Tradie Tips: How To Generate New Business & Beat Your Competition

As a licensed tradie, you may have noticed the spike in competition over recent years. No surprises there. According to Independent Contractors Australia, the number of tradies has gone up from 8.5% to 11.2% of the workforce — that’s over 1 million people Australia-wide. In this competitive market, you’ve got to find better ways of generating new business. Add some of these tips to your toolbox and give your business the repair it needs.

Get Local

A lot of sole traders and independent contractors make the mistake of marketing themselves too wide. They think that they don’t want to limit their services to one place or one group of people because they’ll get less customers. In actual fact, the reverse is true. Our tip to gaining more business is to target a specific audience, especially those in your local area. The idea is that over time, your business will develop a reputation there and you’ll become the local go-to.

Go Online

While not essential, a website for your business will create credibility. On your website, include the details of what services you provide, and most importantly, photos or testimonials of completed projects. This is a reference for people who hear about your business or receive a quote from you and want to do a background check. It will demonstrate that your business is legitimate, and showcase what you have to offer.

Be Unique

With over a million other tradies to compete with, your service has to stand out if you want to generate more business. Consider all the problems or obstacles that people have when hiring tradies and try to provide a better alternative. You might like to set more definite arrival times, or make a courtesy call 30 minutes before arrival. You could provide written terms of the service you provide, or do a quick clean-up after your job’s done. Anything to make your service stand out better than the rest will help you generate new business.

Use Houzz & HiPages

If you’ve never heard of these websites, you’re missing out. And if you’ve heard of them but haven’t used them, ditto. These are the leading websites for tradies to list their business. Consider them the go-to online resources for people looking for tradies, both for general work or while building or renovating a home. People like to search these sites as they provide some assurance that the service they’re hiring is licenced and registered, and previous customer reviews give peace of mind.

Get Feedback

You’re not generating as much business as you’d like. Why is that? There’s only one way to find out: ask. After offering a quote and being refused, politely inquire as to why they’ve opted for someone else. You’ll be surprised by the result. Most people are happy to give sincere feedback for you to improve your service and generate new business. You can also ask for feedback after each job, and seek ways of bettering your service.

Get The Word Out

At the end of the day, the best advertising is free advertising. With a top-notch service that’s unique, word of mouth will spread and you’ll get more referrals. Referrals are more powerful than your listings and website combined, because they come from a flesh and blood source. Consider this your key to generating new business. Good luck!

With your accounts Just Done, you can get down to business Consider us your personal accounting team. BAS, tax, statements, invoices – we do it all, so you can get on with the real work. Sign up for early access today.