CONTRIBUTING MEMBER:
AARON HOCKEL, PARTNER & VICE PRESIDENT OF DIGITAL MARKETING,
ALTAVISTA STRATEGIC PARTNERS
It might surprise you that 1 in 5 businesses fail in the first year. If you want to build a successful painting contracting business and avoid that same fate, assuring you are marketing your business's services well is critical.
These days, digital marketing techniques can target and cost-effectively market your company more than ever. With so many local customers using the web daily, it is valuable that you understand how to reach them in the most effective ways.
Throughout this guide, we will look at the most crucial strategies when planning digital marketing for painting contractors. Be sure that you make use of these techniques in 2023.
Launch a Professional Website
Launching a professional website is a vital first step to using digital marketing as a commercial or residential painting contractor. A professional website offers visitors more information about your company.
At the bare minimum, the pages on the website outline the specific interior and exterior painting services you offer. These pages also show your business’ contact information. It can be helpful to describe your expertise in detail and to tell visitors more about your professional qualifications. You might even want to add a testimonials page.
When creating a website, make sure that you consider the design as well. Ensure that it is both easy to navigate and has an attractive and professional appearance.
A website will serve as your business card online, so gearing it toward making a great first impression is essential.
Create Valuable Content
Content marketing is one of the most significant digital marketing strategies a painting contractor can use.
With a content marketing strategy, you will aim to provide value to people who need your services first and foremost. Then you will work to get them interested in the services that you have to offer.
Starting a blog and offering guidance and education to your ideal customers is a great way to start. However, you could also use other types of content in your strategy. This content could include infographics, e-books, videos, and more.
Implement SEO Techniques
Building a professional website and creating valuable content are vital first steps toward improving your digital marketing as a commercial or residential painting contractor. However, applying search engine optimization (SEO) techniques ensure that your pages appear in search results.
SEO techniques help search engines understand your website's content and value to searchers. There are many things that you can do to improve SEO. This includes raising site speed, improving the mobile design, optimizing metadata, and getting more backlinks.
Improving SEO for a local contracting business will also include using local SEO techniques. You should also claim and optimize your Google My Business (GMB) profile. Choosing locally-relevant keywords will target and work to get more business citations online.
Manage Your Reputation
To get more customers through the web, ensure your business has a strong reputation.
Encouraging your customers to give your business reviews on websites such as Yelp, Facebook, and Google is crucial. When potential customers see positive reviews for your business online, it is more likely that they will give you a call.
On the other hand, if you have a lot of negative reviews online, it can be detrimental to your business and could potentially lead to fewer calls.
If there are already negative reviews for your business online, make sure that you take steps to lessen their impact. Responding to them positively, respectfully, and professionally can be a good idea.
Responding to negative reviews can be helpful for reputation and brand building. It can help ensure these reviews are not causing damage to your business.
Build Your Social Media Presence
If you are trying to grow your painting contracting business, your company must have a presence on social media. Social media websites and platforms are free to use. They are great places to reach potential customers and spread brand awareness.
Make sure you have a social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Using these platforms can help you build your company’s reputation, connect with customers, and strengthen the loyalty of past customers.
To do this, you post on social media consistently and effectively. It is a good idea to link to informative and valuable content to catch the attention of your target audience. This content could include articles you have written for your blog on your business’ website.
Also, respond positively and professionally to comments and messages on your company’s social media accounts. Managing your business’s social media in a down-to-earth and friendly way is essential for your reputation.
Run Online Ads
While SEO can be effective for getting organic search traffic, it can also take a significant amount of time before you start seeing the results. Pay-per-click (PPC) ads, on the other hand, work faster and can allow you to get results instantly and cost-effectively.
Consider running some ads for your contracting business website on Google or Bing. Target local keywords that relate to the services you provide, such as “local painter near me” or “commercial painting companies in my area”.
You might also want to try running some social media ads as well. When running social media ads on sites such as Facebook and Instagram, you can target using customers’ demographics and interests. This targeting can make social media ads extremely useful for reaching your ideal customers.
Build Your Email or SMS List
As a digital marketer, you should also consider the benefits of using email and SMS marketing techniques.
Assure you are looking for opportunities to collect someone's email address or phone number. These opportunities could happen when they land on your website for the first time or when they first become a client.
Once you have their information, ensure to stay in touch with them. Consider sending communications to remind them to use your services again or to tell them about special deals you have.
By using email or SMS marketing, you are able to reach a customer directly without needing them to visit your blog or social media pages. Be sure to send messages to them tactfully and respectfully. These messages can boost customer loyalty and get more potential clients interested in your services.
Mastering Digital Marketing for Painting Contractors
If you want to find customers online, then you should start using digital marketing for contractors. With the right online strategies, you can cost-effectively market your services while getting more clients than ever before.
About the contributor
A contractor marketing expert, Aaron Hockel has presented on a wide range of marketing topics at major trade shows and conferences, including the International Roofing Expo, International Sign Expo, IFMA’s World Workplace and the American Fence Association’s FenceTech, among others.
A full-service marketing agency and certified Google Partner, AltaVista’s expertise is working with commercial and residential contractors to grow and scale their businesses using targeted email marketing and digital advertising campaigns. Supporting more than 300 customers in 40 states, AltaVista helps turn searches into customers and interaction into leads.
Contact AltaVista to learn more about the company’s digital marketing and other services.
