Get 14 plumbing local SEO tips to increase your visibility on Google, convert searchers into paying clients, and grow your business online!
Did you know that more than 70% of people who look for a nearby plumber on their phones using Google call them within a day’s time?
Or 28% of these nearby plumber searches result in booked jobs?
That’s the power of plumbing local SEO – and doing local keyword research.
Plumbers and other home service contractors are crucial in our modern society, yet they face one major challenge in venturing into new markets: Snatching away clients from their competitors.
Many property managers and homeowners have built strong relationships with home service contractors like roofers or plumbers, thus making entering into new markets hard.
Fortunately, there are several ways that plumbers can succeed in an entirely new market, especially when getting new homeowners or offering emergency services where other plumbing contractors are unavailable.
The best sources for leveraging these opportunities are through Google search, and you can increase your visibility there using local SEO best practices for plumbers.
So, how do you ensure that your plumbing business gets a top listing when local clients are searching for a plumber to go to their business or home as promptly as possible?
In this post, you will find the hidden tactics and tips to help your plumbing company rank #1 on Google for local searches, build a client base, and grow your brand.
Without further ado, let us dive into our post.
What is Plumbing Local SEO?
Before giving out our proven local SEO tactics for plumbers, let us first know what local SEO is and how it can help plumbing contractors book more jobs online.
Plumbing local SEO is the same as conventional SEO, but only that it comes with a geographical element. It is a process that involves optimizing your plumbing website for local city-specific search terms. It is the new ‘yellow pages’ for local plumbing contractors these days.
Local SEO is more powerful when localized since there is less competition, which makes it easier for your plumbing company to rank on the coveted spot on the first page of Bing, Google, and other search engine result pages (SERP).
Local SEO is the practice of grabbing local search territory to better connect with potential customers nearby. This strategy works best for plumbing businesses that have a local client base. How local SEO for plumbers works is by concentrating on the main factors below:
- Relevance: This refers to how well your listed plumbing business matches the local search query. The more detailed it is, the easier it will be for a search engine to identify your listing.
- Distance: This measures how far the physical location of your company is from the search location.
- Prominence: This refers to how well your plumbing business plays into the SEO results. Factors such as average star rating and Google review count matter a lot here.
Through conventional SEO, plumbers try to rank for generic keywords such as:
- Drain Repair
- Hot water heater
- Plumber and more.
On the flip side, local SEO connects your plumbing business with potential clients and neighboring homeowners who show local buying intent in their searches, such as the examples below:
- Plumbing services in [City, State)
- Plumbers near me
- Plumber in [City]
- Emergency plumbing repair [City, State]
- Emergency plumber near me
Selecting the right local SEO keywords for your plumbing company can help you rank higher on Google when prospects search for your services on Google.
While local plumbing searches may have low search volumes, it is more about driving relevant traffic that is ready to book jobs with your business.
As a plumber, you need to make it easier for clients to find your local business on Google and other search engines like Yahoo or Bing.
First things first; why is it crucial for your plumbing company to rank higher on Google for local searches?
Keep reading to find out.
Why Do You Need Plumbing Local SEO?
As the owner of a plumbing business, you are not essentially worried about your site rankings on a day-to-day basis. You have more things on your plate to fret about like attracting new clients and getting projects completed on time. However, you can obtain new leads and clients through your plumbing website and by boosting your online presence. Plumbing local SEO can be crucial to gaining a competitive edge in the market, particularly if you operate in an area that is saturated with competition.
Related: Is Plumbing SEO Worth It For Small Businesses?
There are several reasons why local SEO is crucial for plumbing contractors. Consider the following benefits of investing in local SEO services and incorporating it into your internet marketing campaign.
Local SEO Boosts Your Business Visibility on Search Engines
If you have not optimized your plumbing website for local searches, then you better start now. Research has shown that plumbing contractors who prioritize investing in SEO services experience first-page rankings on Google and the advantages that come included.
There are numerous methods to optimize your plumbing website for local plumbing searches. You can add location-specific keywords to your website. Combining such keywords with your services will improve your site’s visibility on Google and other search engines.
