It ain’t a piece of cake being a plumber.
With the million other things already on your mind, the thought of learning marketing is enough to make any tradie run for cover.
But digital marketing doesn’t have to be a cumbersome and highly technical “chore”. With a bit trial & error, and by watching a few Youtube videos, or trying a digital marketing course on Udemy, you can start tipping the odds in your favour.
Yes it requires a lot of learning, just like you did when you were an apprentice do your plumbing trade.
Remember what it was like as an apprentice?
Every day you were learning something new.
Sometimes you were a bit of a boof-head.
And often you made some dumb mistakes.
BUT…
Over time, you got better and became really good at it.
Well learning how to market your plumbing business is no different.
And like learning your trade, you will need to invest a lot of time as an apprentice in marketing.
In today’s piece, we’ll take a look at some marketing ideas for your plumbing business and explore the benefits (or negatives) they bring to the table.
Digital marketing ideas for plumbers
1. Google
Google is king, taking the lion’s share of digital advertising every year. Being at the top of the page on Google not only gets you more business, it also helps you build trust with potential clients.
If you want to get your business noticed quickly, then you should try Google Ads (previously known as AdWords). It’s a good way to get calls fast, but unless you know what you are doing, it’s very easy to waste a lot of money. Our advice here is to hire professionals who focus solely on the trades. If they are from a trades background, even better.
It is also extremely important to optimise your website for Google with well written content. This will help your ads rank better, and become more cost effective because Google rewards advertisers whose landing pages are relevant to the ads being clicked on.
A great side benefit to well written content, is that your natural ranking will also improve over time, lessening your reliance on paid ads.
2. Bing
Google may be leading the search game but it isn’t the only one. However, there are other search engines that offer great exposure. Like Bing. When there are significantly fewer companies fighting to rank on these other search engines, it’s worth being on there.
Do some research and look into your clientele. If your clients are from an age group, industry, or a region where Bing is more popular than Google, you have to consider exploiting this platform for your benefit.
Considering there are several similarities between the two platforms, you can easily optimize your site for Bing if you are already doing it with Google.
So if you’re already using Google Ads, why not try Bing. The big benefit here is that the ads often don’t cost as much as Google, however the volume of clicks and calls is usually a lot less.
3. Facebook
Having a quality presence on Facebook not only helps you get better ranking on search engines, but it also helps you create a long-lasting relationship with your customers.
When it comes to plumber marketing ideas, you can’t forget this platform. While many believe they won’t get any customers by showing ads on Facebook, when it’s done the right way, it can be very powerful.
You can even target by gender, age groups, geographical areas, common interests. It’s very powerful.
By including some simple code on your website, anyone who visits can be presented with your Facebook ad next time they login. That way your business always stays top of mind when your competitors are long forgotten.
4. Directory listings
Directory listings have helped businesses as an easy and cost effective marketing strategy for many years. Whether it’s True Local, WOMO, HiPages or Yellow Pages, they all play a part in digital marketing for plumbers.
Question is, will your business benefit from directory listings? It depends. If you’re after a bunch of job leads, and you’re okay with higher volume, lower margin work, or you’re just starting out, then sites like HiPages can work in the short term.
They can also be a great option if you want extra links to your website to help with SEO.
However, if you are trying to build a profitable and sustainable plumbing business, directory listings can’t be relied on for a steady stream of leads.
PRO TIP: When creating directory listings, make sure the business name, address and phone number are the same as your Google Business listing. This will help with your SEO.
5. SEO: Search Engine Optimization
No matter what marketing ideas you use for your plumbing business, a great website with well written SEO friendly content, will help you make the right first impression on your clients. It will also help you rank better on search engines. So SEO and paid advertising should always work hand in hand with your digital marketing strategy.
Too much?
Don’t have enough time?
Maybe what you need is a Virtual Marketing Manager. It’s like having your very own marketing manager without the cost of hiring a full-time one.
In the long run, it’ll be way more cost effective than doing it all yourself. While your Virtual Marketing Manager is working on bringing you leads, you can focus on what you do best…running your business.
If you’re a results driven business owner, but you don’t have time to do an apprenticeship in marketing, talk with the team at “It Just Happens”. We’ll get your plumbing business pumping.
