Marketing for Tradesmen 2026: What Actually Works (And What's a Waste of Time)

By Mike Oddoye | Real systems, real results, no marketing guru nonsense

Most marketing advice for tradesmen is written by people who've never swung a hammer or fixed a leak in their life.

They tell you to "build your brand on TikTok" or "create a content strategy" while you're trying to finish three jobs before 6pm and return customer calls.

Here's what actually works when you're a one-person operation or small crew.

The Time Problem Nobody Talks About

You have roughly 2 hours per week for marketing. Maybe.

You're already doing:

Quotes (2-3 hours/week)
Actual jobs (40+ hours/week)
Invoicing and chasing payments
Buying materials
Answering calls and texts

Adding "social media marketing" or "SEO strategy" to that list is a joke.

The solution: Marketing that works WHILE you're on the tools. Not marketing that requires you to stop working.

The 3 Marketing Channels That Actually Matter

According to Blue Square Management's 2025 research, 89% of homeowners find tradespeople through:

Google Maps (Google Business Profile)
Word of mouth / referrals
Google Search (your website)

Everything else - Facebook ads, Instagram, YouTube, directories, Nextdoor - accounts for 11% combined.

Translation: If you're not dominating these three, nothing else matters.

Google Business Profile: Your £0 Marketing Engine

This is the single highest ROI activity for any tradesperson. Period.

What most tradespeople do:

Create profile
Add address and phone number
Upload 3 photos
Never touch it again

What you should do:

Photos (100+ over time):

Before/after shots of every job
Your van (clean, branded)
Your team (people trust faces)
Equipment and tools
Specific completed projects

Reviews (30+ minimum): Use this exact system:

Finish job
Customer happy
Send text: "Mind leaving us a Google review? Takes 30 seconds: [link]"
Track who you've asked in a spreadsheet
Follow up after 3 days if no review

You'll get 1 review for every 4-5 requests. That's normal. Keep asking.

Posts (weekly):

Completed job photos
Seasonal tips
Emergency availability
Special offers

Takes 5 minutes per week. Do it Sunday night.

Website SEO: Owning Your Local Market

You don't need a £5,000 website. You need a site that shows up when people search for your services locally.

The minimum viable website:

Homepage:

What you do
Where you cover
Phone number (mobile-clickable)
Reviews/testimonials
Clear photos

Service Pages (create one per main service):

"[Service] in [Town/Area]"
Real pricing (at least ranges)
Photos from YOUR jobs
Your certifications
FAQ section
Contact form + phone

Example that ranks: "Boiler Installation Bristol - £2,200-£3,500 - Gas Safe Registered"

Example that doesn't: "Heating Services"

Internal linking: Link your service pages to each other and to relevant blog posts like this one. Helps SEO and keeps people on your site.

The Review Strategy That Actually Works

BrightLocal's 2025 Local Consumer Review Survey found that 98% of people read reviews for local trades.

But here's the truth: Most customers won't leave a review unless you make it STUPID easy.

The system:

Save this link: your Google review link (find it in your Google Business Profile settings)
Send it via text after every successful job
Use a script (see below)
Never assume people will "just do it"

Text message template:

"Hi [Name], just wanted to say thanks for choosing [Business Name]! If you were happy with the work, would you mind leaving us a quick Google review? Here's the direct link: [review_link]. Takes 30 seconds and really helps us out. Cheers, [Your Name]"

Pro tip: Send this while you're still on-site or within 2 hours of finishing. Timing matters.

What Doesn't Work (Stop Wasting Money)

Paid Lead Platforms (Checkatrade, TrustATrader, MyBuilder):

You're paying £10-30 per lead
Competing with 3-4 other tradespeople
Quality varies wildly
You don't own the relationship

Better: Build your own leads. See our guide on Checkatrade alternatives.

Facebook/Instagram Ads: Only profitable if:

You're targeting specific high-margin services (kitchens, bathrooms, extensions)
You have time to manage campaigns
Your profit per job is £2,000+

For general trade work? Waste of money.

SEO Agencies Promising "Page 1 Rankings": You don't need them. Google Business Profile optimization and basic local SEO you can do yourself. Save the £500-1,000/month.

