Facebook and social media advertising

[JasetheMace]

So I want to know if other engineers get much work from social media/ in particular facebook.
Is it worth advertising on or is it a price war on there with everyone wanting lowest price.
I have had a few enquiries with it always ending in "too expensive".
We are at the top price range for our area but I will never get in a price war.
Just wandering if it's worth putting more effort in? Are there good customers on facebook or just the ones looking for cheap.
Again with insta and Twitter we find that we get a lot of interactions but no direct sales. I would love to hear others views/ experiences

 

[JasetheMace]

Wow, some really good opinions here, I am under the belief (as someone else mentioned) that word of mouth is dieing. With the likes of aldi and pound stretcher making people more wary of every penny they spend and with all he money saving shows, word of mouth is dieing and the whole 3 quotes is winning. I regularly have people say "my usual plumber......" he cant be their usual plumber if they are calling me? Plus as mentioned before everyone wants everything today! I have a customer who had an extension, the kitchen isn't ready to move into, the worktop, electrics and tiles aren't even in but she wants the old kitchen removed! Another good point is the price war, seen a few people post for outside tap and actual plumbers quoting £40 including parts! Absolutely no point in doing the work for that!
Finally I have noticed a lot of people posting the whole job including parts shouldn't cost more then £50, otherwise you are being ripped off! Not only well under pricing things but also putting cowboy on the customers mind. All that being said though! Surely there are sensible people out there, plus does it form part of the research from the customer, when they research who they will use, do they check out the work on facebook? Do they check facebook and website and other places to make sure that the business is genuine and not a pop up shop?

 

[Murdoch]

The bottom of the tank is infested with cash monkeys ........... best avoided.

 

[Rob Foster]

The bottom of the tank is infested with cash monkeys .. best avoided.

The official term is the 'churn' business starting undercutting established outfits for a short time and packing in within year cause they are making no lolly. Then being replaced by another under cutting new outfit...often the work is poor and any guarantee void. Maybe its time ALL plumbing outfits should be registered etc.
Rob Foster aka centralheatking

 

[Millsy 82]

Maybe its time ALL plumbing outfits should be registered

Problem with this is it usually adds to the running costs of the people who try to do it right and the cowboys carry on without and can undercut even more.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Rather see builders registered than plumbers tbh

 

[Harvest Fields]

Rather see builders registered than plumbers tbh

Really???

 

[Harvest Fields]

This is quite interesting. I ammpossibly about to set up a Facebook business page as customers keep telling me that I should have one.

 

[JasetheMace]

This is quite interesting. I ammpossibly about to set up a Facebook business page as customers keep telling me that I should have one.

Wow, that is crazy, who are your customers? Estate agents or public? I have just asked a load of customers for reviews on facebook and 50% said they dont even have facebook

 

[Harvest Fields]

Wow, that is crazy, who are your customers? Estate agents or public? I have just asked a load of customers for reviews on facebook and 50% said they dont even have facebook

Private. I also don’t have Facebook.

 

[hammers4spanner]

Use to have it been deleted it reason being because i have a life.

 

[Millsy 82]

I'm the same I deleted mine as I was fed up with reading about peoples perfect lives and then 2 seconds later the same person putting I'm so fed up. Or people moaning about Brexit and how the country is going to collapse afterwards. Or I need jewels for this game or corn for that game. Over the last 2 weeks I unfollowed about 20 people then just went duck it I'm just going to come off it.

I know so many other people that are also doing the same. Now I've gone old school and if I want to speak to someone I message them or heaven forbid I phone them. I have kept messenger though so I can still send photos for free.

 

[JasetheMace]

I'm the same I deleted mine as I was fed up with reading about peoples perfect lives and then 2 seconds later the same person putting I'm so fed up. Or people moaning about Brexit and how the country is going to collapse afterwards. Or I need jewels for this game or corn for that game. Over the last 2 weeks I unfollowed about 20 people then just went duck it I'm just going to come off it.

I know so many other people that are also doing the same. Now I've gone old school and if I want to speak to someone I message them or heaven forbid I phone them. I have kept messenger though so I can still send photos for free.

I find twitter the worst for perfection, everyone is an amazing plumber with shiny pipes and invisible solder.

 

[Millsy 82]

I find twitter the worst for perfection, everyone is an amazing plumber with shiny pipes and invisible solder.

Never been on Twitter. But Facebook was like that they pipe it up take a photo then solder it all and expect everybody to think their soldering is amazing where as everybody knows the truth. I couldn't stand the facebook gas sites.

1 of them a person took a photo of everything he took in for a boiler service. The kitchen had more tools in it than when I do an install. Must take them half hour to take everything in. It's all bull just to try and say that I'm better than you I can charge more than you because this is what I do that you dont!

 

[Riley]

Was that Ron?

 

[Millsy 82]

Was that Ron?

I dont know they took a compressor in Hoover laid out something like 3 dust sheets and all sorts in there.

I think if I walked in with a compressor people would think what the hell.