Service Business Marketing Campaign Trends - August 2024
Profit-minded service businesses need a minimum of three digital marketing channels to reach their ideal preferred customers in their category and market.
To attract, acquire, and retain your ideal preferred customer, we advise a balanced, market-driven approach that produces consistent results over time. Our methodology analyzes unique conversions and average conversion costs.
Customer acquisition costs are best analyzed after any lead that calls, clicks, or signs up online becomes a customer.
In August 2024’s Service Companies Digital Campaign Trends Report, we review
- Contextual Digital Marketing (AI-Enhanced native and display campaigns)
- Google Ads (PPC) Campaign Trends
- Local SEO and Google Business Optimization
August 2024 Digital Marketing Trends
Within our Contextual Digital Marketing* campaigns, it cost as little as $25.99 per conversion for to engage a heating, cooling (HVAC), electrical, or plumbing customer through native and display contextual digital marketing campaigns in August 2024.*
Compared to July 2024, the average cost per total conversion dropped while the average cost per unique conversion rose.
We anticipate costs to increase in September 2024 as demand softens.
The following is aggregated average data for three distinct US markets (one established and two new market entries into the residential home services market):
- Total conversions: 519
- Unique Conversion Events: 296*
- Average Cost Per Unique Conversion: $45.47
- Average Overall Cost of all Conversions: $25.99
- Impressions: 2,458,355
- User Actions: 5,275
- Cost Per Click: $2.56
- Cost Per Thousand: $5.44
- Frequency: 20.21%*
Website Referrers
- Contextual Digital Campaigns (native ads): 43% of website traffic on average. (-5%)
- CTV and Video Streaming Ads: 4% of site traffic (-3%)
- Local SEO and GBP Optimization: 4% (+ 4%)
- Organic Search: 11-40% (Depending on market)
Pay Per Click Campaigns compared to Contextual Digital Campaigns
On average (for our reporting), it costs $61.28 to to acquire a heating, cooling (HVAC), electrical, or plumbing lead through Google PPC marketing campaigns in July 2024. This represents an approximate 30% decrease in Cost per conversion for July 2024.
The following data is for two distinct markets and spending levels. Click the tab to compare.
National Comparative Insight:
- According to data from ServiceTitan, national average Google Local Service Ads cost $258 per lead.
- National average PPC cost is $275 per lead.
- Average cost per conversion for Contextual Digital Campaigns is $120 per lead.
Google Business Profile (GBP Optimizer) and Local SEO Campaign Trends
With Google changing search results to favor zero-click results, it's imperative to add local SEO, Google Business Profile optimization, and AI to hyper-target your ideal preferred customers.Using AI-enhanced targeting doubles the impact of your budget.
Search engine optimization is a long-term, organic process. Traditional SEO techniques will not get you in the Google 3-pack. Aespire’s GBP Optimizer aligns your website, Google Maps, and Google Business Profile.
The following results are aggregates for 6 local businesses.
- Google Business Optimization: 4% of total site traffic
*Home Services Digital Marketing Trends Glossary
- Contextual Digital Marketing is more efficient and effective than traditional native or pay-per-click ad campaigns.
- Contextual Digital Marketing (CDM) campaigns hyper-focus on your Ideal Preferred Customer, delivering the right message at the right time.
- Contextual Digital Campaigns (or CDM, often confused with programmatic advertising campaigns) target the right people with the right message based on their interests and behavior.
- Contextual Digital Campaigns integrate artificial intelligence (AI) guided by a data scientist to hyper-target your ideal preferred customers. Using AI-enhanced targeting doubles the impact of your budget.
- Custom audiences are specific to your category, competitors, and business goals. CDM serves ads in the content of the page or app (using contextual targeting) when the user is in the right frame of mind.
- Custom audiences are developed by a Data Scientist and augmented intelligence machine learning in real-time as prospects are active and thinking about your category and the problem they want to solve.
- By knowing exactly what you want to achieve, an advanced learning framework and AI strategies analyze the behavior of every internet user’s digital footprint in your market area and hyper-targets the right people at the right time and doubles the impact of your budget.
- Frequency is the number of times a user sees an ad before they take an action. The industry average frequency is 20-30.
- Conversion Events include phone calls, ServiceTitan Scheduler Pro bookings started and completed, and form fills.
- ServiceTitan Scheduler Pro (or ScheduleEngine) completion rate is typically less than 20%
- As with any data, these results are reflective of specific markets and conditions and do not reflect the results you may achieve through Aespire's Home Services and Blue Collar marketing programs.
Our methodology is outlined in Trade Secrets: Four Core Strategies to Maximize Value for Service Companies, an indispensable guide for business owners looking to simplify branding and amplify their market impact.
Do you have a hard time explaining what your company does or why your brand matters to people?
If you struggle to grow your business, you’re not alone. Aespire can help you create a clear message and brand that helps you grow your business. Contact us today for a consultation with a StoryBrand Certified Marketing Guide.
Get a Free Comprehensive Marketing Assessment
Stop hoping your marketing will sort itself out.
- Complete this free assessment in 15 minutes.
- Review your custom report (and schedule a 30-minute review) to diagnose what’s happening.
- Create an action plan to get your marketing back on track.
Do you feel powerless because you’re competing against deep-pocketed competitors? Call today to design a strategy to capture demand, create new customers, and grow your business.
Aespire Branding
5061 N Abbe Rd, Suite 2
Sheffield Village, OH 44035
Phone: (440) 322-5142
Email Aespire
Aespire is a Woman-Owned Small Business Enterprise (WBE)
Many essential services companies struggle to explain how their expertise helps customers solve problems and achieve their goals. Aespire guides leaders with brand strategy, design, and marketing so they can start, grow, and sustain high-performing teams and profitable businesses.
We're committed to helping people flourish, businesses thrive, and communities prosper.
