5 Social Media Platforms Your Roofing Company Should Be Using

commercial roofingSocial media offers a great avenue for businesses to raise their visibility and increase their closing percentages. Contractors don’t always realize the full benefit these platforms have to offer their industry, so we will examine five of the leading social media platforms that are ideal for roofing contractors to have a presence.

Is It Really Worth My Time?

While traditional marketing will always be a necessity, digital marketing continues to grow and is absolutely something to consider when you are looking for growth in your business. The internet has brought about a much easier form of communication. Interacting with and getting your business in front of your customers and other consumers is easier than ever thanks to social tools like Hootsuite and SocialPilot. Of course, it is great to have your current customers updated and stay top of mind, but social media also provides a simple and effective way for you to convert other consumers into customers as well.

Many roofing contractors have long thought that social media wasn’t for them. If you are one of them, we advise you to think again. Utilizing varying marketing strategies is always recommended but taking advantage of the audience you have on social media platforms is a terrific way to acquire new customers as well as keep your current ones engaged. You are busy, we get it. You may feel like your attention is required in other areas, and it may be. Just to give you a taste, here are a few social media statistics to consider when wondering if social media is worth your time.

  • People are spending approximately 147 minutes on various social media platforms each day
  • Of the 2.934 billion Facebook users, 1.968 billion login to their Facebook accounts daily
  • 9% of the population in the United States has an active social media profile
  • 70% of Americans use Facebook daily
  • 59% of Americans use Instagram daily
  • 71% of Americans say social media referrals affects their purchasing decisions

If you are not utilizing at least one or two of the platforms listed below, you are allowing yourself to miss potential customers. Social media doesn’t have to be exhausting. When you have an active presence, it can greatly benefit your business in both the short and long term.

Now let’s dive in and discuss which social media platforms are more advantageous for roofing contractors to be seen on.

Facebook

Facebook is the leading option, and if you are limited in time or resources and must choose only one, Facebook is the one to go with. It is the biggest social media platform and that means it has the greatest number of users, which leads to the largest audience potential. Facebook is also fairly user friendly, regardless of experience. Today, consumers expect you to have an active presence on Facebook. Consumers who hear about your company name are highly likely to search Facebook for your company. Guess what? If they find nothing or there hasn’t been a post in months, they will likely end up working with someone else. That is a lost customer, it is that simple.

When we say have an “active presence”, we mean post regularly. You don’t have to post every day, but you should be posting on a weekly basis. Post content related to your business and even about your business team. These consumers are eager to know who you are and what you have to offer them. Take pictures from your jobsites and post them to your Facebook page. Ask your customers to give you reviews. The more you interact with your customers online, the greater success you will have in reaching even more.

Instagram

Instagram is another great platform and can be ideal for highlighting your company photos. Be sure you have a high-quality logo and use that as your profile image. Then show off your work with your posts. Let your customers see your before-and-after photos of jobs you are proud of. Instagram also lets you utilize hashtags, which can expand your audience once utilized properly. Because Instagram is all about photos, be sure you are posting clear, clean pictures every single time. Find the popular hashtags, connect them with your high-quality images, and showcase your business.

LinkedIn

We are all about connecting contractors with contractors, as there is strength in numbers. Having the support you need as a contractor has proven highly beneficial and that helps to make LinkedIn a useful platform. LinkedIn is considered more of a professional social platform than the others, but when you know how to use it, you can still benefit from growth in your business.

Perhaps you offer a service your local competitor doesn’t? You can work together and ensure the customers gets what they need, and you may gain an ally in the process. Maybe you aren’t as comfortable in commercial roofing as you would like to be? Find the experienced contractors that can help guide you. LinkedIn is all about connecting professionals and you can build the relationships you need without the hassle. It’s also a great platform to build a network of business leaders in your local community who may own commercial buildings or at least be able to bring up your name when the company they work at needs roofing services.

Twitter

Twitter is another mainstream social media platform, and it is great for having digital conversations with your customers. While it does limit you in your posts, as you can only post 280 characters, this can be a selling point as well. You don’t have to overthink. Keep it quick and to the point.

