SEO for Plumbers: The Leading Guide to SEO

SEO for Plumbers

When it comes to SEO for plumbers, is your company losing potential customers to your competitors when they search for these popular plumbing search terms?

"plumbing services"
"emergency plumber"
"plumber near me"
"leaky faucet repair"
"drain cleaning"
"water heater installation"
"sewer line repair"
"toilet repair"
"plumber [city]"
"24 hour plumber [zip code]"

How much to rank your plumbing business? (You'll be pleasantly surprised!)

These plumber SEO terms are being searched thousands of times a day by potential customers looking for plumbing services that you provide. This has resulted in the plumbing industry being estimated to bring in over $100 Billion next year. Great time to be a plumber!

We talked with some of our most successful plumbers about how effective SEO has been for their plumbing company and what they did to move the needle.

The feedback was nothing short of amazing. Almost every single plumber associated their accelerated growth with how they ranked in the search engines. They also mentioned it's 'need it now' action item that cutomer is taking in real time.

Think about it, potential customers are taking physical action in real time to search Google for drain cleaning, water heater installation, plumber [your city], or other plumbing services that you provide- and if your website is not listed on the 1st page of the search results, you are basically handing customers to your competitors every single day- 24/7, 365.

On the other hand, if you are in the tops spots when potential customers search for those plumbing keywords, you are primed to dominate- and your competitors are giving you customers every, single, day.

Good news though, we here to make sure your plumbing company shows up, big time. In this ultimate guide to SEO for plumbers, we're going to get you pointed in the right direction, so your customers start to find your plumbing services, and not your competitors. In this article, we'll go over the key strategies that you can implement right away to get your plumbing website moving in the right direction- immediately.

Plumbing SEO

What is Plumbing SEO?

Search engine optimization (SEO) for plumbing companies is a marketing strategy to improve your plumbing business’s visibility on search engines and help you get found online. Appearing at the top of the search results page helps to generate free traffic to your website and allows you to connect with customers actively looking for your services.

This online marketing strategy - Plumbing SEO - is extremely effective because customers are looking for plumbing services in real time. Similar to these customers walking into your office at the exact time they need your service- priceless!

4 Types of SEO for Plumbing Companies

There are 4 types of SEO for a plumbing company. Throughout this article, we'll highlight each section as to what type it falls into.

  • Local SEO: Local SEO for plumbing companies is the practice of optimizing your online presence to rank higher in local search results. This is especially important for plumbing contractors because most of their customers are likely to be located in close proximity.

  • Technical SEO: Technical plumber SEO focuses on the backend improvements and refers to the method of optimizing the technical aspects of your website to improve its visibility in search engine results. This can include things like optimizing your website's code, improving the loading speed of your website, and ensuring that your website is mobile-friendly.

  • On-Page SEO: On-page plumbing SEO targets individual web pages of your site and refers to the process of optimizing each one to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic. Some important on-page SEO factors for plumbers to consider include the use of relevant and high-quality content, the inclusion of keywords in headings and page titles, and the use of alt text to describe images.

  • Off-Page SEO: Off-page SEO services for plumbers (the most difficult type) refers to the practice of building authority and backlinks to your website in order to improve its visibility in search engine results. Building high-quality inbound links grows your sites authority which is what Google analyzes when determining where plumbing sites should rank in their search engine.

Now that we are all on the same page, get out your pen and paper and let's get into the key SEO strategies for plumbing companies.

Pro Tip: Just starting your plumbing company? Check out the industry's leading article on how to start a plumbing company.

Optimize Your Plumbing Website for UX

(On-page SEO and Technical SEO)

When it comes to SEO for plumbing contractors, we start with optimizing for user experience (UX) because it's vitally important that your website is providing a good user experience to your plumbing customers.

Happy Google, Happy Rankings

If your site is not providing a good user experience, all the best plumber SEO in the world isn't going to make a difference. It would be like putting weights on your site as you try to move it up search engine rankings.

Why? Simple answer: When it comes to search engine optimization for a plumbing company website, this is one direct measure that Google has insight to. Google starts tracking the UX of a user from the moment they first appear on their search engine.

For instance, a user starts on Google's servers to type in a search term like sewer line repair, 24 hour plumber [zip code] or some other plumbing service that you provide. Next, the user clicks on a search result to visit the listed plumbing company that was on the 1st page. Now comes to crucial step, this is where Google sits and waits to see what this user does next. The dreaded 'back button' is at play here!