Other optimization tactics include off-page plumbing SEO. You can improve search engine visibility by listing your business on Google Business Profile and backlinking best practices such as Guest posting or blogging. Local SEO makes your plumbing business easily discoverable by new clients.
Plumbing Local SEO Offers More Qualified Search Traffic
The promise of getting more traffic won’t be of any help if the traffic is of low quality. It is crucial to attract clients who are likely to hire your company for plumbing services and those clients should be within your service area.
Local SEO for plumbers helps to weed out visitors who are not likely to contact your plumbing company. This is not because Google and other search engines have made a joint effort to prevent businesses from clients, but because they want to offer relevant local results based on intent and proximity. So a client who is 50 miles or more away won’t see your plumbing business show up in search, but one who is just five miles away would.
Local SEO Helps You Reach More Customers
Maybe your plumbing business has a physical office that clients can walk into to inquire about your services. However, not all clients will use this strategy to learn more about your company. In the modern world, many homeowners will utilize the internet to conduct any preliminary research on their plumbing business beforehand.
So while you may have some foot traffic to your office, you must also consider those who will turn to the internet and search engines like Google or Bing to find your business. Local SEO for plumbers will assist you to reach this subset of customers who are not physically coming to your office.
Local SEO Makes Your Plumbing Business More Competitive
Even if you are not investing in local SEO services, you can be sure that other plumbers in your niche are doing it. This implies that they are a step ahead by default, and they are snatching all your potential customers.
It doesn’t help to be the most innovative and best plumbing business in your area if no prospect or client can find you. When all these other plumbers are showing up on the first page of Google local search results, they control the market.
To test this, put your plumbing business niche into Google alongside your local service area and see what happens. For instance, if you run a Los Angeles plumbing company, search for “plumber in Los Angele” or “Los Angeles plumber.”
What shows up?
It is likely that you are not even on the first page if you have not invested in your local SEO strategy. This implies that most people won’t see your plumbing business unless they want to view more results on the subsequent pages of Google. Many people click on the initial links (if not the very first link they come across).
By investing in your local SEO services for plumbers, your rankings will rise up and compete with other local plumbers within your niche.
Local SEO Increases Customer Retention
It goes without saying that if local clients find your plumbing business via an online search and have a positive experience, they are likely to come again and become repeat clients. Such customers are easier to sell services to and often refer your business to other homeowners in the same locality, bringing in more customers.
Establish More Trust Through Higher Local Organic Rankings
Among the advantages of local SEO is that this internet marketing strategy can help you build more trust with clients because of your higher organic rankings. When conducting Google searches, most people are likely to contact plumbing businesses that are listed higher in the local search results. Even if they may end up looking at the plumbers listed lower or on the second or third page, they might not trust these plumbing contractors as much.
The thing is, they have not committed any offense-service wise-when compared to plumbers with high search rankings. However, just because their search ranking is low, customers are hesitant to book jobs with them. Plumbing local SEO can lead to higher rankings, which can make your plumbing brand more trustworthy and visible in the eyes of potential customers.
Local SEO for plumbers is a Cost-Effective Marketing Solution
Comparatively speaking, SEO for plumbers is an expensive way to market your plumbing business. Considering the fact that more than 80% of smartphone users conduct “near me” searches. This implies that if your plumbing company is appearing high in the relevant local search results, you are already targeting local prospects well. Thus, you can reduce your plumbing advertising costs. There will be no need to place ads in the local newspapers, send out flyers or perform localized social media campaigns when locals find your plumbing business online.
14 Local SEO for Plumbers You Can Implement Right Now and Get More Clients
The right plumbing local SEO strategy can assist you to reach your ideal customers through organic searches locally on Google, Bing, and more. Traditional SEO tactics perform well, but if your focus is on a local market, you will want to follow SEO tips for plumbers like the ones we are going to discuss in this post.
If you operate a small plumbing company with a brick-and-mortar office or all your clients are based in a specific area, you may think this facet of internet marketing is crucial to you. But using certain local SEO tactics could actually increase your footfall dramatically.
Local SEO can assist you to grab the attention of prospects living nearby who haven’t come across your plumbing company before.
Here, we are going to outline our top plumbing local SEO tips which will ensure that your plumbing business pops up when a homeowner nearby is looking for a business like yours online.