Twitter is also more of a “real-time” platform, and it is recommended to share your business in the moment. At a jobsite and have a fun project to share? Do it. On the road and have a new idea? Post about it at your next stop. Let your online audience know what you are doing day to day. Because of its slightly different in-the-moment feel, we recommend posting more frequently on Twitter than the other platforms. Be sure to use hashtags as well.

YouTube

If your company can get good video footage, then YouTube should be a platform you use. Not only is YouTube an informative video platform, but it also captures a great deal of search traffic. When you have a keyword-optimized title and description, the video you post can easily show up in traditional Google searches. The types of videos you can post are endless, and while you don’t need to be a professional, you will want to create content that is clear and easy to follow.

Posting time-lapses of projects you have completed is a great place to start. Explaining the process of a project is another great idea. Roofing can be complex and letting your consumers know about materials, terminology and more can be appealing. Posting customer testimonials is of course always a good one as well. Creating how-to videos for other contractors can even help expand your growth. If you or an employee are always taking videos of your projects, then YouTube should certainly be a platform you are active on.

We Have More Ideas

Interested in learning more about effective social media strategies or great marketing strategies in general? Give us a call today at 800-795-2187, and we will be happy to discuss ways our team can give you great marketing support.

Commercial Roofing Marketing

commercial roofingAs a commercial roofing business owner, you are probably flooded with calls from marketing companies trying to convince you to use their services. There are thousands of companies out there to choose from, but how do you know what commercial roofing marketing company you can trust to get you the results you need?

What to Look for in a Commercial Roofing Marketing Company

There are numerous ways to market your business, but the first piece to identify is if the services they offer are effective in the commercial roofing industry.

In today’s world, branding is crucial to growing a business and maintaining a strong position long term.  A great commercial roofing marketing company offers a wide array of effective options, each of which can be custom-tailored to enhance your existing branding.  Some of these options should include:

  • Well-Ranking Website – Business managers and owners, as well as property-managers regularly turn to the internet to find service providers and research them before making decisions. Having a strong online web presence can make a huge difference. What does your web presence say about you?
  • Direct Mail – There is a myth going around by digital-only marketers that direct mail is dead. This is far from true in the commercial roofing field. Direct mail is a strong marketing method that continues to have a fantastic ROI because of its unique ability to target building owners who are most likely to respond.
  • Content Creation – Are you looking to get on the first page of Google but do not want to pay for every click the rest of your life? SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the key to great rankings and keeping things lively on your website and social networking channels.
  • Print Designs – Having branded print material will help you stand out as a true professional and be more memorable. From brochures and value proposition letters to folders, these crucial pieces can’t be overlooked. They are often the only thing a client has left in their hands to remember you by after you make your sales pitch.
  • Social Media – No commercial roofing business should be without a strong, active social media presence.  Whether you choose Facebook, LinkedIn or multiple platforms, your page needs to be regularly updated with new content so you leave a vibrant impression anytime someone checks you out. After all, social media channels often rank right after the official website when someone searches for a company name.

Why Top Roof Marketing?

When you work with Top Roof Marketing, you can rest assured that you are in good hands. Backed by a 9+ year track record and dozens of 5-star reviews, we specialize in the commercial roofing industry. We know what works and will help guide you on the right path. We have completed hundreds of campaigns and use the results to further optimize results.

Not only do we offer all the marketing options crucial to branding your company, but our many years of expertise also allows us to advise you on the most cost-effective way to move your business forward, based on both your short-term and long-term business goals.  We offer this guidance at no charge to each of our valued clients.

As a highly experienced commercial roofing marketing company, the team of experts at Top Roof Marketing work diligently to ensure all marketing campaign pieces flow together seamlessly, providing a unified feeling to your future clients and underscoring the branding of your commercial roofing company.

For more information, or to schedule a free consultation with one of our professional marketing advisors, please reach out to us at 800-795-2187 or complete our online contact form.

Your Last Good Chance for Fall Mailers!

