SEO for Pest Control
A simple (but effective) step-by-step guide to build a targeted SEO pest control marketing strategy.
What is SEO for pest control?
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing a website or web page to increase its visibility in search engines, like Google and Bing.
SEO is an essential tool for any pest control business aiming to attract more customers. The higher your website ranks on search engines, the greater the chance potential customers will click through and find your services.
Think of it like pest prevention for your website.
Just as pest control ensures your property is free of unwanted guests, SEO ensures your website is ‘healthy,’ or in other terms: it helps your website rank higher so more customers can find and contact your pest control services.
Did you know?
- 99% of people use the internet to search for local businesses. (Source: BrightLocal)
- Consumer use of Google to evaluate local businesses has leapt from 63% in 2020 to 81% in 2021. (Source: BrightLocal)
- Mobile devices are used for over 50% of all online searches. (Source: Statista)
A person searching for a pest control service on Google may use a search query like “pest control near me” or “best pest control company in [city name]”.
They may search for specific services such as “wasp nest removal”, “rodent exterminator”, or “termite treatment in [city name]”. Some may even include urgency in their search, like “emergency pest control 24/7”.
To benefit from SEO, you want your website to rank for these kinds of searches by optimizing for relevant keywords, including location-based terms, specific pest problems, and urgent service needs.
Why is pest control SEO important?
Here are some of the benefits of using SEO for your business:
- Increased visibility: SEO helps increase the visibility of your pest control website on search engines, making it more likely that potential customers will find you when searching for pest control services.
- Cost-effective: Compared to traditional advertising methods like print or television, SEO offers a cost-effective way for pest controllers to reach new customers.
- Targeted audience: SEO allows pest control businesses to target specific keywords that align with their services, such as “termite control” or “rodent removal,” ensuring you attract the right customers.
- Local SEO: Local SEO enhances your website’s visibility for people searching for pest control services in a specific geographic area. This is especially beneficial for pest control businesses looking to attract customers in their local service areas.
- Building trust: SEO helps establish trust and authority with both search engines and potential customers by providing high-quality, relevant content. This can also help strengthen your reputation in the community and attract new business.
Don’t forget!
Pest control businesses must comply with regulations such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) guidelines, state pesticide laws, and data protection laws. Therefore, SEO and marketing strategies must be designed to ensure compliance with these regulations while effectively reaching the target audience.
How do search engines work?
Search engines work by crawling billions of webpages with their own web crawlers, known as search engine bots or spiders. These are then stored and saved in an index.
Google Search Essentials (formerly Webmaster Guidelines)
The Google Search Essentials define the actions that webmasters can take to make their websites better indexable or crawlable.
Read them here: Official Google Guidelines
The guidelines are based on three central aspects:
- Crawling – webmasters should support Google in finding websites.
- Indexing – webmasters should help Google to classify and “recognize” the content.
- Usability and user experience – webmasters should support the users of the websites in their use (usability and user experience).
Essentially, according to these Google guidelines, a website should support the search engine in crawling and indexing and ensure a good user experience.
Before you get started with SEO, there are a few prerequisites you want to check off first:
SEO Basics
At a bare minimum, you want to make sure you cover these basic standards before embarking on doing SEO:
- Website Speed – Have a fast loading site so potential customers don’t get tired of waiting for things to load.
- Mobile Friendliness – Make sure your site works on mobile as over 50% of users browse on mobile devices
- Analytics – Setup Google Analytics, Google Search Console & so you can understand what is and isn’t working.
- XML Sitemap – search engines use this to get your site’s URLs
- Robots.txt – tells search engine crawlers where they can (and where they can’t go) on your site.
Technical SEO
Technical SEO is the process of making website and server optimizations to help search engines to crawl and index your site more effectively (and therefore help to improve organic rankings).
Technical errors can hurt a website’s ability to rank. There are potentially a lot of errors, but here are some of the most common that will have the biggest impact when fixed:
- 404 errors
- Broken backlinks
- Poor URL structure
- Duplicate/thin content
- Poor internal linking
- Poor website architecture
- Missing metadata (page titles & meta descriptions)
- Missing H1 tags
Reach more customers with pest control SEO services
What is keyword research?