Plumbing Local SEO #1: Claim and Optimize Your Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile appears in local search pack results and is showcased in Google Map searches as well.
Google Business Profile is a platform built by Google where local service businesses like roofers or plumbers can list their contact details, offer, address, and any other information that might attract potential clients. Plus, these Business Profiles appear in Google Maps in local results of Google search when a prospect looks for relevant businesses in the area.
Simply put, the Google Business Profile is the Yellow Pages of our modern digital world. This means that if you don’t have a Google Business Profile listing, now it is time to get one.
As a result, optimizing your Google Business Profile helps customers to call your plumbing company, drive to its location or visit its plumber website with just one click.
To claim your Google Business profile, follow these simple tactics:
- Create a Google Business Profile: This will generally include creating a Gmail for your plumbing business.
- Check whether your plumbing company is already listed on Google: The easiest trick to achieve this is by typing your business name on Google Maps and its pops up, then your business is listed.
- Click “Claim this business” or “Own this business” on your Google Business Profile. Sign in to your Google Business Profile and follow the steps to control your profile.
Next, to optimize your Google Business Profile listing properly, use these tips and dive deeper into our ultimate guide.
- Make sure that you use a consistent NAP citation (i.e., Name, address, and phone number).
- Verify your plumbing business on Google Maps.
- Respond to client reviews on your profile with kind responses or helpful advice.
- Write a clear description of your plumbing business and its services.
- Use high-resolution photos to showcase your business and brand.
Not only is an updated plumbing Google Business profile a convenient tool for assisting local customers to find your business, but you can also get and respond to client reviews there. This can be incredibly powerful, as prospects will normally search for positive reviews when they are deciding whether to contact a local plumbing business that they have never encountered before.
2. Focus on Your Plumbing Company Website
After completing the task on your Google Business Profile, you can begin optimizing your plumbing website for local search. You should begin with the service pages and homepage on your plumbing website. These are the main pages of your plumbing website where the user intent keywords that you identified in your keyword research will play a critical role. Here are some crucial things you need to do in order to optimize your plumbing website for local search:
Title Tag
The title tag, which is also known as the “page title” is displayed on the web browsers after your website domain name. The title tag is also displayed as part of the blue headlines when pages are listed on Google’s search results.
The page title of your homepage should include the location, primary category, and the name of your plumbing business. Here is an example to guide you through:
Plumber in {Your City} | {Business Name}. For instance, if your plumbing company is in Murfreesboro and the is “Geo plumbing”, your title tag might be Plumber in Murfreesboro|Geo Plumbing.
Optimize Your Meta Description
A meta description is a text that shows below your URL. It should offer information that will persuade potential clients to click on the link and visit your plumbing website. Here is an example of a meta description:
Name of Business offers professional {list of plumbing services) in {Your City}. Call {phone number} instantly and we will send a plumber out to your property within 1 hour!
Here is what a meta description might appear like for Geo plumbing:
Geo plumbing provides professional drain cleaning and plumbing repair in Murfreesboro, TN. Call 888-XXXX-XXXX now and we will get a plumber out to your home within one hour!
Optimize Your Plumbing Website Service Pages
Allocating a separate page for every service you offer helps for a great deal of information to be presented, which will offer the best plumbing SEO results.
For instance, if you offer HVAC repairs and maintenance services, and drain cleaning, creating a dedicated separate page for each one will work better than consolidating all your putting all your service pages on one page.
3. Make Sure That Your Plumbing Website Is Mobile Friendly
The first thing is to ensure that you have a professional website for your plumbing company. The site should be easy to use and must be mobile-friendly.
About 60% of online searches come from mobile devices. When your client gets stuck in a plumbing problem, they utilize their mobile phones to search for local service providers such as roofers or plumbers. Your plumbing local SEO strategy must include optimization of your website for mobile devices.
4. Add Location Pages to Your Plumbing Website
If your business has more than one brick-and-mortar location, consider creating multiple location pages. Location pages offer readers your name, address, hours of operation, unique business description, and testimonials from happy clients.
It is also crucial that you don’t duplicate content across numerous location pages. For single-location plumbing businesses, create a descriptive About us page. You can even obtain bonus points if you embed Google Maps on your plumbing website.
