing opportunities for HVAC contractors, especially those who are willing to market their services online. Each year, new trends appear that provide additional outlets for lead generation. As the saying goes,

Old School Organic SEO for HVAC Companies (Episode 5)

Nolen Walker — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 12:27:37 -0500

The basis of organic search engine optimization is the same as it always has been. Google’s objective was always to provide the most relevant results to its users, but its algorithm was not always advanced enough to do it.

Facebook Pixel Tracking (Episode 4)

Nolen Walker — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 09:43:54 -0500

What is Facebook Pixel Tracking? It is a remarketing technique that uses a tracking code on your website so that when website visitors navigate away from your website and to Facebook, they see your advertisement and are reminded of your services. Facebook Statistics People spend[Read the Full Article]

Organic Ranking (Episode 3)

Nolen Walker — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 15:52:07 -0400

Ranking on organic search results is the cheapest and most sustainable way to market your HVAC business successfully in 2019. Unlike PPC (Google Ads), organic ranking does not require a bid or payment to Google. Instead, the search engine ranks these results algorithmically based on their artificial intelligence. Sites deemed most relevant to the user’s […]

In House Marketing Experts (Episode 2)

Nolen Walker — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 15:28:46 -0400

A business has two options for digital marketing: 1) Outsource Marketing to an SEO Company / Marketing Agency 2) Hire or Appoint an Employee To Handle Marketing In House Compare & Contrast Each Option: Hiring an SEO Company The case for hiring an SEO company[Read the Full Article]

Showing Up on Google Maps (Episode 1)

Nolen Walker — Wed, 26 Sep 2018 09:56:30 -0400

Every wonder what it takes to show up on Google Maps as an HVAC contractor? You’re not alone. In fact, it’s one of the most frequently asked questions by prospective clients interested in using our services to improve their lead generation. The good news is that we have an abundance of knowledge to share with […]

The HVAC Marketing Plan

The Hidden Elements of a High-Converting HVAC Website (That Most Contractors Miss)

Why Most HVAC Businesses FAIL at SEO & How to Fix It!

HVAC Marketing Tips : Google Maps Rules You Can't Afford to Ignore!

Fix those bad google reviews before it's too late!

The Real Reason HVAC Cities Pages Stopped Working on Google

Is Google Maps Rigged Against Rural HVAC Businesses?

HVAC Business Model 101: Be a Tech or Be a Boss (Podcast)

How Not To Get Screwed By HVAC Marketing Agencies

Delivering Excellent Customer Service for HVAC During COVID-19

So You’re Starting An HVAC Company | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

True Client Stories: The $5000 Screw Job

HVAC SEO Conference 2020 (Podcast)

True Client Stories: Almost Great HVAC Marketing

True Client Stories: I Failed Online So I’m Joining a Franchise…

Understanding Your HVAC Brand Online (Podcast)

HVAC Marketing On The Cheap (Podcast)

Should You Halt SEO During Slow Seasons? | Google Search Trends

The Dirty Secrets of HVAC SEO in 2020 Revealed | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

HVAC SEO Strategies for 2020 | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Why Choose HVAC Webmasters? | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Why Regular Work on Your Web Effort is Important | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

The Best Way To Spend Your HVAC Paid Ads Money | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

How to Optimize for HVAC Brands Online

Buying Leads: Pros and Cons for HVAC Businesses | The Marketing Plan Podcast

PPC vs Organic SEO

Does Your HVAC Website Convert? | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Avoid The Buying Leads Pitfall, Invest in Your Own Brand | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

They Can Optimize Their Own Site But Will They Optimize Yours? | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Top Questions To Ask an SEO Expert | The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Shame Tactics That Big Marketing Companies Use: The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Organic SEO Is Your 24/7 Employee For Your HVAC Company: The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Why Marketing Companies Abandoned Real SEO: The HVAC Marketing Plan Podcast

Old School Networking is Dumb

How You See Your HVAC SEO vs. How Google Sees It

HVAC SEO Doesn’t Work for You Because You Don’t Work SEO

My Google Ranking Suddenly Dropped: What Now?

HVAC Website Templates: Pros & Cons

Only The Marketing Man Shall Pass

Seasonal PPC for HVAC Contractors

Eat, Sleep, & Market Online

HVAC Websites: How Long Until They Rank?

SEO Title Tags for HVAC Contractors: Best Practices

Marketing for Multiple HVAC Business Locations

HVAC Marketing Guide for Contractors (2019)

Old School Organic SEO for HVAC Companies (Episode 5)

Facebook Pixel Tracking (Episode 4)

Organic Ranking (Episode 3)

In House Marketing Experts (Episode 2)

Showing Up on Google Maps (Episode 1)