SEO Checklist for Home Inspectors in 2024

As a home inspector, staying on top of the digital landscape is crucial. One of the best places to start? Your online presence, and specifically, your website and SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

As many search engines evolve constantly (I've worked in the SEO and content space for years now and seen seemingly constant changes), it's important to keep up with the latest SEO trends. For home inspectors in 2024, the focus remains on local SEO, which will help potential clients in your area find your services easily.

What should I focus on for SEO in 2024? 

While SEO can refer to the process of optimizing content for any search engine, most of the time when we talk about SEO we’re referring to SEO specifically for Google. 

Why? Google continues to be the dominant search engine, and optimizing for it is key to your success in the search landscape. It’s where we’ve seen inspectors get the most bang for their buck when it comes to SEO investment.

In this article, much of the SEO guidance refers specifically to what home inspectors can do to boost their visibility on Google. However, all of the strategies are general best practices and should help you rank well on alternate search engines as well. 

It can feel overwhelming to think to be visible, you have to outrank every home inspector on the internet. The good news is that home inspectors usually don’t have to worry about that – instead, the focus should primarily be on local SEO, which in short, refers to SEO where the goal is specifically to rank for local search queries, such as “home inspector in Denver, CO”. 

In this article, we’ll cover our recommendations (based on what we at Spectora have seen help home inspectors succeed) for what you should prioritize to boost your visibility and grow your business:

• Building and optimizing a Google Business Profile
• Creating and managing local listings
• Implementing SEO best practices on your website

We’ll also break down how inspectors can go the extra mile with their SEO work, and walk through: 

• Blogging in 2024
• Additional SEO and Local SEO Tips and Strategies

Building and Optimizing a Google Business Profile

If you’re just starting with SEO work, the first step is to create a Google Business Profile (GBP). If you already have a GBP, ensure it’s optimized and you’ve completed each step on this list. 

Shown above is an example of what a Google Business Profile looks like for a home inspector. 

Your GBP is like your digital storefront. Here are the steps to take to get started:

• Create Your Profile: If you don’t have one yet, create a GBP. Make sure your business name, address, and phone number (often referred to as your NAP) are correct, and link your website. You’ll also need to enter your service areas. You can get started here.
• Choose the Right Categories: When you set up your GBP, you’ll be prompted to choose a category for your business. Be sure to choose categories that most accurately describe your services, like "Home Inspector."
• Write a Business Description: Add a description that tells people about your services and what makes you the right choice. Be sure to include details about where you’re based, what services you should provide, and any unique value propositions that make your company stand out. 

Shown above is an example of what a business description for a home inspection company might include, with key points highlighted.

• Add Photos and Videos: Upload high-quality photos and videos of your work and team. This can be anything from a picture of your vehicle wrap or your office to a picture of you working on-site as an inspector. 

After your GBP is set up, or if you already have a GBP, make sure to:

• Get Reviews: Ask your happy clients to leave reviews and make sure to respond to them. Reviews not only provide great social proof to any potential client and 
• Use Google Posts: Share any business updates and promotions (like sales, discounts, or new services) directly on your GBP.
• Keep Information Updated: Regularly check and update your profile with any new information about your business. Your GBP should always have accurate business details. 

Local Listings and How to Manage Them

Making sure your business info is consistent across the web helps people find you easily. The best way to do that is to manage your local listings. 

Local listings are online entries (such as Yelp, your Facebook business page, Apple Maps, and Bing Places for Business, to name a few) that provide key information about your business, such as your name, address, phone number (NAP), website, and hours of operation. These listings help search engines and potential customers find and learn about your business. 

Consistent and accurate local listings across various platforms are crucial for improving your local SEO, as search engines account for accurate information across all platforms, and ensuring that people can easily find and contact you.

Here’s what’s important to keep in mind when it comes to listings management. 

• Claim Your Listings: To maintain and manage local listings, you have to actually be listed locally. Make sure your business is listed on sites like Yelp and Bing Places.
• Keep Information Consistent: Ensure your business name, address, and phone number are the same on all platforms. You can do this manually, or outsource to a listings management solution. 

If updating each and every listing each time you make a small change sounds like a lot to manage, we have you covered with our SEO Boost product. Among other things, SEO Boost will ensure that all listings are always accurate and up-to-date.

SEO Best Practices for Your Website 

Of course, an SEO presence isn’t just about your GBP and your local listings; your website plays a part as well. 

A well-designed, easy-to-navigate website is key to attracting and keeping visitors. Here are the main areas you’ll need to focus on to build a well-performing site:

