Plumber Marketing: 14 Plumber Marketing Ideas for Small Businesses

Plumbers have several skills, but marketing your business isn't always covered in an apprenticeship or technical school. Like snaking a drain or installing a sink, marketing is an important skill that plumbers must learn to run a successful business.

That's why we've put together this list of marketing tips for plumbers. We'll show you how to market a plumbing business and the different ways you can attract and retain customers. By the end of this post, you'll have another skill in your tool belt that will set your business up for success.

How to Market a Plumbing Business

Let's start with a little marketing 101. Marketing is what you do to keep people interested in your business. It involves attracting new customers and engaging existing ones. A good company will use marketing to target new buyers and drive repeat purchases over time.

Marketing starts with understanding your customers. To market a plumbing business, dive into the information you have about your customers and evaluate your relationships with them. You should also conduct a SWOT analysis to determine your business's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Here's an example of what a SWOT analysis looks like:

This information will give you some ideas to promote your business and help you create an effective marketing plan.

Plumbing Marketing Plan

A marketing plan is a document that outlines all of your marketing strategies, campaigns, and resources. It typically includes:

• Business Summary: Your company name, business leaders, and a SWOT analysis
• Business Goals: What are you marketing, how are you marketing it, and how are you measuring success?
• Target Market: Who are you marketing to? Who are your competitors?
• Marketing Strategy: Product descriptions, pricing, and purchase points (where customers buy from you)
• Budget: Expenses and the estimated cost for each
• Marketing Channels: Where will you market your business?
• Technology: What tools or software will you use to market your business?

Putting this information into a detailed plan will help you create effective marketing campaigns. You'll know who you're advertising to, what you're selling, and how you differ from your competition. A good marketing plan makes it easier to set goals and measure your success over time.

Now, let's dive into the best marketing ideas for plumbers and how your business can use them.

1. Build a website for booking appointments.

Websites are like a digital home for your business. They're a place where people can find you online and learn more about your company. They're great for getting discovered by search engines, and they help attract new customers to your business.

If you're a plumber, you often have consultations with clients. Your website should have forms where customers can book appointments or request quotes and estimates. Not only is this convenient for customers, but it's good for your workflow, too. You don't have to spend time answering calls and managing an online calendar. Your website will capture this information for you and update your schedule automatically.

Tip: You don't have to be a web developer to build a good website. Anyone can do it using a drag-and-drop website builder. These tools make it easy to design a professional website that collects the right information and increases revenue for your business.

2. Claim your local listings.

A local listing is like a contact profile for your business. Sites like Google, Yelp, and other business listing websites will create these profiles for your company. That way, when customers search for your business, they'll see all your brand's information, like the example below:

If you want to manage, edit, or update your local listings, you have to claim them or create them on these websites. You can use an online listings management tool to oversee all your listings from one place. That will save you time updating information because you won't have to switch between apps. It will also alert you when customer reviews are left on your profile so you can read and respond quickly.

Online listings are important because they support local SEO - and SEO is how you get discovered on search engines. The better your online listings are, the more likely you'll appear in search results.

3. Post on social media.

Social media is an excellent marketing channel for plumbers. It helps you reach customers in your area and share your latest deals and promotions. People who follow your brand online are already interested in your services. So, social media is a great place to constantly remind them that you're open and available for business.

Social media is also great for sharing updates on projects, like how this plumber does on Instagram each week:

Mary-Anne Bowcott has built an impressive following by showing people the unique projects she works on as a plumber. These videos chronicle her story and give customers ideas for potential projects to hire her for. It shows how social media can also be a valuable place to show off your knowledge, helping you build credibility.

4. Ask for customer reviews.

Customer reviews are critical for small businesses. Most people check reviews before buying something, so it's important to have plenty of good feedback on sites like Google, Yelp, Angi, and more.

Customer reviews are effective because people trust customers more than they trust advertising. Reviews can also help your SEO because search engines prioritize companies with the best reviews. If someone searches for "best plumbers near me," your reviews will help you appear in that search.

Collecting customer reviews doesn't have to be complicated. After completing a project, try contacting customers via email or business texting and ask them to submit a review. Most people will be willing to help, especially if they have a great experience with your company.

5. Create a YouTube channel.

YouTube is great for residential plumbers because plumbing is an at-home service. Everyone has pipes in their homes, and when something breaks, you want it fixed immediately. If you've ever experienced a plumbing issue, you know how nerve-racking it is to see an endless stream of water pouring into your home.

That's why plenty of plumbers have started YouTube channels to promote their businesses. They create DIY videos that teach customers how to conduct basic home repairs. Video marketing increases your brand awareness and builds your credibility as a plumber. People can see your work firsthand and know what doing business with you is like.

Here's an example of a plumber that has over 600K subscribers on YouTube:

6. Launch a customer referral program.

A referral is when a customer recommends your business to another customer. Sometimes, it's even more effective than a good review because referrals are people who are ready to buy from your business. You also get a direct way to contact these potential customers, helping you close more deals in the process.

Consider launching a customer referral program to generate a steady stream of referrals. Every time someone refers a customer to your business, they get rewarded for their referral. This strategy motivates customers to refer others to your company and helps you attract valuable leads who are ready to purchase.

