When you build a home, every detail—from the foundation to the finishing touches—matters. The same is true for your digital presence. Your website is your “digital house,” and its structure, design, and performance determine whether visitors stay, explore, and eventually call you for a quote.
In today’s marketplace, where homeowners turn to Google before picking up the phone, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the blueprint for online success. Whether you build, remodel, or renovate, investing in SEO ensures your business shows up when potential clients are searching for services like yours.
This guide breaks down SEO for contractors —why it matters, how to do it right, and which strategies actually move the needle.
What Is SEO?
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of improving your website’s visibility on search engines like Google, Bing, and now LLMs like ChatGPT. When done effectively, SEO helps your business rank higher in organic search results—without paying for ads—so that when homeowners search for “kitchen remodeling near me” or “custom home builder in Raleigh,” your company shows up first.
SEO involves:
- Creating content in the form of pages, posts, projects, etc.
- Using strategic keywords to target high volume topics
- Optimizing website structure and technical performance
- Building trust through online consistency and authority
Think of SEO as an ongoing remodeling project for your website—it needs maintenance, updates, and a strong foundation.
Why SEO Matters for Contractors
Most homeowners start their journey online. Before they ever talk to a contractor, they’re researching costs, timelines, materials, and local service providers. If your business isn’t visible in those searches, you’re missing out on qualified leads who are ready to hire.
SEO gives you a competitive edge by:
- Positioning your brand as the local expert
- Driving consistent traffic from organic (free) searches
- Attracting higher-quality leads who are already interested in your services
- Increasing credibility through strong online visibility and trust building elements
For home improvement professionals that want to grow and dominate their local areas, SEO isn’t optional—it’s essential.
The 3 Pillars of Contractor SEO
Every strong SEO strategy for builders and remodelers is built on three main pillars: Technical SEO, EEAT Content, and Local SEO.
1. Technical SEO: The Foundation of Your Website
Just like a home’s foundation supports everything above it, technical SEO supports the structure of your website. If your site loads slowly or isn’t mobile-friendly, search engines (and users) will move on.
Optimized Images
Photos sell your work—but oversized or mislabeled images can slow down your site and hurt rankings.
Best practices:
- Resize images to under 1800px wide.
- Keep file sizes under 500KB when possible. Most desktops run pretty fast nowadays, but large files will absolutely slow down mobile traffic. For many websites, the percentage of mobile traffic is just about the same as desktop traffic so it is important to make sure your website runs fast for both.
- Rename image files with descriptive keywords (e.g., raleigh-kitchen-remodel.jpg). This is a basic practice that helps Google understand what the image is and how it relates to the page it was uploaded to.
- Add alt text for accessibility and SEO (e.g., Modern kitchen remodel in Raleigh by ABC Builders). While this does not directly help SEO, it is extremely important as websites are required to follow ADA compliance laws.
Heading Structure
Headings (H1, H2, H3…) help users and search engines understand your content hierarchy.
- Use only one H1 per page for your main topic. This should be the first header on the page or post.
- Organize subtopics with H2s and H3s. Google doesn’t give much thought to H4, H5, or H6 tags, so don’t worry about using them. It is also not recommended to use them for style purposes.
User Experience (UX)
Google rewards websites that users love. Focus on:
- Fast page load times (under 3 seconds)
- Easy navigation
- Engaging visuals and CTAs
- Mobile responsiveness
When your website is enjoyable to use, visitors stay longer—signaling to Google that your content is valuable. Having a lot of content is important, but not at the cost of user experience. Making sure your website converts users to leads is the primary objective, and too much blocky content means too much work for users to sift through.
URL hierarchy and Internal Linking
To make navigation and Google crawls better, you need to link your content strategically. URLs need to be set up to make sense and be consistent. By organizing your URLs by folders and subfolders, you help users and crawling agents better understand the layout and how pages are related to one another.
Examples:
- Service Page: domain.com/roofing/metal-roofs/
- Area Page: domain.com/area/nebraska/omaha/roofing/
- Blog Post: domain.com/blog/how-to-rank-my-local-roofing-business-in-google/
Internal linking also does this and helps reinforce how a topic from one pages is similar but different from another. Internal linking also strengthens SEO by showing Google how your content connects and keeps users exploring your site longer.
