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When work slows down, the reflex is to buy more leads. Before you do, look at where jobs are leaking. Some businesses don't show up when people search. Some show up but miss the call. Some book plenty of first jobs and never see those customers again. The 21 ideas below are grouped by those leaks, so you can start with the one that's costing you the most.
First, find your leak
| If this sounds like you | Start with |
|---|---|
| The phone is quiet, even in busy season | Ideas 1 to 7: get found |
| The phone rings, but too many calls don't turn into jobs | Ideas 8 to 13: win the calls you already get |
| You're slammed in peak season and scraping by in the shoulder months | Ideas 14 to 18: keep customers coming back |
| You want steady work that doesn't depend on ads | Ideas 19 to 21: partnerships |
Before you change anything, start asking every new customer "How did you hear about us?" and write the answer down next to the job. In a month you'll know which of these ideas is already working for you and which isn't.
Get found by people who need you now
1. Finish your Google Business Profile
For searches like "plumber near me" or "AC repair [town]", Google often shows a map with a few businesses before any website. Your Google Business Profile decides whether you're one of them.
Pick the primary category that matches your main work, such as Plumber, Electrician or Roofing contractor. Add secondary categories only for services you really offer. Fill in your services list, set the towns you serve, keep hours accurate, and add real photos of your trucks, team and recent jobs every month. Write a description that says what you do, where and why people pick you. The Google Business Profile checklist walks through every field, and How to write your Google Business Profile description covers the wording.
2. Give every service you want more of its own page
A single "Services" page that lists twenty things can't match twenty different searches. Someone searching "tankless water heater install" wants a page about tankless water heaters.
Build one page for each service you want to sell more of: water heater replacement, panel upgrades, gutter guards, spring cleanups, move-out cleans. Each page should explain the problem, how you fix it, how pricing works, which towns you cover, and show reviews and photos from that kind of job. Put a call button and a booking button at the top. The service page checklist has the full outline.
3. Ask for a review after every good job, the same day
Reviews help you rank and they do your selling for you. The best time to ask is while the tech is packing up or within a few hours, when the fixed leak or the clean house is still fresh.
Script: "Thanks for having us today. If we did a good job, a Google review really helps a small company like ours. I'll text you the link now. Honest feedback is welcome either way."
Send the direct link by text, reply to every review within a few days, and never pay for reviews or only ask the customers you think are happy. How to ask for reviews honestly covers the details.
4. Test Local Services Ads for urgent work
Google's Local Services Ads appear at the top of many searches for trades such as plumbing, HVAC, electrical, roofing, cleaning and garage doors. Businesses usually go through screening, and the charging model is based on leads rather than clicks. Terms, eligibility and costs vary by trade and area, so check Google's current rules for yours.
They can suit urgent work, where the customer calls the first trustworthy option they see. If you try them, answer every call, mark booked jobs, and dispute leads that were never real jobs. For how they compare with search ads, see Local Services Ads vs Google Ads.
5. Clean up your listings everywhere else
Not everyone searches on Google. Some people ask their phone's voice assistant, use Apple Maps, check Yelp or ask on Nextdoor. Claim and complete your listings on Apple Business Connect, Bing Places, Yelp, Facebook, Nextdoor, the Better Business Bureau and any trade association directories you belong to.
Use exactly the same business name, phone number and website everywhere. If you've moved or changed numbers, hunt down the old listings and fix them. A wrong number on an old directory page is a job that goes to someone else.
6. Be useful in local online groups
Town Facebook groups and Nextdoor are where neighbors ask "Anyone know a good electrician?" You can't control those threads, but you can be known there.
Follow each group's rules about business posts. Share genuinely useful tips at the right time, such as how to find your water shutoff before a freeze, or why to clear gutters before the fall rains. Answer questions without pitching. When a happy customer mentions you, thank them publicly. Never post fake recommendations or ask friends to pretend to be customers; people notice, and it sticks.
7. Make your trucks, uniforms and yard signs work
Your truck is a billboard that parks in the exact neighborhoods you want. Make your name, trade, phone number and website big enough to read from across the street, and keep the truck clean. A dirty, dented van says something too.
For visible projects like roofs, patios, paint jobs and fences, ask the customer if you can put a yard sign out during the work and for a week after. Check HOA and local sign rules first. Uniforms matter for the same reason: a homeowner opening the door to someone in a branded shirt with a name on it feels safer. For more, see Branding for home service businesses.
Win more of the calls you already get
8. Answer the phone, or call back within minutes
Someone with water on the kitchen floor will call the next company if you don't pick up. Decide who answers during business hours and what happens after hours: an office person, a call rotation among techs, an answering service or a clear callback promise.
Give whoever answers a simple script.
Script: "Thanks for calling [Company], this is [name]. How can I help?" Then get the name, callback number, address, what's going on, how urgent it is and the best time to come. End with a clear next step: "I've got you down for tomorrow between 8 and 10. You'll get a text when the tech is on the way."
9. Text back every missed call
Even with the best setup, you'll miss calls when you're under a house or on a roof. A text sent right after a missed call keeps the conversation going until you can call back.
Script (text): "Hi, this is [Company]. Sorry we missed your call, we're on a job right now. What can we help with? Reply with your address and a photo if you can, and we'll call you back within [time you can really meet]."
Only promise a callback time you'll actually meet, and give after-hours callers a different message that says when you'll be back.
10. Let people book or request a time online
Some customers would rather tap than talk, especially at 10 p.m. when they finally sit down. You don't need a fully automated calendar to start. A request form that asks for the service, address, preferred times and a photo, followed by a quick confirmation from your office, is enough.
Put the booking button next to the call button on every page. For the setup, read How to add online booking to your website.
