How Professional Websites Can Boost Your Home Service Business
TheGYV Penn Business Directory, Pennsylvania.
INTRODUCTION
Running a small business, particularly one that provides essential services such as plumbing, lawn care, carpet cleaning, etc., requires constant contact with potential customers. With people shopping for services online more than ever before, a website is essential for building, transforming, and growing your brick-and-mortar business. Having said that, creating a professional website calls for a skilled web designer who will make your online business stand out from the competition.
If you are wondering why your Homes= Services business needs a website when you serve the local community? Truth is, with so many people relying on the internet to find essential services, you cannot afford not to have an online presence.
What follows are some good reasons why you need a website to expand and cash on your home service business.
IMPORTANCE OF WEBSITES FOR HOME SERVICE BUSINESSES
WIDE FORM OF ADVERTISING
Your home services website will be the center of your company’s online presence. You can use it to promote your business around the Web on social networking platforms, forums, and through pay-per-click (PPC) advertising models.
IT LOOKS PROFESSIONAL
Your website is your virtual storefront. It communicates who you are, what you do, and who you work with. Also, it gives potential clients an idea of what you can do to make their life easier. Having a website for your business to send a potential client to for further information or booking is an effective way to leave a great first impression.
SEARCH ENGINE VISIBILITY
Using Local SEO tactics and practices when optimizing your website helps you gain quick online visibility when prospective clients around your location need your services.
CONVENIENCE FOR CUSTOMERS
Today, people can enjoy shopping and even run their businesses from the comfort of their own homes. Potential customers are more likely to close a deal when they can place an order instantly and at any time, rather than wait for regular B&M stores to open.
RESOURCE OF INFORMATION
Your website can be an information desk for your clients. If you have multiple products, display them online with detailed information. This solely will replace your bulky, expensive paper catalogs with digital ones that are easy to update. You can promote your products by using multimedia formats such as images, interactive images, and videos.
Your website may also serve as a full portfolio of your work and a place to display any additional information, such as testimonials and reviews from customers.
BENEFITS OF A HOME SERVICE BUSINESS WEBSITE
A website is a key business asset for sharing information, building credibility, and standing out in crowded marketplaces.
24/7 PRESENCE
Traditional advertising has a limited viewing time compared to a website that extends your availability around the clock. A proper website allows customers to search, contact, book, and purchase your services 24/7 as needed.
INFORMATION
84% of online consumers think professional websites make businesses more credible compared to companies that only have social media profiles. Information availability and full transparency create a long-lasting relationship with clients.
BRAND VISIBILITYAND RECOGNITION
A well-designed website is your online storefront. You want to grab people’s attention and highlight the services your business offers all while flexing an eye- catching, functional design.
NEW BUSINESS MAGNET
Your business website is a lot more than just a static marketing tool. When using the right strategies and tactics, a website can help you attract more customers and multiply revenue.
WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES OF YOUR WEBSITE?
Objectives are an essential part of a business marketing strategy that leads to online success.
What do you want to accomplish through your website? What do you want potential and existing customers to learn about your home service business? In what way do you want them to perceive your brand? What actions do you expect them to take on your website or as a result of using your website?
Once you are able to answer these questions, you will have a better idea of how you can use the website to achieve your communication objectives and marketing goals and make the Internet work in your favor.
The purpose of your website should be determined based on your business goals and model. Communication, marketing, or sales – what are your objectives? It’s of key importance that these goals are attainable and measurable. Such objectives may include:
- E-mail list and newsletter subscription.
Newsletters are primarily a way of sharing information. By subscribing to your newsletter or mailing list, website visitors give you valuable data you can later use for distributing blog posts, tips and tricks, special offers, and carrying out e-mail campaigns.
- Requesting additional info.
Preferably, your website should present a fair amount of readily-available, free-value content. However, leads/prospects may have specific questions or require further information. Your website will need a particular design and tools to fulfill that objective.
- Online customer service.
- Real-time online resolution of customer service issues is on the rise. Running an effective home services website with a primary objective to help customers resolve problems will help you build a long-term relationship with your clients and build your credibility.
- E-commerce.
If your primary objective is to encourage customers to purchase home services directly from your website, you will need a website and tools that support e- commerce. It will allow you to track the volume of services sold online, both in units and in revenue. You can also track the number of transactions from website visits and compare them to transactions from other channels.
- Website visitors.
Tracking the numbers of new and recurring visitors to your website will help you monitor the volume and type of traffic you are obtaining. This information can also help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your online presence and marketing strategies.
