What To Do Once You Have a Website for Your Business

‍So You’ve Got a Business Website for Your Home Service Business - Now What?

You took the leap, created your website, secured your business domain, but now you may be wondering what to do next. As you already understand, having a business website is a crucial step in making your home service business competitive in the digital age, but there are still things you can do to get the most out of your site once it’s up and running.

The Home Services Market is expected to witness a growth of 18.91% from 2019-2026 and reach USD 1,133.40 Billion by 2026**.** Make sure your home service business doesn't miss out on this incredible growth opportunity by following our tips to make the most out of your website!

Below is a graphic that shows the percent of shoppers that ran an online search before converting as a customer. Thus, you are covering great ground by having a website for your home service business and the next step is how to make the most of it!

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Put your site front and center

Ensure that you have the top recommended social media business profiles (Highly recommended)

The first step in small business website management is to ensure you are listing your site on other social pages to help drive potential customers to your site and help with your website SEO. For home service pros it is essential to have at a bare minimum a Google My Business Listing and a Facebook Business Page. If you do not yet have these profiles, check out the guides below:

• How to set up a Google My Business Listing
• How to create a Facebook Business Page

Update your social media accounts and business materials (Highly recommended)

Many home service pros get an increasing number of their bookings from their social media pages online, so having your profile updated with an accessible link to your site can help your business to appear more credible.

• How to add your website to your Facebook Business Page
• How to add your website to your Google My Business Listing

Beyond your online presence, every time you hand out a business card or connect with people on social media, it's a more or less free opportunity to spread the word about your website. Be sure to update your business cards, flyers, and social media to include your website information so that you can turn even a small interaction into a potential client relationship.

Update Website Content Regularly

Another important factor of small business website management is adding fresh photos and content to your site to keep your current customers engaged and attract more new clients. A general rule of thumb is to update at least one aspect of your website (e.g., new photo, customer review, etc.) once per month.

Customers also feel more inclined to engage your services when they can see plenty of examples of your work, whether it's a perfectly manicured lawn or a spotless kitchen. Additionally, when customers can see that your business is active online, they may be more confident in your ability to promptly meet their needs and deliver the services they are looking for. Most importantly, adding new photos, reviews or other content updates will help inform Google that your site is active and impact your SEO (e.g., if you rank on Google search).

If you are a ProPhone customer, we will regularly check-in with you for updates to your website and you can send us new content to upload.

If you aren't a ProPhone customer and don’t want to go through the hassle of constantly updating web content on top of your already busy schedule, Let the ProPhone team take care of it for you!

Focus on Reviews

Small business website management is important, but so too is management of your business’s online reviews. A general rule of thumb it to try to get at least 1-2 new reviews each month or more depending on the size of your business! According to the marketing agency BrightLocal, 87% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses in 2020. While reviews on your website may provide some level of customer trust, reviews on independent platforms are virtually always the most trusted option.

Our suggestion is to start with Google My Business Listing because this option will help your website SEO and will appear when customers search online for your business. You can also take steps to list your home service business with the Better Business Bureau or BBB. Learn more about this option here.

When it comes to actually seeking out the reviews, you can ask clients you have a strong relationship with if they would be willing to leave a review (keep in mind the review platform’s guidelines), reach out to past clients, and share your review link with customers after you complete a job. Additionally, be sure to be attentive to reviews that you receive and respond professionally and graciously to any feedback.

More Ways to Draw Traffic to your Service Business Website

Marketing campaigns (Optional)

Take matters into your own hands and make the most of your website capabilities by launching a thoughtful marketing campaign. Marketing campaigns can help to direct potential customers to your website who will then take action to engage your services. Whether you go with more traditional print marketing or digital marketing, a good rule of thumb is to offer some form of consumer benefit such as a discount on particular services to engage consumer interest. When it comes to print marketing, be prepared to potentially spend a bit more than with digital marketing as an example estimate from Inkit for a 1000 recipient direct mail campaign costs $1,150. However, the upside to this is that statistics have shown that More than four out of five Americans (82%) trust print ads as opposed to digital marketing.

If you are interested in the digital marketing route, a particularly effective form of digital marketing is investing in Google Local Service Ads. Google Local Service Ads place google verified businesses at the top of the search page when a potential customer searches for a related service. These ads appear above any other form of paid advertising and even above other sites with potentially much better SEO (Search engine optimization). To learn more about Google Local Service Ads and how to set them up check out our blog post on the topic Here.

Online Communities and Forums (Optional)

If you are looking to go outside the box with creative ways to drive traffic to your site you can start to explore online communities and help forums but beware of soliciting rules. As with life in general, people are more inclined to listen to what you have to say when you offer them value in some form, whether that is answers to plumbing questions or simply your services at their disposal. A great place to find an audience specific to your service business niche is various subreddits where members are looking for information related to your field of expertise. For example, Ask a Plumbersubreddit is a community where people post plumbing questions for pros to answer and if your website content is relevant to the question at hand, it may be helpful to provide a link to the related section of your website along with your answer. However, be sure to be mindful of whether or not your website content actually relates to the topic at hand, as you want to avoid seeming like a spam account.

Similarly, be sure to join facebook groups that center on your specific industry or locally based home service pro communities that can help you to develop relationships with other pros and stay up to date on industry knowledge. These groups may also help you connect with potential clients who have joined them looking for home service pros in their area

If you are still wondering what to do to optimize your website, try booking a call with the ProPhone team to learn more. One of the founders or team marketing experts would be happy to provide specific advice for your business.