12 Marketing Strategies To Grow Your Contractor Business
Upscale Digital
Your community will only be aware of your work as a contractor if you market yourself properly. Marketing is essential if you want to reach clients, but it can be tough to figure out where to start because there are so many options in today’s world. So, what are the best ways to grow your business as a contractor?
The best ways to grow your business as a contractor are to build a strong website and focus on search engine optimization. Reach new clients via targeted ads on social media and pay-per-click ads on Google to increase brand awareness. Make a free Google business profile with your phone number, a link to your website, and customer reviews.
Your website should be easy to navigate, include competitive keywords, and prompt visitors to sign up for emails. Marketing as a contractor isn’t as hard as it seems, and classic methods like community engagement and sponsoring events are still effective. Follow along as we explore how we can help you with marketing so you can grow your business as a contractor.
How Can Marketing Grow Your Contracting Business?
Marketing is the only way to ensure that you can attract new clients as a contractor. Word-of-mouth marketing was once all you needed as a contractor, but the business world is more competitive than ever because of the Internet. That’s why it’s important to focus on your website layout, social media presence, and search engine optimization to help your business grow.
People are most likely to find your contracting business online via Google or targeted ads on YouTube and social media platforms. However, classic forms of marketing like sponsoring local events are still important and help build relationships with your community. Organic marketing via blog posts and positive reviews is quite important, but paid ads can also help you reach as many people as possible.
Top 12 Contractor Marketing Strategies
1. Build a Strong Website
Your contracting business is only as strong as the website that represents it. E-commerce accounts for 28% of business sales right now, so it’s more important than ever to build an impressive website. The website should quickly convey what you offer as a contractor.
Post before and after pictures of job sites as well as a handful of positive customer reviews. Provide your contact information and highlight which towns you build in. Include a prompt for visitors to sign up for your email list as well to extend your reach to potential clients.
2. Prioritize Search Engine Results
Many of your future clients will find you via a Google search, so it’s important to make sure you show up organically in the search results. Search engine optimization can help you as a contractor to reach as many people as possible based on keywords and links. Google analyzes websites for keywords and effectively compares them to the other posts in their database with the same keywords and similar content.
The algorithm may then move your webpage around in order when people search for the keywords you use on your site and posts.
Ideally, you want your web page to at least rank on the first page of Google search results when people search for a local contractor. The top-ranking search result is the best, of course, but that’s only possible if you prioritize search engine optimization.
3. Launch a Social Media Campaign
Social media has made it easier than ever to market yourself as a contractor. Paid ads on social media let you reach countless people as they scroll through Facebook and Instagram on their phones. Targeted marketing on social media can quickly reach people who have recently searched for a contractor online.
While paid ads are quite effective, you can also use social media as a form of free marketing. Create accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and X to post before and after pictures of your recent work as a contractor. It also helps to follow local businesses, landlords, and realtors who could use your services one day.
Make a post or Instagram story each day or at least several times per week to stay on customers’ minds. Use popular hashtags and create reels so your account will pop up in the algorithm for more and more people.
4. Expand Your Reach With Email Marketing
You can easily reach new customers and stay in touch with past customers with email marketing. Send past customers follow-up emails after you complete the project for them. Make it easy to sign up for emails on your website and include your email address in your social media profiles.
Ask subcontractors you’ve worked with for leads on potential clients and reach out to them via email. By 2027, email marketing will be worth $18 billion, so now is the time for every contractor to utilize it.
5. Create Blog Posts
You can reach more people as a contractor if you include blog posts on your website. Not only will this help with search engine optimization (SEO), but it will also show future clients that you are knowledgeable about the business. Create posts about specific aspects of what your business does.
For example, you can include posts about different facets of construction, methods, and materials. Use keywords so your website will rank well in search results and attract more customers. Including blog posts on your business’s website increases the chances that you will reach customers even if they aren’t searching for a local contractor.
