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5,698 Views | 36 Replies | Last: 9 mo ago by bagger05
lotsofhp
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12:57p, 8/2/22
AG
Owner of a small roofing company in San Antonio. My grandfather started the business and for over 70 years it's always just been word of mouth. We're now looking to do some advertising. Would appreciate any input on peoples experiences and what got them the best returns.

I've always been curious if bill boards are effective. Seems like they would be or people wouldn't be paying for them. Would love to hear if anyone has experience with those.
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texAZtea
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1:51p, 8/2/22
AG
If you're looking for billboards, I'm sure the company that owns those billboards has a graphics department that will help you create what you want.

If you're looking for digital marketing there are most likely a million freelance marketers in your area that can create and execute a campaign for you across different social media platforms or through google. Are they any good? Maybe so, maybe not, you can ask them to show you examples of their previous work and metrics of the results.

If you want them to build a website for you, that's a bigger can of worms and you would probably want either a more experienced freelancer or a dedicated marketing company. They will charge per page and there will be a maintenance fee after the initial site set up fee.

I am not a marketing expert, my wife is though and this is what I've picked up through osmosis.
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Diggity
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3:33p, 8/2/22
AG
billboards are a good idea...

unfortunately, every billboard in the greater San Antonio area has been purchased by accident attorney's.
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lotsofhp
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In reply to Diggity • 3:39p, 8/2/22
AG
Diggity said:
billboards are a good idea...

unfortunately, every billboard in the greater San Antonio area has been purchased by accident attorney's.


Haha maybe it's just because I'm a roofer but they all seem to be roofers these days.

Plenty of us to choose from, that's for sure
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BO297
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4:55p, 8/2/22
I am not sure what your budget is, but I would first start with social media. Get on a few or a lot of the different sites and start a page. Connect with past customers, vendors, and associates. Then start posting pictures of projects.

You might be surprised how successful it will be. You have to stay active, but it works. There are plenty of companies out there that can handle it for you, but there is a cost for it. I would try it on your own first. I am not sure how many crews you run, but a little social media can go a long way for a smaller company.
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Ghost of Bisbee
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In reply to BO297 • 5:14p, 8/2/22
AG
Agree with this.

Social media boosting and sponsored social media posts is some of the most efficient media and marketing spend you can do. High ROI if done consistently and targeted appropriately.
-Ben There/R.C.
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superunknown
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5:19p, 8/2/22
AG
Depending on your budget you might do very well targeting specific shows on radio/tv. Not as familiar with billboards, and agree with the social marketing to start out, but traditional media is still a damn good bargain for reach. If you choose that route, i would NOT recommend going with an agency to represent you. Whatever local account rep you get will be just fine. You can also reach me through PMs if you go that route, I can help navigate broadcast media advertising or even come up with ideas to get your name out there via your advertising.
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Jason_Roofer
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2:01a, 8/3/22
I agree with the above posters. My primary system is referrals but many of those come from social media searches, customer reviews on social media, or Google searches. I even found some kind of random ad with my name on Google in Helotes, Tx. Somehow, through adverts for my region, that got pegged and there it is.

Billboards are fine, mailers are fine when you have a fresh storm, but I think the internet is the way of the future. It is where everyone goes to search for Everything. Outside of that, I'd say keeping a stout pool of sales reps doing good clean work in the community will also go a long way to augmenting the social media side. As stated already, you have to keep up with Google posts and social media posts. The more you do, the more relevant you stay. I also pay for SEO and Google Ads. Not sure how much this works as I just started it and it takes a while to get fully going per my understanding.

Outside of this, I think the next best thing is broadcast like the poster above stated. I'd probably look into that as well but I don't know anything about costs associated with that.

Also, don't lose or abandon whatever has kept y'all going for as long as you have. Roofers come and go and I havnt heard of 85% of the ones homeowners mention, but there are a few long time companies and they are long time for a reason. Good luck and I hope whatever you do nets an awesome return.
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Alexhereandnow
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7:41a, 8/3/22
Highly recommend starting with PPC marketing (pay per click) on Google and Facebook. Google and Facebook have so much data on their customers (scary) that after a month or two once the algorithm figures out the general profile of your customer…the ads really start producing meaningful leads and purchases.

On top of that, you can manually target specific demographics (age, location, gender, etc) so you don't waste clicks/money on people who weren't going to be interested in your services to begin with.

We hired a freelancer. Most freelancers charge 10-20% of total ad spend to manage your ads monthly.

