Referrals are the best leads you'll ever get. The customer already trusts you. They don't shop around much. They usually don't fight you on price.
So why would you want to stop relying on them?
Because you can't control them. You can't turn them up when the schedule has a hole in it. You can't make a happy customer from last spring tell their neighbor about you this week. Referrals show up when they show up.
And when they don't show up, you end up doing things you hate. Subbing for another contractor. Paying a lead site. Dropping your price to fill a week.
Here's the fix. Keep the referrals. Just stop relying on them.
Why referrals dry up
It's not because your work got worse. It's usually one of these:
- Seasons. People think about their roof, fence, or AC at certain times of year. Their friends do too.
- Your circle is only so big. Every past customer only knows so many people who need your trade right now.
- Memory fades. Someone loved your work two years ago. They can't remember your name today.
- No way to find you. Even when someone does refer you, the new customer googles you. If they can't find you, or what they find looks sketchy, they call someone else.
That last one is the big one. Most referrals still go through Google before they call.
Step 1: Make yourself easy to find
When someone hears your name, the first thing they do is search for it. When someone needs your trade and has no referral, they search for that too. Things like "roofer near me" or "plumber in [town]."
You need to show up for both. That takes two things:
- A Google Business Profile that's set up right. This is the box with the map, the stars, and the call button. For local trades, it's where a lot of calls come from.
- A real website. Not a free page you made in an hour. A fast site that says what you do, where you do it, and has a big call button on every page.
Our family's exterior restoration company in Florida went from subbing to booked out 4 months ahead with just these two things. No ads.
Step 2: Make it easy to say yes
Getting found is half of it. The other half is not losing the person once they find you.
- Put your phone number and a call button everywhere. People on their phones want to tap and call.
- Show your work. Real photos of real jobs. Not stock photos of smiling people in hard hats.
- Say what towns you work in. People want to know you'll actually come out.
- Let people book online. Some people don't want to call. Give them a way to grab a time on your calendar.
Step 3: Never miss a lead
You're on a roof or under a sink all day. You miss calls. Everybody does.
The problem is the person who called you is also calling the next guy on Google. If he picks up and you don't, he gets the job.
Set up a missed call text back. If you miss a call, they get a text in seconds that says something like "Sorry we missed you, we're on a job. What can we help with?" That one text saves a lot of jobs.
Step 4: Get more reviews
Reviews are referrals from strangers. When someone sees 40 good reviews, it does the same job as their buddy telling them about you.
The trick is to ask every single time. Right after the job, while the customer is happy. Better yet, set it up so a review request goes out on its own after every job. Then you don't have to remember.
Step 5: Keep it going
A Google profile that sits there with no new posts, photos, or reviews slowly slides down. So does a website that never changes.
You don't need to spend hours on it. A post a week on your Google profile and a new page or blog post once a month keeps things moving.
What this looks like when it's working
You still get referrals. They're still your favorite jobs. But now there's a steady flow of new people finding you on their own, every month, whether anyone sent them or not.
That's what lets you plan ahead. Hire with confidence. Say no to the jobs you don't want. And stop subbing for someone else.
Want it done for you?
This is exactly what we build. A website, a Google profile, and a lead system that keeps your schedule full. One 15 minute call, and you're live in about 14 days. See the plans here.