A homeowner deciding between three contractors is mostly asking one question: which of these is a real business that will show up and still be around if something goes wrong? You can do great work and still lose that comparison to someone who simply looks more established.
The good news is that looking established is cheap. Here are eight things that do it, in order of what they cost. We sell websites, and the website is number eight on purpose.
1. A Google Business Profile. Free.
This is the box with your name, stars, number and map that shows up when someone searches for you. It's free, it appears before any website, and a half-empty one looks worse than none. Fill in every field. Our checklist for contractors goes through it top to bottom.
2. Ten Google reviews. Free.
Under ten, a business looks new. Over ten, it looks like one other people have hired. Getting there takes about a month of asking every customer on the day the job is done and texting them the link before you leave the driveway. The exact words are in our post on getting your first ten reviews.
3. Your license number, shown. Free.
If you hold a license, put the number on your truck, your estimates, your Google profile and anywhere else your name appears. In Florida it's required in advertising anyway. To a homeowner it says someone official has checked you out, and it takes them a minute to confirm it.
4. The same name and number everywhere. Free.
Pick one business name and one phone number, and use exactly those on the truck, the invoice, Google, Facebook and your voicemail. When a customer sees "Dave's Electric" on the truck and "D&R Electrical Services" on the invoice, a small doubt creeps in. Google has the same doubt.
5. A voicemail greeting with your business name. Free.
"You've reached Dave at Dave's Electric. Leave your name and address and I'll call you back today." That takes two minutes to record and it tells every caller they reached a business. The default robot greeting tells them they reached a cell phone.
6. Photos of your own work. Free.
Take a before and an after on every job, from the same spot. In a few months you'll have a library that sells for you on Google, on Facebook and on a website. Stock photos can't do that, because customers can tell. How to shoot them in thirty seconds is in our post on before-and-after photos.
7. An email address at your own domain. Under $100 a year.
An estimate from mike@smithplumbing.com reads differently than one from mikesplumbing1987@gmail.com. A domain runs about $15 a year, and a single mailbox on it comes to under $100 a year all in. Your Gmail keeps working for everything else. We covered what to use and how to switch in the best email for contractors.
8. A simple website. From free to a few thousand dollars.
The website is where people go to check the rest. They see your services, your towns, your license number, your photos and your reviews in one place, and they decide whether to call.
You have three ways to get one. You can build it yourself on a website builder, which costs a little each month and a few evenings. You can pay a designer to build one, which costs more up front and gets you something custom. Or you can have someone build and run it for a monthly fee, which is what we do, from $99 a month.
Whichever you choose, it doesn't need to be big. Three pages, your number at the top of each one, and nothing on it that isn't true.
The order matters
If you have an afternoon and no budget, do one through five today. They cost nothing, and they are the things a customer checks first. Start on the photos with your next job. Add the email when you're tired of sending estimates from a personal address.
Get the website when the free pieces are in place, because that's when it has something to show. A site with no reviews, no photos and no license number is a business card that costs more.
When you reach that point, we'll build you a free preview with your name on it so you can see it before you decide. Tell us five things about your business. No card needed.