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Last Updated January 22, 2024
PPC for HVAC uses paid advertising on search engines to drive more leads to HVAC companies. Learn how our experts use PPC to boost traffic and conversions for HVAC businesses.
When you run an HVAC business, whether air conditioning services, heating system installation, or ventilation maintenance, finding new customers can be challenging.
While it pays to tweak your website for search engine optimization (SEO), it takes time to work. It can also be hard-going when you have a lot of competition from other HVAC companies in your area.
That’s when pay-per-click advertising, or PPC advertising, for your HVAC business can be beneficial.
Not sure if PPC is the right choice for your business? Join us as we look at the different types of PPC advertising, explain the benefits, and show you how to build PPC campaigns that bring qualified leads.
What is PPC for HVAC?
PPC advertising for HVAC is a type of online advertising that helps HVAC businesses attract more leads to their websites. HVAC businesses can have their ad displayed in search engines, like Google, Bing, and Yahoo.
You only pay a fee when someone clicks on your ad. This fee is determined by a number of factors, including the industry you’re in, the audience you want to target, and the number of competitors you have.
Here’s an example of PPC advertising for “underfloor heating installation” in Google. You can tell these entries are PPC ads because they appear at the top of Google above the organic search results. The ads also state they’re “sponsored.”
PPC advertising for HVAC services can be an effective way to reach your target audience, generating leads and sales.
However, creating effective ad campaigns is crucial; otherwise, the wrong people could click on your ads. This means you could see a poor return on investment (ROI).
Why use PPC in your HVAC company?
Is PPC worth it? When done right, PPC has many benefits for HVAC contractors. These include:
- Targeted advertising options. You can use PPC advertising to show adverts to your preferred demographics and ensure your ads don’t display to the people who aren’t interested in your services
- Immediate results. Your adverts will show as soon as your PPC campaigns are launched, meaning you can start selling to potential customers straightaway
- Measurable results. You can see how your ads are doing in real-time (or as close to real-time as possible). This means you can optimize your PPC ads to provide the best results
- Raising brand awareness. Even if potential customers don’t click on your ads, over time, they gradually become more aware of your business
Of course, PPC isn’t the right choice for all HVAC companies. If you don’t have a well-optimized website or have a very small marketing budget, you may be better off investing in other marketing channels, for example, SEO.
However, if you just don’t have the time and resources to dedicate to PPC marketing, a digital marketing agency can manage your campaigns on your behalf, meaning you can focus your marketing efforts elsewhere.
We’ll show you how to find the right agency later in this article.
How to boost your PPC conversion rate: Our expert tips
While you might be tempted to start using PPC for your HVAC company straight away, we recommend creating a marketing plan. This PPC strategy document will identify your target audience, budget, and type of ad campaigns to run to get the best conversion rate.
There are also some specific things you should consider when you operate in the HVAC industry to ensure a well-optimized conversion rate and solid ROI. Here’s what we recommend.
- Focus on local traffic
- Adjust your bids accordingly
- Consider seasonality
- Optimize for mobile
- Track and monitor your campaigns
Focus on local traffic
When you operate in the HVAC industry, it pays to focus on a local audience. Although you are targeting fewer people, these people are the ones most likely to use your services, meaning a higher conversion rate.
According to Brightlocal, 98% of customers use the internet to find information about local businesses. This means a well-placed PPC ad is highly likely to get their attention.
Here are some ways you can use local PPC to make your HVAC company stand out:
- Take advantage of Google Local Service Ads, which are designed for local searches.
- Use geo-fencing to ensure your ads are served to a specific area.
- Use location-specific keywords, combined with the HVAC services you offer. For example, “Air conditioning maintenance in Richland Hills” and “Heat pump installation in Richland Hills.”
- Create individual ads to appeal to the different locations where you provide services. Customized imagery, assets, and ad copy can increase the chances of customers clicking your ads.
Don’t forget to localize all parts of your HVAC marketing strategy. If you want to increase your search engine presence and direct more organic traffic to your website, it’s worth looking into local SEO too.
Adjust your bids accordingly
HVAC PPC isn’t something you can just “set and forget.” It’s important to regularly review and assess how much you bid. This ensures you always get the optimal conversion rate.
PPC platforms like Google Ads offer bid automation, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to determine how much you should bid. While this can be useful, we recommend overseeing your bids manually. This is because you will be aware of your key demographics, as well as nuances that the PPC platforms might not be aware of.