2. Content Creation With Keyword Targeted SEO
Keywords are how your ideal clients find you. But great SEO isn’t about stuffing as many keywords as possible—it’s about understanding user intent.
As experts in local contractor content, we know that the best types of content to generate rankings in Google SERPs are service pages, area pages, blog posts, and featured projects.
Keyword Research
Use tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to discover what people are searching for in your area. Then, create pages or blog posts that answer those questions directly.
Example topics:
- “How much does a kitchen remodel cost in Cary, NC?”
- “Should I build or buy a home in Wake County?”
- “Top 10 design trends for custom homes in 2025”
Answer Real Questions
Incorporate FAQs and “People Also Ask” queries from Google into your content. This helps you appear in featured snippets and “fraggles” (jump links that direct users to a specific section of your page).
Page Content
Each page should have at least 600–800 words of meaningful, keyword-relevant content. Longer, well-structured pages (1,000–2,000 words) perform best for competitive keywords. Anything shorter is unlikely to rank in Google or be found to be comprehensive enough to showcase knowledge or and topical relevance.
3. Local SEO: Get Found in Your Service Area
For contractors, location is everything. You don’t want calls from across the country—you want leads from homeowners in your area.
NAP Consistency (Name, Address, Phone Number)
Ensure your business information is identical everywhere it appears—your website, social media, directories, and Google listings. Even small discrepancies (like “Street” vs. “St.”) can confuse search engines and hurt your rankings. Use tools like EZLocal and BrightLocal to easily submit to up to hundred of online directories.
Google Business Profile
Your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is your local SEO powerhouse. The vast majority of traffic from SEO and PPC are likely to come through your home page and GBP.
Optimize it by:
- Adding accurate NAP info.
- Posting photos of your logo, showroom, completed projects, and workers on the job.
- Responding to every review. Make sure to be professional and not look for a fight. Poor responses may deter new customers who worry they will also have a bad experience -even if it is not your fault.
- Sharing company updates or promotions. Special offers are a great way to generate traffic and incentivise customers who are one the fence.
A strong Google profile helps you appear in local map results—the “3-pack” that shows above organic listings.
Review Generation
Ranking locally is more important than generating a bunch of traffic that could come form anywhere. To capture these leads, the best place to acquire them is going to be through Google SERPs and Google Maps. If you want to rank higher, you need reviews:
- Reviews that mention the area, service provided, process, and anything else that is specific to that job, such as materials, cost, quality, etc. This is social proof and search engines love it.
- Variety of review sources. Google is #1, but there are other reputable platforms out there. Try your best to get reviews from Facebook, Guild Quality, Yelp, Angie’s, and Home Adviser.
- Quantity and quality. If you look in Google maps right now, the companies at the top have hundreds of reviews and a great star rating. You need to make sure you go the extra mile during and after the project to make sure you get those 5-star reviews. If you don’t get good reviews, there is no way you will show up at the top.
Visibility and Authority
In the NAP citation section above, we covered making sure to get your company listed in as many directories as possible so that search engines could see your business as legitimate with consistent NAP information. Along those lines, we also want to improve website authority. By improving authority, we can show search engines that other credible sources are vouching for your company.
The main way to improve your website’s authority is through backlinks. There are lots of companies out there that allow you to buy batches of backlinks. Do not do this. You want to build partnerships, sponsorships, and get involved with local companies.
- Chamber of Commerce
- Real Estate companies
- Rental home managers
- Community service events
- Local organizations
Ready to Remodel Your SEO Strategy?
Just like any successful build, great SEO takes planning, precision, and ongoing care. By investing in technical improvements, keyword-driven content, and local visibility, your contracting business can rise above the competition—one optimized page at a time.
If you’re ready to start generating more qualified leads online, FatCat Strategies can help you lay the digital foundation your business deserves.
Contact us today to schedule a free SEO consultation for your contracting business.