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For years word of mouth has been a vital marketing tool for tradesmen and most reporting more than 50% of jobs coming from a recommendation. As the years have gone on, customers ability to search and find companies has changed. Some for the positive including Google search, review sites and websites. However some have been for the negative including websites which allow users to negatively review a company without the ability to fact check or respond.
It is more important than ever for Tradesmen, woman, and people to advance the way they market from word of mouth to the digital marketing.
1. Business listings
Search your business name and find a plethora of business listings related to you. Some add positive signals to your business like yell and Checkatrade. Others do not. It is up to you to find the good one and make sure your information is correct and remove yourself from the bad ones.
The bad ones only apply if you have a website in place as these create a toxic score. The more toxic a website is the more you don’t want your tradesmen’s website to be associated with it. Business listings will help towards building your local SEO.
To start checking click here: https://linkgraph.io/free-backlink-analysis/
Best listings websites for Tradesmen:
2. Build Reviews
The more reviews you get the better. It is highly recommended to aim for Google first followed by industry websites like Checkatrade, rated people and trust pilot. Do not be upset if you get a bad review. Respond to it professionally and in a timely manner. Customers look at your 1-star reviews first. They want to know that when things go wrong, you deal with it correctly!
Top Tip:
Using a Gmail account, you can set up Google Alerts. Set your business name as alert. Every time your business is mentioned an email will be sent to you. Great for hidden review websites.
3. Tradesmen Website
Most conversions to leads will happen on your website. By not having a properly functioning website or one at all, you could be missing potential leads. Keeping customers on Google search or social media gives them the chances to discover other businesses. Keeping customers on your site and for longer will increase the conversion rate. Why leave and go elsewhere if everything you need is right there?
What does your website need to include to be successful?
Accurate contact information that is easy to find
List of your services
Any qualifications you or your business has
Links to any trading bodies
Photos of previous work
Relevant information
4. Google My Business (GMB)
Free to setup and takes minutes to do and around a week to verify. Google ranks this higher than most websites and can show your GMB higher in search than a website thanks to Googles map pack which shows “near me” businesses first. Using GMB you can list your company information, pictures, videos, services, and service area.
Top Tips:
Add photos regularly.
Respond to all reviews.
Use a local number.
5. Build Case Studies
With a new website in place you need to start building it out. The best way to do that and to convert customers is with case studies. Case studies can be used to show off your services and use a vehicle to drive keywords which help users find you in Google search.
Use high resolution photos from before, during and after to show the process and build rapport with users.
6. Social Media
Social media is becoming one of the most popular ways to interact with customers. Social media needs to be treated less as a sales platform, instead use it to talk to your customers. Give them an insight into your world and show them what makes your business unique. The best social media accounts have a clear vision and get more sales by driving rapport over offers.
7. Share your knowledge
There is a perceived preconception that by sharing knowledge will cause 1 of 2 issues for a business. 1, your competitor learns your technique and 2, the customer will do it themselves. Did you know there are over a billion blogs on the internet? If people want to learn something they will, and they can. Sharing knowledge shows that you are an expert. Share the knowledge and show why you are the best. Either guest post on websites, add an FAQ to your site or build a blog… like this one!
8. Send out emails
This tends to be quite difficult as thinking of new content daily, weekly or fortnightly can be difficult. However, the best marketing companies will send out emails regularly to make sure they stay active among their customer base. Share company updates, email offers or just talk about the local area. Try and aim for 1 email a month and go from there.
Remember:
Platforms like mail chimp will cancel your account if you have too many negative unsubscribes. Make sure the email addresses you have are signed up for email marketing otherwise you will find yourself on the wrong side of GDPR!
Want help in advertising your business? We offer a free business review to help you get set on the right path. Request your free business review from our team of digital experts.