We spoke to Jimmy Hiller, CEO of Hiller Plumbing, about adjusting your bids to match your business needs. He advised: “Set lower bids in areas with lower demand for your services. The key is to increase bids where your target audience resides and lower them where they do not. For example, tailor your advertising to areas where people have older homes and tend to choose repair over replacement and lower the bid there.
“Conversely, increase the bid in areas where people are more likely to opt for replacement, as this service generates higher revenue.”
Consider seasonality
HVAC is a seasonal business. Demand for air conditioning grows in summer, while demand for heating systems increases in winter.
This means it’s important to adapt your PPC ads throughout the year to keep up with customer demand.
For example, take this Facebook advert from Bill’s Heating & A/C, offering free heat pumps in the winter. This campaign ran throughout the course of November, capitalizing on people’s needs to ensure a warm home.
Review your ad copy and imagery throughout the year and re-optimise your keyword bidding to focus on the words and phrases you know your customers will use most.
Optimize for mobile
Whether shopping on our lunch break, scrolling through social media while we watch television, or doing a Google search on the go; we use our smartphones to browse the internet a lot. This means it’s essential to optimize HVAC PPC ads for mobile.
According to Statcounter, 36% of all internet traffic is through mobile, up 21% since this time a decade ago.
We spoke to Michael Wall, owner of Codefixer, about mobile optimization. He said: “People who need heating, ventilation, or air conditioning services are more likely to use their phones to do searches while they’re on the go, especially if they need to find services right away.
“As a result, HVAC businesses need to make sure PPC campaigns work on smartphones and tablets. Overall, the goal is to create a user experience that is not only useful but also easy to use on mobile devices with their smaller screens.
“One of the most important parts of this optimization process is writing ad copy that is both short and interesting. This makes sure that the message gets across well in the small space on mobile screens. Additionally, the addition of click-to-call extensions makes things even easier by letting possible customers and HVAC service providers talk directly with just a tap.
“HVAC companies that want to stay ahead in a competitive market must implement mobile optimization to make sure that their services are easy for people to reach and use in a world that is becoming increasingly mobile-focused.”
It’s also important to ensure that the landing pages your PPC ads link to are optimized for mobile too. Not only does this increase the odds of conversion, but it increases your quality score too, meaning you pay less for your adverts.
Track and monitor your campaigns
It’s important to track your PPC campaigns. This means you can see which demographics interact with your ads the most and optimize your ads to increase your conversion rate.
Key metrics to monitor to check your campaign performance include:
- Click-through rate (CTR). How often your ads are clicked. A high CTR indicates that your ads are engaging
- Cost per click (CPC). How much you pay when someone clicks on your ad. A low CPC means you’re getting more clicks for your budget
- Cost per acquisition (CPA). How much you spend to acquire a new customer. Your ideal CPA will depend on the service you sell and your goals, but it’s important to regularly check it to make sure it stays constant
- Conversion rate. How many customers sign up to your call-to-action when they land on your website. A high conversion rate means your campaign is achieving its goals
- Quality score. A high Quality Score (sometimes called a relevance score on Facebook and other PPC platforms) means you pay less for your ads
- Return on ad spend (ROAS). How much revenue you generate from your ad campaign compared to your spend. This shows how profitable your PPC campaign is
“Tracking is an essential part of any PPC campaign, especially for HVAC businesses,” says Sam Yadegar, CEO at Hawksem. “We use ConversionIQ (CIQ) to granularly track every single step of the buyer journey so we can understand what aspects of a campaign are working and where we should trim the fat.”
This allows us to optimize towards a higher ROAS month-on-month and year-on-year.
“Tracking with CIQ provides an additional bonus as we can get more insight about a target audience,” continues Yadegar. “We can then take that data and use it on another marketing channel (such as SEO or social media) to further scale while maintaining profitability.”
The different types of HVAC PPC ads
Which type of PPC ad should you consider if you’re an HVAC contractor? Here are our top four recommendations.
Google Search Ads
Google Search Ads (AKA Google Ads) are a great way to build brand awareness and target customers looking for help in an emergency. After all, if you have a broken air conditioning unit or heater, Google will likely be your first port of call!
With the Google search engine processing over 40,000 search queries every second, Google Ads is a great way to make people aware of your HVAC company.
Good keyword research is the cornerstone of Google Search. Choose the words and phrases your customers use, decide how much you want to bid, and if you outbid your competitors, you’ll appear above the organic search results.
