If you have a woodworking business, we’d be willing to bet that you are passionate about the craft. We’d also be willing to bet that you’re not so passionate about the actual business side of, well, business. In a perfect world, you’d be able to do quality work, which would be enough to be successful.
We don’t live in a perfect world, though. You have to market your woodworking business effectively if you want to make a living at it. Unfortunately, marketing is something that a lot of tradespeople struggle to master. The concept is simple: get as many eyes as possible on your business. But the practices are complex.
To help demystify the marketing side of your woodworking business, Contractor Webmasters put together a guide that will help you achieve your online goals in 2022.
What is SEO for Woodworking?
Before we get into the tips, you may have some questions about SEO. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. SEO refers to practices used to help your website rank (appear) higher on search engine results pages. For most consumers, their interaction with a business starts online and goes something like this:
- They type in phrases and keywords into a search engine
- The search engine uses those keywords to find websites that are a relevant match
- The relevant matches are displayed to the user on a Search Engine Results Page (SERP)
- The customer clicks on the most relevant or interesting results.
Pretty simple, right? Here’s where things get complicated. Less than one percent of consumers will even glance at the 2nd page of search results. Results on the first page – and more specifically, the top results on the first page – get most of the clicks. The #1 and #2 results are prime real estate.
SEO is all about getting your site into that coveted top spot on the first page of online searches. If you’re in the #1 or #2 ranking position, your website will get more visitors. If your website gets more visitors, you will have more chances to close new customers.
So we’ve covered SEO basics; now let’s talk about how to market a woodworking business with SEO.
Launch a Woodworking and Cabinets Website
You don’t have any chance of ranking if you don’t have a website. But it’s not enough to have a website. You have to have an optimized website. Here are some tips for building a high-ranking website:
- Good Internal Linking: Every page on your site can link to another page on your site, known as internal linking. Internal ranking is a ranking factor – an aspect of web presence that search engines use when pulling up user results.
- Good Information: People will not stay on your site if they can’t get the information they are after. Your landing page (the page that visitors are led to when they click your link) has relevant information like contact info, the services you offer, and address.
- Pictures: If people seek out woodworking and cabinet building services, they want to see previous jobs. Be sure to include high-resolution images of your work on your site and download DataPins to showcase verified jobs, locations, and reviews.
Building a website may seem intimidating, but some online services make it easy. Here is a list of some of the best website hosting and building services to get you started. Of course, you can always hire a freelance designer to develop your site for you as well.
Cabinet and Woodworking Keywords
After you have your website, you will need to integrate keywords so that search engines and people can find you. Our example of the online search experience mentioned that people type in phrases and keywords to initiate a search. The idea is to use keywords that most people would use when searching for your woodworking and cabinet services in the content of your website. But how do you know which keywords people are using?
Using keyword research tools, you can identify keywords relevant to the services you offer and those being used the most by consumers. Once you have a good list of keywords, it’s important not to overuse them in your site’s written content.
Using keywords as often as possible to try to manipulate search engines will get your site penalized these days – and that’s not good. So use keywords often, but in a natural, organic way.
Blogging for Cabinet and Woodworking Companies
Content marketing is a very effective way to promote your business. One of the most effective methods of content marketing is blogging. A blog allows you to share your in-depth knowledge of woodworking and cabinetry with people. But, more importantly, blogging will generate more traffic for your site.
You can even use the keyword research you have already done to help you develop blog topics. Also, consider some of the things that your customers most often ask you and turn that into blog content. People are more likely to read a blog than to click on an ad which, is why blogging is the more effective way to market your business.
Link Building for Cabinet and Woodworking
When another website links to your website, it serves as an endorsement. Google uses links as a ranking factor but also outlines strict guidelines to prevent manipulation. For instance, you cannot pay for links or exchange links with another website. Earning external links can be tricky, though, so here are some tips that can help:
- Start a Blog: Blogs are a great way to build inbound links. When you have insightful, interesting, or helpful information in your blog, it is more likely to get cited on other sites.
- Reach Out: Link outreach is perfectly okay as long as you don’t exchange money or favors. Write a helpful blog post with statistics and research and then reach out and ask contractors you have worked with, your suppliers, your local chamber of commerce, and anyone else to include the link on their website, where appropriate.
- Review Sites: You should be present on as many review websites as possible. The apparent reason is that a lot of positive reviews are suitable for your business. In terms of SEO, being present on review websites helps you build your external link profile. Though these kinds of links are nofollow links, they still count as a ranking hint.
SEO Solutions Cabinet Makers
There is no universal answer to the question “how to market a woodworking business.” Every business is different, so marketing strategies require custom solutions. That’s what we offer here at Contractor Webmasters: customized marketing solutions for your business. We take the time to get to know you, your business, and your goals because that’s the only way to market any business successfully. So take your woodworking and cabinetry business to new heights by contacting us today.
