The moving business has become one of the most competitve verticals online.

Type the word moving into Google and find 290 million results (give or take).

The results across the other major search engines are not much different. Does the level and volume of competition mean that less opportunity exists for moving businesses trying to break into the online market? I think that there is still opportunity.

Succeeding in a vertical such as moving online requires a distinctive edge. The small movers with limited budgets don’t stand much of a chance going up against some of the established authorities in terms of paid listings and organic rankings, but can still utilize local listings, directories and lead hubs to generate business.

Even larger players need to come to the table offering a unique service. Take for example Store To Door, founded by Jim Wayman in 1997 has established itself as a leader in the moving industry by providing a more elaborate service which includes moving, containers, and portable storage for individuals and businesses. Their site is well designed from a practical perspective with clear information and rich media.

Another leader in the moving business online is moving.com. Okay there is an obvious advantage for moving.com in the sense that they rank #1 (easy to understand why based on their domain name). Their sites acts as a lead market for vendors looking to connect with consumers. Unlike Store To Door their advantage has more to do with their placement and traffic.

With new functionality in Google connected to their local search listing - smaller companies do have a chance to succeed. If a user searches “moving company” they will get an addition search bar to eneter their zip code.

After entering a zip code - Google refreshes the search with Google Local Listings at the top above the regular organic search listings. This represents a clear opportunity for moving companies online to compete with the larger more established players already situated at the top of their vertical.

In short there is still opportunity for moving businesses online. With a bit of marketing know-how, a creative approach to web design, a good offline service/product and a focus on local online promotion even the new smaller players can find their place online.