Handyman Marketing Ideas | Tips & Strategies | CoverWallet

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In today’s modern world, there are only a few services that are truly irreplaceable, one of which is home repair. With building codes and local ordinances imposing strict rules when it comes to simple repairs, people need a reliable handyman service. From basic home maintenance to renovations and customized solutions, when you’re a handyman there’s no shortage of opportunities - the trouble is that most of these people don't know your business exists. Like any small business, for your trade to be successful you need to invest in marketing your services. You need to increase both online and local visibility to attract customers and spread your business through word of mouth. People need to know that you have an existing business. Here are some tips and ideas to help grow your handyman business.

Build a professional website

With the advent of social media, most business owners think that this is the best venue to increase their online presence. While it is true that Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram will help boost your business, it’s a smart move to create a platform that will funnel all traffic into one central resource – a website. By building a website, you can present your services and answer all customer queries in a single convenient location. Building social media profiles should come later when your website is already up and running.

Fortunately, there are tons of website building services available right now such as Wix.com, Squarespace.com and Wordpress.org. If you want a free website with basic features, Wix is a great place to start. All you need to do is create a free account, customize your website, add images, and publish your site. The same thing goes for Squarespace; they offer a free trial with ready-made templates for easy website creation. But if you need a highly versatile tool with more control and more features, you might want to consider WordPress. They offer content management, beautiful designs, and powerful plugins to meet your needs.

  • Make sure that your website is compatible with all devices, both desktop and mobile phones.
  • Consider the design of your site, it should look professional and reflect the value of your trade.
  • Don’t forget to dedicate a tab or space for customer feedback and testimonials.

Use free advertising resources to drive traffic

Advertising methods that cost money have to be carefully tracked so that you understand what works and what doesn't. To start, you can simplify by prioritizing free advertising resources, including one or two you may not have thought of using. Handyman businesses are hyper-local and it is very unlikely that you’ll receive jobs far from your location, so Twitter and Instagram should be your least priority. Instead, focus on geo-targeted resources like Facebook, Craigslist, and Nextdoor.com.

If you are planning to use paid advertising, remember to keep track of your overall spending rather than concentrate on how much business is generated within each site. Some paid options you could use are Home Advisor, Angie’s List, Thumbtack, Yelp, Houzz, and Porch. Since local businesses tend to perform well on Craigslist and similar community-based resources, here are some tips to make your post be noticed:

  • Make sure that your title is attractive, use all-caps and limited time offers.
  • List your contact information at the top and the bottom of the post.
  • Instead of creating one general advertisement, try creating multiple posts with specific services.

Learn about Google local services ads

You’ve definitely used Google before and seen numerous ads located above the search engine results page. While this might be a distraction to a user, as a business owner you need such marketing tools to advertise your services. In the most recent survey conducted in the United States, 63% of people use Google when searching queries. Turn this into actual customers, and you have a booming business that will never be out of work.

But using Local Services by Google should be taken seriously. A single ad can cost you massive amounts with little return, while optimized campaigns will yield fruitful results without burning a hole in your pockets. Thankfully the internet giant recently introduced a new service called Google Services Ads. What makes this special is that instead of paying for ads per click, you will only pay for new leads that qualify as future customers.

  • All you need to do is to sign up as a service provider, set your budget, and start running the ad.
  • Aside from showing your business on the search engine, it allows you to book jobs within the area.
  • You only pay when a customer contacts you through your Google advertisement.
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Make a video or a series of videos

Marketing your handyman business isn’t easy. Along with having good judgment, it is one of those jobs that requires precise skills and proficiency. What’s considered good to you might not be great for some people, and what looks great in your opinion might appear shabby to perfectionist clients. One proven effective tactic that will surely elevate your advertisement efforts and showcase your skills as well as your service expertise in a modern manner is through the use of videos. For the same reason that you invested time into making your website look good and building your Facebook page to look professional, you may want to consider including a video on your website.

Compared to other handyman marketing ideas, video promotion has the ability to reach millions of potential customers in a fun and unique way. By making a video or a series of videos, you are introducing and demonstrating your craftsmanship to your prospective clients. You can do tricks of the trade, simple DIYs, tutorials, FAQs, tips, and all other related subjects. YouTube is the king of online streaming videos so use its powerful influence.

  • You don’t need advanced shooting equipment, a smartphone or DSLR is more than enough.
  • Use iMovie, Movie Maker, Clipchamp Online Video Editor, Adobe Premiere Elements 12, or WeVideo.com to edit videos.
  • For cartoon animations and slideshows, try PowToon.com and Animoto.com

Blog about your handyman business

Building a website and social media accounts are not enough to generate much traffic for your handyman business. If you want traffic from search engines that you don't have to pay an arm and a leg for, you’ll want to build your website beyond just a few simple pages. For example, start blogging to attract potential clients. Aside from building your online presence, it also promotes credibility to gain trust with future customers.

Instead of creating a different domain or site for your blog, use your existing website to direct all traffic to one location. Simply create subfolders for respective posts within your site. Go for short but engaging content - length is not the key here but quality posts that readers will read. Topics that you could blog vary from online reviews to simple tips and tricks for fixing basic home repairs. Make sure to:

  • Use the right combination of keywords and learn the art of Search Engine Optimization.
  • At the end of each blog post, make sure to include calls to action that are not too pushy.
  • Post blogs whenever you can, one post per week is usually enough to keep the traffic going.