How moving companies are increasing leads, booking more moves, and growing revenue
When’s the last time you opened up the phone book to find the phone number of a business? Years ago? Same here.
The internet has changed the way moving companies, contractors, and other local businesses advertise to new customers. Gone are the days of the Yellow Pages, which was quickly replaced by Google.
Below, we’ve outlined the exact strategies our mover marketing experts use to grow website traffic, leads, and sales for moving companies throughout the U.S.—like how we helped one company increase leads 240%!
Case Study: Moving Company Increases Leads 240% >>
Your #1 Moving Company Marketing Strategy: Build a Top-Notch Website
Just like with any other business, good moving company marketing begins with a well-designed website that attracts visitors, gives them the information they’re looking for, and keeps them coming back for more.
It’s also optimized for conversion and easy to use and navigate on multiple devices, especially mobile.
Did you know that 80% of customers look online for home services like moving companies? Or that 33% of customers click on the first search result they see on Google? Your moving company website is the initial interaction people have with your business so it’s important to create an incredible first impression.
Your website plays a crucial role in generating leads for your moving company and it must have the right look, feel, and layout to instantly make people feel secure in choosing you. Moving is a specialized industry that faces considerable marketing challenges, including how to convey a feeling of trustworthiness.
4 Key Elements Every Moving Company’s Website Must Include
There are four key lead generation elements every moving company’s website should focus on:
- Website design – A well-designed website is great to look at but, more importantly, it keeps website visitors engaged with your site. And the longer they stay, the more likely they are to convert into a lead and hire you for their next move.
- Sticky header and navigation – Your website’s header and navigation should be simple and information should be easy to find, particularly on mobile devices. At least half of buyers use a mobile device as their device of contact to start a search.
- Page speed – Faster web pages make for a better user experience. Page speed (or how many seconds it takes your website to load for users) is also a search engine optimization (SEO) ranking factor.
- Responsive layout – More than 50% of all website traffic today comes from mobile devices. Your moving company’s website should be built in a responsive layout, meaning the site automatically resizes to fit users’ screens based on what device they visit your site on (e.g. – a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone). Google’s algorithm also rewards mobile-friendly websites with higher search rankings than non-mobile-friendly sites.
SEO for Movers: How to Rank Your Moving Website on Page 1 of Google
SEO for movers stands for “search engine optimization.”
To put it simply, SEO is the process of updating and optimizing your website to rank your moving company on the first page of Google, Bing, and Yahoo search results. It’s a free and great way to generate website traffic, but executing an SEO strategy is challenging.
Contrary to popular belief, search engines like Google rank web pages, not websites.
Where or how high you rank on Google is determined based on how well you’ve optimized your website’s:
- Site code and structure – Does your website load fast for users? Can search engines easily find and crawl your website? Is your website’s internal linking structure optimized for SEO? These are all important aspects that can have a considerable impact on how high you rank on Google search results.
- Onsite content – Do you have a web page for every service you offer (long distance moves, local moves, piano moves/gun safe moves, packing services, etc.)? Every web page on your site is a new opportunity to rank on Google. Optimize your web pages and the content on them for better search rankings.
- Offsite factors and reviews – Does your company prioritize generating reviews on places like Google My Business? Are your online directory listings 100% consistent across every platform? Optimizing your entire web presence (not just your website) gives your moving company the best chance to rank on page one of Google.
Here’s a couple of tips to get your SEO campaign underway:
- Claim your Google My Business profile – A Google My Business listing is a free tool available to all moving companies. It’s a great way to get your business in front of more customers and share pertinent information with people looking for a moving company.
- Keyword research – Find the right keywords for both buying intent and research intent. What does that mean? People search different phrases and terms (keywords) depending on whether they’re ready to book their move now or if they’re just beginning the research phase of finding a mover.
- Optimize web pages for keywords – Once you’ve completed your keyword research, continually publish new, information-rich web pages targeting each one. Address frequently asked questions and research-based topics like “How much does a long-distance move cost?” on your company blog.
Local Services Ads for Moving Companies For First-Page Results
How does Local Services advertising differ from pay per click (PPC) ads? Owned by Google, Local Services ads are better positioned on Google results—above PPC ads—and they’re more targeted, too. That means you get matched to customers who are looking for exactly what your moving company offers.
Not only that, you only pay Google for verified leads—ones you actually connect with, are looking for services you offer, and are within your service area. Local Services is a pay per lead platform, not pay per click.
