We Analyzed 3,502 HVAC Listings on Google My Business
admin | Aug 6, 2020
Here’s what we learned about what it takes to rank your HVAC business on Google.
In This Article:
What Is Google My Business?
Businesses can update their GMB listing with a lot of information: address, phone number, link to website, open hours, and photos. Customers can leave reviews on your listing, which can impact how well you appear in local searches.
Google Business listings show up when you do localized searches – like “Heating repairs near me” – or conduct a search on the Google Maps app.
About Our Study
We wanted to find out what it takes to rank for HVAC search terms within the Google My Business system. So we conducted a study of 3,502 different GMB profiles for HVAC companies across Pennsylvania.
We compiled the information and identified trends among these top-performing GMB listings.
Here’s what we discovered.
How to Rank Your HVAC Company on Google
Link to Your Website
Instead of a website, you can add a link to a social profile like your Facebook page. You can also create a free website within your Google My Business profile. These sites are simple to set up and can be automatically updated with Google Posts. In our study, 5% of HVAC companies are linking to a Facebook page or a free Google website.
Select the Right Categories
Within the Google Business system, you can choose from hundreds of categories for your business.
You can add up to 10 categories to your profile, but the Primary Category is the most important. The category you select as primary will have a tangible impact on how your profile ranks in your given service area.
Primary Category
- HVAC Contractor – 45%
- Air Conditioning Contractor – 18%
- Heating Contractor – 6%
- Plumber – 4%
- General Contractor – 4%
- Mechanical Contractor – 2%
It is not surprising to see other categories in the Primary Category – after all, plenty of home service companies that do HVAC also offer plumbing, electrical, and other home improvement services.
We noticed that Air Conditioning Contractor was #2 for Primary Category, while the related Heating Contractor was a much smaller percentage. Since this study was conducted in the summer months (July 2020), this could be that some companies are making a seasonal adjustment to their primary category so they rank better during a given season.
TIP: Adjust Your Primary Category Based on Season – If you conduct very seasonal services, it may make sense to adjust your category based on the season. In winter months, make your primary category Heating Contractor, then update it in the Spring for Air Conditioning Contractor.
Most Popular Categories
During our study, we not only looked at the Primary Category for each GMB profile, we also pulled all listed categories. According to our study, 57% of HVAC companies used HVAC Contractor as a category within Google My Business.
Here are some of the most popular GMB categories within our study:
- HVAC Contractor – 57%
- Air Conditioning Contractor – 36%
- Heating Contractor – 35%
- Air Conditioning Service Repair – 21%
- Plumber – 17%
- Furnace Repair Service – 11%
- Electrician – 6%
- General Contractor – 6%
- Mechanical Contractor – 5%
- Contractor – 3%
There were some other popular categories related to fuel companies (Heating Oil Supplier, Fuel Supplier, Propane Supplier), but none made it past 2% of profiles.
We were surprised to see only 1 category that was used on more than 50% of profiles. And we were also surprised to see the dropoff in related HVAC categories – like Furnace Repair Service only appearing on 11% of GMB profiles.
If you want to stay ahead of your competition and get found by more people, consider using all applicable categories within your GMB profile.
Ask for Reviews
Within our study, there was a wide range in terms of the number of reviews. While there were some larger companies that had hundreds and even thousands of reviews, most companies have a much smaller number of reviews. We found that the average number of reviews for HVAC companies was 21, while 50% of HVAC companies have 3 or fewer reviews and 26% did not have a single review.
Stand Out from Your Competition
Because of the nature of the Google search results, your GMB profile is a great way to stand out from your competition. In addition to asking for more reviews and keeping your average star rating high, there are a few more things you can do to optimize your GMB profile.
A newer feature for GMB profiles, you can add a link to an appointment page or online appointment scheduler on your website. Yet the vast majority (88%) of HVAC companies are not using this feature. By adding this URL to your profile, you can help your potential customers take quicker action right from your listing.
Add Photos
As a business owner, you can add photos to your GMB profile. Yet we were surprised to see that 16% of HVAC companies did not add a photo to their profile. The average number of photos on a GMB profile was 11, which were often photos of their office, their technicians in action, and photos of their products or brands they carry.
Improve Your GMB Listing to Attract Local Business
As you can see, it takes some planning and work to create a Google My Business profile that will rank well and stand out from the competition. By following the advice to optimize your listing, you can get found by more potential customers right when they need your help.
If you need help creating or executing a marketing plan for your HVAC company, contact YDOP. We help home service companies across the country make better decisions about their digital marketing efforts.
Trends in GMB for HVAC Companies
Study based on 3,502 Google My Business listings for HVAC companies in Pennsylvania.
Categories
- 45% of HVAC companies use HVAC Contractor as their Primary Category for their GMB listing.
- 18% of HVAC companies use Air Conditioning Contractor as their Primary Category for their GMB listing.
- 57% of HVAC companies use HVAC Contractor as a category for their GMB listing.
Reviews
- 50% of HVAC companies have 3 or fewer reviews on their GMB listing.
- 26% of HVAC companies have 0 reviews on their GMB listing.
- 21 – Average number of reviews for an HVAC company GMB listing.
Website Links
- 30% of HVAC companies are missing a link to their website or Facebook page.
- 4% of HVAC companies are using UTM code to track clicks to their website from their GMB listing.
- 5% of HVAC companies are linking to a free Google Business website or Facebook page from their GMB profile.
- 66% of HVAC companies are linking to an unsecured (non SSL) website from their GMB listing.
Additional Features
- 1% of HVAC companies do not have a phone number listed on their GMB listing.
- 88% of HVAC companies are not using the appointment link on their GMB listing.
- 16% of HVAC companies are missing photos from their GMB listing.
- 11 – Average number of photos for an HVAC company GMB listing.