Have you used lead gen companies or considered doing so to generate new business?
With so much information out there about how to best market your roofing business, it can be easy to get lost in the noise.
Maybe you, like many roofing companies, have considered HomeAdvisor as a means to market your services?
Before you take the plunge with any lead gen companies, you should do some investigating to make sure it’s the right fit for your business.
We’ve taken a close look at HomeAdvisor, and think you’ll find our findings interesting.
Why Lead Generation Exists
In the roofing business, in particular, generating new leads is integral to the health of your business.
A lead refers to any potential customer or an audience base that is interested in purchasing a product or service your company offers.
Companies like HomeAdvisor are called “lead generation sites” because that spells out precisely what they do. They’re also one of the longest-serving and largest contractor-matching services.
Why Are Lead Generation Sites Good for Some Businesses?
As a business owner, you’ll be very aware of how important sales and generating new business is to your business. As well as being aware of how it feels to need to find new leads.
It can be hard to find leads yourself while managing all the other aspects of your business.
A lead generation company like HomeAdvisor can do a lot of the work for you. It’s an effective way to help you get your business off the ground with qualified leads.
Some customers say that they feel it is a great way to reach potential customers. Often citing they are able to reach customers they may not have otherwise been able to.
Is a Lead Generation Site Right for You?
Sites like HomeAdvisor can be useful to businesses who are just starting and need to establish themselves to a network of customers.
HomeAdvisor can also be helpful during the slow seasons. Especially when contractors are looking to pick up extra work.
However, not every business necessarily needs the services of sites like HomeAdvisor. If your business depends solely on a lead generation site’s services, you could miss out on sales opportunities in the future.
If you’re interested in using HomeAdvisor, we recommend using it in conjunction with other efforts. You should always spread your efforts across search engine optimization, pay per click advertising, and social media too.
It’s vital to remember HomeAdvisor and other sites like it are essentially just niche directories, and nothing more.
HomeAdvisor has created an audience for contractors who don’t have to pay anything to access the service. They make money by charging companies for the privilege of renting those audiences.
If your business wants further access to that audience, you’ll have to do so by renting access. Which really means just purchasing more leads.
We say rent because you never really buy full access forever. Once you stop paying for HomeAdvisor, that information is theirs to keep.
How Much Do Leads Cost?
According to some sites, leads on HomeAdvisor cost between $15 and $60. Other sites and more extensive studies show it can cost as much as $120 for a quality lead.
HomeAdvisor does not give out a specific rate for leads. They state on their FAQ page, “The price of our service requests varies by the type of request and the request’s location.”
Critics allege that money spent on leads can total upwards of thousands extra spent per year. They also say that it might not be worth it when leads do not mean the job will not necessarily go to your business.
What Are Your Alternatives?
As I’ve already explained, using lead gen companies are not your only option. Some of the other online marketing strategies you can use include:
Build a great website
Research suggests that between 70 to 80% of people research a company online before deciding to do business with them.
For online strategies, your website is the single most powerful tool you can utilize for powerful lead generation.
You still have the option to keep paying other companies to keep listing you in their directories. You can scale back as your site gains more traction.
Pay Per Click (PPC) Advertising
Pay per click (PPC) advertising is an essential tool for any business looking to generate high quality leads online.
With PPC advertising, you can use geotagging and other tools to target your ideal audience. For example, you can target your audience to something specific like homeowners with an average home age of 15 years.
You can use PPC across several platforms. Each platform has advantages and disadvantages, it’s something to discuss with a marketing team experienced in running PPC campaigns.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
For the best ROI, your site needs to be found by your potential customers through search engines.
For this to happen, you – or an agency working for you – need a good understanding of SEO.
You should know, however, that your SEO ranking is only a starting point. SEO can make people come to your site, but it cannot influence a buying decision.
Early on in the process, the focus is usually on increasing traffic. As time passes, the SEO strategy has to change and become more focused on making visitors become active leads in your sales cycle.
Content Marketing
When SEO starts bringing people to your website, your content is what will influence their decision to buy your services.
Engaging, high-quality, conversational content is key in relating to your website visitors and influencing a purchasing decision.
Having an expert team that knows how to write content that converts is essential. At My Roofing SEO, we have the tools to help build organic traffic that will lead to sales and conversions.
If you’d like to talk to us about your goals, we would love to schedule in a free growth strategy session at a time that works for you.
We can also discuss setting up an email marketing sales funnel.
Why a Solid Marketing Strategy Is a Better Approach
When you use lead gen companies, you may generate some leads. But those leads come with a hidden cost – the time lost building up to lead generation assets of your own.
Remember, you’re renting these clients and space. Imagine what will happen when all your leads are coming from a HomeAdvisor, and suddenly they decide to raise the price per lead. Or, they begin selling the same leads you’re buying to your competitors.
If your company is profitable and can take on more work, there’s nothing wrong with buying leads from HomeAdvisor.
But please, make sure you do some of your own research. It’s important you know what you’re getting yourself into before signing up with a lead generation site.
You have the choice to build your in-house assets and generate your own leads. Or, you can hire a professional web marketing agency to assist you with this.
Whatever you choose, make sure it aligns with your growth strategy.
If you don’t have a growth strategy, we should talk.
Please feel free to schedule one with us today. You can take control of your own growth with our proven 7-step marketing system we’ve used to generate millions of dollars for roofing companies across the country.