Keyword research is the process of identifying the words and phrases that people use when searching for specific products or services:
Once you understand the keywords your target audience is using, you can optimize your website to appear for these in search results.
Think of keyword research as a diagnostic tool for your pest control business. It helps you understand what potential customers are searching for when they need pest control services.
For example, if people are searching for “ant control near me” or “termite removal,” keyword research identifies these terms, allowing you to optimize your website so it appears higher in search results when these keywords are searched. This way, you can attract more customers looking for the services you provide.
Why is keyword research important?
Keyword research is important for pest controllers because it helps to:
- understand what people are searching for when they are looking for pest control services, and to optimize their website accordingly.
- identify the specific needs and pain points of their target audience, which can inform the content they create and services they offer, ultimately leading to more conversion and better customer experience.
- identify the competition in the local area and understand what they are doing, so they can create a more effective SEO strategy.
What keywords are best to target?
Understand that there’s no “best” keywords, just those that are highly searched by your audience. With this in mind, it’s up to you to craft a strategy that will help you rank pages and drive traffic.
The best keywords for your SEO strategy will take into account relevance, authority, and volume. You want to find highly searched keywords that you can reasonably compete for based on:
- The level of competition you’re up against.
- Your ability to produce content that exceeds in quality what’s currently ranking.
Short tail keywords are broad, general keywords that are made up of one or two words:
- Pest control
- Termite removal
- Ant control
- Rodent removal
- Exterminator
Whereas long tail keywords are more specific and longer phrases that are made up of multiple words:
- Affordable pest control services near me
- Best termite treatment for homes
- Emergency rodent removal service
- How to get rid of ants in the kitchen
- Local bed bug exterminators near me
How to do keyword research for your pest control business
To start keyword research: put yourself in your customers shoes.
What words, phrases and terms might they use in order to find solutions to these problems? These are the keywords you want to find and target.
Here is a simple process to follow:
Step 1) Make a list of broad topics
Create a list of general topics related to your business. These might correspond to product categories, services or anything you believe your target audience would be interested in.
For example, broad topics like:
- Termite Control
- Rodent Prevention
- Bed Bug Extermination
- Ant Control Solutions
- Mosquito Management
Step 2) Expand topics into a list of phrases
Now you want to take those topics and expand them into a list of related phrases to target.
Imagine yourself as a buyer looking for your product or service and ask yourself: what would I type into Google?
Whilst keyword research tools are useful here, you can do this for free by Googling your keyword.
For example, Google “dental implants” and you’ll get a list of related questions people ask (which you can answer with blog content):
As well as related searches which may uncover other keywords to target:
Step 3) Analyze your keywords
Once you have a list of potential keywords, you need to gauge which terms are worth targeting.
You’ll need to use a keyword research tool here to pay attention to the following keyword metrics:
- Search volume
- Trends
- Search value over time
- Difficulty
- CPC
- SERP features
But most importantly, you want to consider relevancy and search intent:
Relevant keywords:
For relevancy, you want to ask yourself:
- Are these keywords relevant to my business?
- Do I have a chance of ranking for these terms based on the competition?
- Is ranking for these keywords going to have a positive ROI?
If you can answer YES to the above questions, chances are you have picked a relevant keyword
Search intent:
Search intent is the goal and purpose of a search query in Google. When someone searches for something, they are typically looking for more information before performing an action.
Search intent falls in four buckets:
- Informational – Searchers looking for information, they’ll use words like: how, what, why, when etc.
- Navigational – Searchers trying to find a specific site, they’ll use words relating to the service/product/brand
- Transactional – Searchers looking to purchase, they’ll use words like: buy, cost, pricing, cheap etc.
- Commercial investigation – Searchers researching prior to making a purchase, they’ll use words like: best, review, comparison etc
Not only is it important to select good keywords, but also to pick keywords you have a chance of ranking for.