Hiring someone to help us with that fundamentally changed our business and pushed marketing ROI through the roof.
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lotsofhp
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8:01a, 8/3/22
AG
Thank you very much for the replies everyone.

Good luck out there infinity
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Reloadags1998
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10:42a, 8/3/22
AG
How do your Google reviews look? How do you rank on Google or the other search engines? This is mainly how people will find you. In my experience, bill boards, radio, print ads...etc only lead to brand recognition (which is not bad) but rarely directly turn in to new business. Most folks find their contractors either by referral or from Google. Businesses that rank high in the top 3 listed in the search criteria and that have many good reviews will generally do well, especially contractors.

I have used Pinpoint Marketing out of Houston for many years and could not recommend them more. Andy King, the owner, is an odd duck but in a good way. He and his team simply get results for me and my business. Based on conversations, he seems to have a specialty working with contractors so it might be worth a phone call. FYI, he is not a PPC fella which is one reason we get along.

https://pinpoint-mktg.net/

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Sea Speed
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In reply to Ghost of Bisbee • 12:53p, 8/3/22
AG
Ghost of Bizbee said:
Agree with this.

Social media boosting and sponsored social media posts is some of the most efficient media and marketing spend you can do. High ROI if done consistently and targeted appropriately.


Paging user YOUBET who had the exact opposite experience
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Sea Speed
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12:56p, 8/3/22
AG
Also my wife has a small business so this is relevant to my interests.
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Ghost of Bisbee
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In reply to Sea Speed • 6:07p, 8/3/22
AG
Sea Speed said:
Ghost of Bizbee said:
Agree with this.

Social media boosting and sponsored social media posts is some of the most efficient media and marketing spend you can do. High ROI if done consistently and targeted appropriately.


Paging user YOUBET who had the exact opposite experience


I should preface… I work with multimillion dollar marketing budgets. In my case, this type of spend almost always has the highest ROI in what Is a balanced mix of media if the targeting is right, and I'd expect that to scale down and carry over to small businesses .
-Ben There/R.C.
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Sea Speed
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In reply to Ghost of Bisbee • 7:45p, 8/3/22
AG
Yea he has told the story of his spend in his big corporate marketing department and how they got nothing really from it. It might have just been Twitter though I dont recall 100% but he has mentioned it on a few occasions and I found it to be interesting.

Either way, my wife has an interior design and decoration business and I think she needs to start advertising to the local housewives. We need to figure that out. One neighborhood specific publication wanted something like $400/month which i thought was kind of ridiculous.
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theeyetest
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11:23p, 8/3/22
Google and Facebook are your best friend. Wear them out and learn how they function. Don't pay a 3rd party company to do it for you, it's not worth it.

It's a massive headache getting setup with google and learning the ins and outs of how to get your company at the top of the page, but it'll pay massive dividends.
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Canyon99
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7:52a, 8/4/22
AG
My wife and I use a digital marketing group out of Florida for our business. They are good but probably not geared toward that industry otherwise I'd recommend them. We don't have any physical advertising beyond our sign at our place of business as our online marketing campaign is very effective.

If you have time, I'd recommend learning how to do the digital marketing yourself. Will save some $$. We just don't want to mess with it ourselves.
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Ghost of Bisbee
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In reply to Sea Speed • 8:03a, 8/4/22
AG
Sea Speed said:
Yea he has told the story of his spend in his big corporate marketing department and how they got nothing really from it. It might have just been Twitter though I dont recall 100% but he has mentioned it on a few occasions and I found it to be interesting.

Either way, my wife has an interior design and decoration business and I think she needs to start advertising to the local housewives. We need to figure that out. One neighborhood specific publication wanted something like $400/month which i thought was kind of ridiculous.


Interesting. Would love to know why it doesn't work for their experience, and what kind of product theyre selling. My products are for digitally-savvy consumers for the most part, so that does play a role

