Plumbing Lead Generation 101: Strategies, Ideas, and Tips

Want more leads for your plumbing business? Here’s what the best plumbing websites do for lead generation.

Plumbing isn’t an exciting topic for the general public. People don’t care about plumbing until they need a plumber. This means that plumbing websites need to be targeted to specific needs and your ability to address those needs, both quickly and efficiently.

High-quality plumbing websites address this need by making it easy for customers to absorb the information, being targeted to the right local area, and allowing customers to interact with you directly from the website. Good web design will address all the needs of your customers and provide feedback.

For consumers having an emergency, getting a prompt response is the key to gaining their business. Customers need you right now, not an hour from now, or even tomorrow. Today, we’ll discuss how your website can reach your target audience and get more plumbing jobs, how to draw consumers into your website and win them over, and how to convert them into new customer leads the same day.

10 Plumbing Lead Generation Tips and Tricks

1. Improve your SEO and rank for “near me” searches.

Make sure your website has a good flow. Information should be easy to absorb, presented in an organized manner, and with pictures to pull the viewer’s eyes from topic to topic. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is essential. Having a website designed professionally and developed properly is genuinely the best decision if you can afford to have it done.

SEO is an investment that will pay for itself over time. You’re a plumber or a contractor, not a website designer, so hire one. It is imperative that when someone’s toilet breaks and searches “plumbing near me,” your website should be one of the first options they see.

More than just SEO, you should gear your site to focus on ‘near me’ searches to be most effective. One method of doing this is to get other sites to link to yours, and they don’t have to be large sites. Just a local site in the industry or discussing similar products, referencing your site will go a long way. 

To further grow your ‘near me’ rank, make it easy to find a way to contact you on your website too. This can be done by having your contact information, including your phone number, your address, and your email, posted right on the front page for them to see. That alone isn’t enough. The plumbing website design should be functional and straightforward. We’ll give you more tips as we go along.

Research is proving that people with mobile phones are the biggest fans of texting and chatting. Add a mobile chat-friendly platform to your website. Podium’s Webchat tool allows plumbing leads to message you instantly from your website. You or someone on your team can then handle these messages, respond to potential customers within moments, set up a time to get a plumber to them, and even let them know when the plumber will arrive with an ETA.

By accessing your website, getting the necessary information, and setting an appointment by just using your thumbs, you’ll find more bookings naturally happen. Nearly three-quarters of Americans are more likely to set an appointment if they don’t have to make a phone call.

2. Optimize your website.

Website elements such as pages’ meta descriptions, your Google Business Profile, and more should be tailored for your state, region, or city. While there is no silver bullet to automatically get your website ranked in the number one search results, it can be done. It’s a process that often involves tweaking, regularly adding new and updated information to your website, and following a specific plan for improving your rankings. 

Suppose you are not highly skilled in SEO. In that case, it is worth your marketing dollars to have your website optimized by using meta descriptions and keyword-rich content that potential leads are using to search for information in your local area.

Utilizing Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) can help boost your local leads exponentially. Having a Google Business Profile will ensure that when someone searches for a plumber in their area, your business pops up in the search results. Customers don’t open the yellow pages anymore; they search for websites. Almost all searches are done digitally. 

According to Google Ads, there are more than 2.8 million online searches for plumbers each month. This same site we link shows that 97% of consumers prefer to search for local products or services. You must ensure that you are visible. Open a Google Business Profile account today. Work with an SEO-savvy web developer to streamline your website and get new content added regularly.

3. Get online customer reviews.

On your website, make yourself stand out over your competitors as a quality plumbing company. There are plenty of plumbers out there. Why are you better? Do you have many plumbers on staff that will arrive sooner? Do you have the best rates? Offer a payment plan? Do you show visibility and trust with reviews and stats found on your plumbing website? 

If you have fantastic plumbing testimonials on your site, they can make you more competitive with other plumbing sites. Reviews are vital to your success.

Research has shown that 72% of consumers won’t take action until they’ve read reviews. That is a staggering number of people treating reviews as referrals. It should also be noted that more than that will also decline to do business with a plumbing company (or any company) that has more than four negative reviews in favor of another local business that does not.