For example, if you want to rank for the keyword “How to Get Rid of Rats”, but your page doesn’t actually provide detailed steps or solutions for rat removal, you’re not meeting the searcher’s intent and may struggle to rank for it.
Google prioritizes pages that directly answer what users are searching for, so if your content doesn’t align with the keyword’s intent—whether it’s DIY solutions, professional services, or prevention tips—your website may not appear in relevant searches.
Find profitable pest control business keywords
What is on-page SEO?
On-page SEO describes specific elements of the pages on your website that you control, such as:
- Title tags
- Meta descriptions
- Header tags
- Internal linking
- Images
- Content
Why is on-page SEO important?
On-page SEO is crucial for pest control businesses because it ensures that their website is easily found and understood by search engines, which can increase visibility and drive more traffic to the site. This can ultimately lead to more customers for the pest control business.
For example, if a pest control business offers a service like “termite inspection” and that service is not mentioned or not prominently featured on the website, it will be less likely for the website to appear in search results when someone searches for “termite inspection” or related terms. However, if the website is optimized with “termite inspection” as a focus keyword, it will have a better chance of ranking higher and attracting customers looking for that specific service.
Additionally, on-page optimization helps improve the overall user experience of the website, which can lead to higher engagement and conversion rates. For instance, having a well-organized and easy-to-navigate website with clear calls to action like “Request a Quote” or “Schedule a Service” will be more likely to convert visitors into customers.
On-Page SEO Checklist
- Use short & descriptive URLs – this helps people searching to understand what your page is about in Google.
- Write a good title tag & meta description – these show up in Google and help searchers understand what your page is about.
- Linking to relevant resources – this helps users to navigate your website.
- Optimize your images – give them a descriptive filename and alt text.
- Add schema markup – this helps search engines to understand your content
- Add internal links – these help Google understand what your page is about and to navigate your website.
Get actionable insights into your pest control SEO
What is off-page SEO?
Off-page SEO refers to specific actions done outside of your website, such as getting backlinks from other websites or social media.
What is link building?
Link building is the practice of building one-way hyperlinks (also known as “backlinks”) to a website with the goal of improving SEO. Common link building strategies include content marketing, building useful tools, email outreach, broken link building and guest posts.
Why is link building important?
Link building is important for pest controllers because it helps to increase the visibility of a website on search engines. Google, for example, use links to a website as a way to determine the authority and trustworthiness of a website.
The more high-quality links that point to a website, the more likely it is to be considered an authority in its field and be given higher rankings in the SERPs (search engine results page).
This increased visibility can drive more traffic to a website, which can lead to more customers for your pest control service.
Link Building Tactics:
- Guest posts (either DIY it or use a done-for-you guest post service)
- Buying backlinks (like authority links)
- Content marketing (like linkable assets or editorial links)
- Tried and tested SEO methods (like blogger outreach, broken link building
- Using what you’ve got (link reclamation and brand mentions)
Additionally, link building can help establish a pest control business as a reputable and trustworthy provider of pest control services, which is essential for attracting new customers. High-quality links from reputable websites in the pest control or home services industry signal to potential customers that the business is well-respected in the field.
Link building can also increase referral traffic to the website, where visitors are directed from another website via a link. This can boost brand awareness and expose the business to new audiences who may not have found the website otherwise.
In summary, link building is important for pest control businesses because it enhances visibility, establishes reputation and trust, and drives more referral traffic to the website, ultimately leading to more customers.
Get high quality backlinks
Pest Control SEO Best Practices (+ 4 Tips)
- Use HTTPs (SSL certificates)
- Make sure your web site pages load fast
- Target a relevant topic that has traffic potential
- Meet search intent
- Target a topic you can compete for
- Use your target keyword in your page title, H1 tag and URL
- Use a short (but descriptive) URL
- Write a good title tag and meta description
- Optimize your images
- Write good content
- Add internal links
- Get more quality backlinks
4 Actionable Pest Control SEO Tips
Here are some things your business can do to begin the process of developing a good pest controller marketing strategy.