Here at Top Roof Marketing, we truly are “the top” when it comes to providing outstanding marketing services for commercial roofers throughout the United States. We help our clients succeed every day—leveraging our specialized commercial roofing knowledge.

Today, we’d like to discuss mailers. If you are still interested in doing a mailer for 2022, it needs to go out now — unless, of course, you don’t care what kind of results you get…

In the marketing game, it is all about results, so here is some food for thought as the year begins to wane and a chill starts creeping into the air:
mailers

  • September is upon is, and it will be Thanksgiving before you know it. Mailers need to go out long before the holidays while you still have adequate time to close your contracts and perform work while the weather is still warm.
  • Having your mailers pre-printed ahead of time allows you to drop them at a moment’s notice—such as when it’s been raining and your incoming calls can easily double.
  • Top Roof Marketing has sent out and tracked calls for over 1 million mailers all over the country!
  • We have the purest mailing lists around, stripping out those who are unlikely to respond or are associated with too much red tape or undesirable roofs.

Are you ready to send out mailers? Call us today at (800) 795-2187 to get started!

About Top Roof Marketing

Why choose us?

  • Specialized in Roofing
  • Fine-Tuned Strategies
  • Commitment to Quality

Learn More

Top Roof Marketing is a professional marketing firm specifically serving roofers throughout the United States. Our unique expertise in the roofing industry makes us stand out from other options, and we utilize the insights we’ve gleaned from hundreds of man hours of research, internal data, insights from roofers, and active feedback from our clients.

The members of our team stay at the cutting edge when it comes to marketing practices, as well, with continuing education efforts that include attending manufacturer applicator training programs, roofing workshops, conventions, and other programs where we can learn from various experts.

To take advantage of the most effective marketing strategies to help your roofing business succeed, look no further than Top Roof Marketing! Give us a call today to learn more about the topnotch services we offer and what we can do for your roofing business.

Top 5 Marketing Concerns for Roofing Companies

Regardless of the industry, all businesses exist to make money. To make money requires customers. Attracting those customers is the main purpose of marketing.

There are tons of marketing choices, approaches and teams. Determining what works best is usually left to the professionals since that is most likely to get optimum results.

The focus of this conversation is addressing the concerns your roofing company may have about marketing.

Concern 1 – How to Stand Out from the Competition

Run a quick Google search and you will see there is a lot of competition in roofing. Standing out from your competitors is key to grabbing the limited number of customers available at any given time.

Solution. Branding has been time-tested as the best way to stand out consistently. Proper branding means using the same logo, colors, marketing design and “theme” in every piece of marketing you do and getting it out to the market constantly. This repetitive approach causes a “top of mind” reaction in a customer when they need your service.

To better understand branding, think of the Nike® swoop. You simply need to see that design, and you instantly think of shoes or athletic apparel. Though this is clearly a case of very deep pockets, the concept remains the same with your company.

Concern 2 – Social Media

Social media marketing is an absolute requirement in your outreach strategy. Statistics indicate over 75% of consumers include a social media search when considering whether to work with a company. Poor social media presence, or none at all, does nothing but hand those potential customers over to another company.

Solution. Determine which platform(s) are most appropriate to your company. Facebook is a given, but if you are looking for business-to-business marketing of commercial roofing services, then LinkedIn may be an excellent addition. If your demographic is more young and trendy individuals, you should be looking at TikTok and Instagram. Knowing your target demographic is key.

Once you have targeted your best audience, ensure your presence looks great. Clear, clean pictures, proper grammar, and engaging content are what you are going for.

Finally – engage!!!  One post per month is not going to get the job done. For great results, you need a minimum of a post per week. Use different media including video, polls, graphics and pictures to grab and keep the attention of your followers.

Concern 3 – Changing Expectations in the Marketplace

Why choose us?

  • Specialized in Commercial
  • Fine-Tuned Strategies
  • Commitment to Quality

Learn More

Since 2020, we have seen tremendous changes in what consumers expect from the businesses they choose to work with. To be successful, your roofing business must meet those expectations. An entire generation is growing up expecting businesses to be socially involved.

