The Best Way to Get Online Traffic

For your junk removal business—and any business, really—getting online traffic is important! After all, the only way to book appointments with your potential customers is to get those potential customers to land on your website. Now here’s the question of the day: what’s the best way to get people on your website? Yard signs and door hangers are only going to get you so far. When it comes down to it, perhaps the two most important ways to attract customers are through Google Ads and Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Upon first glance, it can be difficult to figure out which one is better than the other—especially for someone who has never dabbled in the world of online marketing before. Both Google Ads and SEO can be daunting beasts. So, which one, if not both, should your business conquer first? 

Let’s take a look at what both of these options have to offer. 

Google Ads: A Worthwhile Investment

Google Ads may very well be your key to an immediate increase in business. In fact, in most North American markets, you’re going to instantly see the benefits of a good Google Ads campaign. That’s because, with the right investment, you’re always going to be in somebody’s search results. (Google Ads can display at the top of the search results, too. So, right away, you could be the first business that a potential customer sees.)

We estimate that forty percent of online junk removal customers come from Google Ads. Needless to say, that’s a good chunk of business, so you’d be remiss to not invest in a good Google Ads campaign. We recommend you start as soon as possible, but keep in mind—Google Ads is an investment. You’ll definitely need to spend money to make money when you go this route. However, when you consider the almost guaranteed increase in customers, it is worth the investment.

Still nervous to dip your toes into the metaphorical Google Ads pool? There are ways to get started with a smaller budget. For example, you can adjust your cost per click (CPC) to an affordable amount so you don’t lose all your ad budget on just a dozen clicks or so. You might not be at the top of everyone’s search results this way. However, you will have some advertising presence for a longer period of the day, and that might prove to be better for you. Consider lowering your CPC for desktop users, too. If a mobile user is out and about, and they’re searching for junk removal, they have a bigger chance to click the first link they see. A desktop user? Well, they’re sitting down and staying a while, meaning they’re more likely to browse around for other options.

If you do start with Google Ads, stay mindful of the fact that there are opportunities to grow your business through more investments in your ad campaign. The good news is that we have another blog where we explain when to spend more money on Google Ads, so you can learn when to confidently increase your ad spending over time.

SEO: Increasing Traffic Organically

You can also increase the amount of online traffic you get through Search Engine Optimization (SEO). By following SEO best practices and structuring your site and its content in a way that Google favors, you can make your junk removal website appear higher in search results. We refer to this as ranking organically. 

Improving your SEO doesn’t technically cost any money, but what it does cost is a lot of time and skill. After all, there’s a lot that goes into making your junk removal business appear in high-ranking, organic search results. For example, you’ll need to target certain keyphrases that people search for and include them in your website’s content. Some of these, like hot tub removal, you might be able to get good results for fairly quickly. However, chances are, your local competitors already dominate the search results for junk removal and junk hauling. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t target that keyphrase as well—but you do need to recognize that SEO requires patience and persistence to ultimately pay off.

Remember when we said that forty percent of online customers of a typical junk removal business come in through Google Ads? Well, the other sixty percent comes from organic search results. So, refusing to play the SEO game is a bad, bad choice. It might be time to start improving your SEO today so you’re not left in the dust! We recommend you read our search engine optimization tips to learn more about how you can get a leg up on the competition.

The Verdict: Use Both!

Let’s be honest: there was never really a competition between Google Ads and SEO. That’s because the two of them weren’t at odds to begin with. Instead, they work together. If you’re missing one, there’s going to be a noticeable difference, and you’d be especially crazy to use neither. 

If all of that sounds intimidating, then don’t fret, because you don’t have to do it alone. The digital marketing team at Junk Removal Authority specializes in ads and SEO for junk removal, and we can help you get the customers your business needs to grow.

You need to do what’s best for your junk removal business, and we can all but guarantee that using Google Ads and good SEO together is the path to your success. More online marketing through both methods equals more customers, and that equals more profits and business expansion. Eventually, you won’t have to work on the truck anymore. When you reach that point, you’ll be glad that you used both Google Ads and SEO along the way. Contact us today to get started.