Digital marketers tend to use acronyms a lot, and when chatting with other digital marketers–it’s fine. But sometimes, we tend to confuse our clients and partners when throwing these terms around with no context. So we decided it would be good to provide a list of some of the most commonly used digital marketing acronyms in the HVAC marketing space in order to help contractors better understand what their marketing team is talking about.
1. SERP: Search Engine Results Page
The Search Engine Results Page (SERP), is the entire page that you see on Google after entering a search query. There are a lot of components that make up the SERP, such as Google Local Services Ads (GLSA), Google Search Ads, the map pack (or 3-pack), and finally, the organic search results.
2. GLSA: Google Local Services Ads
This one can be confusing (even for marketers) because Google keeps changing the name up on everyone. So when your marketing agency or in-house team refers to GLSA, LSA, Google Guaranteed, it’s in regard to Google Local Services Ads. These ads are the three ads you see at the very top of the Search Engine Result Page (SERP).
Google Local Services Ads are a form of online advertising for HVAC contractors that only charges you when the customer calls, books service, or messages you–rather than paying per click.
3. GBP: Google Business Profile
This is another one that Google has generously renamed recently. The Google Business Profile, formerly known as Google My Business (GMB), is a free and easy to use tool for HVAC contractors to manage their online presence across Google search and maps.
A properly optimized and maintained Google Business Profile can help boost your local SEO tremendously, and it a core driver of new business opportunities for local home services provideres, so we definelty recommend setting on up!
Related Article: How To Improve Your Google Business Profile
4. PPC: Pay-Per-Click
Pay-Per-Click Advertising is a popular form of online advertising through Google in which you only pay if someone clicks on your ad. PPC is a great way to create predictable lead flow, as it can generate phone calls much faster that Search Engine Optimization, however, it can be a costly investment–especially if the ads are not being properly managed.
More PPC Acronyms include:
- CPC: Cost Per Click
- CTR: Click Through Rate
- CPA: Cost Per Acquisition
- SEM: Search Engine Marketing
5. SEO: Search Engine Optimization
By now, you’re likely aware of what SEO is and the many benefits it can offer your business. According to Forbes, roughly 85% of search traffic on Google goes to the organic section to get more information about their particular search query.
That’s a pretty steep number! Unlike PPC, SEO is a process that tends to take more time to generate page 1 results, but when done correctly, can generate a steady flow of leads for your business for years to come.
6. ROAS: Return on Advertising Spend
Your Return on Advertising Spend refers to a way of tracking how much revenue you generated compared to how much you spent on advertising–both online and offline. For example, if you spent $10,000 on a particular advertising campaign, and it generated $100,000 in revenue, then your ROAS would be 10x. This is something that can get cloudy to track, so it’s important to ensure you are using a powerful CRM such as ServiceTitan that has capabilities to articulate these metrics.
7. CTA: Call To Action
A Call To Action is a button, link, image, or video that encourages a user online to visit a website, claim an offer, call now, or generally take action on the advertising tactic that you have deployed for your marketing. In the HVAC space, common CTAs include:
- Schedule Service
- Request an Estimate
- Apply Online (for financing options)
- Book Online
- Call Now
There are a lot of different variables that go into creating strong CTAs, so make sure you A/B test different CTAs to see which performs best for you!
Speaking of calls to action… have you checked out our podcast yet? The Smart HVAC Marketing Podcast is an industry leading marketing podcast that covers hot topics such as marketing, recruitment, inflation, operations, and much more! New episodes are released every Wednesday–so go check it out!
Did we miss any popular acronyms that you hear being used in conversation with your HVAC marketing agency or in-house team? Let us know! We are always looking to update and improve this list to better serve you!