Solution. This is not a political discussion. We are talking about what your customers expect if they are going to do business with you.

Make clear statements in your online presence including your website, social media campaigns and even your print marketing pieces regarding your company’s support of energy efficient products, reducing waste or other appropriate concerns.

Don’t hesitate to share any non-profit organizations your company supports. Do you make regular donations to Habitat for Humanity? Say so! Today’s consumer wants to know that you care about the community. Tell them how you do.

Concern 4 – Where to Spend Your Marketing Dollars

Unless you are like the aforementioned Nike®, you probably have a limited marketing budget. But where to allocate those dollars for maximum return on investment is a huge concern.

Solution. Before you can decide where to spend those dollars, you must know what your goal is. Are you looking for long-term sustainable growth or are you looking for a quick punch of activity for your business? The best mechanism for one will generally not work for the other. Knowing your goal is the first key.

Key two is an understanding of your target demographic or customer. Direct mail works great for some target audiences, while being a complete turn-off for others. Without a clear understanding of who you are targeting, you will never be able to decide the best form of marketing to invest in.

This is where a professional marketing company shows their true value. A company that understands your industry is invaluable in helping you determine what style of marketing is best to meet your professional goals.

Concern 5 – Time

You are a busy person. You are running your business, supervising employees, handling customer relations, and may have a family that deserves your time and attention. Who has time for overseeing the marketing as well?

Solution. Call Top Roof Marketing. We are industry experts focused specifically on roofing and know the best ways to position your company. Working within your budget, we will tailor a marketing campaign to meet your goals. We can manage your website, manage your social media and design customer print pieces like flyers and brochures; ensuring all integrate with one another seamlessly.

Our staff would be honored to sit down (via Zoom or face-to-face) and discuss your goals and preferred demographic, then offer our best solutions with data to back each one up.

It is our goal to be your marketing partner for years. We have found working in this manner allows our clients to grow in a way few companies can compete with.

Call us today at 800-795-2187 and see for yourself what we’re about and how we can help you step up to the next level.

Social Media & SEO: A Winning Combo

If you have ongoing SEO for your site, but do not have social media distribution and management of your website’s content, your roofing company is missing out.

A bit of information first.  3.78 billion people are using social media worldwide.  You probably don’t care about most of them.  However, right here in the United States, that figure is 223 million users.  That’s pretty much every single American adult.  Again, most of them probably aren’t important to your business.  Determining how many are in each specific state isn’t really needed for this blog, but it’s fair to say it is also a vast number.

Now, consider that more than 75% of those users state they use social media as one of their decision-making tools.  That’s right! 3 out of 4 of your potential clients use social media while determining if they want your service.

Prospects can easily find your social media channels when they look up your business name in Google as part of their research. They look for commentaries from other customers.  They look for evidence that you are reputable, honest and knowledgeable.  They look for indications of community involvement.  They want to get to know YOU before committing their dollars.

Improved Social Media Postings = Better Google Rankings

Additionally, the algorithms Google and other search engines use to rank your company via SEO also give weight to the posts in your social media platforms.

Regular social media posts increase your client interaction, establish you as a roofing expert in your area and help your SEO rankings across the board.  Unfortunately, most people find it time consuming, so they don’t do it at all or only sporadically.

Why choose us?

  • Specialized in Commercial
  • Fine-Tuned Strategies
  • Commitment to Quality

Learn More

At Top Roof Marketing, we offer a service where we will post, on your behalf, a brief reference to your website content that also includes an eye-catching picture.  This would be posted on a regular basis, without any involvement on your part.

For example, if you have an SEO plan that receives 5 blogs per month, you will have a posting to your preferred social media platform(s) every 6 days.  Automatically.  Without any work from you because we’ll manage it all.

We are currently running a special on our social media marketing plan. Please reach out for details. If you don’t have an SEO plan with us, we also offer a social media management plan; and it’s custom designed to your particular needs.

Feel free to reach out. We would be delighted to explain in depth how the addition of our social media marketing will benefit your company.

