Research Report

Western US Trade Business SEO: 2026 Regional Report

A comprehensive SEO analysis of 6673 trade businesses across 8 western US states, covering website health, search rankings, and digital presence.

6,673 websites analyzed Last updated: February 10, 2026
“Across 8 western states and 6,673 trade businesses, only 3.5% are prepared for social media sharing.”

The Regional Landscape

55.9%
Colorado schema adoption leads the West

Colorado leads the western US with 55.9% schema adoption and 83.5% SSL coverage, powered by its Front Range tech corridor. Utah follows at 51.5% schema, buoyed by a booming construction industry. At the bottom, Wyoming trails at 37.9% schema and 66.7% SSL — the clear laggard in the region.

The pattern is consistent: states with larger metro areas and tech economies have better trade business websites. Digital maturity follows economic development.

HVAC Leads, Landscaping Lags

506
avg HVAC reviews vs. 32 for construction

HVAC companies have the highest schema adoption at 69.1% across the region, likely because emergency HVAC services justify significant marketing spend — a single lead can be worth $5,000–$15,000. Roofing companies follow at 61.7%, then construction at 60.8%, with landscaping at 59.5%.

The real outlier is reviews: HVAC contractors average 506 Google reviews, while construction companies average just 32. The industries that invest in marketing get the digital fundamentals right.

The 96.5% Sharing Problem

96.5%
of trade businesses lack social sharing setup

Only 3.5% of trade businesses across the western US have Open Graph tags configured. For an industry where Nextdoor recommendations, Facebook community groups, and neighborhood referrals are major business drivers, this is the single biggest missed opportunity across all 6,673 websites we analyzed.

Every unshared referral link that shows up as a bare URL is a conversion that never happened. A homeowner posts "Great experience with ABC Plumbing" — but the link preview shows nothing. Their neighbors scroll right past.

15,315 Search Rankings Tell the Story

15,315
search rankings tracked across the region

We tracked 15,315 search engine ranking positions across 692 keywords and 3,620 businesses in the region. The data reveals 9,067 local pack appearances and 6,248 organic rankings.

Schema markup correlates with a 0.3-position average advantage — small but meaningful when positions 1–3 capture roughly 60% of all clicks. In local search, even a fraction of a position can mean the difference between the phone ringing and silence.

State-by-State Breakdown

How each state in the western US compares on trade business website health.

StateTotalSchema %Sitemap %Viewport %SSL %OG Tags %
CO218755.9%61%73.8%83.5%3.4%
UT154351.5%58.9%69.5%81.3%4.6%
ID76249.5%55.2%68.9%79.1%3.1%
WY59737.9%49.4%58%66.7%2.5%
NE51851%61%72.8%80.7%5%
MT51452.1%57%68.9%76.3%1.9%
Unknown29335.5%47.1%56.3%62.1%3.1%
SD25954.4%56%72.2%81.1%0.8%

Methodology

We analyzed 6673 trade business websites across 8 western US states, sourced from Google Business Profiles. Website audits covered SSL, sitemaps, robots.txt, viewport meta, Open Graph tags, and Schema.org markup. SERP rankings were collected for 692 keywords across multiple cities. Data collected January–February 2026.

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Last updated: February 2026