Finding Jobs

Are lead platforms like Angi and Thumbtack worth it?

Whether Angi and Thumbtack are worth it for contractors comes down to cost per booked job, not cost per lead. Here is how to measure it in 60 days.

Asking for reviews so people say yes

How to ask for reviews as a contractor: the moment that works, why a direct link beats look me up, and what to do when a yes never turns into a review.

Building a portfolio of your work

How to build a contractor portfolio: photos on every job, before and after from the same spot, written permission, and a filing system that finds them later.

Building a waitlist instead of chasing

When a contractor is booked out for weeks, a waitlist beats overbooking or turning people away. How to measure your backlog, run the list, and keep it from going stale.

Commercial or residential customers: which to lean toward

Commercial vs residential contracting compared on ticket size, payment timing, decision-makers, insurance demands, and how to land a first commercial account.

The website a trade actually needs

A contractor website has one job: convince someone who already has your name. What belongs on it, what to leave off, and what a small site really costs.

Facebook that brings in local work

Facebook marketing for contractors without hiring an agency: a Business Page, local groups, before-and-after posts, and an honest read on paid Meta ads.

Google Business Profile for local trades

How to set up, verify and maintain a Google Business Profile as a contractor with no storefront, and what actually moves your spot in the local map pack.

Instagram for people who do the work

Instagram for contractors works as proof, not lead generation. The five-minute shot list, the honest time budget, local tags, and what to expect by month six.

Nextdoor for local service businesses

How Nextdoor works for contractors: recommendation threads, a free business page, and why the ad you want to post is the one that costs you the lead.

Property management work: getting on the vendor list

Property management contractor work trades steady volume for thinner margins. How the approved-vendor list works, and what it takes to get onto one.

Contractor referrals: turning one job into the next

Most contractor referrals never happen because nobody asked. When to ask, what to say, and whether a referral incentive is worth the trouble.

Answering leads before your competitor does

Contractor lead response time decides most small jobs. What fast actually means by lead type, and a triage workflow that does not keep you on your phone.

Responding to bid invitations and RFPs

How to respond to a bid invitation: triage the invite in ten minutes, price what one bid really costs you, and get the paperwork in before the deadline.

Working as a sub for general contractors

How to get subcontracting work: where GC leads actually come from, the insurance and paperwork they check first, and what sub margin costs you.

Word of mouth that compounds

Word of mouth marketing for contractors is arithmetic, not luck: here is the referral rate that makes it compound, why it takes years, and the habits that move it.

Finding work in the slow season

Contractor slow season work starts with knowing whether your slow months are weather, scheduling, or a sales gap you created in October.

Yard signs and neighborhood clustering

Contractor yard signs are marketing a neighbor vouches for. How to place them, which HOA and city rules to check, and how to work a whole block.