3 Common Ways Roofers Waste Their Marketing Dollars

As a roofer, you probably get calls every single day from telemarketers trying to sell you online marketing services.

The big ones are HomeAdvisor, Angieslist, Yelp, and the thousands of SEO companies out there that call around with the same pitch.

If you're like most roofers, you've bit the bullet on one of them and tried the service and paid the monthly fees.

You may have had a good experience and received results, but there are a lot of roofers out there who have been burned by these companies repeatedly.

This is why I decided to write this article.

I feel that if more roofers knew what goes on at companies like HomeAdvisor and Yelp, they could save thousands of dollars and avoid the headaches.

Let's go over the 3 biggest mistakes I see roofers making trying to market their business online.

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Mistake #1: Paying a "Directory"

A directory is company or website that has lists of many service providers such as roofers, plumbers, electricians, etc.

Some big name directories that you've probably heard of include Yellow Pages, Angie's List, and Yelp.

Now...

I'm not saying that directories don't work or that you can't get leads from them.

I've gotten plenty of roofing leads in the past from directories.

Here's the thing though.

Directories rely on a volume business model.

They only work when there are thousands if not hundreds of thousands of businesses paying a monthly subscription for a premium listing.

These premium listings can be expensive and take a huge chunk of change out of your budget every month (with long-term contracts in some cases).

To a directory - your roofing company is just a number at the end of the month.

They don't care how many leads you get or how well you're doing.

All they're concerned about is keeping you subscribed for another month paying $$$ for your premium listing.

That means your hard earned dollars are just going to them doing the bare minimum to keep you from cancelling that month.

If a premium listing is working for you and generating leads, by all means, keep it running.

I just want to make roofers aware of the business model they're buying into.

I recommend every roofing company to have a listing on all of the Top 50 Local Directories.

The majority of them are free - you have nothing to loose being on them.

Just be extra cautious of when they try to sell you on a premium listing.

Mistake #2: Buying Leads From HomeAdvisor

HomeAdvisor is a giant in the lead generation industry. I'm sure you've heard of them and maybe even bought/are buying leads from them.

The mistake here is made when you're spending a good amount of money on leads that are also being sent to 3 or 4 other roofing companies.

Your chances of signing a new job drop significantly when the homeowner has multiple roofers calling them and low-balling each other for the job.

You don't have to play that game.

Instead... invest budget into your own lead generation. I've written many articles on Roof Engine about how to do this.

The main benefit is that you get exclusive leads that end up being much cheaper.

Mistake #3: Hiring an SEO company

Let me start this point off by saying that I'm a firm believer in the power of SEO.

SEO is a great way to really grow your roofing company, and it shouldn't be ignored.

However...

There are lots of companies and so called "SEO experts" out there who are in it just for the quick money and end up doing more harm than good.

A big mistake I keep seeing is when a roofing company hires the first SEO company that comes along and sends them a proposal.

It may be a company from the local area, or a bigger national SEO company.

SEO that works is usually more than $299/month and results don't come over night. A lot of these companies will work in 100+ industries and have no focus on a particular niche.

That means they're working uphill trying to get a website ranked every time they get a new client.

There's a better way.

Instead, work with an SEO company who specializes in roofing. They'll have a network of roofing websites and blogs already established that they can plug you into.

You're more likely to see rankings quicker and in some cases, much cheaper than a traditional company.

Being in a specific industry in SEO gives you a MASSIVE advantage.

Make sure that whoever is doing your SEO has other roofing clients that are successfully ranking on the 1st page.

You'll be in good hands.

To sum everything up...

Look at the big picture before choosing to work with a company that's promising you better rankings or more leads.

Make sure they have your best interest in mind.

Think twice if they're a massive national brand (they won't have the time for you).

And when possible, work with a company that works just in the roofing industry.
(You benefit from all of their previous experience with other roofers)

As always, thank you for reading.

To your success,
Max Reznich