How Your Pest Control Company Can Dominate SEO
Updated on August 23, 2023
As a pest control expert, you're constantly looking for ways to build your brand and attract more customers. Yet many small business owners like yourself neglect to invest time or money into search engine optimization (SEO) for pest control companies as part of their marketing strategy. It's a common mistake to think that, because you offer necessary services, the customers will simply find you when they need you. Unfortunately, they're just as likely to find your competitors.
SEO can help you stand out, by showing up nearer the top of the results page when potential customers search for pest control services. And the best part? SEO is free!
It does take some extra legwork, but ranking higher in the search engine results pages (SERPs) is absolutely worth the effort. Indeed, 83% of small businesses would agree that SEO is an essential part of online marketing.
This blog post will teach you how to claim your Google Business Profile, improve your website's SEO ranking, and appear higher in local search results, as well as what crucial elements to add to your website to seal the deal.
The Basics of SEO
Let's start with a definition: SEO is the process of optimizing your website and online content to rank higher in search engine results pages.
This is important because, generally speaking, people don't tend to scroll very far down, especially when looking for a reputable business. So you want your business to appear as high up that page as possible. These rankings are based on a wide range of factors, including on-page optimization (for example, using keywords and title tags), and off-page optimization (meaning adding backlinks).
Fortunately, an entire industry of tips and best practices has developed around improving SEO and there are plenty of resources available to help you get started.
Where Can Your Business Show Up on Google?
As a pest control company, there are two main places you want to appear on Google: the Google Maps results and the SERPs (search engine results pages). Both of these placements can be extremely valuable in driving traffic and leads to your pest control business.
When searching for a local business, many people start with Google Maps. Appearing in the Maps results also gives you the opportunity to showcase your reviews and ratings, which can help build consumer trust and confidence.
As for the SERPs, appearing high up in the search results is essential for getting clicks and traffic. In fact, 42% of local searches involve a click on a Google Maps result, while the top Google result gets 32% of clicks.
But it's also important to note that appearing in the SERPs is not just about ranking high - it's also about having a well-optimized listing that includes all of the relevant information that potential customers are looking for. So make sure your listing is complete and accurate and includes key details like your address, phone number, and hours of operation.
Google Business Profile
If you haven't already claimed your Google Business Profile, stop reading this and go do that right now. Your Google Business Profile is a critical component to improving overall visibility, showing up in Google Maps results and ranking on SERPs.
While claiming and updating your listing may seem like a lot of work, the upside makes it well worth the effort. Not only will it improve your SEO and visibility, but it also allows you to build trust with potential customers by showing them customer reviews, photos of your business, service listings, and posts you make addressing relevant FAQs.
Verify Your Name, Address, and Phone Number
If you've ever searched for a business only to find that their phone number, hours of operation, or even address was out of date or missing, then you already know how important it is to keep that information fresh if you want to attract customers.
Keeping your NAP information accurate and up to date is important in your SEO strategy for two reasons:
- It helps potential customers reach you
- It impacts how search engines like Google rank your listings in search results
Fortunately, keeping your NAP information accurate and up to date is relatively simple: just log into your GBP and update the relevant fields.
Highlight Reviews for More Visibility
As a local pest control company, you know that positive customer reviews can make a big impact on building trust and driving business. In fact, reviews are one of the key factors when determining your ranking in Google Maps. So if you want to improve your SEO, you need to get more reviews from your customers.
The most impactful thing you can do in that regard is simply make it easy for customers to leave a review. A recent Service Direct survey found that 71% of consumers reported were likely or very likely to provide a review after being satisfied if the company made it easy for them to do so.
One easy way to facilitate customer reviews is adding a link to your Google Business Profile on your website and making sure it's prominently displayed. You might also consider sending out emails inviting customers to leave a review.
It's also important that you take the time to respond to all reviews, both positive and negative. Thank customers who leave positive reviews and address any concerns raised in negative reviews.
update Your Google business Profile Regularly
It's essential to keep your Google Business Profile current and accurate to maintain a high ranking. Frequent updates tell Google that your business is reputable and worth showing to searchers before your competitors.
Here are a few ways to keep your GBP updated regularly:
- Post On a Regular Basis: You can share updates about your products or services, events, special deal, or even just general news about the pest control industry. Keep your posts interesting and relevant to pest control, and make sure to include high-value keywords to further boost your SEO.
- Promptly Respond to Reviews: Take some time every couple days to read and respond to new reviews on your Google Business Profile. Thank customers for their positive feedback, and address any concerns raised in negative reviews. This will go a long way toward showing Google (and searchers) that you're a reliable and trustworthy business and that you pride in your work.