11. Show a price range for common jobs
A starting price or range for standard work, such as "Drain cleaning from $[price]" or "Spring replacement typically $[low] to $[high]", sets expectations before the call. People who are shocked by any price self-select out, and people who book already know roughly what to expect.
Make clear the final price comes after you see the job. You need solid numbers behind the ranges; How to build a price book and How to price your services show how.
12. Follow up on every open estimate
An estimate with no follow-up often just goes quiet. The customer got busy; they didn't necessarily choose someone else. Set a simple sequence and stick to it:
- Same day: send the written estimate with photos and options.
- Two or three days later: call or text to ask if they have questions.
- One week later: a short text with an easy way to book.
- One month later: a final check-in, or a note before the season when the work matters most.
Script (text): "Hi [Name], it's [your name] from [Company]. Just checking whether you had any questions about the estimate for your [job]. Happy to walk through the options by phone, or you can reply here to pick a time."
13. Make after-hours and emergency service clear
If you offer emergency service, say so everywhere: your Google hours, your website header and your phone greeting. State the after-hours fee up front. That's how you win burst pipes, no-heat calls, garage doors stuck open, roof tarping after a storm and power loss calls.
If you don't offer emergency service, say what customers should do instead. A page that explains how to shut off the water, what to do if they smell gas (leave and call the gas utility or 911), and when you'll call them back earns trust and often earns the job in the morning.
Keep customers coming back
14. Offer a maintenance plan
Recurring plans turn one-time customers into regulars and fill the slow months with scheduled work. They fit HVAC tune-ups, plumbing inspections and water heater flushes, quarterly pest treatments, twice-yearly gutter cleaning, lawn programs and recurring cleaning.
Keep the plan simple: one or two visits a year, priority scheduling and member pricing on repairs. Offer it at the end of every eligible job. How to build a maintenance membership program covers pricing and benefits.
15. Send seasonal reminders
Every trade has a calendar. Use it to remind past customers before they need you, with their permission.
| Trade | Reminder ideas |
|---|---|
| HVAC | Spring AC tune-up, fall furnace check, filter reminders |
| Plumbing | Protect pipes before the first freeze, water heater flush, sump pump test before spring rain |
| Roofing | Inspection after a major storm, fall gutter and flashing check |
| Landscaping | Spring cleanup, fall aeration and overseeding, leaf cleanup, snow contracts |
| Cleaning | Spring deep clean, holiday prep, move-out season |
| Pest control | Spring ant and termite season, fall rodent exclusion |
Send them by email or text, keep them short and useful, and always include an easy way to opt out. For ideas and timing, see Seasonal promotion ideas and Email marketing for home service businesses.
16. Market to the neighbors of every job
Houses on the same street were often built around the same time, with similar pipes, panels, roofs and trees. After a job, leave a door hanger or send a postcard to nearby homes.
Keep it respectful: never name the customer or give their address. Something like "We've been working in your neighborhood this week. If your home was built around the same time, it may be worth checking [your water heater / your panel / your gutters]. Call or book a free check." Check local rules about door hangers and solicitation first.
17. Make referrals easy, and say thank you
Word of mouth still builds the best trade businesses, but happy customers often don't think to refer anyone unless you ask. Ask at the moment the customer is happiest: when the heat comes back on or the patio is finished.
Give them something easy to pass on, like a card with your number or a link they can text to a friend. Thank everyone who refers, with a handwritten note, a service credit or a small gift. Check whether any rules in your state or trade limit referral rewards before you offer money. Customer retention for home service businesses has more on keeping those relationships warm.
18. Win back past customers
You probably have a list of people who hired you once and never again. Pull everyone you haven't served in 18 months or more (shorter for recurring trades) and send a personal note.
Script (email or text): "Hi [Name], it's [your name] from [Company]. We worked on your [job] back in [month and year]. It's about time for [a tune-up / a check of that repair / your spring cleanup]. If you'd like us back, reply here or book at [link]."
Only message people who agreed to hear from you, and remove anyone who asks.
Build partnerships that send steady work
19. Real estate agents and home inspectors
Home inspections produce repair lists with closing deadlines attached. Agents need contractors who quote fast, show up on time and send clear paperwork both sides can understand.
Build a one-page "inspection repairs" sheet with your most common fixes and price ranges. Visit a few busy agents and inspectors, ask what frustrates them about contractors, and promise something specific, such as a written quote with photos within 24 hours. Then deliver on the first job. One reliable experience does more than any brochure.
20. Property managers and landlords
Property managers need a small list of trades who answer, show up, communicate with tenants and send invoices with photos. They'll often ask for a certificate of insurance, a W-9 and a not-to-exceed amount for repairs without approval.
Start with smaller local managers and individual landlords who own a handful of units. Make paperwork easy and response times predictable. How to win commercial contracts and property managers goes deeper.
21. Other trades
Trades bump into each other's work every day. An HVAC company installing a heat pump needs an electrician. A roofer sees rotted fascia that needs a painter. A cleaning company gets asked about carpet and windows. A pest control tech finds gaps a roofer should seal.
Pick two or three trades you trust and agree how you'll refer to each other: who calls whom, how fast you respond, and a promise not to poach each other's customers. Meet for coffee once a quarter to compare notes. Referrals from another professional carry weight with homeowners.
Pick three and measure them
Don't try all 21 at once. Pick one idea from each of the first three groups, give each a month, and track:
- Calls and requests by source
- How many of those became booked jobs
- How many customers booked a second time
A simple spreadsheet works: date, customer, source, job type, booked (yes or no), invoice amount. Review it monthly, keep what works and swap in the next idea.
Not sure which leak is costing you the most? Zome's free AI report scores how your business shows up online, shows who ranks above you on Google and lists what to fix first, in plain language.
