MARKETING GUIDES
How contractors get found and chosen: Google Maps, reviews, local ads, social media, referrals and the old-school tactics that still pay.
Showing 26 of 26 guides
How to get your first 10 customers when nobody knows you
The first ten customers are the hardest you'll ever land. A plain-spoken playbook for getting them with no budget, no name recognition, and no ad spend.
How to handle a bad Google review without making it worse
A one-star review is bad. The reply you fire off in the first ten minutes is worse. How to answer a bad Google review so it works for you, not against you.
The one marketing channel most trades ignore: your invoice
The invoice is the one message every paying customer opens. Most shops treat it like a receipt. Here's how to turn it into reviews, referrals, and repeat work.
How to get on HomeAdvisor, Thumbtack, and the other lead-gen sites
Pay-per-lead sites sell the same lead to several pros at once. How they work, how to set up so you don't waste money, and how to tell if you're making money or just feeding the machine.
Seasonal promotions and discounts: when they work and when they backfire
A discount comes off your profit, not your price. When a seasonal promotion actually pays, when it backfires, and how to run one without bleeding margin.
Before-and-after photos: how to use them to win more work
A good before-and-after proves you do the work better than any promise can. How to shoot them right, where to put them, and how to use one in a quote to close the job.
How to market a new trade business when you have no money
Your first ten customers were never coming from an ad. The free, plain-spoken playbook for marketing a brand-new trade business: your network, a Google profile, and every job turned into the next two.
Partnering with realtors and property managers for steady leads
One property manager can be forty houses that break on schedule. How to land realtor and property manager referrals, keep them, and not drop the ball once the work starts flowing.
How to get your trades business featured in local news
Local press is free and people trust it in a way they never trust your ads. Here's how to give a reporter a story worth running, who to pitch, and how to catch the leads when it goes live.
Does looking professional actually sell? Uniforms, trucks, and the trust factor
A customer decides about you in two seconds, before you say a word. Do branded uniforms and a clean truck actually sell? An honest look at what presentation buys, and where it stops.
Email marketing for trades: what to send and how often
You already own a list of every customer you've worked for. Here's what to email them, how often, and how to build that list without turning into a spammer.
Social media for trades: what to post and how often
Social media won't book your week for you, but it keeps your name in front of the next customer. What to post, how often, and where to spend your time.
How to get on Google Maps and actually rank
When someone types 'electrician near me,' three businesses show up on the map first. Here's how to claim your Google Business Profile and rank in that box.
Seasonal marketing for the trades: what to push and when
Your phone rings on a schedule you already know. Get in front of people before the rush, keep the slow weeks working, and plan it once instead of reacting all year.
Why good customer support wins more trades work than any ad
In the trades, support isn't a call center. It's whether you pick up, show up, and stand behind the work. Why it wins repeat jobs, and the habits that cost nothing.
Truck wraps, yard signs, door hangers: do the old tactics still pay?
Online ads get the hype, but a wrapped truck in the right driveway still books work. Which offline tactics earn their keep, which burn cash, and how to track them.
Speed to lead: why a missed call quietly costs you the job
A missed call is usually a job handed to whoever calls back first. Why speed to lead decides who wins urgent work, and a simple system to stop the leak.
A referral program that actually works for trades
The refer-a-friend card nobody uses isn't a program. How to ask at the right moment, set a reward that doesn't read as cheap, and track referrals so they keep coming.
Getting more 5-star reviews, and handling the bad ones without losing your cool
Reviews are how people pick a contractor now. When to ask, how to make it one tap, and the right way to handle a one-star without making it worse.
Nextdoor for trades: the zip-code social network most contractors ignore
Nextdoor is the social network most trades dismiss and the ones that use it well dominate their zip code. How Recommendations stack up, how to show up without spamming, and where the calls come from.
YouTube for trades: how to make videos that actually bring in jobs
YouTube isn't TikTok. Filmed once, a good video keeps bringing in calls for years. How long-form and Shorts work for a trade, and where the jobs actually come from.
TikTok for trades: how organic short video actually works
TikTok is the cheapest place online for a local trade to get seen. It pays nothing the day you post. How organic short video actually works, what stops the scroll, and where the jobs come from.
Meta and Facebook ads for trades: how they actually work, and where they pay off
Facebook and Instagram aren't search. Nobody's looking for you when your ad shows up. Here's how to use that quirk instead of fight it, and why your phone decides whether the spend pays off.
Google Ads for trades: how search ads work, and how not to waste your money
Search ads charge per click, not per lead. How the auction works, where most trades waste the money, and why your landing page (and your phone) decide whether it pays off.
Local Services Ads: the green badge above the search results
Local Services Ads sit above everything else on Google and charge per lead, not per click. How the green badge works, how ranking is decided, and why follow-up makes or breaks it.
Your website is your storefront now. Run it like one.
Your website is the first thing a referral checks. The basics that win the job: a domain you own, SSL, and showing up in local search.
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