Marketing Strategies for Service Businesses That Actually Drive Results

Much of the most common marketing advice you hear is best suited to product-based businesses. Marketing a service business is different. You need strategies tailored to selling work, not goods, to get the most out of your marketing budget.

Try these digital marketing strategies for the service industry to boost conversions and set your business up for long-term success.

Mastering Local SEO To Get Your Business On Total Map Coverage!

Running a service business typically means nearly all your customers are local. It’s not worth trying to get customers hundreds or thousands of miles away interested in your shop because they’re most likely never going to make a purchase. You need to connect with your neighbors. But how?

Start with local search engine optimization (SEO). Right now, there are probably customers in your area searching online for the services you provide. They don’t know which local business best meets their needs.

If you can get your business to appear in those searches by high-intent customers, you have a good chance of bringing them in. Over 75% of customers who search for local businesses visit one within a day, and 28% of these searches lead to a purchase.

Local SEO is the key to getting your shop featured in these search results. Focus on these local SEO essentials:

• Use Google Business Profile: Claim and fill out your Google Business Profile, then add pictures, store hours, and other key details to improve your online presence.
• Add local keywords to your website: Including local keywords like “auto body shop near [Location]” or “hairdresser for [location] clients” helps search engines recognize your location.
• Gather reviews: Your online map rankings partially depend on your reviews. Ask existing customers to share reviews online and respond to each one to encourage further engagement.
• Ensure NAP consistency: Make sure your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) are the same everywhere online. Google will trust your business more (and let you rank higher) if these details are consistent.

Building A Five-Star Reputation That Does The Selling For You!

These days, one of the first things customers do when they’re looking for a local business is read reviews. They’re not just looking at your overall star rating, either.

Around 98% of customers read reviews for local businesses at least occasionally, and 94% say a negative review has made them avoid a business.

Think of your reviews as the new word of mouth for shops and contractors. People may still ask their friends and family for local business recommendations, but they’re also placing a lot of trust in strangers online. Yelp found that 90% of people on the platform compare businesses before deciding which one to hire, and reviews play a key role in those comparisons.

Try these strategies to get more online reviews:

• Ask your customers: When you want something, the best thing to do is often to ask. Send recent customers a follow-up message politely requesting a review.
• Send direct links: Include a link to your Google Business Profile in the message to make it easier for customers to leave a review.
• Add an in-store QR code: Set up a QR code display at checkout that links to your review page. You can also add this QR code to receipts and business cards.
• Personalize your request: Customers like to feel special. Include their name and details of the service they purchased in your review request so the message doesn’t feel like a copy.
• Respond to your reviews: Most Yelp users say they’re more likely to write reviews if they see a business responds. Stay professional, but respond to positive and negative reviews promptly.

Increasing your Yelp rating by just one star could lead to a five to nine percent revenue increase. It’s well worth investing time asking customers to leave reviews as part of your digital marketing strategy for a service-industry business.

Smart Paid Advertising To Fill Your Calendar Fast!

As powerful as organic digital marketing for a local business can be, you’ll probably want to leverage some smart digital advertising campaigns, too.

Two main types of ads will probably work best for your service business: local services ads (LSAs) and pay-per-click ads:

• Pay-per-click: You pay a set fee each time a customer clicks on one of your ads. These ads may appear in search results, as display ads, on social media, or before videos online.
• Local services ads: Your business appears at the top of local business searches as a sponsored result. You only pay a fee when someone contacts you through the ad via a call, online message, or appointment booking.

LSAs are generally intent-based ads. They show your business to customers who are already actively searching for a solution. These customers are likely to convert, so you may be willing to pay more for the leads.

Awareness ads are also important, though. They target a wider audience to make your brand more visible and, hopefully, make potential customers aware of your services.

Creating a customer journey map can help you understand which messages will work best for different customers at each stage.

Nurturing Leads And Keeping Customers For Life With Email And SMS!

Customers’ attention spans are often short. If you want to keep them thinking about your business, you have to stay in touch. Collect contact information from leads and customers, even if it’s just an email address or phone number.

Then, regularly send them relevant messages to keep them engaged. Consider these ideas:

• A welcome series to help the customer get more familiar with your business
• Educational how-tos to share useful tutorials
• Seasonal maintenance reminders, like for auto body shops
• Appointment confirmations and reminders
• Seasonal promotions
• Re-engagement messages for customers who have not been engaging

You can automate these SMS and email messages with the right marketing tools. For example, your service CRM may be able to automate appointment reminders and follow-ups. Automation ensures you send customers the right message at the right moment without having to manage all the details manually. Just remember not to go overboard, or they'll tune you out!

Your Website Is Your Best Salesperson: Don't Let It Sleep On The Job!

Your website is often one of the first touchpoints new customers have with your business. Make sure it makes a great first impression.

Gear everything on your website toward driving conversions. That doesn’t mean it’s all sales, all the time—just design your website with conversions in mind. Add compelling CTA buttons that stand out and draw customers in. You may be surprised how many leads your website brings in when it’s optimized and professional. Look into website design for service businesses.

Include an online booking tool to make it as easy as possible for customers to book an appointment, too. Some customers may not want to call, but they’re willing to fill out a few quick fields online. You’ll boost conversions and have your appointments automatically registered in your system.

Turning Happy Customers Into Your Very Own Hype Team!

The best marketing a local service business gets is word of mouth from happy customers. When you deliver great service, many customers will go and tell their friends and family about you. But you can give them an extra nudge to make those recommendations with a referral program.

Reward customers for referring new people to your business with discounts or free service. The amount you pay for these rewards will be one of your most cost-effective marketing strategies for generating leads.

And for help with executing all these local service business marketing strategies, turn to Optimize Digital Marketing. Our team of marketing experts will work with you to manage your online reviews, boost your online visibility, and create an effective website. Contact us to get started on your personalized marketing plan.