But remember that because we are focusing on plumbing local SEO tactics here, these need to incorporate more than just a contact number and email address.
Here is some other information you should add:
- An embedded Google Map
- Where to find parking, if required
- Exterior and interior photos of your office.
- An optimized description and title
- Local news or other crucial information
- Compelling calls-to-action that allows your clients to understand what to do next.
It is crucial that your location plumbing service pages are not just photocopies of each other with a few tweaks here and there. Customize them with particular descriptions, explanations of differences in plumbing services, and other details that reflect the unique character of every location.
5. Create Local Plumbing Content
Another way to make sure that search engine algorithms and people understand exactly where you are based is by crafting unique content with a local focus.
Sharing about your connections with the surrounding area shows that you are an active member of the community and have a lot of local knowledge. This will appeal to those trying to book jobs with you, and assist you to increase your local search engine rankings.
Be the local authority for your plumbing industry by promoting local industry news, employees, and other educational stuff on your blog. Consider top-of-the-funnel content that goes beyond what your company offers.
The right type of plumbing SEO content can draw many people into your office, as long as it is engaging and well-targeted.
6. Target Local Plumbing Keywords
Do you know that more than 80% of prospects/customers utilize Google, Bing, and other search engines to find a local plumbing company like yours?
Homeowners/property managers turn to Google to help them in connecting businesses in their neighborhood that provide the plumbing services they require. To appear in these organic search results, you need to include local keywords in your plumbing website to assist you in ranking.
Related: “Plumber Near Me” Searches: How To Rank Your Plumbing Business Higher On Google
Local plumbing keywords are search terms that contain location-specific keywords that offer results related to the service area. Such search terms help drive wallet out potential clients to your business and play a vital role in optimizing your local search engine optimization strategy.
Put yourself in the shoes of a homeowner who requires your plumbing services. What keywords would you use to find a plumbing contractor? Create a list of keywords that come to your mind such as plumbing repair, plumbers and plumbing contractors, and so on.
Then combine those search terms with local keywords a homeowner or business may use to find your plumbing services. Now you have an expanded list:
- (Your search area) plumbers
Example: Murfreesboro plumbers
- Plumbing contractors (your search or residential area)
Example: Plumbing Contractors Murfreesboro
- Plumbing repair(your search area)
Example: Plumbing repair Murfreesboro
Go ahead and write down all other services you provide such as drain cleaning, toilet repair, and more.
7. Obtain Regular Reviews from Satisfied Clients
Another crucial factor while implementing local SEO for plumbers is the positive online reviews. Google prefers online reviews while ranking your plumbing business locally. If your profile has numerous positive online reviews, it implies your service is trustable and legit by the clients.
Asking your customers to leave glowing reviews online for your plumbing business doesn’t just optimize your GBP presence; it also encourages local clients to book jobs with your business. According to a survey conducted by Bright Local, over 85% of customers believe in online reviews as much as they do with recommendations from friends and family members.
So, if your plumbing business is getting tons of positive reviews from high authority sites like BBB or Yelp, it stands a good opportunity getting found in the local organic search results. If you want to skyrocket your company’s online reviews, start by requesting your existing customers. Next, make it hassle-free for clients to review your plumbing business. You can email your current customers with a link that directs them to your Google reviews.
Here are some strategies to encourage clients to review your plumbing company online:
- Request for a review after closing a plumbing sale.
- Send a text or email asking your clients to review your plumbing business.
- Respond to the existing online reviews promptly and professionally, addressing issues from negative reviews and thanking reviewers.
8. Optimize Your Plumbing Website for Voice Search
With the high use of digital assistants like Siri or Amazon Echo, voice search SEO has altered how prospects look for plumbing services online. So, if you have not included voice search into your plumbing SEO strategy, you need to fix that ASAP and stop losing prospects to the competition.
Therefore, it is important to optimize how potential customers ask questions on these devices in the local plumbing SEO instead of how they would type their queries. Furthermore, your customers will utilize long-tail plumbing SEO keywords when performing voice searches compared with normal searches. That said, you will have to adjust the SEO of your plumbing content to suit the more conversational tone of the customer speaking. For example, you will want to pay attention to conventional question starters (When, who, why, how, where, and what).