- Highlight Special Offers: If your pest control company is running any special offers or seasonal discount, it's worth sharing on your GBP. Just don't forget to take them down when they have expired!
Organic Search Results Positioning
Considering that over 90% of people don't click past the first page on Google, it is crucial to get your pest control business to rank higher in SERPs related to relevant keywords.
While Google doesn't share the details of their algorithm publicly, we do have a good idea of what factors they take into account, and a number of strategies you can employ to optimize your website to boost your ranking.
- Create high-quality, keyword-rich content that is relevant to your target audience.
- Make sure your site is easy to navigate and that it loads quickly.
- Build backlinks from high-quality websites.
By understanding and utilizing each of these methods, you can significantly improve your chances of ranking higher on the SERPs and getting more traffic to your website.
Improve Website Elements to Bolster SEO
It's not enough to just have a website— these days, your site needs to run smoothly, load quickly, and be mobile-friendly. If your website isn't up to snuff on any of those points, your pest control company will appear lower on SERPs.
This is because user experience is a key factor used by search engines when determining rankings. The better the user experience, the more likely your pest control website is to appear higher in the results. It make sense if you think about it –mobile users who land on a site that isn't optimized for their device are likely to click away, for example. This signals to Google that the site isn't providing a good experience and should be moved down the rankings.
Speak Google's Language With Meta Data and Descriptions
If you want your website to rank well organically in SERPs, it's important to pay attention to meta data and descriptions. These are small pieces of information that help search engines like Google understand what your website is about, and they can also influence how your pest control site appears in SERPs.
For example, the title tag is one of the most important pieces of meta data—it tells search engines what your website is about, and it also appears as the main headline for your listing in SERPs.
Likewise, the meta description is another important piece of meta data—it appears underneath the title in SERPs, and it gives potential visitors a brief overview of what they can expect to find on your site.
Although neither of these elements will guarantee a top ranking, they are both important factors in SEO, and they can help to increase click-through rates from SERPs. As such, it's worth taking the time to ensure that your meta data and descriptions are optimized for SEO.
Improve Your Content For Better SEO
Your pest control website's content is meant to help visitors gather useful information, learn more about your company, and ultimately decide whether to do business with you. Google and other search engines also review this content to determine how relevant and useful the content on your site is. So it's important that your content is not only engaging and informative, but also developed with an eye toward SEO strategy.
Write Keyword-Rich Content
Keywords are simply words or phrases that people use when they're searching for something online. For pest control companies, some of the most important keywords to include in their content are "pest removal," "exterminator services," and "termite infestation."
Including these keywords will help ensure that your company's website appears in the search results when potential customers are looking for these services. Keep in mind that keyword stuffing will not only turn off potential customers, but it can also get you penalized by Google.
Of course, simply including these keywords is not enough; you also need to think about how to effectively use them in your content. For example, you may want to consider using them in the title or header of a blog post or web page, as well as in the body of the text. Using site pages that highlight specific high-value services is a surefire way to use keywords and boost SEO.
Example: Dunmanelectric.com
Encourage SEO with Blogging and Backlinks
Blogging is a great way to improve your SEO because it helps you produce fresh, relevant content that can rank well in search engines. And with 40% of consumers reporting that being able to read more about a company and their knowledge/insights via their blog would make them more likely to patronize that business, blogging is simply a must.
Since blog posts can be shared easily, they can also help you build up backlinks from high-quality websites, which is another effective way to improve your SEO.
Backlinks are links from other websites that point back to your site. Google sees these as a sign of your site's popularity, authority, and reliability, which can help you rank higher in search results. Quality backlinks from relevant and reputable websites are essentially votes of confidence in Google's eyes.
Schema Markups Will Help Your Listing Stand Out
Even though your website is now appearing high on the SERPs thanks to our expert tips, you still need to do everything you can to encourage people to click on your listing. That's where schema markups come in.
Schema markups are a code that you can add to your website to help search engines understand your content. In addition, schema markups can also help to improve your click-through rate by making your listing more eye-catching and relevant.
While adding schema markups may seem like a lot of work, the potential benefits are definitely worth the effort. So if you want to give your water damage website that extra boost, be sure to start using schema markups!
Conclusion
When it comes to website ranking on SERPs and Google Maps, there are a number of things you can do to improve your organic ranking. As we discussed, claiming your Google Business Profile and ensuring that your website is optimized for SEO are both great places to start.
In addition, regularly producing content that acquires backlinks will help you get noticed by the right people. If you’re looking for more tips on how to rank higher on SERPs and Google Maps, be sure to download our digital marketing guide for water damage professionals.
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