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Welcome to the dead zone: That time right after Thanksgiving when people are starting to use their heat, but aren’t calling yet for repairs or installations.
All the early-season inspections and repairs are out of they way. And, most people — including you, probably — are thinking more about the holidays than their heating system.
But, you can get the phone ringing again before February. And, you can use content to do it.
In this post, we’ll look at how to find topics that will get you through the dry early winter while getting ready for spring. And, we’ll talk about how to make the most of your articles.
In particular, we’ll focus on:
Before we go any further, it’s important to consider whether you should be writing about springtime topics instead of heating during the winter.
It seems counter-intuitive: People are looking for heater repairs, not thinking about air conditioners.
But, if you’re thinking purely in terms of getting found online, remember: It can take months for a page to begin ranking on Google — and even longer to make it to the front page.
And, the less authority your site has — or the less effort you’ve put into SEO — the longer that can take.
So, people may not find an article until the worst of winter is over, anyway. You may as well just get a head start on air conditioning. That way, the content takes hold by the time people are ready to find it.
But, pairing your content with email blasts and social media marketing changes that.
Now, you’re serving up the most timely, valuable content to your email list and social media followers exactly when they need it.
No matter what, try to publish some cold-weather topics before it gets too cold. This way, those articles are ready when you need them for emails and social media.
And, you’ll get a head start on search engine results. That boosts traffic in the long term.
With each article, zero in on exactly what people are looking for. Remember, they’re busy, and odds are something’s wrong. So, they need an answer to a problem fast.
Give them that answer in a way that lets them feel in control — and that they should call you when they can’t handle the problem themselves.
And, let them know they’ve found what they’re looking for in the title.
Take the top five calls you get every winter. Ask people that aren’t in the industry what questions they have about their heaters and what problems they experience.
Identify the exact questions you get. Then, make each one a blog title, and answer it in the post.
SEO plays a vital role in content like this. These posts should attract people who are Googling a problem they’re having. You want them to find your site in the search results.
To help with this, use keywords from your keyword list. And, follow some basic SEO practices to make it easier for Google to find your content.
Along with articles that answer questions, create content that boosts your sales team and helps your techs.
These are articles you’d send to a sales-qualified lead before their consultation.
It’s part of what we call setting the table: Giving people the information they need to make an informed decision before you even talk to them.
That way, you take less time educating them. And, they feel more confident about making a decision when they’re more informed.
Similarly, it’s good to have articles ready for follow-up questions your sales team often hears.
Once again, this means less time talking through basic information, and more time helping your customer towards a confident, well-informed decision.
And, they have a document with pictures or videos that help them understand the answer better than if someone only talked them through it.
To give you examples of table-setting content, let’s look at ductless heating and cooling. Many people still aren’t very familiar with this technology. Our clients have sent articles such as:
Now that you’ve got your topics all picked out, you just need to type up the articles, right? Well, almost. Your content needs to do more than answer people’s questions. It also has to be written so that people read it all the way through. Writing great articles is a topic all its own. But, here are a few quick tips:
Well, not the post itself. Today’s best online articles are around 1,000 words. But you want to use short sentences. And, keep almost all your paragraphs to three sentences or less.
Visuals are key to online content: They break up large blocks of text to make the entire piece more readable. And, of course, they help explain more concepts and describe more items than just words.
You’ve got a lot of information to get through. So, start with a list. It helps you break it all into smaller, easily understandable segments. Lists help you organize your thoughts. And, lists in your content leads the reader comfortably through your topic and subtopics.
Remember to make that ask in every article! Include buttons that people can click to call you or schedule an appointment online. Even a button that links to related content can be a valuable call to action: Anything that moves a potential lead down the funnel makes a difference.
Now that you’re on a roll, remember to look forward to the next season! Fill up that content calendar well ahead of time. That way, you’re not suddenly stuck wondering what you’ll write about next just as the weather breaks. Meanwhile, if you’re having trouble coming up with topics, or if you’re not confident getting all the information out of your head and into an article, give us a call here at Comfort Media Group. We’ll help you come up with topics and content that matters to your customers.
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