That said, everyone and their mother has a Facebook.
-Ben There/R.C.
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Sea Speed
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8:09a, 8/4/22
AG
Anyone have a path on how to get started in digital marketing yourself? I am interested in that.
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Ghost of Bisbee
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In reply to Sea Speed • 8:34a, 8/4/22
AG
I'd like to know this too. I work through media planners /buyers so never see the execution side of this
-Ben There/R.C.
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superunknown
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In reply to Ghost of Bisbee • 2:10p, 8/4/22
AG
What do you see when they send you an invoice? Do they verify PPC or other metrics on # of impressions? Broken down by zip code? Always been curious on this myself.
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Ghost of Bisbee
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In reply to superunknown • 2:30p, 8/4/22
AG
CPM is the primary benchmark they guarantee against. Reminds me, I have a call with our media buying agency soon to run through results. I'll see if they've changed their reporting significantly since the last time I've checked.
-Ben There/R.C.
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superunknown
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In reply to Ghost of Bisbee • 6:28p, 8/4/22
AG
Interesting...are you guaranteed a certain cpm and they just run your ad till you get there?
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AgsMyDude
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7:16p, 8/4/22
AG
Also try and request customers to leave reviews on nextdoor. That seems to be a popular way to find businesses these days, especially stuff like roofing
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cjsag94
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1:39p, 8/5/22
AG
I'd assume billboards works to simply drive name recognition, but it's to a completely unvetted customer base. I would expect significant increase in inquiries, but a bunch that are simply seeking the cheapest price. So I think I'd lean toward either social media or some type of targeted marketing to make sure you reach the people you want to respond. Also, I'd also assume you need to revaluate your sales process as part of the plan because it's much different selling to a referral vs someone who clicked a banner ad.

This is obvious stuff.. Just saying I think the processes around sales and marketing are more important than the medium chosen to deliver ads.
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lotsofhp
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In reply to cjsag94 • 2:54p, 8/5/22
AG
Good points, thank you for your input.

Thank you to everyone for the discussion
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TxTarpon
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In reply to lotsofhp • 4:39p, 8/5/22


This really helped me.
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AnchorFoundation
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6:08p, 8/7/22
70 years, props to you and the family for doing things right!

I'll take a different approach and recommend the book "They Ask, You Answer"

Synopsis: the way consumers buy has changed. 70% of them have made a decision BEFORE reaching out.

Answer every question a lead has ever asked you in a blog article, video, or SM post…. Google will reward your efforts as more homeowners consume your content.

Your clients will reward you for being upfront, transparent, and educational so THEY can make an informed decision on THEIR timeline.
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neronero
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2:24a, 5/9/23
Started my small business three months ago. Would appreciate some ideas about the promotion and advertising
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Bezmm
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3:14p, 5/9/23
Small business marketing can be challenging, but it's essential for the growth and success of your business. Here are some methods you can try:
- using social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn can be powerful tools to connect with potential customers, promote your products or services, and build brand awareness)
- email marketing (it is a cost-effective way to reach out to your existing customers and keep them informed about your business. You can use email marketing to promote new products or services, offer discounts or coupons, or share business updates. I use Rank Engine https://rankengine.io/aged-outreach-links/ to do email outreach because I don't want to spend so much time on this)
- creating high-quality content to attract and retain customers
- local SEO (you can optimize your website for local keywords, create local business listings, and encourage customer reviews)
- encourage your existing customers to refer their friends and family to your business.
It's important to remember that marketing is an ongoing process, and it may take time to see results. Focus on building a consistent marketing strategy to achieve your business goals.
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bagger05
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In reply to Bezmm • 7:31p, 5/9/23
AG
Thanks, ChatGPT
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bagger05
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7:36p, 5/9/23
AG
If I could go back in time I think I'd hire more internal marketing people faster rather than going with outsourced options. And I'm in industrial B2B. Not even in a marketing-heavy sector and I'd rather have my own marketing staff.

I've tried a handful of agencies and none have been awesome.
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bagger05
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In reply to neronero • 7:41p, 5/9/23
AG
What is your business?

Regardless, I recommend Building a Storybrand by Donald Miller.

Beyond that it is hard to give much advice without knowing what your company does.
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neronero
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In reply to Bezmm • 10:57a, 6/30/23
Bezmm said:
Small business marketing can be challenging, but it's essential for the growth and success of your business. Here are some methods you can try:
- using social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn can be powerful tools to connect with potential customers, promote your products or services, and build brand awareness)
- email marketing (it is a cost-effective way to reach out to your existing customers and keep them informed about your business. You can use email marketing to promote new products or services, offer discounts or coupons, or share business updates. I use Rank Engine https://rankengine.io/aged-outreach-links/ to do email outreach because I don't want to spend so much time on this)
- creating high-quality content to attract and retain customers
- local SEO (you can optimize your website for local keywords, create local business listings, and encourage customer reviews)
- encourage your existing customers to refer their friends and family to your business.
It's important to remember that marketing is an ongoing process, and it may take time to see results. Focus on building a consistent marketing strategy to achieve your business goals.
That was helpful . Thanks!
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kermas
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11:56a, 3/3/24
What ways did you choose? I'm looking for the ways to promote my business. And can I do it by myself? Or is it better to address professionals?
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