How Do GBP and Proximity Help My HVAC or Solar Business Rank?

For HVAC and solar businesses, local rankings play a huge role in the growth and success of your company. So what exactly deter­mines your company’s rankings in local search results?

The two most signif­icant factors deter­mining your local rankings are your Google My Business (GMB) listing and proximity to searchers.

To help you better under­stand (and improve) your local rankings, we’ll cover:

• How Your GMB Listing Affects Your "Local Pack" Rankings
• Easy-to-follow tips for improving your company’s local rankings

But before we dive into those two points, let’s discuss one crucial distinction.

Local Pack vs. Organic Rankings: What’s the Difference?

The ​“local pack,” aka the ​“map pack,” refers to the highly-coveted first 3 spots in the map that appear on the first page of results for any search query with local intent.

For example, here at Rocket Media HQ in Gilbert, AZ, I typed in a Google search for ​“HVAC company in Gilbert.”

Because the “…in Gilbert” signifies local intent, Google automat­i­cally provided a local pack on the first page of search results (see below).

As you can see in the screenshot above, the 3 local pack results are shown above the organic results. This top-of-the-page placement makes local pack rankings very important for local businesses.

Below, we’ll focus on the two main factors that determine whether your company appears in local pack results:

How Your Proximity Affects Your Map Pack Rankings

Here’s the sometimes-good-sometimes-bad news: Whether or not you show up in the local pack mainly depends on how close you are to the searcher/​user.

Note: This factor is primarily out of your control. If you’d like to learn more about the factors that are in your control, skip to the section titled ​“How your GMB listing affects your local rankings.”

So how far away can you be from the user and still rank in the local pack?

Well, that’s a Google secret that, quite frankly, no one has cracked. Of course, that’s because it all depends on how compet­itive your area is when it comes to your service/​industry. However, studies have shown that the local pack most commonly displays companies that range anywhere from .3 miles to over 3 miles from the user.

For some companies, at first glance, this is disheart­ening news. How can your company compete with other HVAC or solar companies closer to your target audience?

Besides proximity to the user, another factor plays a signif­icant role in your local pack rankings: your company’s GMB listing.

And the good news? You have much more control over this factor.

How Your GMB Listing Affects Your Local Pack Rankings

Put simply; a Google My Business listing is essential to any local SEO strategy.

However, simply having a GMB listing is not enough. Ensuring that you have an accurate and updated GMB listing is the goal. In fact, in some cases, a complete GMB listing might be more valuable than a high-ranking listing.

And that leads us to our somewhat surprising advice: Focus less on your local pack rankings and more on your GMB conver­sions.

You see, local pack rankings in and of themselves don’t guarantee more business. A GMB listing in the #1 local pack spot doesn’t mean much if it’s an empty or incor­rectly filled-out listing. A complete, accurate, and enticing listing (even if it’s ranking #3 or #4) will almost always convert better than an incom­plete, inaccurate listing in the #1 spot.

So how can you optimize your GMB listing for higher conversions?

We’re glad you asked.

5 Tips To Optimize Your GMB Listing for More Conversions

Help People Find You on Yelp or Google

Encourage Customers To Use Specific Keywords in Reviews

The right keywords can boost your rankings on review sites. They can also increase conver­sions — and remember, that’s what we’re trying to focus on.

To start, you’ll need to do some research to determine the keywords and adjec­tives that your customers are using when searching for your services. For example, are customers in your area looking for ​“fast AC repairs,” ​“masked HVAC pros,” or ​“free solar consultations”?

Once you determine the keywords customers use in their searches, you can focus on ensuring that your reviews incor­porate these words/​phrases.

But how can you control the words your customers use in their reviews? You can’t. But you can guide customers to focus on specific aspects of your service that you want to be highlighted, which increases the chance of particular keywords popping up in your reviews.

For example, send an email that encourages customers to share their experi­ences. In the email, subtly encourage customers to use specific words by prompting them with the following questions:

Respond to Existing Reviews (Positive or Negative)

Responding to reviews shows potential customers that you’re invested in providing excellent customer service. Your responses can also prompt other customers to find you on Yelp or Google, as your replies show that you may see their feedback and care about their experience.

One study showed that 96% of consumers who read online reviews also read the business’ responses. That said, your responses go a long way when it comes to customers’ percep­tions of your company.

Ensure Your Business Infor­mation Is Correct and Complete

Add Photos

Google states that GMB listings with photos receive more clicks and inter­ac­tions than listings without photos. So uploading photos to your listing is an easy way to optimize your listing for conversions.

We suggest adding profes­sional photos that showcase various features of your business (i.e., show your instal­lation team at customers’ homes, your customer service agents on the phone, and your leadership team in your building).