Best Cost-Effective Methods to Get Roofing Leads

Article by JobNimbus

With the rise of building supply cost, contractors are having to find cost-effective ways to market their company. That can be challenging, especially when you’re searching for leads who convert into lifelong customers. Fortunately, you don’t have to guess and hope for the best. JobNimbus has the insider knowledge you need to save money on generating leads.

The CRM and project management company conducted a survey with residential roofing contractors to not only understand the roofing project workflow, typical sales cycles, profit margins, but also the marketing effectiveness and ROI. The marketing results from over 100 roofing professionals in various roles across the country revealed the most effective ways that these thriving companies generate leads. Check out the top low cost options that you can adopt in your marketing budget today.

• Customer Referrals
• Social Media Marketing
• Online Advertising
• Onsite Review Sites

Customer Referrals

The JobNimbus benchmark discovered an average of 36% of a roofing company’s leads come from customer referrals. That’s over a third of your potential leads!

While it’s no surprise satisfied customers often return to your business, they can help your roofing company even more by recommending you to others. Everyone has had that moment in life when you come across the ultimate movie or product that you can’t stop raving about.

Think about who your customers interact with: friends, family members, neighbors, coworkers, etc. When a customer tells potential customers about your services, they’re spreading awareness of your roofing company. People are more likely to listen to others' opinions, good or bad, before making a purchase decision.

To help your roofing company get more referrals, find ways to stand out from other contractors and make your business more unique. Here are a few ideas to try:

• Take the time to educate your customers on your process – a little more time with your customer in the beginning will pay dividends later on
• Keep customers up to date on their projects – this will create a great experience and give you a better chance of getting a referral
• Ask your roofing customers if they have any questions throughout the process – making sure questions are answered can prevent miscommunication and concern
• Use modern roofing products to protect your customers’ yard and property – not only to impress customers, but prevent you from compensating clients for damaged property
• Share your before and after photos with customers – although traditionally used to attract new customers, before and after photos give customers a visual of the improvements you made and can solidify the great work you did
• Write personalized notes thanking customers for their business – when customers see you go above and beyond with something as small as a thank you note, they’ll be happy to tell everyone else how great you are

Customer referrals and past experiences with the company accounted for more than half of lead sources for roofers. This is the first area of marketing your business should focus on and most cost effective.  

Social Media

With over 4.48 billion users worldwide, social media has a wide reach that lets roofing companies gain new clients. Based on the JobNimbus survey results, social media advertising accounts for 10% of all roofing leads. 

You might want to try popular social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. These social media platforms let you create custom ads and advertise them to the people who are most likely to use your services.

Facebook is a particularly powerful social media platform for roofing businesses. If you’re considering how to get roofing leads on Facebook, try some of the following:

• Post information and promotional offers on your page
• Boost your Facebook posts to reach more people
• Host a roofer Q&A by having customers send in roofing questions and you answering them
• Share amazing before-and-after pictures on your profile

Whether you choose to use one or several social media platforms, advertising on social media can generate a substantial part of your roof leads.

Online Advertising

In JobNimbus’ one-of-a-kind study, search engine advertising ties with social media advertising for 10% of a roofing company’s leads. This method is popular because searching online is one of the first things potential customers do when they need a roofing service. Consider advertising your roofing business on search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo! to help you generate more roofing leads.

If you use search engine advertising, also known as pay-per-click advertising, your roofing company will show up at the top of the results page. Most customers will look at the first few results, so your company will gain more attention and more clicks.

By using a combination of both Search Engine Optimization and Paid Ads through search engines, you are sure to capture new quality leads. Implement these strategies to cut the cost of online advertising:

• Create an advertising budget and stick to it
• Identify your target audience and narrow your focus
• Utilize your website to have clear messaging of services provided, what problems you solve, and what areas your serve
• Become an authority by publishing blogs with information for homeowners and creating relevant YouTube videos 

Online Review Sites

In our survey results, online review sites come in at 7% of leads for roofing companies. Online reviews spread the word even further than typical customer referrals. On an online review site, one happy customer can reach hundreds — or even thousands — of other potential homeowners.

These review sites are vital for home service businesses like roofing companies. Potential customers can look up your roofing business and find testimonials from past customers. If your roofing prospects like what they see, they’ll view you as one of the best fits for the job.

Optimize for leads from online referral sites by creating a profile for your roofing business on Angi, Yelp, HomeAdvisor, Networx, Better Business Bureau, and most importantly, Google. People trust Google reviews as much as they trust their family. 

Having an annual marketing plan and budget will allow you to decide which of these strategies to implement in your business. You might try one method or combine several of them to find what works best for your company. 

Whether you want to get residential roofing leads or more leads in general, the JobNimbus roofing CRM software can help. Our software promotes more growth, more income, and more customers.