- Add relevant keywords
- Optimize for local searches
- Start blogging
- Earn links
1. Add relevant keywords to your website
People looking for pest control services also search for specific solutions like termite inspection or rodent removal. Long-tail keywords typically have lower search volume, but the traffic from these keywords is often highly targeted and more likely to convert into real customers.
For example, instead of just optimizing your website for broad terms like “pest control” or “exterminator,” you could add keywords like “pest control in [your city],” “termite treatment near me,” or “rodent removal services in [your area]” to attract customers who are specifically looking for those services.
2. Optimize your site for local searches
If your SEO plan doesn’t use local SEO to target specific areas, you’ll likely miss out on some great leads. Adding the name of your town and nearby towns to your website copy is the easiest way to get better results.
But don’t forget about things on your site besides writing copy. You should also add places to the titles and URLs of your pages.
Also, make sure that your business is listed on Google Maps and local directory sites. This will help your business show up more in local searches.
3. Start writing useful content
The main goal of pest control SEO is to get more customers by making your website more visible in Google.
One way to do this is by writing a blog. If you write a blog with tips on pest prevention, such as how to keep termites out of your home or how to avoid rodent infestations, you’ll attract interested readers and potential customers. As your traffic grows, so will your search rankings, and people looking for pest control services in your area will turn to you as a reliable source.
4. Earn quality links
How high your site ranks in search results for keywords and phrases related to your business depends on how many and how good the links are to it. This means that you need to get good links if you want to keep your rankings.
You can do this by making good content and reaching out to bloggers and leaders in your field to ask them to share it. This will not only help you move up in search results, but it will also make your pest control business look like a leader in the field.
Backlinks are a very important part of SEO for pest controllers. They are like a vote of confidence for the content you put out. Because of this, links are one of the most important ways that search engines like Google decide how to rank pages.
- Not doing enough keyword research
- Not matching user/search intent
- Targeting keywords that are far too difficult
- Not building enough quality backlinks
- Breaking Google’s Terms of Service when building backlinks
- Missing out on internal link opportunities
- Not allowing Google crawl your content
- Not allowing Google index your content
- Having a very slow site
- Treating SEO as a one-time thing
How does pest control SEO work?
SEO for pest controllers means making sure that your website is optimized for both search engines and users. This makes your website more visible in relevant and organic search results.
Optimizations include:
- on-page SEO
- link building
- technical SEO review
- content audit
- local citation audit
Why do pest controllers need marketing?
It helps you set your services apart.
Your customers are the people who need pest control solutions. A marketing plan not only helps you find your target market but also helps potential customers understand why they should choose your pest control services.
A good pest control marketing strategy should attract new customers, retain the ones you have, and increase awareness of your services. The main goal is to get potential customers to call or schedule a service online.
How long does pest control business SEO take?
Typically, pest control SEO takes at least six months to deliver results.
In some cases, businesses may start to see results like increased traffic, phone calls, and appointments, in faster time frame than this.
Although typically 6 months is a good benchmark as SEO is a long-term strategy vs. a short-term strategy like PPC.
How much does SEO for pest controllers cost?
Prices for pest control website SEO depend on multiple factors, but the average cost for this SEO is $1500 – $5000 per month.
If you’re looking to partner with a consultant or pest control SEO expert, the average rate is $100 – $300 per hour.
What’s Next?
Guest Posts
We do guest posts better than anyone else with complete transparency. You get to approve all placements before they’re made and even the exact anchor text that’s going to be used. Site owners themselves will produce your content to guarantee its a perfect match.
Content
Crafting the right message isn’t just a matter of choosing the right words. We develop site content and blogs using the latest tools to determine the right keywords and balance of terms to build high-performing content.
Managed SEO
Sometimes, it takes more than just one service to make a difference. Multiple services working in concert can amplify the effect and create the growth that’s evaded you in the past. Talk to us about managed SEO campaigns built around any of your goals.
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