5 Tips for Roofing Contractors to Win in Social Search

Search engine optimization (SEO) has been rapidly evolving over the past few years: in October 2009 Google first introduced its social search strategy, have since introduced the +1 button and now they have launched Google+ (their version of a social network).

With more than a 60% market share in the overall web search landscape, Google remains king. So, how does a roofing contractor, consultant, manufacturer or distributor like yourself achieve positive results in the search game at a time when SEO rules of engagement are evolving so rapidly?

Content
Despite the rapid pace of change, one thing that has remained constant and is actually now more true than ever before is that content is still king when it comes to SEO. Google’s Panda update is testimony to this - they want the user to have a good experience in a search, and the best path to a good experience is delivery of relevant content. You should remain committed to producing high quality content.

Content Diversity
The good news? We have many social media platforms at our finger tips to produce content. The bad news? Google and Microsoft are watching for content diversity, which puts more pressure on you to produce a diverse mix of content. This is no small undertaking. A traditionally SEO-optimized website is no longer enough to rank well for competitive keywords. You now need to produce video and photo image content that is also optimized with proper tags and descriptions. Downloadable content can also be indexed, and therefore sends positive signals to Google and Microsoft that you are a producer of diverse content. Content across other social channels are worthy of your focus as well.

Google's +1 Button
The +1 button is gaining greater importance. We know that Google is using +1 clicks as a signal, but did you know that the location of the +1 button is also significant? When someone clicks on the +1 button on say a product page, that signals that they like that product. But when someone clicks the +1 button on say a category page, that signals that they like the entire category. Take that one step further to clicking the +1 button on a home page, signaling that you like the entire website! Get the picture? The +1 button is a bigger deal than you might have realized.

Social Sharing
Since the introduction of social search in October 2009, sharing content across various channels has become extremely important. This continues to be more true every day. Google and Microsoft are tracking the extent to which your content is shared. Consequently, the social sharing buttons on your website or blog are incredibly important.

All of Your Employees Work in the Marketing Department
If content sharing is so important, then it is even more important that everyone in your company understands this point. If every employee shares your blog posts, YouTube videos, Facebook posts, Tweets, LinkedIn company pages, etc. across their social networks, that turns the entire company into the marketing department. It takes a company-wide culture with strong leadership to execute this strategy.

Social search is here to stay, and I strongly urge you to embrace this. If you would like to discuss this further or need help getting started (or getting your company to the next level), please email me at Chris@RoofPal.com.

Also, don't forget that every person's search results are going to vary based on who they are connected to on social media. Please read my blog post on this topic and incorporate that into your social media strategy as well.