How to Improve Your Bottom Line During Lean Times

Since the coronavirus pandemic became a regular part of the daily headlines, we have seen lower-than-average numbers for the commercial roofing industry.  Repairs, coatings, and full replacement orders are all taking a direct hit.

An industry downturn is always out of your control.  What is within your direct control are the measures you can, or should, take to grab what business there is and, equally importantly, what steps you take to positively position your business within your local marketplace.

Though the coronavirus situation is certainly unparalleled in our country’s history, supply and demand ebb and flow annually.  The practices we utilize during the leaner times will serve you well during this time too.

Streamline

Streamlining your business basically means taking a repetitive process, then eliminating the unnecessary steps to make it more time-efficient, and therefore, more cost-efficient.  For example, consider your process for producing a written estimate.  If you don’t already use some form of templates for standard types of jobs, this may be way to streamline the time and energy it takes to generate that estimate.

Using software, with predetermined values reduces the amount of time necessary for the generation of the report, keeps terms consistent, reduces risk of error, and can be updated routinely as materials costs change.

A different example could be by reducing the amount of paper utilized within the company by moving to a more technology-based solution like group emails and online training to eliminate handouts and memos.  Annual paper costs can get expensive, so by streamlining your communication process, you eliminate additional expense.

Though streamlining your business won’t immediately increase business revenue, it will reduce costs, which directly impacts your bottom line.

Clear, Concise Marketing

In spite of what you might think, the off season is definitely NOT the time to stop marketing your business.  Too many commercial roofing contractors pull back on marketing during the off season to “save money”.  However, it has been shown that customers call the business that is top of their mind first.  If that’s your competition instead of you, your company will lose a bunch of business.

To maintain a top-of-mind presence, your company name, brand or logo needs to be kept in front of potential customers. To do so requires ongoing marketing.

To be effective, that marketing should be very clear, very concise and reflect the values of your business.  Statistics show that almost 70% of consumers prefer to work with a company that reflects their own values.  By sharing those corporate values within your marketing program, you speak directly to that segment of the public that shares those values with you.

If you aren’t currently working on building your company’s brand within social media, this is a good time to start.  Social media branding takes significant time to get established and build a good following.  The off season gives you more time to focus on this area.

Off seasons are also an excellent time to attend Chamber of Commerce mixers, and to establish membership with industry groups, both online and in person.  This type of interaction positions you directly in front of potential customers and begins to establish the type of relationship most likely to result in both short-term and long-term future business.

Inspection/Maintenance Programs

Work with your existing customer base and offer “off season specials” on scheduled inspection and maintenance programs.

A good inspection/maintenance program benefits both your business and your customer.  It reduces the risk of unexpected issues occurring in your customer’s roofing system, establishes proof of inspection needed by many roofing warranties and keeps their roof in tip-top condition.

For your business, it keeps a revenue stream open and reinforces the relationship between you and your customer.  Your business is also the most likely to be used should a problem be identified during the inspection process.  This, again, increases revenue.

Don’t consider only scheduled inspections; also offer special inspection programs after adverse weather events.  Commercial roofs should be inspected after significant weather events like heavy wind, hailstorms, hurricane, tornado and so forth.  Don’t be afraid to reach out to your customer base should one of these occur in your area.

Remember, lean times happen.  Whether it’s an unexpected virus, seasonal fluctuation or country-wide recession, being prepared for decreased business demand is the responsibility of every business owner.

Benefits of Customer Appreciation Efforts

This time of year, our minds turn to things we are thankful for in our lives.  Of those, “having a roof over our head” is always one of the first things that come to mind.  Your company should be proud to share in that sentiment with millions of other Americans.  Without you, those roofs would not exist or would be in poor repair, so thank you.

Of course, without your customers, you would have no business.  So, your thankfulness should extend to those families, business owners, and property managers that keep your business afloat.  Perhaps this is the time to reach out to them and let them know how much their trust and confidence is appreciated.

Done correctly, customer appreciation efforts can reap multiple benefits for your organization.  Here are just a few.

