Getting new customers can be a challenge for even the best plumbing businesses. But with the right plumbing marketing strategy, you can get in front of local homeowners, increase awareness for your business, and drive new customers to schedule an appointment.
But where to start?
I’m sharing 19 super-effective plumbing marketing ideas to jumpstart your growth. By the end of this guide, you’ll be equipped with everything you need to market your plumbing business effectively to get more customers.
Use these plumbing marketing ideas to bring in new customers, build a solid online presence, and boost awareness.
Your website is the foundation of all your online marketing and advertising, so it’s pretty much the most important item on this list.
The best plumbing websites are those that:
We’ll detail some additional features a good plumbing website contains next.
As a plumbing business, you’re serving your local community. Which means you want to be found by local searchers.
One of the best ways to do this is to optimize your site for local search. Local SEO, or search engine optimization, is multifaceted, but some of the most important tactics to keep in mind include:
Another way to optimize your site for local search and increase your chances of ranking in search results is by creating helpful content. This can be in the form of a blog that you update regularly with educational and information content.
If you don’t have the time or resources to consistently update a blog, you can also create an FAQ page with answers to questions you’re asked frequently or questions that showcase your knowledge about various plumbing issues and procedures.
Do keyword research to inform your blog topics of FAQ questions so you can boost your local SEO!
Did you know it takes an average of seven emails to set up and confirm an appointment with a business? To streamline this process and capture leads directly from your website, you can add a scheduling widget that allows users to book an appointment, call, or quote request.
This enables you to schedule new jobs quicker while providing a user-friendly experience to your customers.
Your customers are looking for you on Google. And when they search for something like “plumber near me” or “emergency plumber,” they see something that looks like this:
This is the Google 3-Pack (or Google Map Pack). The 3-Pack contains three results for Google Business Profiles that most closely align with a query related to a local business.
From there, searchers can click for more information about the business, including reviews, hours of operation, contact info, and more.
These listings also appear in Google Maps searches.
Needless to say, they’re extremely valuable. In fact, over 60% of people have used Google Business Profiles to find contact information for a local business.
So if your plumbing business doesn’t have an accurate listing you’re keeping updated, you could be missing out on valuable searchers and potential customers.
Make sure to claim and optimize your Google Business Listing. This includes:
Speaking of business listings, there are other important directories that can boost your plumbing marketing and help you capture more customers online.
These include sites like Yelp, Bing Business, CitySearch, Apple Maps, and more.
These listings also receive prominent placements in search results pages.
By keeping these sites updated and accurate, you can ensure that the information prospects are finding is correct. Plus, it can help with NAP consistency (name, address, phone number), an important Google ranking factor.
This listing deserves its own mention because it’s super important for home services businesses like plumbers.
Angi (previously known as Angie’s List) is a directory listing built to connect home services providers to local customers.
By adding your business to Angi, you can collect local leads, provide quote requests, and schedule jobs with ease.
Plus, Angi can act as its own search engine, with homeowners searching directly on the listing for plumbers to contact.
Reviews can’t be underestimated when it comes to marketing your plumbing business. In fact, one study found that 70% of homeowners rely on a recommendation from someone they know or from at least one review site when searching for a home services provider.
Positive reviews on listing sites like Google, Yelp, and Bing can help you build trust and win over new customers.
To build a bevy of positive reviews for your plumbing business, you’ll need to request them from your happy customers. This can be done in the form of an email request, an in-person request from your plumbers, or even as reminders on your billing materials and in your email signatures.
Once you receive reviews, make sure to respond. This especially goes for negative reviews. The right response to a negative review can resolve the complaint, help you retain a previously unhappy customer, and potentially sway a new customer reading the review and subsequent response.
Another way to build social proof and trust with your audience is to add testimonials to your website. These can be in the form of positive reviews you receive from Google or other sites. Or they can be testimonials you collect from customers in the form of quotes or videos.
By adding testimonials to your website, you can highlight why prospective customers should choose your business over others in the area.
We talked about local SEO and listings as important tactics to help you capture local searchers. But one of the best and fastest ways to get in front of people searching for plumbers in your area is to invest in search advertising.
Search ads are pay per click, meaning you only pay when a user clicks on your ad, and show above organic search results (including the Map Pack). They typically drive to a landing page related to the search query.
With search advertising, you’re able to bid on specific keywords related to your services, your location, and more.
Search advertising is also pretty instantaneous, meaning you don’t have to wait a long time to begin seeing results for this plumbing marketing strategy.
