New leads are the lifeblood of a long-lasting roofing company. That's why getting new leads is the #1 thing that roofers think about: Where will that next job be?
The biggest mistake you can make, though, is to sit and expect the leads to come to you. If you don't make an effort, then that just wont happen. Luckily, there are things you can do, steps you can take, and platforms you can use that will help you land those new roofing leads.
What are roofing leads?
A lead is a potential customer to reaches out to your business for services — or potential services. A lead can come from various sources like Facebook messages, pricing emails, or Instant Estimator quotes on your website. There isn't just one source for leads, either.
Leads are customers. But, they can LEAD you to landing one. How you tread that potential customer once they connect with you determines if they beome a customer or not.
For a business to maintain, they need consistent incoming leads to help them earn money. For a business to grow, it must be driving MORE leads than needed to maintain.
Nurturing a lead
Generating roofing lead is only half the battle. Leads that come in aren't going to automatically equal a sale. Treading your lead properly and nurturing them is what makes them become a customer. Nurturing a lead can look like:
- Calling them to talk about their roof
- Pulling a satellite measurement and sending them a good-better-best estimate
- Sending an email asking for additional information
- Setting up a roof inspection and meeting them in person
Roofing software helps you capture leads, track communication, and monitor nurturing efforts for better business efficiency.
The 9 best ways to get roofing leads
We'll go through some of the best methods for generating more leads in the roofing industry.
1. Paid ads
If you have the budget to do so, paid advertisements are a great way to become more recognized in your area. There are different types of paid ads:
- Google Ads
- Facebook ads
- Instagram or other social media ads
- Spotify ads
- Radio advertisements
- Bus ads
- Billboards or print ads
Depending on your area and ideal customer, you may want to target more into social media or digital ads versus print or traditional ads. If a targeted neighbourhood has an older population, that traditional media or radio ads may work better. Younger neighbourhoods might hear Spotify ads more than radio ads. So, pick your paid ad channels based on your target market.
2. Search engine optimization
Search engine optimization — or SEO — is what makes your website searchable by Google. SEO is all about showing up when someone Googles you, or keywords around roofing. Having a search-optimized website can help you rank higher in search results.
SEO is also about being there when potential customers are looking for answers regarding roofing questions. It's a much softer selling tactic to bring in leads.
It ensures someone finds you on Google if they look up your business name, but also if they're looking for answers. Blogging about roofing makes people see you as an expert and builds trust. They start to see your business as helpful, not just trying to sell them a roof.
Some of the best ways to optimize your website and business for SEO is to:
- Have a Google Business Profile listing
- Have a website
- Include areas your serve on your website
- Make sure your website is mobile friendly
- Add pages to your website that talk about the services you offer
- Use headers on your website
- Link to your website from your social media pages or on your facebook posts
- Write blogs that focus on education rather than selling
There are plenty of free resources and tools you can use to learn more about SEO, especially for small businesses. We recommend HubSpot, Shopify, or SEMRush as great resources for roofers.
3. Make use of your reviews
We all know how powerful referrals are to bring in new leads. Reviews are like public referrals: It's a type of "social proof" for people who maybe don't have anyone to ask.
92% of people read online reviews before contacting a company and 74% of people say good reviews make a local business more trustworthy. So, not having reviews could also be scaring potential leads away.
Asking your clients for feedback, getting quotes for your website, and linking them to your Google Business Profile to leave a review are all tactics that can drive you leads. Lean on automated or templated emails so you get reviews almost automatically!
If you do have reviews, don't be shy about sharing them.
- Include quotes in social media posts
- Link to reviews in your posts
- Share reviews on the front page of your website
- Promote reviews in emails
4. Offer free roof inspections
We know that roof inspections can take up time, but if you think of them as a source for leads, you'll soon find they're worth it.
Free roof inspections do a few things:
- They get you face to face with a potential customer.
- They give you an opportunity to build trust by showing your expertise.
- They give you a change to hand over an estimate and convert that lead quicker.
If you're curious about the power of roof inspections, you can check out our complete guide to them here.
5. Email marketing
Emails are a low-cost strategy for growing your roofing business and attracting new clients. 88% of people check their email every day, so there's definitely a benefit to being present in homeowners inboxes.
Emails are great not just for bring in leads, but also in nurturing them. You can include past customers in emails for referrals, roof inspections, and to keep top of mind for any future roof work they may need. It's a long term game, but it can generate more leads in the future.
Remember that people must opt in to emails, sign up for them, or give you their emails for you to contact them. You can gather email addresses from website visitors by including a form for contact information, as well as including a box for them to tick if they’d like to receive marketing emails.
You can choose to work with a real estate, home renovation, flooring, or other home-services company and pay to sponsor or place an ad their emails too. This is kind of a half paid advertising (since you'd have to pay for it probably)-half email marketing tactic, but can still be efficient to drive new leads.
6. Establish a referral system
We all know how important referrals are for driving leads. When homeowners need a roof, their first step is to ask around for recommendations from friends, family, neighbors, and loved ones. Referrals are a terrific strategy to create roofing leads who have a high chance of becoming customers.
To get previous customers to refer you, offer them a reward or advantage if someone they refer hires you. You give a little to get more back!
7. Get involved in your community
Reputation is key. For roofers, your business is in your backyard. Getting involved in your community and building a reputation for yourself (and your business) will make local homeowners more inclined to call you.
We talk a lot about becoming your neighborhood roofer and building long lasting connections in your area. It's like a large scale, in-person referral or review system.
Some ways to get involved in your community are to:
- Volunteer at your community centre
- Sponsor a local sports team
- Participate in charity walks or events
- Attend local events
- Introduce yourself to neighbors
- Host an open house or BBQ
8. Facebook
Facebook is a hot space for roofing leads. That's because so many local communities live on Facebook, waiting for you to engage with them. Many homeowners also are on facebook, making it a prime location for paid ads and promotions.
Don't be afraid to share your roofing services, reviews, or photos of your jobs on Facebook! Business owners can create a Facebook page and share content regularly. It's another great way to build awareness in your community of who you are and what you do.
Facebook is also just a great place to be on as a roofer because there are so many roofing communities. They may not drive you leads directly, but there's a lot of value in learning from your peers. If you're struggling for leads or want to try new channels of marketing, ask how others do it. Take the opportunity to learn from other roofers and what has worked for them.
9. Combine lead generating ideas
Most of your competitors will be using these methods to generate leads. A way to out-do them is to lean on these methods in conjunction with each other. This integrated marketing strategy will result in higher quality campaigns, and in turn, more qualified leads.
Or example, you can post in a local Facebook group about your open house, and then email past customers to invite them to it. In that email, remind them of your referral bonus plan and encourage them to speak to non-customers who attend.
Another example could be to write a blog about what to look for when hiring a roofer. Then you could could share that post on Facebook, and then pay to boost it to homeowners in your area.
Good roofing leads are interested in what you do. The best roofing leads already have an idea of who you are and are ready to convert.
Seeing your company name just once won't be enough to convince people to reach out to you. Utilizing multichannel marketing services and combining lead generating ideas doubles — or triples — your exposure.
Streamline the roofing process with Roofr
You’ll want to do a good job servicing customers so they’ll be more likely to recommend your business to their friends and family.
For that, you can make use of platforms like Roofr, which makes the roofing sales process a breeze. Roofr is an all-in-one sales platform for roofers wanting to grow their businesses and stay ahead of the competition.
Register with Roofr today!