Who builds without a nail gun? Well, Jesus did 2,000 years ago, but he would certainly use one today! No doubt you’ve seen major changes in the construction industry in recent years. Safety standards are on the rise; tools are becoming more task-specific and technologically advanced.
So what does that have to do with marketing? Simply put, the way your industry markets to potential customers is evolving too. Your contracting business may survive without building a strong online presence, but if you take the time to do so, you can leverage that power to meet the goals you have for your business. So how can you market effectively online? There are many different strategies, but we want to give you 5 quick tips to get you started:
Marketing Strategy #1: Update Your Google Business Listing.
Google My Business is a simple tool to help you manage your business presence online. And take note: just having a website does not guarantee that your Google listing will be correct. It is very important that you verify your business information. If you don’t, your email address, phone number, website link may be wrong and potential customers may not be able to reach you! Also, having an incomplete Google listing may tell your customers that you lack follow-through or that you aren’t up-to-date with the times — not a message you want to convey to customers! Keeping your Google listing up to date not only passes vital contact information on to your customer, but can also tell a story about your business.
Marketing Strategy #2: Take More Pictures.
Get ready to show the world your work! Are you familiar with Facebook, Instagram, Houzz, and Linkedin? If not, get a free account set up ASAP and get ready to showcase your work. When you can show future customers examples of both your craftsmanship and your hardworking team members, you are automatically improving their confidence in you. Sometimes you can even give customers ideas for their own projects. Before long, your potential customers have a gut feeling that your business is the one they want to work with.
Marketing Strategy #3: Launch a Google Ads Campaign.
Quite frankly, you should be excited about the possibilities that running a Google Ad campaign can bring your business. Google Ads is a highly effective, very specific marketing tool that you can use to reach only the people who may be looking for your services. This is because people tend to search for a contractor based on the project they need to be done at that time.
But you need to build your campaign effectively. For example, if you build kitchen cabinets, your ad should show up when people search for “new kitchen cabinets” or “kitchen remodel” … and you not when someone searches for “hardwood flooring” or “drywall repair”.
When crafted properly, using Google Ads will put your company in front of the people searching specifically for your services. For example: if someone in your service area searches for “travertine vs marble tile”; your ad for tile laying services can either appear in their Google search results — or as a clickable, full-color ad on other websites they look through later.
Marketing Strategy #4: Get on – and Use Instagram.
Having an active Instagram account with attractive snapshots of your work can be beneficial on so many levels. Here are some ways to make it work for you: Invite each new customer to follow you so they can see pictures of their job in progress and show it off when it’s completed.
Your customers can tag their friends in the post’s comments, which can translate to instant referrals and can keep your business in their minds for their next project.
When you add hashtags to your posts, you increase the chance that prospective customers will see your work. (Don’t know which hashtags to use? Start with your target neighborhoods as well as your profession. Example: #Springfield #mason #bricklayer) As you gain Instagram followers, you may be shocked at how the social media platform can lead to new customers – both directly and indirectly.
Marketing Strategy #5: Start a Blog.
An interesting blog with attractive photos is a great marketing tool. It keeps the community aware of what your business is up to. It’s also an excellent way for you to teach your audience about home maintenance, the home building process, or keep them up-to-date with the latest remodeling trends. But most importantly, it can be a way to improve how your website ranks in search results for those who are searching online for your services.
Contractor Marketing: Making it All Work for You
In the end, an active and effective web presence is well worth the effort. But reading all this advice may be frustrating because you may not have the time to keep up with all the avenues of online marketing. That is where Seapoint Digital can help.
Our friendly team is skilled (and efficient) in getting customers to find your business online! Let’s chat about ways that we can create valuable leads for you – while you stay focused on managing your team and keeping happy customers.
Reach out to us by filling out the form below and we’ll be in touch as soon as possible.
