Are you targeting the right customers, locations and customer problems through your roofing website? It’s something that few roofers even consider, yet it’s the basis for successfully acquiring online website enquiries. You can have a beautifully designed website, but if it’s not speaking the language of your prospective buyers, it’s like having the best tools in the van and not being able to use a single one!
This is where keyword research and keyword planning comes into play. It’s not just about getting more traffic; it’s about getting the right kind of traffic, people actively looking for your roofing services right now in your area. What’s the goal? To turn those clicks into profitable contracts for your business.
If you are interested in SEO for your roofing business, check our Roofing SEO page for more information on how we can help.
Why SEO Keyword Research Isn’t Just for Tech Wizards (and Why Roofers Need It)
Think of it this way: when someone needs a new roof or a roof repair, what do they type into Google? Is it “roof repair”? Or is it more specific, like “emergency roof repair Poole” or “cost to replace roof Dorset”? The answers to these questions are your keywords.
Effective keyword research helps you:
Attract Qualified Leads: Instead of generic web traffic, you’re bringing in people looking for roofing services.
Increase Your Visibility: Showing up for relevant keywords puts your site in front of your audience when they need you the most.
Get to Know Your Customers: Keyword data can inform you what problems your potential customers are trying to solve and what information they’re looking for.
Beat the Competition: If your competition is not doing their keyword research, you can capitalise on their potential leads.
Roofing Keyword Types
Every keyword is not created equally. To actually own the search results, you need a mix that addresses different points of the customer journey:
1. Service-Based Keywords (High Intent)
These are your bread and butter. People searching using these phrases are usually in the market to hire a roofer.
- Roof repair [your city/county] (e.g., “roof repair Bournemouth”)
- New roof installation [your city/county] (e.g., “new roof installation Christchurch”)
- Emergency roofer [your city/county] (e.g., “emergency roofer Poole”)
- Flat roof specialist [your city/county]
- Gutter repair [your city/county]
- Commercial roofing services [your city/county]
2. Problem-Based Keywords (Medium Intent)
These indicate that a person has a problem and seeks a fix, which you provide!
- Leaky roof solution
- Storm damage roof repair
- Roof tiles damaged
- Roof damage signs
- Missing shingles repair
3. Informational/Educational Keywords (Low Intent, High Value)
These keywords are not leads per se, but they are visitors at the beginning of their research process. Providing good content builds credibility and establishes you as a relevant source.
- How long does a roof last
- Best roofing materials in UK
- Roof replacement cost in UK
- When a roof needs to be replaced
- How to select a roofer
Your Toolkit for Uncovering Golden Keywords
You don’t need to be an SEO magician to start finding profitable keywords. These are some of the tools to get you started:
- Google Keyword Planner (Free if you have a Google Ads account): This is the tool offered directly by Google, with volume estimates and suggestions for related keywords directly from the horse’s mouth.
- Google Search Console (Free): Shows you what keywords others are literally searching for to find your site. That’s priceless for finding the lost business.
- Google Autocomplete & “People Also Ask” (Free): Just start typing a search term into Google, and look at the autocomplete suggestions. Scroll to the bottom of the results page for the “People also ask” area – these are outright related questions.
- Competitor Analysis (Free & Paid): Look at which keywords your top local competition is ranking for. The software Semrush or Ahrefs (paid, but often offer free trials or limited free versions) will reveal this. Simply browsing on their site and looking at their service pages will also offer clues.
Where to Put Your Hard-Earned Keywords for Maximum Impact
Identifying your keywords is just the beginning; you also need to know where to place them. Think of your website as a tidily arranged shop, you would like it with all the labels.
Page Titles (The Most Important Location!): Your main keyword per page at the beginning of its title tag.
Example: Roof Repair Poole | Emergency Roofing Services Dorset
Meta Descriptions: Not a ranking factor in and of itself, but a keyword-rich descriptive meta description pulls clicks from the search results.
Headings (H1, H2, H3): Naturally incorporate your keywords into your headings to structure your content and emphasize topics to search engines.
Body Content: Naturally include your keywords in your paragraphs. Never “keyword stuff” – your content will always be readable and useful to humans first.
Image Alt Text: Add descriptive keywords to your images. This helps Google understand your images and improves your website’s accessibility.
URLs: Make your URLs neat and include a suitable keyword.
Example: yourwebsite.co.uk/roof-repair-poole
Start Your Journey from Clicks to Contracts
Keyword research is not something that you do once and forget, but rather something that you do again and again. The roof market, as with search engines, is constantly evolving. By taking the time to observe what your potential customers are searching for, you’ll be able to target customers and intercept their thinking to attract them to enquire to your roofing business.
Ready to learn the golden keywords that will drive more roofing leads to you? Call us today for a free SEO consultation, and let’s uncover the search terms most significant to your business!
