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Contractor Marketing: How to Market Yourself as a Local Expert
As a local contractor, you know the ins and outs of your trade better than anyone. The question is, how do you convey that knowledge and experience to your target audience?
You don’t want to just be an HVAC, Plumber or an Electrician – you want to be the go-to service provider in your community.
That’s why targeted contractor marketing is essential. With the right strategies, you can establish strong credibility and an even stronger local presence. From creating valuable content to using digital channels, there are many contractor marketing strategies capable of showcasing your expertise.
As you discover and implement the right marketing strategies, you’ll grow more leads and garner more local revenue for your business.
So, here are five ways to better market yourself as an expert contractor in your community.
1) Build Your Unique Brand
Let’s be honest – whether you’re an HVAC, Plumber or an Electrician technician or a landscaper, it’s not easy to distinguish yourself from the competition. With so many local contractors vying for the same jobs, standing out is essential. You can’t just be “another contractor” to your audience.
Start by highlighting feedback from real clients who have worked with you in the past. This establishes trust and shows potential customers that you are a reliable and trustworthy general contractor. If they know you’ve worked with their neighbors and co-workers, they’ll be more likely to remember you.
Almost all consumers read online reviews before contacting a service-based company, so it’s important to ensure that your testimonials are up-to-date and relevant. Additionally, more than 84% of people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. In short, having positive reviews from real customers is the key to building trust in the local market.
Here are some tips on obtaining testimonials that will help you establish a stronger identity within your area:
- Reach out to past clients and ask for their feedback about your services
- Make sure you get permission before using any testimonials
- Use social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook to share your client’s success stories
- Ask customers to leave reviews on third-party sites like Yelp and Google
- Highlight customer reviews on your website or blog
- Create videos featuring customer success stories and post them on YouTube
2) Answer People’s Questions
As a local contractor, you have the opportunity to showcase your professional trade expertise through engaging and informative content. Provide genuinely helpful information to your audience via blog posts, videos, and social media posts.
Not only with this content endear your brand to local people in need, but it will also polish your reputation as a knowledgeable, trusted expert.
Choose blog topics that are relevant to your industry, as well as topics that address common questions from potential customers or clients. If you’re a plumber, answer common questions about toilet clogs. If you’re an electrician, provide a list of electrical fire hazards people should avoid.
Content marketing is a powerful tool for reaching a target audience and improving organic search engine rankings. With the right topics, you’ll drive more organic traffic to your website and increase your visibility on search engine result pages.
The bottom line: create content that markets your expertise but also provides real value to local searchers on the hunt for guidance.
3) Build a Presence in Your Neighborhood
Contractor digital marketing is extremely powerful, but don’t forget about building a presence in your local communities via more traditional avenues – newspaper ads, television commercials, billboards, etc.
Even in the age of TikTok and Yelp, local ads are still a critical part of any successful marketing strategy. Local ads allow businesses to target a specific geographic area with a personal touch, creating a strong sense of community involvement.
As more people turn to digital platforms for their shopping needs, local ads also help businesses stand out from the competition. When someone desperately needs an AC repair, who are they more likely to actually recognize: the local team they see in their weekly newspaper, or the random company they found online 30 seconds ago?
Additionally, local ads are often cost-effective compared to other forms of advertising and can be used to drive sales quickly in a specific area.
As a contractor, you’ll need to straddle the line of combining traditional and digital marketing strategies. Traditional advertising methods (such as direct mail, print advertising, and radio spots) help build customer relationships and recognition. On the other hand, digital tools (such as emails, social media campaigns, and online ads) help you expand your reach and widen your customer pool.
4) Use Social Media as a Better Tool
Social media is a great way for contractors to promote their business and increase their credibility. Platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn provide an easy platform to reach potential customers and build relationships with them.
Through social media, contractors can also clearly showcase their work, highlight customer reviews, and provide helpful information. As a result, potential customers learn more about the contractor’s business and what they actually do.
To garner even more credibility and community involvement, show pictures of real jobs you’ve completed and tag people you’ve worked with (if you have their permission). Make your services real to the people who find you on social media.
Paid advertising campaigns are another great way for contractors to get in front of the right local demographic. These campaigns can be used to target specific customers in the area – like that neighborhood you know has frequent power problems or the part of town that experienced lots of hail damage.
Paid advertising campaigns also offer the opportunity to measure success, as they provide detailed analytics that can help contractors determine their campaign’s efficacy.
The Wrap-Up
Contractor marketing is an integral part of any local trade person’s business plan. You need a way to promote your services and gain visibility, and you can’t just go around knocking on all of your neighbors’ doors.
By understanding the different types of contractor advertising, you can create an effective strategy and reach your target audience, thereby marketing yourself as a true local expert.
We get it, though – all of this is easier said than done, especially when you’re busy running your own contracting business.
That’s why we’re here to help.
All Contractor Marketing has years of experience working with all kinds of contractors – HVAC technicians, plumbers, electricians, you name it. Our team of professionals will help you create campaigns that actually drive conversions, based on data-driven insights and effective SEO strategies.
With All Contractor Marketing services in your corner, you can rest assured knowing that your marketing efforts are in good hands. Get started now to see how we can grow your trade business and solidify your market position!