Top of Mind Marketing

When people need or want a product or service, they are most likely to go to the company that first comes to their mind.  This is the primary premise behind social media marketing and other forms of branding initiatives.  The more people see your name or company logo, the more likely they are to think of your company when they have a roofing situation.

It takes an average of 5 to 7 impressions for someone to begin remembering your brand. Taking the time to send “thank you” notes, holiday greeting cards, or even regular “just for you” promotional offers. This will help keep your company in their mind and establish those necessary impressions.

Though simply sending a Christmas card every year is not sufficient to effectively establish your brand in your customer’s brain, it is a very simple and inexpensive step and absolutely should be part of your overall marketing strategy.

Special Offers

As a part of your customer appreciation effort, you can include special “just for you” offers.  These may lead to increased business for your company in the future.

Perhaps you offer a free roof inspection to a select number of former customers. Providing this service, complete with a well-written, comprehensive, and concise report detailing your findings could easily lead to establishing a scheduled inspection and maintenance program for your business.  This leads directly to increased revenue.

Another special offer you may consider is thanking a customer for their referral by providing a reward.  Many companies now offer a monetary reward, such as providing $50 or $100 when a new customer uses the name of an established customer as their referral.  This type of referral program has been shown to increase referral rates by as much as 42% for some industries.

Customer Retention

Getting new customers is all and good, but you also want to keep the customers you have already established.  There are estimates that more than 65% of customers will leave a company if they don’t feel like that company cares about them.  This is not an oversight your company shouldn’t tolerate.

General statistics show that it is 7x more expensive to get a new customer, in terms of advertising costs, time and energy, than it is to maintain your existing customer base.   Maintaining your relationship with past customers makes good business and financial sense.

Increased Referrals

By maintaining good relationships with former and present customers, you increase the probability that they will give your company name to their friends, family members, and business associates who need roofing work done in the future.

One statistic shows that 91% of purchase decision makers prefer a business-to-business (B2B) referral.  That is a powerful message!  Clearly, if you can increase the probability of receiving a business referral from an established customer, you are vastly increasing your odds of closing the deal.

Other important referral statistics include:

  • Leads that come from a referral have a 30% higher conversion rate than other leads.
  • 92% of consumers trust referrals from people they know.
  • 84% of B2B decision makers start the process with a referral.
  • Referred customers are 4x more likely to refer others to the same business.

Final Thoughts

Your company’s customer appreciation program can reap so many more benefits than simply saying “thank you”.  If properly set up and managed, it is a valuable, yet inexpensive tool in your overall marketing strategy.

If you don’t have a customer appreciation program in place, perhaps this information will cause you to re-evaluate that decision.  If so, we are thankful we were able to help.

Introducing Our Newest Team Member

We are excited to announce Shanze Gillani has recently joined our team. Many of you have already heard from her.

Shanze Gillani

Shanze Gillani

My experience includes developing campaigns, driving conversions and brand conversations as well as supporting clients during their decision-making process. I rise to the challenge of communicating and analyzing large amounts of information and am excited to transfer my knowledge and experience to the roofing industry! Also, when I’m not working, I generally love spending time in the outdoors or relaxing with my family.

EXPERTISE: Email Marketing – Research – Social Media

Shanze brings her unique talent and experience in marketing and campaign development to our clients, along with key insights that will deliver greater satisfaction and more success. She will help keep all of the marketing moving pieces functioning cohesively so we can outperform client expectations.

As always, our priority has been exceptional customer service while offering top-notch marketing tools. With Shanze on board, the conversation just accelerated ten-fold! Shanze adds another layer of support to our clients, and especially hopes to expand your business potential by making your strategy development and notable company branding wider reaching. Her proven results in driving conversions will most certainly benefit our clients.

With a degree in business management, a distinction in biology, and the best grades in her class, it is clear Shanze is one sharp lady with the skills to match. In her free time, she loves being outdoors and spending time with her family.

She will be taking over for Jenna who has been a faithful SEO advocate for dozens of clients and successfully kept up as Top Roof Marketing grew into publishing hundreds of blogs per month to help roofing companies across the nation rank better.