Dollar for dollar, Local Services ads are the best Google real estate your money can buy. There are four key benefits to these types of ads:
- You only pay for leads who are interested in hiring you.
- You build trust with your audience.
- People see your business first, above PPC ads and organic results.
- You increase leads and close more sales.
Each listing contains your company’s name, its aggregate review (or star) rating, phone number, and hours of operation.
Become a Google Guaranteed Moving Company
Google also gives qualified companies what’s known as a Google Guaranteed badge as part of its Local Services platform. The badge serves as a signal of trust and tells customers your moving company has been vetted and approved. To get the badge, you must pass a background check and provide licensing and insurance information.
If a customer is unhappy with the services they receive, they can file a claim with Google, who reimburses them up to $2,000. Keep in mind, though, that customers can’t file claims over things like lack of communication, damaged property, cancellation, or a pricing dispute. The claim must focus on your quality of work.
How Much Do Local Services Ads Cost?
When you invest in Local Services ads for your moving company you can expect to see a cost per lead around $50. You control how much you spend by setting your budget based on the number of leads you want.
Get Moving Company Leads Quickly with PPC Advertising
If you want more leads and booked jobs for your business, investing in pay per click, or PPC, advertising is one of the fastest and most cost-effective ways to market your moving company online. It immediately boosts leads and puts your company front and center with multiple targeted audiences.
You might be familiar with PPC advertising for moving companies, such as Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising, and may even have clicked on a few of them yourself. PPC is a terrific complement to your SEO strategy.
PPC is a fairly simple process. You bid on moving-related keywords and your ad appears when someone searches for a local mover. Each time an ad is clicked, you pay a fee (hence the term, pay per click).
PPC ads appear at the top and bottom of organic SERPs (search engine results page) and you can identify them by the small “Ad” logo they include.
Affordable and scalable, PPC ads generate consistent website traffic, increase leads and sales, and help you build brand awareness. They help you achieve short-term goals, aid customers in making better decisions, and help you reach new markets.
Social Media Marketing
“I don’t have time for that” is a common refrain heard about social media marketing for movers. It’s usually because people picture themselves desperately trying to come with witty repartee, images, and other content for multiple accounts multiple times a day. The truth is you don’t have time to not make social media part of your moving company marketing strategy!
Moving company marketing is a multi-prong endeavor. Social media is the digital equivalent of word-of-mouth and gives you another opportunity to amplify your services, offers, and customer review or testimonials. There are many ways moving companies can use platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Nextdoor, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and more to attract new customers. To get started:
- Have a clear picture of what you want to accomplish
- Choose only the platforms that add value to your business
- Provide customers with interesting, useful, and relevant content
Finally, it’s called “social” media for a reason. Keep in touch with your customers. Respond to their questions. Thank them for retweets. You get the idea. Your future customers may be sitting there thinking how impressed they are with how you handle yourself on social media.
The Incredible Reach of Email Marketing for Moving Companies
Email plays an important role in your moving company marketing strategy. Together with social media marketing, PPC, and SEO, email’s impact cannot be overstated.
Use email to promote your services, develop long-term relationships, and reach out to new customers. It remains one of the most cost-effective and conversion-rich forms of digital marketing available.
Great Reviews Impress Customers and Drive Sales
Improving your online reputation convinces leads to try your services and lets Google and other search engines know your company is legitimate and respected. The best way to get reviews is to ask for them. If someone is pleased with the services you provided they’re usually more than happy to comply.
Be sure to read the reviews customers leave you and respectfully respond to both positive and negative ones. Remember, potential customers are reading these reviews and will pay close attention to how your company handles negative feedback.
Customer Service as a Moving Company Marketing Strategy
Digital marketing and customer services are mutually beneficial strategies that can be used to improve customer retention, reduce marketing costs, and differentiate your brand.
Ways to accomplish this include:
- Using reviews that stress great customer service in promotional materials.
- Highlighting how your customer service differs from your competitors. For example, do you have 24/7 agents on hand to take calls? Do customers get dedicated reps for the duration of their move? In other words, let people know what lengths you’re willing to go to for great customer service experiences.
- Aim to be genuinely helpful at every customer touchpoint. Use your online content such as FAQs, blog posts, and videos, to mirror your offline customer service.
The Leader In Moving Company Marketing
Blue Corona is the home service industry’s leader in digital marketing. We specialize in helping moving companies, contractors, and local businesses alike grow their business and get more from their online marketing investments.
Interested in taking your marketing to the next level? We can help.
Contact us online or give us a call today!
