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I have spent a lot of time and money researching over the years about content, keywords, keyword phases etc. Though I have used the word myself in some of my videos, I have also been asked by potential customers what I meant by softwash.

I even had one lady ask me if it has something to do with laundry. LOL I even recall when I started cleaning roofs that one customer asked " Roof Cleaning are going to sweep my roof? LOL

For all of us roof cleaners in the industry that live in the roof cleaning silo the term is second nature. For the everyday home owner, from my experience, it is just a term that holds little understand. I am sure one day will change, just like roof cleaning.

Many still don't know what roof cleaning is either, most, to this day have never heard of it, at least in my area. Though because cedar is wood, they tend to get it once explained because wood is organic and makes sense it would need cleaning.

That is why I haven't followed the masses and went in the other direction.

What I have found is they do understand non-pressure process or even no pressure process because they have all heard of pressure washing.

I am sure over time, like roof cleaning is starting to take hold, again in my area, softwash or softwashing will have meaning or understanding.

It isn't that the key word or key phase is wrong or bad, it is like any key word or phase, until people are educated to such they just don't understand the definition.

One would be hard pressed to find anyone that doesn't know what window cleaning means throughout the country.

Just like exterior cleaning or interior cleaning. The term explains itself.

One other thing many should consider is branding of your service. Google is the number one search engine, number 2 is YouTube which is also Google. So when considering a service name it would be wise to consider your branding first.

What separates your service from the rest? Given the direction Google is going everything now is under one thing, your identity. Like Google authorship, which requires a head shot of you as the author. That is why when anyone does search now days you will see a head shot of them in the search tag. That is Google authorship. Which is what? Branding! That is the way Google is going like it or not. Which by the way is tied to a Gmail account also. Like it or not, that is how Google is doing it!

What are the three things in any service that people want to know? 1.) Who are you? 2.) What do you do or offer? 3.) What is the benefit or in it for them? You have the 3 second rule, that is 3 seconds to catch their attention.

My name/branding has two of those components 1.) Who I am (Sullivan) 2.) What I do or offer (roof cleaning). Now I can only hope they stay long enough to see 3.) the benefit or what is in it for them.

Your name should be your first and most important element of your service and one would be wise to give it a lot of consideration. That is marketing 101.

I can say that (Sullivan) has served me well. I have had a number of people that have told me someone referred my name not by "Sullivan Roof Cleaning" but they were told there is a guy named "Sullivan" that cleans roofs. Realtors do it all the time, they don't remember so much my whole business name but they remember Sullivan. Well search Sullivan in my area and Sullivan Roof Cleaning is at the top. Branding. Your name will become your branding, no matter what that name is.

Now we can debate this subject until the sun goes down and it will always end up as just a debate. I see nothing wrong with softwash but what if softwash becomes the branding and many are using it? That means that everyone using it will come up in the search word. How does that set you out from the rest? If I have learned anything from my mistakes, it is, if everyone is going in one direction, I go in the other direction!  I am not saying going in the mass direction doesn't have value, what I am saying is going in that direction has unnecessary competition. Hire any professional marketing expert and the first thing they'll tell you is you need to set yourself out from the rest. Marketing 101.

So using Softwash or Softwashing as a good roof cleaning name shouldn't be the question? The question should be does using such set me out from the rest for branding purposes?

I can give a good example. In the roof cleaning industry i.e. forums, there are those that say Sullivan is good guy and then their are those that say he is full of you know what up to his ears and the rest is toilet paper!

Either one doesn't matter. What matters as most have heard of Sullivan. Branding! Oh, yeah he is that cedar roof cleaner or that crazy cedar roof cleaner! Branding!

So what is in a name? Everything! Your name is your foundation, then you build from that.

Not to single anyone out. But one that comes to mind. Ed Thompson, Thompson Roof Cleaning and Pressurewashing. He has done a great job of branding. Who he is and what he does. Sets himself out from the rest.

This is my sole opinion and feedback as part of an open forum with no intent to take one side or the other concerning the key word or phase.

Apple Roof Cleaning Tampa FL (813) 655-8777 wrote:

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That was a great, well thought out post Bruce Sullivan.

Just as the name Sullivan has not hurt you, neither has the name Apple hurt us either, though it was our name long before Apple Computers were what they are today.

But, we are Apple Roof Cleaning Tampa, not Apple Softwash, or Apple Softwashing.

Our name says what we do, and where we do it at.

Yes, softwash or softwashing does mean something, to some people in our industry, but it currently means little to nothing to the people who pay our bills by searching for us.

Just as a steak restaurant will not advertise "meat from the finest oceans", it never ceases to amaze me why roof cleaners will put a vague, and un searched for term like Softwash or Softwashing,  in their company name ?

 

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 Your correct Your name explains who you are and what you do. I am not going to get caught up in the debate, as can happen, but I must agree softwash is not a keyword/phase that is searched by the everyday home owner. I paid a company in Kansas City to review keywords/phases being searched pertaining to roof cleaning and exterior cleaning as I was looking for keywords/phases to use in my blogging. Roof cleaning did rank as a search term, but softwash didn't rank as a search term. Though window cleaning, gutter cleaning, house wash, deck cleaning and even pool cleaning showed a lot for search term action.