  • Great user experience: Google user searches for 'toilet repair', finds your company, clicks to visit your website, and then, never returns to Google's servers. Yay! They found what they were looking for, liked it a lot and Google is happy! Great plumber SEO and your website stays where it is or travels up the rankings.

  • Good user experience: Google user searches for 'plumber near me', finds your site, clicks to visit and then, returns to Google's servers after a couple minutes or more. Ok, that's good. They obviously liked your site but still might need to look more and Google is still happy. Good SEO for your plumbing services and your site stays where it is or moves up the rankings.

  • 'OK' user experience: Google user searches for 'emergency plumber', finds your site, clicks to visit your website and then, returns to Google's servers around 30 seconds to around a minute. Eh, ok. They stuck around for a little bit but not a definitive signal. Most likely stays the same or moves down/up compared to other sites UX signals to Google.

  • Bad user experience: Google user searches for 'SEO for Plumbers', finds your plumbing company, clicks to visit your website and then, returns to Google's servers after a couple minutes or more. Almost 100% they didn't like what they found and are looking immediately for another search result. Not good and this site will most likely move down the rankings- no matter how good the plumbers SEO is.

When it comes to search engine optimization for plumbers, Google has been using UX signals more and more to determine which plumbing company is deserving of their top spots. However, you still have to get there because if you're not on the 1st page, users won't find you and therefore, Google won't know about the UX of your site.

On GROW plans and higher, Servgrow will build you a custom website built with laser focused plumber SEO. Go here to try Servgrow for free.

Action item: Optimize your site using the below tips and strategy.

Here are a several things to get you started with the correct UX optimization:

Keyword Research for Laser Focused Relevancy

Successful SEO for plumbing contractors and making sure you site is relevant to the users search term relies heaving on keyword research.

When it comes to targeting effective search terms for the plumbing industry, the focus should be on keywords that consumers are actually searching for, not what you think they are searching for.

We want to eliminate 'assuming' when it comes to keyword research for plumbing SEO and go straight to the hard facts. Using tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush can show you exactly what your customers are searching for.

"We wasted 6 months targeting the wrong keywords for our local area. Ranking #1 for plumbing keywords nobody is searching for doesn't make the phone ring." - Tim (C.A.T)

Oftentimes, after doing keyword research with a trusted tool, you will find that what you thought people were searching for, actually doesn't get searched at all.

Could you imagine spending significant effort and resources on targeting keywords that nobody was searching for? Yes, you might get to #1, but you'll go crazy wondering why your phone isn't ringing. This is why hiring a quality SEO company for plumbing services is vital.

Once you have identified the top keywords or search terms for your plumbing business, you'll want to dedicate a page for each different one.

For example: If your keyword research shows that users are searching for 'drain cleaning', then you will want to have a page dedicated solely to 'drain cleaning'. With this search term, you will want to:

  • Include "drain cleaning" in the title and headlines of your website.

  • Including the search term 'drain cleaning' in the meta tags and descriptions, as well as in the alt text for images.

  • Use the 'drain cleaning' prominently and naturally throughout your website or content. Avoid stuffing the term excessively, as this can hurt the quality of your content.

  • Use variations of 'drain cleaning' and related terms throughout your website or content. This can help your content rank for a broader range of search queries.

Site Speed for Optimal Plumber SEO

Get your site loading fast. Then, make it faster. Research shows that users that leave your site increase by 32% when your site increases load time from 1 to 3 seconds.

Mobile Friendly

Around 64% of users search for plumber services from a mobile device. If your site doesn't display correctly for a mobile user searching for plumbing services, they are gone faster than cake in our lounge room. Plumber search engine optimization depends heavily on mobile optimization.

"Macho Septic Services saw a 200% increase in visitors to their septic services pages within the first week after optimizing their pages to target the right keywords."

Call to Action

Make sure your site has a great call-to-action when it first loads and is visible without having to scroll down. Our plumbing companies say having a nice headline with a 'Quick Quote' or 'Free Estimate' button has increased their leads.

Example >
Headline: Plumbing Specialists in [Your Location]
Button: Get a Free Plumbing Estimate

Test and Analyze

Successful plumbing SEO will consist of a lot of testing and analyzing. Test all of your links and buttons to make sure they are working. One plumber learned the hard way after launching a site without working links.

"It wasn't until after a full week of low plumbing lead generation that they realized nobody could get to the form." - Mike (Plumbing Co.)

Dive deep into your visitor's behaviors by analyzing analytics and heat maps. A particular plumber increased their plumber services lead generation by simply changing the color of a button. What color? Test and you'll find out what works best for your brand.

