Written by Ari Greenbaum, co-founder of conXpros
Growing your roofing business will take work and dedication, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. There are many high cost options for those that do not want or have the time to dedicate to doing it yourself. If you are like most business owners, you likely prefer to get results while limiting how much you spend to make it happen. Fortunately, there are many avenues available at little to no cost that can produce exceptional results and growth for your roofing company. In this article, I will highlight 7 ways you can accomplish this growth while fitting into any budget. Use one, some, or all of these ideas to consistently improve your new customer acquisition and bottom line.
1. Establish a modern & search engine friendly website: I have seen many websites for roofing companies across the country. If I were forced to put a number on it, I would say that 1 out of 10 have the look and feel of a modern and updated website. As crazy as it may sound, I also know of companies in 2020 that are still without this valuable asset. The key is having a website that is clear, informative, and easy for the user to navigate. Additionally, we are in a mobile world, so ensuring that your site is equally optimized for both mobile and desktop viewers is critical. There are many free web design and building options out there for those that prefer to spend nothing other than the purchase and hosting of your domain. Having a website is nice but making sure it is found by homeowners searching in your local market is essential. Fortunately, search engine optimization (SEO) has been a concept for long enough that there are countless articles, blogs and forums available to help clue you in to the most important factors affecting your website and if it is found when searched. SEO can be intimidating, so if you do not feel that you can accomplish your goals on your own, there are options for SEO firms available for every budget. If you choose the outsourced route, do your homework or get some referrals to firms that you can be confident will produce results. The beauty of SEO is that once your site is ranking, the traffic and clients you gain do not cost you a penny!
2. Find free listing opportunities: The most powerful tool for any local business is often found within the Google platform. Many people think you need to spend money on keywords (PPC) to be found by those searching locally for a roofing company. However, there is no cost to list your roofing company in Google My Business. This is a free platform you are likely very familiar with. If you ever search on google, just beneath the paid or sponsored ads, there is a map and list of local search results. That is where the Google My Business listings appear. As I said, these are 100% FREE!!! Creating your listing is simple (I have created a few of them myself) and allows your company to be found online. Just like SEO, there are many theories of what impacts your listing showing up higher, but here is a great resource to help get you started. In addition to Google, there are other free listing options. You just need to search for local listing pages for roofers in your area and then find out what you need to do to list your business. The more places people can find you, the more likely you are to have homeowners inquiring about your services…FOR FREE!!!
3. Get social: Similar to Google My Business, social media platforms are 100% free to use as a tool to create more exposure and awareness for your company. You are likely already familiar with many of the options out there such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Houzz, & Twitter. Creating a company account or page is simple. The key to success on social media platforms is being active. Create interesting and engaging content, share videos or pictures of your projects, contribute to forums, & get people to share your content with others. You can generate homeowner leads for free by creating a strong social media presence. Who does not like free roofing leads? For those a bit more adventurous or who have the budget, there are also paid lead generation options on every social media platform out there. Be careful as this often takes trial and error to find the sweet spots and the correct audience. There are also many options to outsource this as well which eliminates the trial and error but come with an additional expense. Providing you find that sweet spot, the returns on the investment are typically exceptional.
4. Lead generation companies: I know, I know, I am a bit biased with this category. However, when you find a roofing lead generation company that fits your needs and budget, getting a big return on your investment should be expected. Remember, you are a roofer! Roofing lead generation typically comes with a cost ranging of $120-250 per lead for roof replacements & $40-90 per lead for roof repairs. Sounds like a lot, especially knowing that you are not going to convert every lead into a paying customer. If you are like most successful roofing companies, you should be converting roughly 25-35% of the estimates you give into clients. The average roof in the US (varies per location) is north of $10,000. Depending on the roof type and size, roofing companies gain thousands of dollars in profit on each completed job. If you knew you could invest a couple hundred to a thousand dollars and receive a 5X-10X return, wouldn’t you jump at the opportunity? I know that the experience most roofing contractors have with lead generation companies has not been good. For this reason, you MUST do your homework to find a roofing lead generation company that you can be confident with to produce the intended results. Unfortunately, there is no free option when working with online lead generation companies, but the investment should pay for itself many times over allowing you to play with the “house’s money” after the first sold job.
5. Job to job: I was in the roofing business myself for a short period before we started conXpros. I learned a ton from veteran roofing pros, but there was no lesson more valuable than creating more roofing jobs from the one you are currently doing. In addition to placing a yard sign in the lawn of the home you are working on; you can be proactive to generate more jobs on the same street or neighborhood. Keep in mind that most homes in an area wee built at a similar time, meaning their roofs are typically the same age. When the job is from hail or wind damage, the other homes in the area were hit with the same hail and wind. I was taught to knock on every neighbor’s door (best time is late in the day to ensure folks are home when you visit). Let them know that you are doing a job for one of their neighbors right now and wanted to see if they were interested in a free roof inspection. I have seen this approach exponentially increase the number of jobs on your schedule personally and from what other roofers have shared with me. You can take this a step further and create a flyer or door hanger that shares the same idea for the doors you knock and do not get an answer. The more opportunities, the more jobs! I love this concept because all it takes is a little time and some effort to gain some new clients.
6. Word of mouth: Every roofing contractor knows the best type of homeowner inquiry is one that cones via referral. Typically, the closing rate with a referred customer doubles or more when compared to a general inquiry or lead. As you are likely familiar with the old saying “If you don’t ask, they will not tell”. This is the case with getting referrals, you need to ask for them! If you provide great customer care and do exceptional work, there should be no reason not to ask for the referrals. The key is not to just ask once. You should ask when you are completing the job and then continue to ask consistently in the future. Often this can be achieved by creating emails or newsletters to your previous client base reminding them to share your company name with their friends and family. Sometimes a little incentive can get the ball rolling, so offering a perk, gift or compensation to a client that refers you can be a powerful tool. Just remember, if you do not ask, they will not give them!
7. Social proof: Reviews from your satisfied customers are often essential to a roofing company. We live in a world that relies heavily on social proof. Just like with referrals if you do not ask…so ASK! I suggest driving the reviews to specific platforms that will benefit you the most. Reviews will be a big factor on platforms like Google My Business, Facebook, etc. They not only will help your company get found, but they will also help market & sell your roofing services. Reviews are a powerful tool. There are many platforms available that can help manage and generate the reviews for you. I am not familiar with any free options, but the cost for these services is reasonable, especially when you factor how important the reviews are to the growth and success of your business. There are other types of reviews such as video testimonials that provide even stronger social proof and can play a big part in your selling process if used effectively.
Starting and growing a roofing business is not easy. Following these 7 cost effective ways I have shared will make the road to success significantly less bumpy. Now that you see you do not need to spend a fortune to make a fortune, what’s holding you back from achieving success?