Are "we" (plumbers) tight?

[kirkgas]

Amazing what photoshop can do....I normally look like Keith Richards! Lol

I think keith would sue you for that comment

 

[village idiot]

If you are just starting up, you'd be better off doing as IDCHAPPY said! Instead of spending that much money on advertising, just get a basic website (to get web presence) then sign up to places like: Rated People, MyBuilder, .... etc. Better to just choose one of them. Considering your labour charges (too low), you will do well with such organisations. I say so as I believe a majority of customers who use them only do so as their intention is to get the cheapest quote for the job. For established trades people, joining such an organisation is a waste of time. But i know of many that do. Then again,if you have staff that need paying, you may be tempted to get them any work, especially if it covers your overheads.

 

[tamz]

I don't have a web page and have no real intentions of ever getting one although i do have the domain name. I don't do any buy a job for the lowest bidder sites sites either.
I just looked at google a minute ago for local plumbers in my area (not 1 local I recognised but the nationals and a few big players from the cities were there too). There were maybe 20 results (never counted) on page 1. It's amazing how every web design guy (or girl) can get you on page 1 :smile:
Methinks there is more money to be made ripping off the plumbers selling stuff than there is in doing the actual work.

 

[Ray Stafford]

Methinks there is more money to be made ripping off the plumbers selling stuff than there is in doing the actual work.

Aye.

Consider this.

If every single plumber in the country stopped advertising tomorrow, would there be a single less leaking tap, new bathroom install or boiler swap to be done?

Answer - nope!

 

[lame plumber]

See I don't mind sending someone money in exchange for work that is just showing love and showing love is important. I mean if I get a bathroom job and my wage (not total cost) is £500 for a week or whatever I charge I'd happily send someone £50 - £75 to say thanks - my boss used to send money to loads of people that got him work. Occasionally he'd send money even if he didn't get the job just to have them remember him for next time. Is this common in this industry or was Jason a one off?

Marie x

more commom with the Mafia than plumbers 🙂

 

[Mike Jackson]

There isn't one solution that works for everybody. When I first started back on my own I pounded the streets sticking postcard sized cards through doors. This initially paid off and I got quite busy but i made the mistake of stopping advertising because I was busy and the work dried up. By now I'd done enough jobs to be able to provide the feedback required to join checkatrade. That was the best thing I could have done, since I joined I've been busy all the time to the point where I can pick and choose which jobs I want to take on. If I haven't got anything booked for a day I know that by 9am I'll normally have the first job of the day and they roll in from there.

It's not cheap at £600 plus VAT but if you look at it as a form of advertising it is very cheap even compared to a couple of lines in the Friday Ad every week.

 

[MarieHigham]

So inreflection and going back to the original post. Plumbers aren't tight, we just choose where we spend our money and carefully consider the options available.

 

[kay-jay]

So inreflection and going back to the original post. Plumbers aren't tight, we just choose where we spend our money and carefully consider the options available.

Thats about the size of it marie.
There is no guarantee that any strategy will work which is why many of us remain sceptical about anything that seems like an expensive eggs in one basket kind d of thing.

The leaflet thing has paid dividends for many but equally has failed for many ( but its low cost and therefore low risk)
Local papers work for so.e and not for others ( some communities seem to favour this as a resource while others dont) most of us have tried it for a month or two.

A shiny website and all the seo work in the world wont guarantee to generate more work as the decision to call up a company from a webpage or to keep clicking other sites is often a subjective and subconscious decision based on whether a potential customer likes 'how' you sell your business. It can even be down to colour scheme, size of writing, number of pictures, amount t of text etc. There are just too many variables involved in how or why a customer chooses one business over another online for it to be justifiable to spend too much on.

 

[MarieHigham]

I have found an online resource through my web designer lad that I want to be the first or one of the first to sign-up to next month as I think it has potential a plumber I have been talking to in Islington says he has a big website but uses it to compliment his newspaper ads ie; awareness or something like - when they look at the paper and see his name, they might need a plumber not have a newspaper and type his name in to google.

 

[kay-jay]

I have found an online resource through my web designer lad that I want to be the first or one of the first to sign-up to next month as I think it has potential a plumber I have been talking to in Islington says he has a big website but uses it to compliment his newspaper ads ie; awareness or something like - when they look at the paper and see his name, they might need a plumber not have a newspaper and type his name in to google.

Whats the resource?
The strategy you speak of is just branding. You need a name and a logo and colours which should be carried throughout all your other strategies such as leaflets, van sign writing, website etc.

Be careful about throwing more money at something that is inproven.

 

[wetdrip]

I own the domain name www.coventryplumbingandheating.co.uk
At the moment the site is down as I'm improving it.
However, it is SERPS PAGE 1 on Google for a great many search entries.The site is only online for someone with Gas Safe based in the Coventry area to take on my nipper. I will then load all their relevant information to this website. I can assure you that I daily knock back, or rather forward, work on to plumbers and gas engineers who do not even know where their work is coming from.I have to as , as yet, I've not succeeded in procuring the plumber/gas engineer needed.
WEBSITES WORK, and when done right,work bigtime.

 

[cr0ft]

He thing I've realised is that Google doesn't produce great quality leads really. Chances are they will be getting lots of quotes, all from competitors on Google. I got on the first page for our city and you could tell a Google lead before you had asked where they heard about you. There spiel started with 'how much will it be too ....'

 

[wetdrip]

He thing I've realised is that Google doesn't produce great quality leads really. Chances are they will be getting lots of quotes, all from competitors on Google. I got on the first page for our city and you could tell a Google lead before you had asked where they heard about you. There spiel started with 'how much will it be too ....'

From the web lead,arrange to go round and then give them a quote, a face and pleasant knowledgeable manner always help, sometimes the lower quoted price isn't always king.
No real difference from a yellow pages ad or and ad from anywhere else.
It's just another more powerful arrow in your quiver.
One not to be underestimated, especially with the way most are using their mobile phones to access information.

 

[lame plumber]

got my website via a friend for the cost of installing a couple of rads, isnt bad, bigger than most and he will update again for a few beers. I do pay 130 a month for a couple of local advertising mags EX33 Magazine and church mags. Also put my name in any freesite I see brwosing around, one such site bought in £240 last week at no cost to me. you got vto remember customers arent loyal, they come and go, especially if your busy and cant make it to them in the next 10 mins, I lost one today for that reason but I was at a new customer and got a combi swap by turning up and she saw me in my EX33 mag I use.