The Easiest Houzz Marketing Strategy You’ll Hear

You’ve heard it before, I’m sure—social media is necessary today, great content isn’t enough. You need to promote that content. You need to build a social media presence online. Blah blah blah. Probably nothing you haven’t heard. But here’s something you may not have heard of (though many homeowners have since they use it every day): Houzz. A pretty cool name for a pretty cool website.

And better yet, it’s ideal for all kinds of contractors:

• Home remodelers
• Kitchen designers
• Deck and patio builders
• Landscape designers
• And more

(Scroll to the bottom to discover an awesome infographic on Houzz content marketing tips!)

Houzz Marketing Strategy & Tips

Right now, I’m about to give you the easiest Houzz marketing strategy you’ll (probably) ever hear: get on it.

Here are some quick facts:

• Millions of homeowners use Houzz.
• Houzz has the largest residential design database in the world.
• Houzz has mobile apps (ok, ok, most social platforms do, but I wanted to add it for all you skeptics).
• For companies who want increased exposure, Houzz offers Houzz Pro+ with a new analytics tool—read all about it!
• Houzz ranks well in organic (unpaid) search results.
• Alex Perini (one of my coworkers) has a personal Houzz account, and, by Lexie’s standards, she’s pretty awesome since she’s a Perini.

Already use Houzz? Great. My question for you now is “are you using it the right way?” Putting your contact information up, adding some pictures, and calling it a day really isn’t enough.

Now I’m not saying I’m the most experienced Houzz guru out there—but several of my clients are home remodelers. So suffice it to say I’m quite familiar with Houzz, and my clients on Houzz rank:

I’m not trying to toot my own horn here. I’m trying to convince you that Houzz is an awesome online marketing tool! And that I have some marketing tips for you:

Use the “ideabook” feature to target keywords

Ideabooks are discussed briefly in our Houzz 101 blog post so I won’t go into too much detail. But here’s something to keep in mind—homeowners aren’t the only ones who can (and should) use ideabooks. Professionals can create them to build authority and even rank organically online.

The ideabook doesn’t have to be long to rank or provide tips homeowners can use. A few paragraphs and some pictures (maybe with a link to your website thrown in there) are enough. See the screenshot above? It’s a Houzz ideabook that ranks!

Add projects

Add photos (and information) of remodeling projects you have completed—and add the names of the cities they were completed in to help you rank locally. You should also optimize the project information and photos when you add them to your Houzz profile:

• Add the location (city and state)

• Tag photos with “keywords” that apply (“granite countertops,” “white cabinets,” “wood floors,” etc.). You can also add the style of the room and a link back to your website.

This should be what your “project” tab looks like—tons of projects/photos!

Not only does our client’s website rank 2 and 3, their photos on Houzz rank as well!

Engage users

Many users on Houzz ask questions about pictures they like. You can answer these questions and build your authority (users will also remember you answered their questions, which makes you stick out more in their house-crazy mind).

Make sure your information is accurate and correct

When you put in your company and contact information, which shows up in the top middle and right of the page, make sure it’s correct. Put in a phone number that is consistent with other numbers you have on directories, your Google+ page, your Facebook profile, etc. (don’t use a tracked number). Also choose the category you want to be found for online/that most accurately represents your business (for example, “Home Builders” vs. “Design-Build Firms” vs. “Kitchen & Bath Remodelers”).

Results

I promise, using Houzz as part of your online marketing strategy is effective and will be worth it! Take a look at this impressive screenshot:

A client of ours got 141 new visits (173 total) from Houzz, 8 with conversions (10 total). Take a look at those other metrics too—low bounce rate (for the visits without conversions), high number of pages per visit, high average visit duration. And this date range is just one month!

Ready to Use Houzz?

Are you ready to take your social media strategy to the next level with Houzz? Blue Corona is ready to help! I hate to sound like a broken record, but to go back to the beginning for a second, great content isn’t enough—you have to promote it. So contact us and let us help you.

Most business owners simply don’t have the time to maximize their Houzz presence—they’ve got a business to run! At Blue Corona, we’re Houzz Marketer Certified to help those in the home design and exteriors industry maximize their online real estate, implement a Houzz online marketing strategy, and improve their authority on the web.

If you already have Houzz, fill out the form below with your Houzz URL for a FREE Houzz assessment. If you don’t have a Houzz, contact us today and we’ll get you set up!

Some of you may be wondering what the difference is between Houzz and Pinterest. And I’ll tell you…in my next blog post!