// TRADIE MARKETING
Marketing for tradies, done in the right order
Marketing for tradies works when the pieces go in the right order. Be findable, look like the safe choice, answer every enquiry, then pay for more traffic. A lot of wasted marketing money goes on ads before the basics underneath them are done.
// THE ORDER
Tradie marketing, step by step
Each step makes the next one cheaper. Skip ahead and you pay for the gap. Prices are ex GST. Where a price is fixed, it is fixed before work starts.
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Google Business Profile
It is free, it is where most local searches end, and a verified, complete profile is the foundation every other channel leans on.
Setup and verification $390 + GST, fixed.
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A website that converts
Every channel sends people somewhere. If that page is slow, vague or hides the phone number, you pay for the same lost customer over and over.
Landing page $1,500 + GST. Full website from $2,800 + GST, hosting included.
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Reviews, asked for every time
Reviews decide which of three tradies gets the call. Asking every customer at the right moment beats a burst of asking once a year.
Review system $1,500 + GST setup, then $497/month + GST.
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Answer every enquiry
A missed call on a tools-down day is a job gone to the next number. Text-back and quote follow-up catch the leads you are already paying for.
Missed-call text-back from $1,800 + GST. Quote follow-up from $900 + GST.
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Google Ads
Once the page converts and every lead gets answered, ads buy more of the searches that are already happening. Before that, they buy waste.
Management is quoted to your account. A recorded website and ads audit is $290 + GST.
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SEO, building underneath
SEO is the slow channel. It starts paying months after the work, so it runs under the ads and slowly takes over the searches you were paying for.
One-off SEO builds from $3,500 + GST, scoped before we start.
SEO for tradiesSEO for plumbersSEO for electriciansSEO for roofers
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Meta ads, for the right work
Facebook and Instagram interrupt people who are not searching. That suits big, visual, planned jobs like outdoor living and renovations, and rarely suits a blocked drain.
Quoted per account, usually once Google is working.
// YOUR TRADE
The order shifts with the work you do
An emergency plumber and a pool builder should not run the same marketing. The customer searches differently, decides differently and is worth a different amount.
Plumbers, electricians, locksmiths, drainers
Google Business Profile, a call-first website, missed-call text-back, then Google Ads on the emergency searches.
Builders, landscapers, pools, painters, solar
A website with your own finished work on it, reviews, quote follow-up, then SEO and Google Ads. Meta ads once the basics are converting.
Trade-specific plans: marketing for plumbers, split between emergency callouts and planned hot water work, and marketing for electricians, split between faults and installs such as switchboards and EV chargers.
// ONE TRADIE, THE WHOLE STACK
What this looks like for a real electrician
Joondalup Electrical came to us in July 2026 with four indexed pages and work that came mostly from word of mouth. Here is what went in.
- A 46 page website replacing a four page WordPress site, with a page per service and sixteen suburb pages.
- Three switchboard landing pages written to match the ads that point at them.
- A Google Ads account built and ready to import: three campaigns and seven ad groups, every keyword checked against live Perth volume and cost per click.
- Google Business Profile set up as a service area business, with matching citations and social profiles.
- Automatic review requests once a job is done. The business went from 3 to 12 Google reviews in the first month.
We also run the website, video and Google Ads for Plumbed Right, a plumbing business we have looked after for close to three years. More builds are on our work page.
// WHAT TO SKIP
Marketing we tell tradies not to buy yet
Tradies in forums say the same things about marketing that wasted their money. We agree with most of it. We cover what they say in what tradies say about marketing.
Paying for hipages and want out? Read hipages alternatives.
- Lead marketplaces as a long-term plan. They can fill a gap, but the same lead often goes to several tradies and stops the day you stop paying.
- Long lock-in retainers with reporting nobody can read. You should be able to see what a lead cost.
- Ads before the landing page and the follow-up are ready. That buys clicks you then lose.
- Posting on social media daily for its own sake. A few real job photos a month beats a content calendar nobody on the tools has time for.
- Marketing accounts registered in someone else’s name. Your profile, ad accounts and domain should be yours from day one.
Not sure who holds your logins now? Use the marketing account ownership checklist.
// OR ALL OF IT
Take one piece, or run it as one system
Every step above can be bought on its own. If you would rather hand over the ads, landing page, follow-up and reviews as one job with one monthly report, that is the Lead System. All of our services are listed on the services page.
// QUESTIONS
Straight answers before you ask
Working out where your marketing money should go first? Ask us and we will tell you straight, including when the answer is to spend less.
Get in touchWhat marketing should a tradie start with?
A verified Google Business Profile and a website that makes it easy to call you. Both keep working whether or not you are paying for ads. Reviews and fast follow-up come next, then paid traffic.
Should I do Google Ads or SEO first?
For most tradies, Google Ads first with SEO building underneath. Ads can bring calls inside weeks, SEO takes months and keeps paying after. Our SEO vs Google Ads for tradies guide goes through when each one wins.
How much should a tradie spend on marketing?
Start with the fixed costs that keep working: profile, website, reviews and follow-up. Then set ad spend by what a job is worth to you and what a lead costs in your area. Our guide to lead generation costs for tradies walks through the maths.
Is Facebook or Instagram worth it for tradies?
For planned, visual work such as outdoor living, pools and renovations, it can be. For urgent work, people search on Google instead of scrolling, so put the money there first.
Can I start with one piece instead of everything?
Yes. Plenty of tradies start with a website or a profile fix and add the rest later. If you want the whole thing run as one system, that is our Lead System.
Do I own everything you set up?
Yes. Your Google Business Profile, ad accounts, website and domain sit in your name. There is no lock-in contract, and if you move on you keep the lot.
// READY WHEN YOU ARE
Find out which step you are missing
Tell us your trade, your area and what you run now. We will tell you the next step worth paying for, and what it costs.
Get a plan