Construction
SEO for construction companies: getting found by the clients who award contracts
SEO for a construction company is mostly about being found and shortlisted by people who award work: developers, facilities managers, architects and procurement teams. That takes a page for each sector and service you want, case studies with real values, programmes and photographs, and your accreditations visible on every page.
Domestic builders win on reviews and the map. Contractors win on evidence. This guide is about the second.
Who searches for a construction company, and what do they type?
Fewer people than search for a plumber, but each search is worth far more. A facilities manager types "commercial refurbishment contractor Surrey". A developer types "design and build contractor South East". A school business manager types "school building contractor" or "classroom extension". An architect looks for a contractor with experience of a building type before recommending one to a client.
These buyers rarely ring from the first result. They build a shortlist, then check each firm against a list of their own. The website's job is to get onto the shortlist and survive the checks, and most contractors' sites are not built for that. If your work is mainly domestic extensions and renovations, our guide to SEO for builders fits you better.
What should a construction company's website show?
The things a buyer checks before inviting you to tender, in the order they check them:
| What they check | What the site should show |
|---|---|
| Have you built this kind of thing? | A page per sector (education, healthcare, industrial, retail, residential), each with two or three projects |
| At what scale? | Contract values or ranges, programme lengths, floor areas |
| Are you safe to appoint? | Health and safety accreditations, such as SSIP schemes including CHAS and Constructionline, ISO certificates where held |
| Can you deliver where we are? | The region you work in, and where your teams are based |
| Who will we deal with? | Named directors and project managers, with what they have delivered |
| Are you stable? | Years trading, company number, insurance cover levels |
A gallery of unlabelled photographs answers none of these. A case study page per project answers all of them, and it is also what ranks for searches such as "school extension contractor Kent".
What makes a construction case study rank and convert?
Specifics. The client type, the building type, the location, the contract form, the value, the programme, and what was difficult. "Delivered on time and on budget" means nothing because everyone says it. "Twelve-week programme, completed in the summer holidays so the school opened on time" means a great deal to the next bursar.
Write each one as a short page with its own heading, not a caption on an image. Include five or six photographs with descriptive alt text, the sector and the town in the title, and a quote from the client if you have permission. Ten good case studies will do more for search than fifty blog posts about the construction industry.
Do accreditations help a contractor rank?
Not directly, as far as anyone outside Google can show. They help in two quieter ways. They are what gets you through a buyer's prequalification, so a page that lists them clearly saves the buyer an email. And the accreditation bodies' own directories list your firm, which is another consistent mention of your name, address and phone number.
Put each accreditation on a page of its own or a clear section, with the certificate number and expiry date where that is public. Keep it current. An expired certificate on the website is worse than none.
Should a construction company bother with Google Business Profile?
Yes, but it matters less than for a domestic trade. Commercial buyers do search on maps when they want a local contractor, and the profile is what Google shows when someone searches your name. Set the right primary category, add your real office address, and post photographs of finished projects.
Reviews matter less in volume and more in source. A review from a facilities manager at a named organisation, if they will give one, is worth more than twenty from friends.
What does a website and SEO cost for a construction company?
A multi-page website with sector and case study pages starts from £1,495 with us, and larger builds with project databases or client logins start from £5,000. Monthly search work starts from £695 a month. Every price is on the price list.
If your site already exists and the problem is that it never brings in enquiries, start with a free SEO audit (normally £495, free for a limited time). It will show whether the site needs rebuilding or just needs the right pages added. Firms that sell to technical buyers may also find our guide on websites for technical buyers useful.
Questions construction companies ask about SEO
How do construction companies get more work from their website?
Build a page for each sector and service you want more of, write a case study page for every significant project with its value, programme and photographs, and show your accreditations and named team clearly. Those are the things commercial buyers check before inviting a firm to tender.
Is SEO worth it for a construction company?
Usually, because one won contract can be worth more than a year of search work. It is worth most for firms that want a particular sector or region and have the projects to prove they can deliver.
What should a construction website include?
Sector pages, case studies with real values and programmes, accreditations and certificate details, named directors and project managers, the region you work in, and a contact route for tender invitations.
How much does a construction company website cost?
With Werehouse Media, a multi-page site with sector and case study pages starts from £1,495, and larger builds with project databases or client logins start from £5,000. Prices are published on the price list.