Get started with these UX optimization tips and you'll be on your way with a great foundation of SEO for your plumber services.

Local Plumbing SEO

(Local SEO and Off-page SEO)

Local Plumber SEO

Local plumbing search engine optimization is vital for plumbers that targets a local area. It is a subset of SEO focused on local search and can make a company stand out organically for searches in a specific geographical market.

Local SEO for plumbing contractors involves many variables, but we'll focus on the critical ones that your company needs to get right:

  • NAP Consistancy: An important ranking factor, NAP information consists of your plumbing company name, address and phone number. Your NAP needs to be consistent across all of your plumber business listings and citations that you show up on. If Google sees any inconsistencies with your NAP, then they'll be confused and Google doesn't like to be confused.

  • Local Plumbing Business Listings and Citations: List your business on local business listing websites to obtain citations. This usually requires adding your NAP (see above) to the sites and also include an website link back to your site. Keep in mind that your NAP needs to be consistant on each website profile. Business listings sites include, Yellowpages, Foursquare, Hotfrog, CitySearch, Angie's List, Yelp, CityVoter and hundreds more.

  • Google My Business Listing: This is similar to the local business listings but we singled it out as it's far more important because it's a Google owned property. Having a full Google optimized business listing is critical for local plumbing SEO. Having an active company presence, combined with positive plumbing reviews is a big advantage over your competitors when it comes to local SEO.

  • Positive Plumbing Business Reviews: If you're not getting positive reviews, then your plumbing SEO is going to struggle. Cultivate positive reviews on as many business listings as you can. Positive reviews give your business credibility and play a huge role when converting the visitor to a customer when they search for your "Company Name" + reviews.

On GROW plans and higher, Servgrow will build and managed your local business listings and citations. Go here to try Servgrow for free.

Action item: Get to work building out those citations!

Plumber Location Pages

(Local SEO and On-page SEO)

Search Services for Pluming Companies

Creating location/city pages for your plumbing website is an important step for successful plumbing SEO strategies, especially if you operate in multiple locations.

Plumber location page structure should look like this:

  • Home Page: General plumbing terms that are do not target a specific city or local area. Usually this is targeted for the State or country (if multiple states). but can target the entire state.

    Home page title example: [Your State(s)] Premier Plumbing Company

    Home page should talk about your general plumbing services and the state in general (no city or location pages). Include overall state information like landmarks, population, sports teams, etc. This will provide more relevancy to the page.

    URL Example: https://www.awesomeplumbingcompany.com/

  • Location Pages (Inner pages): Plumbing terms targeting a specific city or location.

    Inner city page example: Premier Plumbers in [Your City]

    Inner city pages should talk about the plumbing services offered in that location as well as information about that particular location. Include items like location specific landmarks, population, sports teams, etc. This will provide more relevancy to the location page.

    URL Example: https://www.awesomeplumbingcompany.com/locations/cityname

Action Item: You'll want to create as many inner city pages you are able to service and link to them all from the home page. In addition, add a 'locations' page to your site and add all the inner city pages to that main locations page.

Plumbing 'EAT' (Advanced SEO Tip)

(On-page SEO)

guide to seo

Mastering the EAT principle for the plumbing industry can help you with long term SEO success.

So what is EAT and how is it related to plumber SEO?

EAT stands for expertise, authority and trustworthiness.

EAT has impacted SEO noticeably following a major 2018 algorithm update, known as the Medic Algorithm Update.

It was initially rolled out to medical and health related websites but has since moved on to encompass just about any business website. We'll break down EAT for the HVAC industry.

  • Expertise in Plumbing: Expertise is defined as having a high level of knowledge and skill in the plumbing industry. When it comes to demonstrating expertise on your HVAC website, make sure an expert is creating the content.

  • plumbing Authoritativeness Your reputation in the industry is what represents authoritativeness. Is your website a go to source for information about plumbers? Expertise is the foundation to building authoritativeness.

  • Plumber Trustworthiness The third piece EAT is determined if Google and their users perceive your plumbing website as a trustworthy source. And you guessed it, reviews play a major role in this department. Online reviews can help or hurt your positioning on Google.

Prioritizing for EAT will set your website up for massive plumbing SEO success. Get started today to make improvements and you'll be rewarded.

Off-Page SEO for Plumbers (Authority Building)

(Off-page SEO)

We saved this particluar plumber SEO component for last. Why? Because this is the hardest one to implement as it takes quite a bit of time and resources.

High level off-page SEO for plumbing companies consists of actions taken to build authority (backlinks) from relevant, quality and trusted 3rd party websites. This stage is similar to how we build authority in the 'featured snippet' section.