• Mobile-Friendly Design: Mobile optimization is key to success in today’s digital landscape, as many local searches are performed on mobile phones. Ensure sure your website looks great and works well on phones and tablets.
• On-Page SEO: On-page SEO is exactly what it sounds like; SEO applied to pages that are actually on your website. Use relevant keywords (such as “home inspector”, the city or market you’re based in, and other services you offer) in your title tags, meta descriptions, and content to help search engines understand what your site is about. For example, the title of your website’s homepage might read “Olivia’s Inspection Company - Home Inspections in Boston, MA”. 
• Easy Navigation: Once a client or an agent is on your website, it’s important that they can easily find their way around. Organize your website so visitors can easily find what they’re looking for.
• Fast Loading Times: One of the more important aspects of the modern-day website is fast load times. Ensure your website loads quickly to keep visitors from leaving. If you’re building a website on a platform like WordPress, your website should load fast enough as long as you follow best practices. 
• Schema Markup: Adding certain code to your website (called a schema markup) is important to help search engines display more detailed information about your services. A good web designer will do this for you. 
• Voice Search Optimization: Did someone say "Hey Siri"? In 2024, optimizing for voice search is recommended. You can do so by using natural language and answering questions directly. For example, if you were trying to share the base price of your inspection, you would have a section on your website titled "How much does a home inspection from [your company name] cost" and a body paragraph that reads something like "A home inspection from [your company name] starts at $450, but can vary based on the home's age and square footage". 
• Clear Calls-to-Action: Of course, the entire point of having a website is to book more inspections. Make it easy for visitors to contact you or book an inspection with clear buttons and links.

Unless you have experience building websites, we recommend leaving the website design and maintenance to the pros. 

Our website-building services are designed specifically for home inspectors and we ensure that all of our websites follow the latest SEO best practices.

How to Blog in 2024

Blogging is a powerful tool for SEO and establishing authority. It's also one of the best tools a home inspector has to create educational content for both homebuyers and agents (and we have blog post ideas for home inspectors to get you started). 

In 2024, helpful content is one of the factors that Google cares about most. For what it's worth, the actual human readers of your content likely care that your content is helpful, too. 

If you're looking to blog, here’s how to do it effectively in 2024:

• Target Topics and Keywords: There's no use in writing content if no one wants to read it. Research and write about topics relevant to home inspections, and incorporate local keywords naturally. It's also worthwhile to create content that will help you outside of SEO, so think about topics and keywords that you can send to educate real estate agents or home buyers. 
• Create Engaging and Useful Content: Any content you put on your blog should be useful to the person who reads it. Create valuable content that answers common questions and solves problems for your audience.
• Add Multimedia Elements: Attention spans are short and humans are visual creatures. Use images, videos, and infographics to make your posts more engaging.
• Promote Your Blog: Share your blog posts on social media and other platforms to increase visibility. Better yet, create a newsletter or use email marketing to ensure your blog posts reach the clients and agents you work with. 
• Create a Regular Blogging Schedule: Consistency is key, and regular blog production can help your blog posts rank. Maintain a content calendar to ensure consistent posting.

Additional SEO Tips and Tricks

While we've covered the basics of local SEO in this article (and what most home inspectors will need to stay competitive in the digital landscape in 2024), the world of SEO is huge and we have additional strategies to try if you're looking to maximize your web presence. 

To take your local SEO to the next level, consider implementing some or all of the following strategies:

• Utilize Google Analytics and Search Console: If you love great data, you'll love Google Analytics (GA) and Google Search Console. You can use these tools to monitor your website’s performance and gain insights into user behavior, which is important to make edits and improvements to your website. 
• Obtain Customer Reviews on Various Platforms: One of the best ways to ensure you look good to buyers and agents is to be highly reviewed anywhere they look. Continuously collect and manage reviews across various platforms, like Spectora, Yelp, Facebook, and other local directories in addition to your Google reviews.
• Boost Social Media Engagement: We know many home inspectors have strong social media profiles. Leverage social media to engage with your local community and build your brand.
• Conduct Local Keyword Research: If you're curious about maximizing your website's reach and getting Google/SEO mileage out of your blog posts, you'll need to understand important keywords and search terms. Conduct research to identify the most effective local keywords for your content.
• Monitor and Adapt: Stay updated with local SEO changes and algorithm updates to keep your strategy effective. Great news - if you're reading this blog post, you're already started on this one. 

By following our 2024 SEO checklist, you’ll make it easier for local clients to find your home inspection business online. While we know many inspectors get business directly through Realtors, direct-to-client marketing is important as well and your digital presence is a huge part of that. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use ChatGPT or AI to write website and blog content?

While tools like ChatGPT can be incredibly useful for content creation, AI tools are still relatively new. When you're creating content (whether you use AI or not), you should always triple-check that your content is A) accurate and B) useful. 

I personally use tools like ChatGPT to help me create outlines and organize my thoughts, but I always write the final content myself. If you do use AI to help with content creation, ensure that it is accurate and always cite that you have done so. 

We recommend referring to Google's guide for AI-generated content if you plan to use AI for content creation for the most up-to-date guidelines. 

Do I need a Google Business Profile as a home inspector?

There's no requirement that every home inspector needs a Google Business Profile, but we highly recommend it. A Google Business Profile will ensure you have a higher chance of capturing clients who search for a home inspector online and provide helpful tools like Google reviews that can help you stand out to buyers and Realtors alike. 

Do I need a website as a home inspector?

We've seen that most successful home inspectors do have a great website. A website allows you to maximize your digital presence, increase your conversion rate (i.e. get more booked inspections), and also allows clients and agents alike to learn about your business. 

How do I get Google reviews as a home inspector?

Always ask for a review on-site after a home inspection, and ensure that you follow up with the client after to ask for a review as well, either by email, by text, or in your home inspection software, if it allows you to do so (if you're a Spectora user, you can link out to an external review site through the Client Portal). We recommend automating this process and using tools that let you create workflows to follow up with a client after the inspection.