In an email to our clients, Jenna said, “With a new season comes change and while it’s bittersweet, I’m writing to say goodbye to our Top Roof Marketing family. You have all been incredible clients and it’s been a pleasure working with you to assist in growing your businesses. I’m leaving TRM to give my two littles and family the focus they need and I’m grateful to leave confidently knowing you’re in great hands.”

Jenna will be sorely missed. We wish her well and commend her important decision to have more time with her growing family.

Update July 2022: Jenna is back part time to assist with a few high-level assignments each week. We’re happy to have her continued help!

SEO 101

As a business owner, you probably hear the term SEO all the time from solicitations, but unless you’re a geek (like pretty much everyone on our team), you probably don’t really understand what that really means. If you want to grow, it would be a big mistake not to fully understand the term.

To understand why, we need to look deeper into how search engines work.  I know it sounds tedious, but trust me, your business will thank you.

How Search Engines Work

For ease, we’re going to use Google as our example.  They are the largest and most popular search engine on the planet, with over 5.6 billion searches conducted daily.  Additionally, we are going to use a location – in this case I have randomly chosen Phoenix, AZ.

Your potential customer goes to Google and enters “roofing” and gets 243 million results.  They probably then will begin to use different terms.  They then enter “roofing in Phoenix”.  Great, now they are down to about 74 million options.  Why?  There aren’t 74 million roofing companies in Phoenix.  However, Google searches for any combination of roofing and Phoenix on a webpage; not just roofing companies.

So let’s get more specific with “roofing companies in Phoenix”.  Looking at the results remaining, at the very top we see 3 companies listed with a slightly yellow background.  These are companies that have PAID for positioning.  This is not a cheap solution as every click has to be paid for, though it does grab the attention.

Below that, you begin to find the unpaid listings starting with a map that shows various roofers and their locations.  How are those ranked?  By algorithms (a math term meaning formulas) Google has written.  This is where SEO begins to come in.

Search Engine Algorithms

We’re finally through the math and into the meat and potatoes.  All search engines, not just Google, use algorithms to determine rankings.  Basically, they take the words in the search “roofing companies in Phoenix” and look for how many times those words show up in a site.  The sites with those words showing most frequently are often ranked the highest.

You might think “I’ll just make a site with just those words repeated over and over to rank #1”.  Good logic, but it doesn’t work that way.  These algorithms are sophisticated enough to understand that subterfuge and will actually drop those sites from their rankings entirely.  In fact, they will probably be black-listed by the search engine.

Instead, those terms must be woven within the content of the site in a manner that sounds normal and conversant.

Additionally, knowing exactly what words your client may use is a crapshoot.  They may choose “roofing in Phx” or “house roofing” or “roofer” rather than “roofing”.  Each of these words is individually considered by the algorithm.  So, the results for “roofers in Phoenix” will have different rankings than “house roofer in Phx”.

The best way to rank higher in Google and other search engines is through a policy called SEO, which is the acronym of Search Engine Optimization.

SEO

SEO is the intentional design of your site to effectively score highly with search engine algorithms.  It includes the layout of the site, the content within the site, and the addition of ongoing content in the form of blogs which add additional keywords to the overall site.  This allows the number of times the most important terms and phrases are used to grow in an organic and natural appearing form.  Just how Google likes it.

It is NOT quick.  SEO takes time to build.  If you try to go too fast with heavy backlinking and other shortcuts, the algorithms will flag the site and once again your website can be black-listed. Everything must feel natural and organic.

Why choose us?

  • Specialized in Commercial
  • Fine-Tuned Strategies
  • Commitment to Quality

Learn More

It’s important to always remember that Google is designed for the consumer, not your business.

The goal of a search engine is to provide the consumer with the most relevant responses to their inquiry.  It only makes sense that if Google starts sending “garbage” to the consumer, that user is going to go to a different search engine.  That is why Google black-lists companies and sites that appear to be attempting to circumvent their algorithm for their own benefit vs. providing true value to the internet community.

