Website & Marketing Advice

[Mr Gas Fires]

Can anyone advise on the best way to get a new website up and running and attracting local interest affordably?

I have a small business already installing and servicing fireplaces and gas/electric fires (www.mrgasfires.co.uk) in the local area and have recently added a Chimney Sweeping service which I would like to build. Currently I have an extra page added on my existing website for this but I dont think it is very visible. Although it is a 'related trade' I feel it would garner more interest and build better if it were advertised separately and as such I have registered a suitable domain name.

But I am completely at a loss to know who to approach to help me build a new site (or adapt the existing) and help me market it at a reasonable cost. I spoke to a local company who specialise in 'local business' apparently but they were talking in the realms of £2000 a month by the time they and Google ads had been paid and I am just not in that league (and nor do I intend to be!) - I'd be working all hours just to pay their bills!

I have approached a couple of companies I've found online who offer a website and SEO package but you basically speak to a salesperson who wants to get you into a monthly contract, it's clearly all about the sale for them and not so much the product they are offering. I've no problem with monthly contracts but would like to understand whats going on and what I'm paying for, sales force fronted companies like this don't inspire confidence.

When my existing site was built, it was done by a company who built the site and managed it all including SEO at a fairly reasonable cost and although it obviously wasn't instant it worked and now is established with lots of good Google reviews however over time it became clear that they were outsourcing the work overseas and the site became very impersonal and strange for a while as it was being managed by people who's first language wasn't English, so we parted company in the end.

So apologies for the long post but I am wanting to find a reputable source to advise me on what I need and then do what needs to be done at an affordable price considering the size and earning potential of the business without the hard sell, un affordable Google Ads or overseas outsourcing. In short, the sort of help any small UK business needs to get their product/service out there.

Can anyone advise on this? Its all a bit of a minefield....

 

[fisicx]

Get a Google business profile set up for the new business. This will start bringing in leads with a day or two.

Then get a domain name 'location + chimneysweep.co.uk' and cheap hosting. Install wordpress and add your details with some pictures. That's all you really need to do for now. If you ask here on UKBF there are a number of wordpress developers who can help you with this. It shouldn't cost more than a couple of hundred pounds.

As an aside. Our chimney sweep doesn't do any marketing or have a website. It's all done through word of mouth. He's so busy he has taken on an apprentice.

 

[Paul Kelly ICHYB]

Have you written to all of your fireplace clients to ofder your service (on the basis you know if they have a chimney or not)?

As @fisicx says, a Google Business page and a one or two-page site with a very obvious domain.

Have you added a page to your existing website to your exisitng website?

 

[MikeJ]

As an aside. Our chimney sweep doesn't do any marketing or have a website. It's all done through word of mouth. He's so busy he has taken on an apprentice.

Same here. In fact, chimney sweep must be one of the easiest things to identify a market for. Walk down the street and look up - if you see a chimney, shove a leaflet through the door.

We found ours from the neighbour. Who got it from the people the other side. The guy's literally picked up a new customer each year. House the other side of us hasn't got a fireplace though, so the run has ended.

 

[John Martin]

I'm just getting started with my web design business so I'm willing to do work for a very reasonable cost in exchange for a testimonial if you're interested.

Although I've only just started, I have built a number of sites for myself over the years and have gained quite a lot of experience. My own website is also highly optimised to meet Google performance metrics, which is something that even MOST top award-winning agencies aren't doing. I can get almost 100% across the board on my site whereas a lot of others aren't even achieving 50%. I think a lot of the established companies have either fallen behind, or they don't even have a clue that Google is looking at certain metrics.

My goal is to create the most Google friendly websites possible. If this is of any interest to you please let me know.

 

[fisicx]

I can get almost 100% across the board on my site whereas a lot of others aren't even achieving 50%.

It's not as important as you think it is. Google makes a big song and dance about performance and EEAT but in reality sites that score poorly in both still rank well.

 

[John Martin]

It's not as important as you think it is. Google makes a big song and dance about performance and EEAT but in reality sites that score poorly in both still rank well.

That's true, but a lot of those sites are already well established. If you're a new site trying to get ranked, it's a good idea to do your best to make your site is as Google friendly as possible.

The other thing is that the Google algorithm is constantly changing, so although they might not be giving too much weight to a certain criteria today, tomorrow they might. Many sites that were once ranking well, don't anymore due to past Google updates.

Personally I think if Google are telling you what they consider important, it's probably a good idea to try and align your site with them if you can.

I also think a lot of web agencies are lazy and it doesn't matter to them if they design a website that's not SEO friendly. They'll just offer an SEO service and then charge more in SEO fees to make up for their poorly structured site. It's a win-win for them and a bad deal for the client.

 

[JoinGathr.com]

Hey, You should be able to get a fixed price project, no problems at all! I would use a freelancer who can adapt your site or go direct. Let me know if you want some recommendations!

 

[Mr Gas Fires]

Thanks all, some good advice there - I’ll be following up your suggestions, much appreciated.