HVAC Websites – 5 Ways I Generated $40,000,000 from My Own HVAC Sites
By Michael Haines – Founder of ACDirect.com
Let’s face it, after 14 years, 17,000,000 visitors and spending millions of my own money on internet marketing, it’s safe to say I’ve learned some very important lessons about how to drive traffic and convert visitors into paying customers – for HVAC websites in particular and tradesmen/women in general.
Note – Even if you are not a contractor or tradesman/woman, these tips apply to any website that is designed to create leads via a phone call or email.
I’m going to share 5 techniques on what I consider the “low-hanging fruit” in contractor website quick fixes – Mistakes I made for years until I discovered a few Holy Grail items that can turn your sales and profits around in just a few short months.
Of course, there are many other “1%er’s” that helped me achieve my web success and I will be discussing those in my next posts.
Recently, I was asked to participate as a featured speaker at the IMS International Marketing Summit. I listed these same principles for all website operators but tradesmen/women will see very quick gains when these steps are followed exactly.
Here they are in order of importance:
1) Content is king
Dull and lifeless website content is the single biggest conversion killer that exists. (A conversion happens when a visitor calls or emails you.) I use a super simple yet very effective content design concept known as the AIDA principle.
The AIDA copywriting principle consists of:
Attention – Grab it (strong opening headline)
Interest – Build it (great copywriting and strong offers)
Desire – Create it (list awards, A+ BBB, special training and unique promises you offer)
Action – Enlist it (well-placed lead generation box for emails and a strong “call us today” graphic
Here’s an example of a powerful, attention-getting headline (and sub-headline like newspapers use) for the home page of an HVAC dealer:
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Air Conditioning and Heating – Get Unmatched Craftsmanship, Best-in-Class Service,
Fast Repairs, & Free Installation Quotes…
…All at Prices That Suit Your Budget!
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The reason this is a great headline is twofold:
1) It is bold and to the point
2) It will immediately alert your viewers that whatever HVAC pain they are experiencing, you can handle it, and handle it well.
On your contractor home page, we don’t know your visitor’s exact need just yet, but this headline covers almost 100% of your primary services in under 25 words.
Here is a summary of its benefits to the viewer:
1) It’s all about the viewer, not you or your company. The words we, our, and us are not used even once, but the word “your” is.
2) The word “get” is the second most powerful word in our language, next only to “free”, which is also used.
3) Skilled technicians
4) World-class service
5) Free quotes
6) Value oriented pricing
You’ll notice I began the headline with the primary keyword phrase that matters most – air conditioning and heating. I have found that putting your primary keyword as close as possible to the very beginning of the headline can have tremendous SEO benefit.
But don’t become so focused on opening with the keyword phrase that you muddy up the headline. Just insert the keyword phrase somewhere in the headline.
Of course, your content will need to reflect this strong opening headline, providing the supportive features and benefits of selecting your company over the competition.
Here’s the headline your competition is using:
[Your City] AC Repair Services
A headline like this provides zero value to your visitor and is intended to promote your SEO rankings only. It will NOT contribute to conversions in any manner.
Then, simply followup up this promise with great content that creates interest and desire.
Here’s a call to action graphic I use that gets attention and conversions:
2) Eliminate Surprises and Address critical concerns for all new visitors
Everyone that arrives on your HVAC or contractor website wants the answer to these 10 questions:
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Can you solve my problem?
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How will you solve my problem?
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How soon will you solve my problem?
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How much will it cost me?
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Can I trust your company and staff?
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How are you different and why should I care?
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Do you have any super compelling deals for me?
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Are your services risk-free?
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What forms of payment do you accept?
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What do I do next?
You can’t be all things to all people on every web page. If your page is promoting air conditioning repair, stop trying to sell duct cleaning, maintenance, new systems, etc.
These are nothing more than distractions for the viewer and will create confusion and paralysis from too many choices.
Keep each page focused on a single primary need (electrical repair, attic fan installation, electrical upgrades, etc.) and your message will resonate better and be more appealing. Promote these other unrelated items on dedicated pages and make the singular message of each page clear and focused.
Make sure you answer these questions to the best of your ability and avoid being vague as much as possible. The only one you probably can’t answer directly is “How much will it cost me?”. At least mention your diagnostic and how you waive it with any paid repair. Or give a price range from low to high.
This is the internet era and people expect you to be open and forthright with them BEFORE they will trust you with their hard earned money.
3) If content is king, strong, customer-focused offers are the crowned prince
There are 3 basic types of visitors to your website:
1) Direct (visitors who arrived by typing your website address into their browser
2) Cold (visitors who don’t know you and arrived via an internet keyword search)
3) Warm (visitors who typed your website address as a search inquiry and then click a paid or organic link to arrive at your website
If you are like most of us, the vast majority of your HVAC website traffic is generated from number 2, or cold traffic. These visitors probably have no idea who you are and what you have to offer other than what they see on your website.