Social Media: The Truth

You don't need to be on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

Pick ONE platform where your customers actually are (probably Facebook for homeowners) and post 2-3 times per week.

What to post:

Before/after photos
"Spot the cowboy job" posts (terrible DIY you fixed)
Quick tips
Emergency availability
Behind-the-scenes of bigger jobs

What NOT to post:

Motivational quotes
"Good morning" posts
Memes (unless they're genuinely funny and relevant)
Personal life stuff

Reality check: Social media generates 5-10% of leads for most trades. Don't spend 50% of your marketing time there.

The Referral System You're Probably Ignoring

Word of mouth is your #1 lead source. But most tradespeople don't actively cultivate it.

Make it systematic:

After every job:

Ask: "Do you know anyone else who might need [your service]?"
Give them 3-5 business cards
Send a thank you text after they refer someone

Referral incentive (optional): "Refer a friend and get £50 off your next job"

Track it: Who referred who. So you can thank them and ask for more.

Reality: One happy customer can send you 2-5 jobs per year. Build relationships, not just transactions.

Automation: The Unfair Advantage

Here's where you pull ahead of competitors:

Automated lead response:

Form submission → instant auto-reply
"Got your message! I'm on-site but will call within 2 hours."
Captures lead in CRM
Sends follow-up if no response

Automated follow-up:

Quote sent → automatic check-in after 3 days
"Just following up on the quote I sent for [job]. Any questions?"

Automated invoicing:

Job complete → invoice sent automatically
Payment reminder after 7 days
Second reminder after 14 days

We build these systems at OptiMAX. Takes 2-3 hours to set up, runs forever.

Impact: You respond to leads 10x faster than competitors. You never forget to follow up. You get paid faster.

The "Too Busy" Marketing Strategy

If you're fully booked for 6+ weeks:

Stop all marketing. Seriously.

Instead:

Raise your prices 15-20%
Ask every customer for a Google review
Build your email list (collect emails, send monthly newsletter)
Use downtime to create service pages on your website

When work slows down, you'll have a bigger email list, more reviews, and better website to reactivate quickly.

Tools That Actually Help

Free/Cheap:

Google Business Profile (free)
Canva (£10/month - for creating before/after graphics)
Google Sheets (free - track leads, reviews, referrals)
Your phone camera (document every job)

Paid (worth it if you're busy):

n8n automation (free, open-source) or GoHighLevel (£97/month) for automated follow-ups
Simple CRM like Pipedrive or Notion (£10-15/month)

Not worth it:

Expensive CRM systems (£100+/month)
Social media management tools
Fancy email marketing platforms

The 90-Day Marketing Plan for Busy Tradesmen

Month 1: Foundation

Week 1: Optimize Google Business Profile completely
Week 2: Get 10 Google reviews (text all recent customers)
Week 3: Take 50+ photos of current/recent jobs
Week 4: Create basic website or update existing one

Month 2: Content Creation

Create 1 service page per week (4 total)
Post 2x per week on Facebook with before/after photos
Set up automated quote follow-ups

Month 3: Systems

Implement automated lead response
Set up referral tracking system
Add Google Posts weekly

Result after 90 days: You'll have 20+ reviews, proper website, automated systems, and steady organic leads.

Real Example: What This Looks Like in Practice

Dave, a plumber in Birmingham:

Before:

60% of jobs from Checkatrade (£250/month cost)
30% word of mouth
10% website

After implementing this strategy (6 months):

50% Google Business Profile (organic)
30% word of mouth/referrals
15% website SEO
5% Checkatrade (kept as safety net)

Marketing spend: Went from £250/month to £50/month Jobs per month: Increased from 12 to 18 Profit margin: Up 15% (less competition = higher prices)

The Bottom Line

Marketing for tradesmen isn't complicated:

Dominate Google Business Profile
Collect reviews systematically
Build basic local SEO
Automate follow-ups
Stay visible on ONE social platform

That's it. Everything else is noise.

You don't need to be a marketing expert. You need to be consistent with the basics.

Time required: 2 hours/week after initial setup.

Cost: £0-50/month depending on tools.

Result: Leads that you OWN, not rent. Systems that work while you're on the tools.

Need help with the automation piece? We set up automated follow-up systems for tradespeople. You stay on the tools, we handle the tech.