Central Iowa Roof Cleaning wrote:

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 Your correct Your name explains who you are and what you do. I am not going to get caught up in the debate, as can happen, but I must agree softwash is not a keyword/phase that is searched by the everyday home owner. I paid a company in Kansas City to review keywords/phases being searched pertaining to roof cleaning and exterior cleaning as I was looking for keywords/phases to use in my blogging. Roof cleaning did rank as a search term, but softwash didn't rank as a search term. Though window cleaning, gutter cleaning, house wash, deck cleaning and even pool cleaning showed a lot for search term action.

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I think the terms no or non pressure roof and exterior cleaning are better then softwash or softwashing, and here is another reason why.  To a guy who often uses 5000 PSI, 2500 Psi can seem like a "softwash" or softwashing, but the words No pressure means No pressure, and the word Non is a just another word for No.

I have sold darn near every roof cleaning job my company has ever done, except a few, and I have never had a customer tell me "I want the softwash roof cleaning" or ask me to use "softwash cleaning methods" on his roof.

I have a few blog posts that are aimed at softwash or softwashing as their target keyword, just in case. Kind of a "cover my ass", just in case, if you know what I mean.

It's not a question of what one sees when you type 'XYZ in a Google search'.  Anyone can be optimized for anything, XYZ or ABC.  What is important is what the user community is searching for.  And frankly it's not wise to limit one's business to a specific category or location in today's day and age.   Look at Thompson Creek for example - they're on fire.  Without saying any more, I'll just say I that think you've both missed the boat with the naming conventions.  Then again, what a bore life would be if we all though the same.

American-ProTech Exterior Solutions.  Guess what we do?   

Some lead, some follow.  We blaze trails.  Quietly and often under radar. 

Liberty SoftWash wrote:

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Apple Roof Cleaning Tampa FL (813) 655-8777 wrote:

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Well, let's take a look, and find out, using this keyword research tool . Simply click on the link, and enter either the keywords Softwash or Softwashing, and see if it has any relation to roof cleaning ?

Or, enter the keyword Roof Cleaning, and see if softwash or softwashing pulls up ?

You might be surprised! 

 

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How about you type in Softwash Tampa,  Softwash Iowa or Softwash KY and see what comes up...you might be surprised what you see!  After you see those results, can we honestly say that "we" as roof cleaners put no weight on the term softwash?  If that were the case, websites that don't have softwash in their names, would not show up in these searches.  So why tag a post or  "softwash" if there is no relevance?

 

I guess we could argue all day about terminology.....wouldn't NON PRESSURE Roof Cleaning mean you use ZERO pressure, not 80-90 psi? 

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 Eric,

Very interesting. Seems to me there is value to the term soft washing as demonstrated by the searches. 

Our website incorporates soft washing, non pressure and pressure washing to cover all bases. 

Hank

Diamond Roof Cleaning New Jersey (1-800-Roof-Clean) wrote:

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Ted it sounds like you install windows and siding. Lol.

I personally love my name. Diamond Roof Cleaning. Guess what I do?

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My point exactly    Good for you Mr. Roof Cleaner!  LMAO to the bank.....

waxman18324 wrote:

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Liberty SoftWash wrote:

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Apple Roof Cleaning Tampa FL (813) 655-8777 wrote:

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Well, let's take a look, and find out, using this keyword research tool . Simply click on the link, and enter either the keywords Softwash or Softwashing, and see if it has any relation to roof cleaning ?

Or, enter the keyword Roof Cleaning, and see if softwash or softwashing pulls up ?

You might be surprised! 

 

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How about you type in Softwash Tampa,  Softwash Iowa or Softwash KY and see what comes up...you might be surprised what you see!  After you see those results, can we honestly say that "we" as roof cleaners put no weight on the term softwash?  If that were the case, websites that don't have softwash in their names, would not show up in these searches.  So why tag a post or  "softwash" if there is no relevance?

 

I guess we could argue all day about terminology.....wouldn't NON PRESSURE Roof Cleaning mean you use ZERO pressure, not 80-90 psi? 

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 Eric,

 

Very interesting. Seems to me there is value to the term soft washing as demonstrated by the searches. 

Our website incorporates soft washing, non pressure and pressure washing to cover all bases. 

 

Hank

 

 

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 Now, that's a good strategy right there Hank.

I have some softwash and softwashing dedicated posts and pages "just in case".

Roof Cleaning Northern Virginia (571) 250 9650 wrote:

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Doug R wrote:

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IMO, If you are not using the term Soft wash or Soft Washing then you should start. As more an more companies have it in there name, and more and more people blog using the term, you can bet that it is going to have more relevance. A week doesn't go by that i don't have a customer that will ask, "now do you Soft Wash or do you....?. It's simply inevitable that it will become more of an importance in our marketing/branding/advertising whether we like it or not. 3 years ago I never thought the term would catch on from a consumer standpoint, but it is and will continue to do so.

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In time that may be the case Doug.  Short term, it's of little relevance.  Longer term it may very well change.  From a strategic perspective, it's good to keep it on radar.  For now, I would not pay PPC for that phrase, but that's just me.

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 Me either! LOL, some old woman may be searching to "softwash the grey out of her hair"  and my luck, I would have to pay for it!