Google Local Services Ads (LSAs) are a type of Google Ads that pay per lead rather than pay per click. LSAs are only available to service-based businesses, making them a great option for plumbers and plumbing businesses.
To run Local Services Ads, your business has to become Google Guaranteed, meaning you have been screened and backed by Google. This gives searchers an added layer of confidence in your business, which can help you drive leads through your LSAs.
By running both search ads and LSAs, you’re also giving your business multiple opportunities to appear in SERPs, which can lead to increased chances of a new customer clicking on oneo f your results.
Another way to target potential customers on popular platforms is through social ads.
You can run ads on any popular social media platform like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn, and more.
These ads are highly targeted and allow you to narrow in on those most likely to become your customers.
You can run social ads specifically to generate leads, grow your audience on specific social sites, or drive visits to your website or a landing page. The opportunities are nearly endless, and this is one plumbing marketing strategy you can tweak and optimize over time based on your goals and needs.
Once you’ve built your audience via social ads, it’s important to have an ongoing organic social media marketing strategy. This enables you to build deeper connections with your audience and keep them engaged. Plus, it’s free!
Start by identifying the right social media sites for your plumbing business. This largely depends on where your customers and prospects spend the most time. This is likely Facebook and Instagram, but as social sites like TikTok and Snapchat grow in popularity, you may find you need to expand to these sites as well.
To keep your social media sites updated and accurate, make sure to add a clear business description, keep your profile pictures and cover photos brand consistent, and include links to your website and contact information.
Lastly, you want to make sure that you’re consistently publishing relevant, engaging content. This will vary based on your audience, but stick to the 70-20-10 rule, which stats your posting strategy should be 70% informational, 20% emotional, and 10% promotional.
Short-form videos have exploded in popularity over the last few years, presenting a unique opportunity for home services businesses like plumbers to reach new audiences and engage followers across channels.
You can create short-form videos and repurpose them across TikTok, Instagram, and as YouTube Shorts.
Your videos can include a day-in-the-life of one of your technicians, a TikTok duet answering or responding to a common plumbing problem, or something that hops on a trending sound or challenge.
@therogerwakefield #duet with @herios.co.uk I’ll do a video testing this out! #fyp #plumber #plumbing #draincleaner #clogdrain #unclogdrain ♬ Lazy Sunday - Official Sound Studio
Don’t be afraid to get creative and test different topics and formats to make this plumbing marketing idea come to life!
Another way to build your audience on social media is to run a contest or giveaway. Facebook contests and Instagram giveaways typically involve users performing an action–such as following your account, tagging friends in your post, or reposting your post to their page or Story–in exchange for the chance to win a prize.
Your prize should be something compelling for your audience. This may mean a gift card, a free or discounted service, or a gift basket filled with items from local businesses.
Promote your social media contest on your social sites as well as through email marketing and on your website for the best results. Don’t forget to include the rules and regulations for your contest!
Remember those positive reviews we talked about earlier? Well, once you receive them, don’t forget to share them on your social pages!
This is a great way to spread the word about your excellent service, build more trust with your social media audience, and give the reviewer a shout out.
To share a review on social media, you can simply take a screenshot and share the image with a short message, share a link to the review, or make it look a little more engaging by placing the screenshot in Canva with a brand-compliant design.
One of the best ways to market your plumbing business is to get referrals from happy customers. People trust word-of-mouth marketing the most–especially for home services businesses.
To make getting referrals easier, launch a referral program that incentivizes your customers to spread the word about your business.
This could mean a percentage off any future service per referral, a free service, a gift card, or anything that entices them to go out on a limb for your business.
To make tracking and rewarding referrals easier, formalize the program through a referral page, a form field where new customers can include their referrer, or some other format that works for your business.
Some fast speed-to-lead stats: Businesses that follow up with a lead within an hour are 900x more likely to connect with that lead. Plus, 78% of homeowners go with the company that called them back first.
Fast follow up is especially crucial in the case of emergency plumbers–homeowners are looking for a resolution fast, so following up too slowly can cost you new customers.
To make sure your business is following up with leads quickly, establish some SLAs around responding and train your team. It’s also important to train your team on call handling to ensure they’re able to convert leads they’re following up with.
People are glued to their mobile devices, so often the best way to reach them is via SMS marketing. This enables your plumbing business to send marketing messages via text, which can help you drive new customers and stay top of mind.
You can use business texting to push your promotions and specials, send service reminders, and request reviews.
By mixing and matching these plumbing marketing ideas, you can build an effective strategy that promotes your brand, increases awareness, and drives new customers to fuel your growth.
Here are those 19 plumbing marketing ideas to try:
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