I've talked and written for many years about what a crucial role your website plays in marketing your swimming pool business. Sure, a website is important for just about any business. But when you are trying to sell swimming pools, it’s even more crucial — since the buying cycle is so rare and foreign to most pool buyers.
That’s why, over the years, I’ve repeatedly emphasized the importance of these core ingredients that every pool builder website should have:
Good content: It needs to tell an interesting and compelling story in a way that’s believable.
Easy to navigate: It should be easy for visitors to find what they’re looking for.
Great photos: This is how they will judge you versus your competition.
Mobile-friendly: Google penalizes websites that aren’t mobile-friendly.
Fast-loading: Google penalizes websites that are slow.
Fully secure hosting: Google shuns websites that are not secure.
SEO-friendly: Besides good content, a website needs to have good meta tags, title tags, alt tags, etc.
And no cheesy SEO tricks or keyword-stuffing, like this real-life example I found a few years ago, paraphrased only slightly:
“If you’re looking for a Houston pool builder who builds Houston swimming pools, you’ve reached the Houston pool builder you can trust to build your Houston pool.”
Again, all of the above is old hat. We’ve been preaching that for years. I want to talk about the NEW things a pool builder website should have today, above and beyond the aforementioned items.
Here are three NEW things you should consider to keep your website on the cutting edge.
NO. 1: AN APPOINTMENT-SETTING FUNCTION.
I’m not talking about the usual “contact us” or “request a quote” button. I’m referring to an actual appointment-setting link that connects interested prospects to your calendar, and only shows the dates and times where you would be available for a face-to-face meeting.
Because let’s be honest, in 2023 and beyond, you should not be wasting your time trying to chase down prospects and schedule appointments. Ten years ago, you bet — half of the sales job was to repeatedly call the prospect and try to get them to agree to meet with you. Not anymore.
Nowadays, the vast majority of your prospects are fully familiar with and capable of clicking a link to schedule an appointment. And I would go so far as to say that if your prospective pool buyer isn’t sufficiently motivated to click a link and schedule a meeting with you, then you probably shouldn’t be wasting your time with that non-motivated buyer anyways.
There are plenty of appointment-setting software applications available today. In fact, if you have a Client Relationship Management (CRM) system, it probably has this functionality already built in.
It’s time to start using it! You’ll be doing yourself AND your prospects a favor.
NO. 2: PRE-QUALIFYING PRICE GUIDANCE.
Historically, it’s been considered taboo to talk about pool pricing on a website. And I still think it’s a dangerous strategy to quote ballpark prices over the phone, for a variety of reasons.
But at the same time, for most builders, it would be a complete waste of time to spend an hour or more with someone who is neither ready nor willing nor able to spend more than $30,000 for an inground pool. Both you and the prospect will be better served if they figure this out BEFORE they call you or fill out a form on your website.
In fact, the benefits to you are huge. You’ll save yourself the time, effort, gasoline, stress, and wear and tear of trying to squeeze too many meetings into a week. And the biggest bonus of all is that your closing ratios will go up.
Your website can set those expectations right up front. The key is to explain it delicately and broadly, so as not to scare away anyone except the people with wildly unrealistic expectations.
My favorite way to do this is to talk about three different levels of backyard projects, with mention of a “starting price,” such as:
Pool-only — Our pool-only projects typically start around $75,000.
Pool and spa combination — These projects typically start around $90,000.
Pool, spa and more — These projects typically start around $100,000.
NO. 3: LOOK LIKE A MILLION BUCKS.
My final recommendation is a little more subjective, but probably more important than ever.
Let’s look at the reality of today versus 2018. Most likely your prices and construction times have both doubled or tripled. The old, three-month $50,000 projects are now taking six to nine months, and easily costing more than $100,000.
Nothing you can’t handle. But to the average homeowner, buying a new inground pool — which was already a big deal at $50,000 — is a bigger commitment now more than ever. They’ve REALLY got to trust you now.
That means you have to look the part. And by “you,” I mean your website.
I think it’s vital that your website visitors instantly recognize that you’re not just some fly-by-night, blue-collar worker who is suddenly dabbling in the new pool business. You should look like a serious professional, a class act with serious skills, capabilities and experience.
Your website is the perfect place to tell this story — with words, pictures, videos, and other evidence that compellingly demonstrates your unique capabilities and trustworthiness.
Any homeowner thinking about spending $100,000 to $300,000 or more in their backyard should feel overwhelmingly comfortable about hiring you for the job.
So to recap, I believe that in 2023 and beyond, every website should:
1. Have a built-in appointment setting function.
2. Contain content that pre-screens and pre-qualifies prospects who can’t afford you.
3. Make you look and smell and feel like a million bucks.
That way, for those people who can actually afford you, they’ll know they’re dealing with the right person and not just some “wannabe” who only recently jumped into the swimming pool construction industry. And you’ll know you’re not wasting time chasing prospects who can’t afford you anyways.
This article first appeared in the August 2023 issue of AQUA Magazine — the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.