Now is the time to pull out all the stops and earn their trust. If you understand the lifetime value of your clients then there is absolutely no reason not to make a super compelling offer and entice them to try you out.
Strong coupon offers works best when:
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your service is very good to excellent
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on-going training is part of your company culture
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your technicians/salespeople are skilled at building customer trust, not just fixing and selling things.
Strong coupon offers fail miserably when:
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Your CSR’s and dispatchers don’t know about or promote the current internet offer(s)
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Your HVAC technicians don’t understand the offers and how to properly use them to build trust
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Training is practically non-existent within your company. High turnover rates will destroy your internet reputation and lifetime customer values.
If your average replacement sale is $3000-$6000 why not offer a one year satisfaction guarantee, a 1-3 year service agreement and a valuable internet coupon?
If your average service call is $500, why not offer a coupon that includes waiving your diagnostic charge with an additional $50.00 off, NO MINIMUM ORDER with any paid repair. If your diagnostic fee is $69, then add the $50 discount with any paid repair together for a total coupon value of $119.
That would certainly get my attention and is simple for you as practically everyone builds their diagnostic fee into the flat rate pricing of repairs so waiving that is not a stretch. The only discount you are offering is $50.00 but you have built a true consumer value of $119, a win-win for you both.
Plus, keep in mind the average yearly lifetime value of new customers is anywhere from $400-$700 depending on your trade. So a one-time $50 discount is a drop in the bucket when viewed in the long term.
4) Mobile is on the move
According to Google, it’s official. Mobile visitors have exceeded those of desktops and this trend is here to stay.
Why is this so important?
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Google includes mobile design as a ranking algorithm when deciding where to rank your mobile pages for important keyword searches.
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Mobile visitors can convert much better than desktop visitors or abandon your site in droves, depending on the experience you create.
Unfortunately, the mobile experience is not just poor, but non-existent for most HVAC and contractor websites.
This can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars in sales and you’ll never even know it. So, by taking advantage now of this weakness that exists in almost all markets, you can turn the tide in your favor while your competition fails to capitalize.
Here’s the quick and easy fix:
Your home page and 3-4 other pages will get 90% of your desktop and mobile device web traffic. Your home page is normally the most visited and highly ranked page on your site by a wide margin, so begin with these pages and have the mobile side corrected by generally doing the following:
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Logo at the very top of the mobile page
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Strong attention-grabbing headline next
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A bold click-to-call graphic with a “click to save $XXX” call to action
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List general areas you service and your hours of operation. If you offer after hour’s service, state the hour’s service is actually available
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Include a graphic of an attractive, trust evoking female with a headset and your logo photo-shopped onto her shirt if possible. Images of females evoke more trust from both genders
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Insert an attractive coupon with a dotted border, like this:
Next, insert a colorful email lead generation box for those who prefer to contact you via email.
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DO NOT require any more than 4 fields including name, phone number, email, and “How can we help?”
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DO NOT use a “submit” button. Insert a compelling call to action in the button, but never the word “submit”.
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Right under the email form list the payment methods you accept, including the major credit card logos and
a “special financing available” graphic.
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Then insert the bold “click to call” graphic again.
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Next, do a concisely written list of the most compelling features AND benefits you offer, like this:
Fully stocked repair vehicles – We come prepared to solve your problem – on the spot!
Nights, Weekends, and Holidays – 24 hour emergency service when you need us the most
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List about 4-5 of these. Notice how I list the feature (Fully stocked repair vehicles) AND the benefit (We solve your problem on the spot).
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Do this for every feature you list and you will build their trust and desire to do business with you and only you.
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Insert the offer coupon again followed by your strong call to action (Visitors LOVE being guided down a clear path!)
“But This is a Limited Time Offer”
Expires Midnight, (enter exact date)
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Insert the bold click to call graphic one last time followed by a concise customer testimonial.
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End with your logo, contractor license number and address in small but readable type at the very bottom.
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Use a combination of white, light gray and a third color to create dividers and segments to allow it to be easily scanned by visitors using just the color changes in the page itself.
Remember, by just starting with your 4-5 most popular pages you can dramatically improve your mobile visitors experience along with your conversion and sales by implementing these easy changes.
5) Understand and accept that internet marketing is the key, door handle, and hinge to your future success
I’m sure you’ve been burnt in the past but things are improving. You should have seen what I had to deal with back in 2001 when I got started. There were no experts and web marketing was chaotic and scary.
My first 8-10 attempts at hiring “experts” to help ended in utter and total failure and were a complete waste of my time and money. So, I decided I was going to have to teach myself how to drive traffic and convert visitors into customers.
Fortunately today it is possible to find seasoned experts to help. Remember, I have yet to see a firm who was expert in all areas of internet marketing, so look for seasoned specialists who have a segment in which they excel.