6. List Your Business on Google
Google business profiles are free to set up, and they make it easy for people in your community to find your business. You can include a link to your website as well as your phone number and business address. Customers can also post reviews tied to your Google business profile which will also serve as free marketing.
The best part of having a Google business profile is that your contractor business will appear to more people who search for local contractors. It’s one of the quickest and easiest ways to reach customers online and it can boost traffic to your website.
7. Ask Clients to Post Reviews
Online reviews can make or break a contractor’s business in the modern world. A recent survey showed that 98% of consumers look up reviews for local businesses before they decide. Positive reviews account for 36% of online reviews on Google, and they can easily sway clients toward your business.
Ask clients to post reviews on your Google business page. Google is the top search engine, so most of your potential clients will see the reviews when they search for contractors in the area. Check your profile for positive reviews and post some of them on your website as well.
8. Focus on Geofencing
Geofencing is one of the most effective forms of online marketing right now, and it targets smartphone users. This marketing tactic involves creating an invisible area where smartphone users can receive targeted ads for your contractor business. Within the area or geofence, users can receive emails and targeted ads on their social media apps like Instagram and Facebook.
The geofencing market is expected to reach a value of just under $4.2 billion by 2028. That makes it one of the fastest-growing marketing tactics, so you don’t want to miss out on it. The cost of geofencing varies based on how big of an area you market within and what type of ads you use, i.e., emails and social media ads.
9. Build a Relationship With Suppliers
Contractors and suppliers rely on one another, and you can use this relationship to market your business. Suppliers typically have relationships with many contractors, subcontractors, and businesses you can network with. Build a relationship with the supplier you primarily buy from to get referrals and leads on clients you can market to.
Your loyalty to them as a customer will make them more likely to recommend your services to people they know. You may also be able to get better prices on bulk materials in the future if you have a strong relationship, and that’s just a bonus that comes along with this simple form of marketing.
10. Reach Clients With YouTube Videos
YouTube is just as effective at reaching people as social media platforms like Instagram. Over 2.7 billion people use YouTube each day, and 62% of active subscribers watch videos daily. YouTube videos and reels on social media platforms have slowly become as powerful as cable TV ads once were.
Videos help boost brand awareness and reach customers who may not otherwise find your website. They also provide another platform for which people can find you and hire your services as a contractor. Create video advertisements as well as videos about the services you offer.
11. Sponsor Community Events
Contractors are essential in every community, so you must appear at as many community events as possible. Many contractors and other local businesses sponsor community events to reach more potential clients. Costs vary based on the event, but it’s typically worth the relatively low cost to put your name on a local event that many people from your community will attend.
Carefully choose which events you sponsor because potential clients will associate you with them. Charity events and fun local food festivals are great ways to ingrain your business’s name with a positive community message. It’s also a great way to network and meet people who could eventually need your service as a contractor.
12. Take Advantage of PPC Ads
You can significantly expand your reach and brand awareness with pay-per-click ads. PPC ads will appear to local customers who search for a contractor. As the name suggests, you pay a small fee each time someone clicks on the ad.
This is a relatively cheap form of marketing that can quickly boost website traffic and attract clients. PPC ads are effective at any stage of your career as a contractor, but they are especially useful when you start building your business. Your ad will appear at the top of the search results page on Google, and that’s where you need to be to reach clients.
Let Us Help Your Contractor Business Grow
Based on our data and research, the best way to grow your business as a contractor is to build a strong website and prioritize search engine optimization (SEO). Potential clients will discover your business and website once you rank high on Google based on competitive keywords. This will secure a spot in the Google search results, and you can land on the page for other keywords if you make more posts on your website.
Targeted social media ads and PPC ads can also help you reach more clients without investing time in SEO research and blog posts. Here at Upscale Digital, we can help you build a strong website, social media presence, and marketing campaign to gain loyal customers as a contractor.
Everything from the keywords you use to the layout of your website contributes to how potential clients view your business. Contact us today at 1-800-211-8466 to get started and grow your business.