The best way to hide negative reviews is to gain a ton of positive reviews, and then negative reviews fall to the bottom of the list. You should also respond to reviews, even the bad ones. Show potential plumbing customers that your company wants to solve problems and keep customers happy. People want exceptional service. Your willingness to address concerns shows that you care about service.

4. Improve your communication channels.

When you put together your website, don’t pay for vague photos of plumbing services. Take your pictures of the work that your crews have done. Show plumbing catastrophes that you’ve saved homeowners from.  Document your actual work. Visibility with all of your previous projects is an impactful way to gain credibility and help consumers choose to contact you when they see proof that you have solved the same issue for someone else.

In addition to adding real-time photos to your website, make sure you enhance your communication channels. Learn more about maximizing your phone conversations and start making revenue from calls coming in.

5. Consider email and SMS marketing.

The best digital marketing strategy is to have a presence on social media streamlined and filled with content similar to your website. Using social media is a great way to get your name in the minds of local people, allow customers to review your business, and provide photos and content that personalize your relationship with your community.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking using text messaging will be complicated. You can simply send one text that will drive revenue with some simple tips. In addition to utilizing email and SMS marketing, make sure to use all your social media outlets to promote your site.

An example of a good plumbing website that makes it easy to find its social media is Larsen Plumbing. Note, they set themselves apart immediately. Within 30 seconds, it is apparent they are in Tampa, FL. They are licensed. They can be reached via the phone number in plain sight at the top of the page. 

A chat box is immediately apparent to make it easy to find and use. Larsen Plumbing has tab links to frequently asked questions located on their blog. Prominently at the bottom of the front page is a link to their social media account.  You don’t want to link to lame social media accounts that hardly ever post. Show that you care about the community and show your wins on social media. Don’t forget about social media on your website.

6. Automate your work processes.

Invest in a webchat widget, where people ask questions or need quotes for things you can text them all in one platform. Customers are more likely to reach out to businesses like plumbing contractors if they can do so via chat. 

7. Consider pay-per-click.

Local business owners can utilize pay-per-click or PPC marketing to get ahead with near-me searches much faster. This is when you only pay when your ad is clicked. This helps ensure you are targeting appropriate demographics.

8. Make your website mobile-friendly.

People are increasingly doing their searches from their phones; this means you need to make sure your sight is mobile-friendly. To be relevant for ‘near me’ searches, your website needs to have a responsive design at the minimum. This is a good area to pay professionals to give you an upgrade.

9. Consider content marketing.

Content marketing is an excellent method for bringing new site visitors. Set up a blog and create content that educates your clients on how to maintain their pipes to keep ‘the plumber away.’ If you’re in another trade, consider useful tips and learning blogs. You will want to place words that are relevant to your local area and your industry within the blog. This is a very useful method of keeping your website ranking.

10. Keep track of your strategies and redesign.

You can’t know how your site is doing if you don’t monitor information coming in. Make sure to utilize your website’s admin panel and get the details of how many visitors are coming, how much time they’re spending on your website, and what is bringing them to your site. You will also want to consider what is leading them to follow you or purchase from you. Use this information to constantly redesign your marketing strategy.

Take Your Plumbing Business to the Next Level

The goal is for your digital advertising to improve, to more than pay for itself, and bring you new quality leads every single day. You’ll get high-quality leads in your service area when your website is appropriately set up and streamlined with great content. Social media accounts are free advertising and will personalize your relationships with customers and the local community at large.

You’re armed with tools, data, and apps like Podium. The rest is up to you. Start by Googling “plumbers in my area” and see what the results are. If your website is getting buried under other service providers, you’ve got work to do, and home services software like Podium can help. 

Plumbing Lead Generation FAQs

Q: What is a lead generation system?

A: A lead generation system is a process that brings potential clients to your business by nurturing shared interests. The goal of this system is to convert a visitor into a customer. There are many ways to generate leads.

Q: How many types of lead generation are there?

A: There are eight basic categories of lead generation. These are third-party or paid, direct mail, word of mouth, events, advertising & branding, outbound, online, and PR.

Q: What is the best plumbing lead generation software?

A: The best lead generation software is one that is useful for you. There are many vendors of lead generation software on the market today. Additionally, you don’t need to just consider plumbing software to get quality plumbing leads. Broader lead generation services like Podium and similar tools can help you find leads and boost conversion, too.