Facebook Ads for Contractors: Strategies to Get Customers

When it comes to business, it is only natural that you want to attract customers. While there is no one right way to do that, there are a few ways you can make it easier. Nowadays, people prefer their television without ads and they skip YouTube video ads as soon as they can without paying attention to the advertisement itself. That is where advertising on social media comes into play. In this case, Facebook ads.

Why Advertise On Facebook?

Keep in mind that, for business owners and contractors, Facebook is simply a tool for connecting to your customers. Facebook is not a replacement for a company website. While you can list the hours of operation, the location, and phone number of your business, you still need a website that lists the same thing, plus provides information on what the business is about, the services you offer, and the general area you service. A Facebook page for your business is a tool to let others know you exist and to bring them to your website to find out more.

What Do Facebook Ads Let You Do?

When creating an ad on Facebook, the ad lets you narrow down the criteria for when it comes to finding potential customers, similar to other digital marketing platforms like Google Ads but much more granular.

Age

Facebook advertising let you sort by age. Sure, you could reach a wider range of people if you included everyone, but a thirteen-year-old is not likely to need the roofing or other contracting services.

Location

It’s only natural to want to cast a wide net and reach as many people as possible, but instead of including everyone in the whole state, it’s typically a better marketing strategy to narrow the range of your ad sets to either a county or a city level. If the city is somewhat large, try narrowing the focus to a ten-mile radius.

Behaviors and Connections

Facebook also tracks the behavior of its users as well as their connections. Are you looking for homeowners who might need a new roof? Then it wouldn’t do to advertise to someone who is renting.

Facebook also lets you customize the target audience your ads will show to by focusing on:

• Gender
• Interests
• Languages they speak
• Their website and marketing information

An English speaking female who owns a home and has an interest in genealogy and baseball might receive ads for baseball and genealogy information. Since she is interested in baseball, she may also receive ads for window repair more often than other contracting services.

Contractor Marketing Ad Objectives

Out of all the ad objectives that Facebook offers, there are only a few options that work with the marketing needs of contractor businesses. Any other ad objectives can be ignored. These ad objectives include:

• Brand awareness
• Engagement
• Lead Generation
• Traffic

Not only does brand awareness let potential customers know what you even exist, but, given time, it becomes how familiar your customers are with you and your brand. Such as with McDonald’s. Everybody knows what the golden arches stand for. Same with Wendy’s and their logo.

For engagement, you don’t have to be on Facebook constantly looking for people to interact with. While engagement can mean followers, page likes, and boosted posts, it can also mean keeping people updated. If there was a minor plumbing problem that causes some minor flooding and the business is closed to walk-in customers? Post a Facebook status. If your hours of operation have changed for any reason, even temporarily, engage with your followers and make a Facebook status.

As for traffic from your ad campaigns, the trick is not to direct to your Facebook landing page but to your actual website. That way potential new customers will check out your website to see if they like what they see. If they do, then they are likely to see if they are in your service area. Once they find out what area you service, then they might follow you on Facebook in case they need you in the future and keep track of what you are saying.

When creating ads, don’t try to target those in your audience who have an immediate need. Someone whose pipes have burst at three in the morning is not going to turn on a computer and begrudgingly log onto Facebook in search of a plumber. Nor are they going to do that if part of their roof collapses or if their tub crashes through the bathroom floor.

Additional Tips

Attract The Right Prospect

It’s no secret that people love free things, especially customers and potential customers. That’s why there are so many giveaways, samples, and sweepstakes. If you are a contractor trying to attract customers by giving away something for free, don’t give away free microwaves to attract people. The microwaves aren’t going to tell anyone about what you do, what services you provide, and how well you provide those services. Instead, start with a free estimate. Those who need your services will need an estimate on how much something would cost anyway. Be known for the free estimate, not the free microwave.

Provide High Value

Customers want to know that they are getting quality and value for their money. Potential customers don’t know what value you will bring to their lives that your existing customers already know. Potential customers also don’t want to take action on an offer and risk not getting their money’s worth or receiving poor service or experience.

One way to combat that is to post positive testimonials from satisfied customers. Another way to provide higher value is to provide free inspections or free estimates. This way potential customers can see what value you will provide to their needs by watching you in action without having to pay for anything.

Some other ideas would be to offer a discount and not having any payments within a time period. Customers like saving money but they also like to feel as though they have not wasted any money on a product or service that doesn’t suit their needs.

When you are ready to go forth and start creating Facebook ads to bring people to your business website, keep it simple but impactful. If you need help growing your business, whether it is SEO, web design, or social media marketing, be sure to contact CretMark today to schedule a consultation.