Read also: How To Win More Plumbing Clients Using Voice Search Optimization
It is also important to figure out the searcher’s intent when optimizing your plumbing website for voice search since these searches are performed when a searcher needs particular information. If they are doing their household chores and ask Alexa to find a plumber near them, they expect a helpful and quick response. If a prospect uses voice search to request for your business hours, this response should be readily available.
9. Get Inbound Links with Authority and Relevance
With the optimization of your Google Business Profile and plumbing website completed (at least for now), it is time to widen your scope and begin skyrocketing your organic search rankings. Inbound links offer your business compelling opportunities to boost your plumbing local SEO, each of these links tell Google that you are a legit company, and they can also improve your domain authority. Here are a few tactics you can use to get local backlinks to your plumbing website:
- Contact local bloggers who have interviewed local plumbers in your area to contribute an interview or quote.
- Write guest posts on sites with local influencers to share some DIY plumbing repair tips and other associated content.
- Contact newspapers in your town that list local plumbing contractors and request for a link to your website.
- Sponsor a local team, host an event or volunteer that forces bloggers and journalists to write about your plumbing company.
These strategies will help give your plumbing brand exposure, which in turn, will drive more clients to your company over time.
10. Conduct Local Plumbing SEO Keywords Research
Keywords related to your plumbing business are vital for your local SEO strategy to be successful. Google Keyword planner is a great tool to utilize when conducting keyword research. It is an efficient tool that assists you to obtain fresh and new keywords for your plumbing local SEO campaign.
If you are struggling to get search terms to use for your campaign, there are various tools available online to help you get keyword ideas, such as Moz, Ahrefs, and more. You can plug those keywords to obtain your monthly client traffic volumes.
Examples of plumbing SEO keywords could include:
- Emergency Plumbing service
- Toilet clog and repair plumbing service.
11. Be Social to Improve Your Plumbing Local SEO Strategy
Social media is not just for big plumbing brands and industry influencers. Your local plumbing business page can leverage social media usage benefits too.
More specifically, your local plumbing business page can be a perfect place to keep clients up-to-date on the latest events, sales, and changes (like the hours of operation). That’s because even with a plumbing website, a social media profile is synonymous with a living version of your plumbing business.
Related: Top 6 Social Media Marketing Strategies For Plumbers
Perhaps users of Facebook benefit more from local plumbing business pages. A few examples of the advantages of maintaining social media profiles for your plumbing business include trend tracking and building great relationships with your clients.
Here is how your small plumbing business can stay active on social media:
- Choose which platforms are right for your plumbing business based on the target audience and features.
- Post quality plumbing content regularly.
- Use automation and scheduling tools to test and enhance engagement.
- Participate in local roundups and events.
12. Fix all Technical Plumbing SEO Issues to Rank Higher on Google
If you are serious about optimizing your website for local search, then fixing all technical SEO issues should be on top of your list.
Simply put, technical or off-page plumbing SEO is the process of ensuring that search engines like Google or Bing can parse, discover and understand the content on your website. The better you are at technical SEO, the more likely you will rank higher in local search.
Here are some of the ways you can fix your technical plumber SEO issues and rank higher on the search engines:
Optimize Your Plumbing Website for Mobile Devices
Considering that more than 80% of prospects use their smartphones to perform “plumber near me” searches, you cannot afford not to be mobile-friendly.
Google nowadays uses mobile-first indexing when ranking and indexing plumbing content. That implies that Google favors mobile-friendly sites over desktop.
Optimize your plumber website for mobile users using Google’s Mobile-friendly Test to boost your rankings on both desktop and mobile.
Improve the Loading Speed of Your Plumbing Website
The speed of your plumbing website has a major impact on your SERP ranking. Since a website that loads fast offers a great user experience, while slower sites are penalized causing a decline in their search rankings.
To increase the page loading speeds of your plumbing website, consider using the following tactics:
- Minify CSS
- Use browser caching
- Optimize all images on your page
- Clean up redirects
- Enable file compression
You can also spot page loading speed problems using Google’s Page Speed Insights for more detailed information.
