Today, the best HVAC marketing takes place online — with interactive content and results you can measure to be sure your resources and strategies lead to the best ROI (Return on Investment) possible. 

What you need is a modern, digital approach to attract new customers and strengthen the loyalty of your existing ones.

And with the right tools and guidance, you can organically, and steadily, grow your business — even if you don’t have any prior knowledge about HVAC digital marketing.

In this guide, you’ll learn about 10 ideas to integrate into your business’s HVAC marketing plan in the upcoming year.   

1. Email marketing

Building relationships with methods like email marketing is the key to converting qualified leads into long-term customers. That’s because people check their emails frequently and want to stay up to date with the vendors they trust. 

Not only is email marketing a convenient and direct line to your customers, but it also has one of the highest ROIs — with $42 earned for every $1 spent. 

In your emails, your business can offer free maintenance tips, community announcements, industry updates, and a lot more to strengthen your relationships.  

It’s also very quick and easy to get started with email marketing. You probably already have a list of email addresses for your clients and contacts, send them an email asking them to subscribe to your email marketing and then it only takes a click for them to sign up and start learning how you can help with their problems. 

If you don’t already have a list of email subscribers, add a sign-up form to your website and a join my list app to your Facebook Business Page.

2. Referral program

All you need is one satisfied customer to build a business, especially if that customer is willing to recommend you to their peers. Referrals are the best kind of advertising.

Nowadays, people aren’t exactly huddled around the office water cooler. Referrals are now online, so your program needs to be as well. Don’t hesitate to ask satisfied customers to post reviews and spread the word about your work.

Adding on a first-time customer discount will further improve your referral program. Send out an email to current customers with a large “Share” button as a call to action. That will allow them to send the digital flyer to their friends and associates, and you’ll grow your business with minimal investment.

3. SEO-optimized website

How often do you, your family members, and your friends search for new businesses online? If you haven’t gotten a referral from a friend or family member, you’ll probably just Google whatever you want. Most people do. That’s why you need your business to come up when people search for HVAC services. That’s what SEO does. 

Short for “search engine optimization,” SEO is a crucial element of modern digital marketing. Your website needs to have the elements that the Google algorithm looks for when people type something into the search bar. 

If you don’t have a website, add that to your list of HVAC digital marketing to-dos. Today, every business of every size needs an online presence. A website serves as a platform to present your work and services in a way that’s professional and accessible — and it’s the one place online where you can control all of the information that’s on there. 

If you haven’t built your own website yet, tools like Constant Contact’s Website Builder make it easy to launch a site that looks good and has the proper SEO for local searches.

Learn more about SEO for contractors, HVAC, and other home services.

4. Manage your online reviews

If you’ve never looked up your business online, make sure to do that right after you finish reading this guide. You might discover that some of your past customers have given you reviews.

For your HVAC marketing efforts to be successful, you will need to manage your online reviews. 

The first step is to claim your business on all the online review sites, including Yelp, Google My Business, and Bing. This gives you the ability to reply to reviews and make sure all your listed information is correct.

While it can be frustrating when customers highlight problems, negative reviews actually give you opportunities to show your strong customer service skills. When you respond thoughtfully to negative feedback by acknowledging the customer’s experience and looking for ways to solve the problem, visitors will view you as a responsible business that cares about its customers.

Always respond to both negative and positive reviews as quickly as possible. You can even set up a Google Alert so that you get an email every time your business gets mentioned online.

5. Paid advertisements

Paid advertising can be expensive but rewarding. If you use ads in your HVAC digital marketing, you’ll need to target your ads as much as possible. 

Google Ads target ads based on the words people search for (known as keywords). Social media platforms like Facebook target people with digital ads based on a wide range of demographic information.

6. Have an active Facebook business page

To run advertisements on Facebook, you need to have a Facebook Business page. Many business owners set up their page and then promptly forget about it, but that doesn’t do much for your business.

With nearly everyone scrolling on Facebook, you don’t want to miss out on those that may be part of your target audience.

Post regularly about interesting news, funny viral videos about cats stuck in vents, and all the handy tips in your emails. By being active on your Facebook Business page, you’ll connect more with folks online and start to position yourself as a thriving leader in your industry.

7. Get listed in online directories

Another great HVAC marketing idea is to make sure your future customers can find you anywhere they look online, including listing sites like Angie’s List, the Better Business Bureau, industry association lists, and more.  

Start by searching for your competition to see where they show up online. If it’s possible to add or claim your business on those sites, do it. Then, completely fill out all the sections you can with the most accurate information. Add photos, testimonials, lists of your services, and every method of contact you use. 

When adding your business to a listing sight, make sure the information is consistent across all platforms — down to the “.” after “st.” — this gives search engines more opportunities to not only find you but to also see your business as legitimate.

8. Connect on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a powerful professional social networking site. You, your team leaders, and your business should have well-written LinkedIn profiles.

Once you have a LinkedIn account, you can connect with your associates, customers, and professionals in fields related to yours. Be sure to ask for recommendations and be pro-active with reaching out to potential new customers. 

9. Publish a blog

You don’t need to be Ernest Hemingway to write a blog that attracts new customers and helps grow your business. Plenty of busy entrepreneurs work with professional copywriters to do the writing, and you may be surprised at how easy it is to brainstorm ideas.

Maybe you’d also like to start a YouTube channel with short videos that people can watch for maintenance tips or answers to their frequently asked questions. Be creative and share your knowledge. You’ll look like the expert you already are.

10. Stay current with seasonal specials

Remember to adjust your marketing plan as the seasons change. You know when your busy time is, so build your marketing campaign to offer preventative work and check-ups in the shoulder seasons. Grow your business by helping your customers avoid crises. 

Learn more about HVAC digital marketing

Ready to implement a few of these HVAC marketing ideas? You can develop your plan further by checking out Constant Contact’s Home Services Marketing Guide or get more tips and strategies from the home services marketing blogs.

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