SEO not only takes time to work and improve your ranking, it also takes time to accomplish.  Writing all the blogs, ensuring the keywords are properly placed, posting those blogs in a regular, scheduled manner, and sharing with social media (a whole other ball of worms) is time-consuming and tedious.  But you are running a roofing company with so many other things to worry about. Who has the time?

We do. Plus, we come with years of experience to ensure efforts are properly focused for the best ROI. Contact Top Roof Marketing to discuss your site’s rankings in Google and see how we can help you improve both your positioning and the resulting additional business you will receive.  Call us today at (800) 795-2187 or use the contact form and we’ll be in touch.

Why Use a Marketing Company that Specializes in Roofing?

Being perfectly frank, we all know there is a proliferation of do-it-yourself website and marketing programs out there.  Plus, you can do a search and find literally hundreds of thousands of marketing companies willing to take your dollars to market your company.  Literally, search Google under “marketing company” and see the 9,860,000,000 listings pop up.

So, why choose one with a focus on roofing? Perhaps a better way to look at it would be with an analogy.  If you have a broken foot, why choose a doctor that specializes in that area?  Why not search the internet for a cheaper doctor, regardless of specialty?  There are probably millions available, and one doctor is as good as the next, right?  Better yet, save yourself money and take care of the problem personally.  No one can do it as well as you, right?  Seriously????  This may be an extreme example, but no less compelling.

There are many forms of marketing, so let’s take a look at the primary options your commercial roofing company is considering.

Website

Let’s start with a little homework.  Take a moment and search “commercial roofing company” and your local town name (i.e. “commercial roofing company Columbus, OH”).  How many listings come up?  Hundreds?  Where does your company fall in those pages?  Statistics show that 93% of online experiences start with a search engine inquiry just like the one you did.  Furthermore, the large majority of those searches STOP on the first page.  If you are falling back on page 4 or 5, how much potential business are you losing?

Let’s go over a little Internet 101 now.  Google, and all other search engines, use algorithms that evaluate every site based on certain words and phrases that repeat within both the content as well as the “back of the site”.  Knowing the right words in the right order helps determine ranking (below those that pay for top spots in the sponsored section).  This is one area that a specialized marketing company comes into play.  To rank as high as possible, without bankrupting your company with paid advertising in ineffective areas, requires a deep understanding of SEO, organic growth, content creation and the terms customers most frequently utilize when looking for YOUR roofing services.

Direct Mail

Perhaps you care considering a different form of marketing at this time.  Your website is a long-term lead generator.  It isn’t a quick boost, and maybe that is what your company is looking for. Direct mail is a popular option for marketing roofing services and getting immediate results.  Some compare a direct mail campaign to a steroid boost.  Again, there are a lot of companies glad to print up a cheap direct mail piece and mail it out for you.  How do you know what to look for?

Your perfect direct mail marketing campaign will know the phrases and imagery that have been proven as most popular in your specific region.  Images and text that work great in Maine may be less effective in Phoenix.  Even more important than the piece itself is where and to whom it is sent.  The most effective marketing campaign is one that gets in the hands of your target audience.  If you are a commercial roofer, looking for more 10,000+ square foot jobs, do you want your mailing going to gas stations and other undesirable businesses or do you want to work with a marketing company that specializes in roofing and knows how to ensure only quality deliveries?

Brand Marketing

Brand marketing has become quite the trend over the past years.  It is effective, building layer on layer of repeated exposure that ultimately leads the consumer to immediately think of your company when considering a product or service.  This is most effectively done with a combination strategy.  Your website, company printables, social media campaigns and even transportation all reflect the same logo, with the EXACT same color scheme and consistency.  The best way to ensure consistency is to work with a single marketing organization.

You are a roofing contractor.  Your company deserves a marketing company that understands, in a deeply fundamental way, what your business does and who your customers are.  Without that gut-level knowledge and specialized expertise, you might as well hire a plumber to fix your next dental cavity.

Top Roof Marketing specializes in marketing on behalf of both residential and commercial roofing companies.  For more information on our services, please call (800) 795-2187 to speak with one of our team members and learn how we can help your company grow.