Read also: Slow Plumbing Websites Doesn’t Work: Tips On How To Speed Up Your Plumbing Website
Get Your Business Listed in Plumbing-Related Citations
There are several local plumbing-related citations where you can have your company name and contact details listed.
Once you have finally launched your plumbing website and listed your business on Google Business profile, then you need to list it on online plumbing business directories. Get a listing for free on plumbing industry-specific directories both internationally and locally first.
Examples of famous plumbing-related directories include:
- Yelp.com
- Homeblue.com
- Plumbingweb.com
- Fixr.com
- Bestplumbers.com
- Plumbingnet.com
Establish Relationships in the Plumbing Industry
A great opportunity to obtain clients is to associate your plumbing business with other related businesses such as your plumbing materials suppliers.
Building mutually beneficial relationships can assist in cross-referrals. Local community events in your area and charities can request your plumbing company website to be linked to theirs.
It assists in creating business opportunities for your plumbing services.
13. Spy on Your Competition
We highly recommend that you check what your competitors are doing in implementing their plumbing local SEO strategy. There are tons of tools online that you can use, such as Moz Link Explorer, SEMrush, and Majestic.
You can utilize these tools to find the links on your competitor’s site and get your plumbing business the same. These tools help to find new local business directories. They also allow you to be associated with authentic plumbing-related websites and news.
14. Track Your Plumbing Local SEO Results
Once you have done the first plumbing SEO campaign, you will want to monitor your results, which can help to improve the performance of your marketing campaigns. Here are the three core performance metrics that you need to track:
Rankings
Monitoring your page rankings can reveal insights into your marketing campaign, including impressions, keyword performance, and the number of prospects that clicked throughout your site. To track your organic rankings, you need to install the Google Search Console or use paid tracking tools such as RankRanger.
Traffic
The next aspect of your SEO campaign that should be monitored is the traffic that is generated to your plumbing website and the pages that drive it. So, you need to install Google Analytics to track your page traffic.
Conversion Rates
Conversions are specific actions you want potential clients to take while they land on your plumbing website. For plumbers, the common action is a quick phone call for booking a service, so you need to monitor how many calls you receive and the number which ends up booking your plumbing services.
Related: 6 Reasons Why Your Plumbing Business Should Use A Call Tracking System
Top 4 Questions Plumbers Ask About Local SEO
What is plumbing SEO?
At its core, plumbing SEO focuses on improving your plumbing website’s visibility in organic search results. It is the process of creating and editing the website content and code of your plumbing website so that your web pages can rank #1 on Google or Bing search results.
What is the difference between plumbing SEO and Plumbing local SEO?
Here is the main difference: While conventional plumbing SEO focuses on boosting your website’s visibility on a global or national scale, local SEO helps you to grab local search territory to connect with potential clients in your area. But SEO and plumbing Local SEO use similar tactics.
Why is local SEO so important to plumbers?
Increased online visibility: plumbing local SEO activities, such as link building and citations, boosts your business visibility online. That makes your company drive more qualified traffic to your website or office.
How much does it cost to rank your plumbing website #1 on Google?
Contrary to what many plumbers believe, ranking your website on the first page of Google is absolutely FREE. But we highly recommend that you partner with a reputable plumbing SEO agency to help you get the results faster without spending too much time trying to learn the ins and outs of SEO on your own.
Ready to Get Started?
Committing to implementing a great local SEO campaign can be one of the great investments you can make in your plumbing company. But we realize that it can be challenging to try and implement these tips on your own, but you don’t have to implement them all at once.
Implementing these tips will make your plumbing local SEO campaign successful. You can build on this foundation to obtain higher rankings for your plumbing web pages, more traffic to your site, and more clients for your plumbing company!
Need Help with Your Plumbing Local SEO Campaigns?
Are you feeling overwhelmed and not sure where to start with plumbing SEO?
At Blackstorm Design + Marketing, we specialize in assisting plumbers like you to attract local clients who are looking for plumbing services online.
If you need assistance in implementing the plumbing SEO tactics discussed above, schedule a free profit session with Blackstorm Design +Marketing to learn how our local SEO services can help you connect with more clients and grow your company!