AN EFFECTIVE WEBSITE TURNS PROSPECTS INTO CUSTOMERS
Here’s what an effective home services website needs to possess to help you convert “window shoppers” into recurring customers:
- OBJECTIVES
Each page on your home service website needs to cater to a specific need of your visitor. Whether they are looking for your contact details, need more information on home services, or trying to resolve a customer service issue, your website should answer their needs and meet your objective.
- DESIGN AND NAVIGATION
Make your website easy to navigate with a clear menu. The menu should highlight a different page for each of your services. The home service industry is local-business-oriented, and there is nothing more frustrating for a visitor than endlessly trying to figure out your areas of service and expertise.
- MOBILE-FRIENDLY
Make sure your website is optimized for viewing across different devices. Living in an era when our mobile phones are turning into all-purpose devices, having a website optimized for desktop usage only will lead to traffic and credibility loss.
- SEO OPTIMIZATION
The initial intent of SEO optimization is to improve your website’s rankings in search results. However, the ultimate goal of ranking high is to attract more traffic — and optimally, convert that traffic into prospects and customers.
- CALL TO ACTION
A call-to-action form will enable leads to connect with you easily, but it will also help you obtain valuable contact information that will allow you to follow up with your leads at later times.
- COMMUNICATION
The Internet allows users to consume large amounts of information in a very short time. It’s therefore essential that you serve information on your website in a clear but engaging manner. It needs to be easy to read and digest. This is easily achievable by formatting your text with headers, bullet points, clear fonts, etc
- COLOR AND MEDIA
Text is not the only way to communicate with your users. Rich media such as images, videos, and infographics can convey a message more effectively than any piece of text. In the same way, choosing a color palette for your brand will make your business easily recognizable.
- USER EXPERIENCE
Good User Experience is what builds bridges between your business and your customers. Good UX design tries to fulfill the user’s needs and makes you look professional and reliable. A positive UX experience can keep a user loyal to the product or brand.
- REVIEWS AND TESTIMONIALS
A mix of reviews and testimonials will make your home service company stand out from the competition and boost your credibility. Plus, we live in a visual world, so “before” and “after” pictures of a finished job published on your website are great to make leads feel more at ease to use your company as their contractor.
BUYING HOME SERVICES ONLINE IS BOOMING
The home services consumer journey usually begins online!
The USA home services market is expected to grow 35.81% per year from 2019-2026.
Despite the fact that many providers faced hardships at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic,
the industry has since rebounded. (Source: Verified Market Research)
In most home services verticals, over 55% of consumers run a search before scheduling an
appointment. Additionally, most home services shoppers don’t have a company in mind when
they run a search. In 2019, Google recorded 350 times more searches for the keywords “local” and “near me” compared to 2009. These search terms help consumers find local home services companies since they require local agents to come to their homes.
DEVELOPING A WEBSITE FOR YOUR HOME SERVICE BUSINESS
These are the phases of the development plan for your company’s website that a web designer will follow:
- Plan. Specify the range of the project. Define goals and strategies. Work on a content plan. Determine who will execute the plan.
- Design. Design the look-and-feel (user interface) of the site defining the features, functionality, and content that needs to be incorporated. In this phase, major steps include design concepts and a proposed site map. The way in which your website is visually presented can have a significant influence on its success. This is partly because visual cues play an important role in shaping customers’ initial perception of your brand.
- Implementation. Create the website, on time and on budget. This is where the scope of the project can change due to budget/time changes. You will get the chance to review all site content once or twice during implementation.
- Testing. In this step, the web designer ensures that the website is running smoothly without showing any bugs or errors.
- Distribution. It’s finally time to publish the new website and register it with search engines (Google, Bing, etc) so it can start appearing in searches.
- Monitor, evaluate, and update. There is no such thing as a “final” version of a website. You must be prepared to update your website’s functionality, design, and user interface on a regular basis.
CONCLUSION: A WEBSITE IS ESSENTIAL FOR BUSINESS GROWTH
Running your own home services business is not an easy task, and your to-do list is guaranteed to never end. Having said that, you shouldn’t use this as an excuse when it comes to maintaining stable and continuous online visibility.
Starting with your website, it is vital to position yourself online with a strong, professional virtual storefront that gives customers the impression that you mean business and the motivation to want to engage frequently with your company.
If you haven’t invested in a professional website, you’re missing out on opportunities to present yourself to customers who you are and show them why they should spend money on you.
While no website equals missed opportunities, a bad website is worse because it makes your business look unprofessional and unreliable.
This is why a good website for home services businesses will immediately convert prospective clients into long-term customers for your brand.
If growth is what you aim for, we are absolutely positive you will reach new business heights with our home services website designs!
Feel free to reach out and we will be happy to extend a helping hand.