As a contractor, you already know the importance of having the right tools for the job. This is also true for marketing as well. A strong digital marketing strategy will help you grow your business and generate more leads. We’ll walk you through the most effective digital marketing techniques and briefly outline their pros and cons. Then we’ll share a few ways you can use them in your marketing strategy.

The Most Effective Marketing Strategies To Generate More Leads

1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) uses keywords in the content to organically increase traffic to your website. Customers search for a specific keyword, such as “water damage”. The search engine then ranks your website content against that keyword using a variety of different metrics.

A well-implemented SEO strategy will ensure your content appears near the top of search results. This greatly improves the chance a customer will contact you instead of a competitor. Of course, this does require a consistent supply of quality content for search engines to index.

Strictly speaking, SEO is free. However, managing an effective SEO strategy can take a great deal of time. You can do it on your own with moderate success. In some cases, it may require a digital marketing expert for the best results.

Example of Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Marketing

2. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

In search engine marketing, you pay to have your ad appear in relevant search results. Similar to search engine optimization, paid search relies on keywords to target ads to customers. Usually, these campaigns are pay-per-click (PPC), so you only get charged when a customer clicks your ad.

The benefit of paid search is that it can almost instantly drive traffic to your website and generate more leads. Unfortunately, the biggest downside is that there are no guarantees that a customer will follow through once they get to your website. That’s why you need to optimize your website for conversions too.

3. Local SEO

Very similar to search engine optimization, local SEO involves optimizing your website and profiles to ensure you appear in local searches. This includes appearing in searches done in map platforms like Google Maps. From keeping your business name, address, and phone number consistent across your profiles to adding local keywords to your content, an effective local SEO strategy can get you more jobs.

One of the biggest advantages of local SEO is that you can make most, if not all, of the necessary improvements yourself for free. This makes it an extremely cost-effective method for getting more jobs.

4. Call-Only Advertising

Call-only advertising is very similar to search engine marketing. Instead of directing customers to your website, they prompt them to call you directly. Call-only ads are an effective, straight forward way to generate more leads.

Since most customers are always in reach of their phones, so it’s a great place to target them with ads. It’s especially effective in emergency situations – and when isn’t water damage an emergency? Customers search, see your ad, and call.

5. Lead Generation

Lead generation may seem like an unconventional form of marketing, but it has a number of benefits over traditional marketing. In effect, you are hiring a marketing agency to do all the hard work for you. This allows you to focus on your business, instead of complicated marketing campaigns.

The biggest misconception about lead generation companies is that you could land those jobs on your own. By creating quality content and managing a variety of advertising strategies, they generate leads from a customer base you are unlikely to reach with your own marketing. Plus, customers you get from those leads will call you directly in the future and refer you to friends and family.

Not every lead generation company is the same, so we recommend you compare them before making a decision. Make sure you’re only paying for valid leads on the services you offer. You should never be charged for wrong numbers and there should be a process for handling billing disputes. Avoid companies that require long-term commitments or have set up or monthly fees.

6. Social Media Marketing

Social media is a great way to interact with your customers and improve brand awareness. While it was initially seen as a way to get free advertising, most sites have made it increasingly more difficult to get your message in front of your audience without paying.

Example of Social Media Marketing

Still, social media continues to be a valuable resource to generate more leads and market your business. However, you need to learn to play within the rules. First and foremost, it should be seen as a way of communicating with your audience, not as a way to shout at them.

Before and after photos are especially effective on social media. Make your post about how you helped your customer and skip the sales pitch. This type of content has a strong audience benefit, which helps increase the organic reach of that post.

7. Reviews

Reviews may not seem like marketing, but they actually play a significant roll in getting more jobs. The biggest reason reviews are vital to the success of your marketing strategy is that 85% of customers trust reviews as much as a personal recommendation. They can help boost your search engine optimization and search engine marketing campaigns and even play a role in your social media marketing.

The biggest hurdles to getting more positive reviews are remembering to ask for the review and making sure the customer actually leaves one. While you can manage this process on your own, it may be worth using a review acquisition program that reminds customers to leave reviews.

Example of Reviews

After customers leave a review, thank them and try to resolve issues raised in unfavorable reviews. By showing a personal interest, you are demonstrating to future customers that you are willing to go the extra mile to make certain everyone is satisfied with your work.

8. Referrals

Like reviews, referrals might not seem like marketing, however, they are an effective method of getting more jobs. Asking customers for referrals should be part of your process. Especially since 84% of consumers trust referrals from their friends, colleagues, and family members.

The number one advantage of referrals is that you can get more jobs without spending any additional marketing dollars. Your customers are doing the work for you. This is just another reason why you always need to ask your customers how they found your business. Not only does this allow you to track how your marketing performs, but also gives you an opportunity to resell a previous customer.

Once you complete the referral job, follow up with the original customer that referred them. Always check your files to refamiliarize yourself with their job first. When you call, thank them for the referral and then inquire about the work you did for them. Avoid making a hard sell, but take the opportunity to offer your services when possible.

9. Video Marketing

Videos are the new photos. Customers are four times as likely to watch a video than read about your services and lead to an 80% increase in conversions. Conversions are just another way of saying leads. Most importantly, videos give a face to your company and help to build trust with customers.

Showing your customers is always better than telling them, so don’t treat your videos like TV ads. Like social media, focus on engaging with your audience. Filming on the job site allows you to showcase your skills and expertise. You can even include some personality, just make sure it’s appropriate for the situation.

What Type of Marketing Should I Choose?

The days of running one type of ad or sticking to a single strategy are over and two-thirds of your customers use multiple channels before making a purchase. Therefore,  you should be using most, if not all, of these marketing strategies to generate more leads and grow your business.

That doesn’t mean you should treat each strategy equality. Finding the right balance for your company may take a little time and definitely some money. Remember to measure your results and adjust your business strategy based on what has proved successful for you.

Get The Leads You Need to Grow Your Business

There are many ways to generate more leads for your business. Most of them take time, patience, and skill before they start to perform. Whether you’re waiting for your marketing to start paying off or need a few more leads each week to keep your crews working at capacity, 33 Mile Radius can help. We generate exclusive leads that are sent to just one partner. This gives you the best opportunity to convert that lead and land the job.

If you’re ready to get more opportunities and try us for 10 billable leads, fill out the contact form below. A business development manager will contact you within one business day to walk you through our system and answer your questions. If you’re ready to secure your service area and start getting leads, call 888-594-8381 now.