Another benefit of Google Search Ads is that you can use them alongside assets (formerly known as Google Ad Extensions). These are additional pieces of content you can append to your Search Ad at no extra cost.
These assets include:
- A lead generation form
- A phone number
- Links to your website
- Information about the services you provide
- Discounts you offer
- Your price list
These assets provide potential customers with more information, make it easier to contact you, and increase the “real estate” your ad takes up in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
Google Local Service Ads
If you’re an HVAC company operating in a specific town or city, local PPC needs to be an important part of your marketing strategy. Google Local Service Ads maximize the chances of your ad appearing in front of people living and working in the regions you serve.
Google Local Service Ads appear at the very top of the Google Search results, even above Google Search Ads. Customers have all the information they need to make a decision at a glance, including how long you’ve been in business, your opening times, and reviews from previous customers.
Another advantage is that all businesses that use Google Local Service Ads are screened and vetted by Google, providing potential customers with peace of mind.
Google Display Ads
Search Ads and Local Service Ads are ideal for customers that need HVAC services in an emergency. Conversely, Google Display Ads are great if you want to increase brand awareness.
Display Ads appear to potential customers across a network of over two million websites and mobile apps, known as the Google Display Network. This means your adverts follow prospective customers across the different websites they visit.
As a result of seeing your advert and branding, these customers are more likely to remember you when they need HVAC services.
Google Display Ads are also fantastic for retargeting. If a prospective customer visits your website but doesn’t take action, you can show them adverts and encourage them to come back and convert.
Social media ads
Social media PPC ads are ones that appear in people’s social media accounts, typically in their newsfeeds.
The benefit of social media advertising is that you can serve ads across a variety of platforms, including:
- TikTok
- X (formerly Twitter)
This means you can promote your HVAC business on the platform your target audience is most likely to use. For example, the air conditioning advert below was seen on Facebook, targeted at customers looking to sign up for a home maintenance plan.
Alternatively, LinkedIn paid search ads are ideal if your HVAC business operates in the B2B sector. You can use the targeting options to promote your HVAC systems to estate managers, facilities managers, and construction managers, like this advert below.
How much does PPC for HVAC businesses cost?
What ad spend should you expect when creating HVAC PPC campaigns?
According to Wordstream, the average cost per click for the home improvement sector is $6.55, with an average cost per lead of $66.02.
However, the actual PPC cost for your HVAC business may vary depending on a range of factors, including:
- The PPC advertising platform you use
- The keywords you target
- The location you’re targeting
- The competition — the more companies that bid, the higher the demand, and the higher the cost
Remember that if you use a digital marketing agency to manage your PPC, you’ll have to factor their costs into your ad spend too. We’ll look at how to choose a cost-effective PPC management agency later in this article.
What to consider when looking for a digital marketing agency for your HVAC business
PPC advertising for your HVAC company has a lot of benefits when your’re a business owner. However, you need to invest time in developing a strategy, creating engaging ads, and optimizing them to guarantee the right results.
In this scenario, a PPC marketing agency can help. Whether you operate in the B2B or B2C sector, a PPC company will identify the right goals, manage your PPC campaigns, and ensure your ROAS is as high as possible. The creatives they have in their team will also create stunning imagery and the perfect ad copy too!
What should you consider when looking for an HVAC PPC agency or PPC consultant?
Here’s what we recommend:
- Look for a PPC agency with proven experience in the HVAC sector. This will ensure they understand the specific nuances of your industry and the pain points your customers have
- Find reviews and recommendations online. This will help you understand the pros and cons of working with a specific agency
- Ask the agency for examples of the work they have done and the success they have seen. For example, by using HawkSEM’s PPC services for HVAC companies, NorthStock was able to increase conversions by 53%
The takeaway
When building an online marketing strategy for your HVAC business, PPC advertising can offer many benefits. It gets you to the top of Google, introduces your business to prospective new customers, and ensures you’re contactable in an emergency situation.
The key is choosing the right PPC platform for your HVAC business and creating high-quality ads that convince people to get in touch. With the right strategy, even small businesses can take advantage of PPC advertising and create a successful PPC campaign.
If you’re looking for an HVAC PPC agency to manage your PPC advertising and drive leads, our team of HVAC PPC services experts can help. Find out more about our PPC management services and book your free, no-obligation consultation today.