Have you noticed Google is changing local search and giving a big advantage to local businesses? They've done so with the introduction of Google Local Services. Local Services ads help your business connect with people who search on Google for the services you offer. These new ads appear at the very top of Google on desktop and mobile, and will only show up for the customers in your area, so you can keep your calendar full with high-quality prospects.

Tune in to hear our Google Ads expert, Meg Robinson, share how your local business can get started with Google Local Service Ads. Meg will walk through everything you need to know about Google's new ad option and how it can be a game changer for your local business.

This free workshop covers:

1) What Google Local Service Ads are & why they matter

2) The process of applying to get started

3) Real-world client results from 400+ Local Service Ad accounts launched this year

4) How to manage your leads

5) What to do to dispute any "bad leads" so you don't have to pay

When was the last time you made a big purchase without looking at online reviews or asking for a recommendation? Probably not recently, right? The same goes for homeowners looking for a reputable home services business in their local area. A staggering 97% of customers read online reviews before they buy, and nearly 1 in 2 customers trust only businesses with a 4-star rating or higher. With social proof becoming more and more important, it’s time to get your reviews strategy in tip-top shape.

Search Engine Optimization is one of the most critical components of your online presence...but with SEO constantly changing, it's not easy to stay ahead of the curve and outrank the competition.

Join us as we walk through the latest trends and elements your website should have in order to win more local homeowners online.

We'll discuss:

The role online search plays in the customer journey

How mobile and local search have changed dramatically over the past year

Key elements your website MUST HAVE to appear in the top of searches locally

How a coordinated approach to digital marketing increases your chances of getting found online by the right people

If you’re not generating the kind of results you'd like from your digital marketing, then this free webcast is for you.

From our conversations with contractors across the country, we know this season has been busier than most, especially considering the increase in weather-related events and the strong economy.

When times are busy, that's when you want to turn to technology as a way to alleviate stress and overwhelm. In this episode, Shashi Bellamkonda (Surefire Local's Chief Marketing Officer) breaks down why local businesses should consider a marketing software to help them manage the operations of their business, from leads to online visibility. And in doing so, have the ability to see and strengthen all your digital efforts because you'll be working with a single place of truth.

Social media is a large part of our world today — it’s important to know how to use social media as a local business in the home services industry, everything from the basics to winning loyal customers for your company. This training will help you discover ways to use social media to your advantage. You'll get an overview of social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Nextdoor, Houzz, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and more and how to incorporate them best into your strategy.

In this workshop, you'll walk through how to create a focused strategy and build a sense of community in your local area. Plus, you'll get the tools necessary to manage social media and the know-how to create effective content to engage homeowners.

Some of the things you'll learn are:

- What social channels should home services contractors focus on to get results from social media

- The types of content you should be posting and sharing

- The Do's and Don'ts of interacting with your community on social media

- Expert tips for going from likes to leads

Learn How to Get Started and Dominate Local Search Results with Google Ads.

Expand your local reach exponentially with Google Ads. During this free online webcast, Meg Robinson (Director of Advertising) will walk you through how to get started with Google Ads and the many benefits it can have as you look to grow your business and reach homeowners in your local area.

Some of the things you'll learn are:

- Generate quality leads by targeting homeowners in your local area

- Tailor your ads to an ever-growing mobile experience

- The Do's and Don'ts of running local campaigns

Google My Business is an easy way to make your business more discoverable in your local market across Google Search & Maps...resulting in higher quality leads contacting your home services business.

With Google constantly updating the features and capabilities your business can take advantage of, we put together this online training to help walk you through the big announcements and important updates for using your Google My Business listing to win in local search.

During this training, you'll learn how to optimize and leverage your Google My Business listing, including:

- How to engage homeowners with Google Posts, Videos, and Photos across Search and Maps.

- Details on Google's recent updates to service area and how to make sure your listing is set up correctly

- Why you absolutely want to take advantage of the Services List feature in Google My Business

- And more best practices to increase your search visibility on Google

Hurricanes. Tornadoes. Hailstorms. Thunderstorms. To homeowners, these extreme weather events are a source of dread. For those in the home contractor industry, however, they mean more work.

With the potential influx of out-of-town contractors, it can be a challenge for a local company to help homeowners find you first. Each contractor is looking to help people by bringing their services to the table just like you. In this webinar, we've invited an expert from Hailpost to give some insight on how you can set yourself up for success in this sea of contractors.

In this online training, you'll learn:

- The three most impactful times to market after a storm event

- Five considerations to finding new prospective customers

- Why you should add direct mail to your marketing mix

- Other considerations and how to get started

In This Episode...

Host: David Reed, VP of Sales at Surefire Local

Guest: Thomas Basch, National Account Executive at HOVER

Having previously worked in almost every capacity in the roofing industry, Thomas is in an excellent position to offer insight into how contractors can save time and money on projects and close more business. His favorite trick? Bringing new technology to an age-old industry.

Thomas is proof that forward-thinking often trumps formal sales training in an age of fast-paced change. As new generations of contractors enter the home improvement industry, it becomes everyone’s responsibility to learn not just to ride the wave of disruption, but to leverage it. Learn to ask not just what game-changing technologies are out there, but how you can use them—to broaden your reach, to drive more leads, to stay top-of-mind, to increase your close rates, to be a real mover and shaker in your local market.

Thanks for listening to the Surefire Local podcast!

Here at Surefire, we’ve had the unique opportunity to talk with hundreds of successful business owners in the home services space, not to mention work closely with inspiring thought leaders in digital marketing and tech. This podcast is one of the ways we’re giving back to that amazing community.

In order to increase your leads and new jobs, it's crucial to prove the effectiveness of your marketing program with reliable data to decide what to focus on in the future. However, that's not always an easy task. In this webinar, you'll learn how to easily and effectively track each of your marketing programs and prove how they drive revenue.

In this webinar training, we cover the following:

- How to maximize results from your existing marketing budget

- Key metrics and reports every business should have

- How to identify your top-performing programs & predict revenue from future activities