As a tradesperson, whether you’re a plumber, electrician, carpenter, or contractor, building a solid customer base is key to growing your business. Word of mouth and personal referrals will always be essential, but there are plenty of other marketing strategies that can help you stand out in a competitive market.
Here are five effective ways trades can market their business and attract more customers.
1 – Use social media platforms to your advantage
Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and the newest craze, TikTok, offer a powerful way to connect with potential customers. Sharing photos and videos of your work, highlighting completed projects, and engaging with your audience by responding to comments and messages are all ways you can utilise social media platforms to your advantage. Consider running targeted ads to reach people in your local area who are looking for your specific services.
Remember, social media marketing doesn’t require a large budget. Even small, regular posts can significantly improve your visibility and help you connect with more local customers.
Why it’s important: Social media gives you a chance to engage with your audience directly, create a loyal following, and show the quality of your work, by visually showcasing your skills.
Top Tips:
- Ask for Facebook and LinkedIn reviews from previous clients or customers
- Post on Facebook groups that are relevant to your business and location
- Share content that solves problems for people. For example; before and after images, problems you’re providing a solution for or top tips.
2 – Build a strong online presence
A well-designed website is essential for establishing credibility and showcasing your expertise. Your website serves as your online business card and should clearly present what services you offer, your experience, and how potential customers can contact you. Make sure you include information about your services, portfolio of work, testimonials from satisfied clients, and contact details. You should also optimise your website for search engines (SEO) to improve your visibility in local search results.
Why it’s important: A website gives you credibility and makes you easily discoverable online. Many customers will research service providers before reaching out, so having a polished site increases your chances of being hired.
Top Tips:
- Set up and optimise your Google My Business profile – this is where most people will search first so it’s important it gives off a good impression.
- Ask for reviews on Google
- Set up a Checkatrade account (or other trusted trade app) to collect reviews from customers. It is great for SEO purposes, and you can even add it to your website.
3 – Start a monthly newsletter
A monthly newsletter is a fantastic form of marketing that reaches a large amount of people that have direct interest in your business. You are able to keep the database as up to date as possible, and can choose exactly what you want to promote, and who is going to see it.
Why it’s important: A newsletter allows you to connect and have regular communication with past customers, potential customers and any other businesses you’re connected with.
4 – Network with Other Local Businesses
Networking is a tried-and-true method for growing any business, and for tradespeople, building relationships with other local businesses can be a game-changer and really elevate the success of your business. Many trades rely on word-of-mouth referrals from complementary businesses in your community, so this should be a crucial element to your marketing strategy.
Why it’s important: Establishing partnerships with other service providers, like real estate agents, property managers, home inspectors, or even other tradespeople, can help you generate leads and expand your network.
5 – Get involved with your community
Participate in local events, volunteer for charitable causes, and support community initiatives. This can help you build brand awareness and establish yourself as a trusted member of the community.
We recommend all businesses to have a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) policy in place. This is a formal statement that outlines a company’s commitment to ethical business practices, environmental sustainability, and social responsibility. It defines how the company will operate in a way that positively impacts society and the environment.
Why it’s important: Being seen in your community is crucial to building up your reputation as being a credible and reliable business. It also helps with creating overall awareness of your business.
Keeping on top of promotion can be difficult and time consuming, this is why we work with a range of trades to help them ensure they are the first port of call when someone is looking for their services.