Think of plumber links from other home service websites as votes for a popularity contest. The more quality votes your plumbing company gets, the higher you rank in the search engines.

If fact, it doesn't matter how good or high quality your website is, without votes or backlinks from other sites, your plumbing company will not rank at the top. Google needs to see relevant websites vouching/voting for your site, and backlinks are the #1 way to do this.

Here are a couple ways of acquiring backlinks to build that plumber authority:

  • Publish high-quality plumbing content on your website that other websites and bloggers will want to link to. This can include blog posts, articles, infographics, and other types of resources relavent to the plumbing industry that provide value to your audience.

  • Reach out to other websites and bloggers in the home services industry and ask them to link to your website. This can be done through email, social media, or by leaving comments on their blog posts or articles.

  • Use social media to promote your website and its content. Share links to your website and its content on your social media profiles, and engage with other users to build your online presence and attract new visitors to your website.

Pro Tip: It's extremely important that you use only white hat plumbing SEO strategies to gain backlinks. Over the years, Google has gotten stricter in what backlinks they reward and which ones they ignore.

The last thing you want to do is spend time and resources building plumbing SEO authority only to have Google ingore it because it wasn't quality. Below are a few things to consider when going after those votes of confidence:

  • The amount of referring domains: Each domain that is linking to your plumbing site is a vote. The more domains you have, the more votes of confidence you have.

  • Link Authority: Not all votes are created equal. Just because a website links to you, doesn't mean it's worth anything. You want votes from high authority websites.

  • plumber relevancy: Acquiring a backlink from a high authority website that is relevant to plumbers will be worth much more than a backlink from a pet food website.

  • Anchor text: Anchor text is the text that is hyperlinked and points to your website. This text needs to be natural and relevant to your brand and the plumbing industry.

Off-site SEO for plumbing companies is the most powerful stage in the SEO process.

Action Item: Hire an SEO company to help build that authority, or start building the authority yourself.

Track SEO Results

Now, it's all about tracking your SEO results for your plumbing company. Similiar to the plumbing tools you leverage in the field, Google search console is a bit different as it's an online website tool. You'll want to set up Google Search Console and Google Analytics.

Google Search Console: (GSC) monitors how search engines like Google sees and ranks your plumbing website.

Google offers Google Search Console as a free tool offered by Google to help website owners in the plumbing industry monitor their SEO results and to maintain their website's presence in Google Search results.

Plumbing can use it to submit their website to Google for indexing, see how their website is performing in search results, and get alerts when there are issues with their website that need to be addressed.

Use GSC for:

  • Tracking what keywords your website shows up for the most and what keywords are sending the most visitors to your site. For example: Are customers coming to your plumbing website by searching for plumbing services, drain cleaning, plumber [city], or from 24 hour plumber [zip code] and leaky faucet repair?

  • Tracking how high on the search results page your web page appears. For example: Where do you rank when someone types in the keywords; toilet repair, sewer line repair, water heater installation, plumber near me, emergency plumber and other plumbing services related keywords?

  • Over a period of time, see what web pages are receiving the most visitors. For example: Are your pages for drain cleaning and leaky faucet repair revieving more visitors than your plumbing pages related to plumber [city] and water heater installation?

Google Analytics: (GA) monitors how potential customers find and interact with your site.

Google Analytics is another free tool by Google that helps plumbers track and analyze how visitors interact with their website. plumbers can use it to gain insights into their website traffic, including where their visitors are coming from, how long they stay on the site, and which pages they view.

Google Analytics is vital in helping plumbers understand what aspects of their plumber SEO is working well on their website and what might need improvement.

Use GA for:

  • To track how many visitors are coming to your website, how long do they stay on your site and how many web pages they view while they are there.

  • Tracking how potential customers are finding your plumbing business. This is the direct correlation of how well your plumbing SEO services are working.

If you're working with an plumber SEO specialist, they'll use GSC, GA and other tools to track this vital information.

Action Item: Set up Google Search Console and Google Analytics for your website.

Combined with other marketing avenues, SEO services for plumbers is hands down the best way to grow your online visibility and comes with the industries best ROI.

You should know though, investing into plumbing SEO is a long-term strategy and will take some time to see results. However, if you focus on these key SEO strategies that are laid out in this article, your plumbing company see major long-term success.

Over 8,000 top 3 rankings! (✅Verified)

Plumbers asked and we delivered! We don't often have a preferred business but we know how important SEO is to our plumbing customers.

Get a FREE audit below from our preferred SEO company for plumbers.

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