7. Start a blog.

Blogs are an effective way to beef up your website. You can write blogs about your company, your services, or different topics in your industry. Your blog can provide at-home or commercial plumbing tips, and you can engage with customers through comments and social media shares.

Blogs also help you get discovered on search engines like Google. For example, if you write a post called, "How to replace a faucet," people searching for that term will find your blog. They'll then explore the other pages on your site and get more familiar with your business.

Tip: You can launch an automated newsletter that lets people know when you've published something new. That helps you build a loyal following that's regularly reading your content online.

8. Send deals, reminders, and updates with email automation.

Email is to marketing what a pipe wrench is to plumbing. It's an essential tool you should use daily to market your business. Email lets you control when messages are sent, and most people check their inboxes daily.

But sending emails every day sounds demanding, right? But it doesn't have to be! With email automation, you can schedule and send emails after customers complete an action, like scheduling an appointment or visiting specific website pages. Rather than typing out each message, prewritten emails are sent automatically, reaching the right customers at the right time. You can keep doing your everyday work while email automation engages customers for you.

9. Improve your customer service.

Customer service is an underrated marketing tool because small businesses can use it to compete with big-box brands. As a small business owner, you have more opportunities to create personalized customer experiences. You don't have as many policies or protocols to work through, and you're seen as a local community member. Take advantage of this flexibility and use it to create delightful experiences.

Great customer service comes from mastering your communication skills. You also need the right tools to set yourself up for success. To provide excellent customer service, consider adopting these tools for your business:

• Live Online Chat: Live chat is like instant messenger for your website. Customers can open a chat and message you directly on a private channel. You can also install chatbots that respond to customers 24/7.
• Shared Inbox: A shared inbox connects your communication channels to one platform. As new messages come in from email, phone, and social media, they're recorded in a centralized inbox where you can respond to each one.

• Team Chat: Team chat is used for team communication. It's useful for messaging coworkers and collaborating on projects.

• Feedback Collection: Your business should have feedback collection tools like surveys and customer satisfaction scores. These resources help you understand how to improve your customer service.

10. Partner with other contractors.

One of the most effective ways to attract and retain new customers is partnering with other businesses, like a local builder or a general contractor. When hired, these professionals often need plumbers to work on their projects. Developing strong relationships with contractors in your area will help you secure more work and grow your customer base.

11. Adopt marketing tools.

You should always have the right tools for the job; marketing is no exception. Marketing software makes scaling your advertising efforts and managing your brand campaigns easier. It automates emails, flags customer reviews, and tracks offline marketing channels like billboards, signs, and mailers.

Here's a list of must-have marketing tools for any plumbing business:

• Social Media Management: Similar to a shared inbox, you should have a tool connecting all your social media channels to one place. That way, you can post content and reply to comments without switching between apps.
• CRM: CRMs track customer interactions and record communication in one place. You can use it to contact customers or view previous conversations with your company.

• Heatmaps: Heatmaps record customer behavior on your website. They show where customers clicked on your page and how far they scrolled down it.

• Reputation Management: Your marketing software should have tools for managing your online reputation. That includes responding to reviews and managing your online listings.

• Content Marketing Software: Content marketing uses media like blogs, videos, and podcasts to attract new customers. Your marketing software should have a system for creating promotional assets for your business.

• Analytics: Analytics are basically numbers that show what's working well (or not) in your marketing. They're important because they help you measure success. Without tools for analytics, improving your marketing and growing over time is hard.

12. Host or sponsor an event.

Events are a good way to build brand awareness in your industry or local community. You can attend events like trade shows where you connect with other plumbers or host an event where you network with other professional services. You can also sponsor a community event like a block party or a town fair. It's a great way to familiarize people with your business and build goodwill within your community.

For example, here are the sponsors for the 2024 Plumbing National Championship. It's an annual event where plumbers compete for awards and prizes.

Your company could participate in these games or host something similar locally. Invite competitors and other home services to compete for a prize or bragging rights.

13. Try online advertising.

Online advertising comes in different forms. With ad managers like Google Ads, you can advertise on YouTube, search results, local listings, and more. These ad managers usually have a bidding system where you set a budget and outbid other brands to advertise using different keywords.

For instance, if we search for "best plumber near me," we can see that Cranney Homer Services and 128 Plumbing paid to advertise using this search phrase.

Social media advertising is also available on sites like Facebook and Instagram. These sites have built-in ad managers that create ads for your business accounts and typically charge per click, engagement, or impression.

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14. Use direct mail.

Most of our tips are for digital marketing strategies, but offline marketing is still effective, too. Direct mail is one of the most engaging forms of physical advertisement; it has an open rate of about 90%.

A lot of people like getting mail because it feels like a personal message delivered straight to their door. Most brands will include a sample or discount that motivates the recipient to learn more about the business. For plumbers, you can offer free quotes or estimates or even a free inspection where you identify potential projects to work on.

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The Best Way to Market a Plumbing Business

The best way to market a plumbing business is to use a combination of the strategies above. There's no silver bullet in marketing, and the best brands use complementary tactics that guide customers toward a purchase.

That's why it's so important to use marketing tools: They connect your campaigns together. You can manage everything from one place and track performance over time. Use this list to kickstart your marketing campaigns, and check out the guide below for tips on finding the right software for your business.

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