How to Market Your Deck Building Business on a Budget

You’re a deck builder with serious skills and a growing deck building business, but maybe you’re not quite ready to invest what it takes for professional marketing just yet. Everyone’s gotta start somewhere, right? Let’s walk through some essential steps to get your marketing off the ground, boost your visibility, and lay a solid foundation for future growth.

Step 1: Claim and Optimize Your Business Profile

Your Google My Business profile is your online front door. Here’s how to make it shine:

• Complete Your Information: Ensure your address, phone number, and hours are accurate.
• Add High-Quality Photos: Showcase your best projects.
• Collect and Respond to Reviews: Reviews boost your credibility and improve your local SEO.

Helpful Tip: Keeping your business profile updated with fresh photos and posts makes Google happy. Google acts like a matchmaker; if it sees your business is active and trustworthy, it will show you to more potential customers.

Step 2: Build a Comprehensive Website

Your website is your online portfolio. Here’s what it needs:

• Detail Your Services: Clearly list all the services you offer.
• Showcase Your Top Projects: Include detailed pages with project descriptions, price ranges, materials used, and locations.
• Create Location-Specific Pages: Cater to all the locations you serve.
• Contact Information: Make it easy for people to reach you.
• Showcase Your Work: Include a gallery of high-quality images.
• Include Warranties and Guarantees: Detail your service guarantees to build trust.
• Have a Reviews Page: Display customer feedback prominently.
• Introduce Your Team: Add fun bios and authentic photos to build a personal connection.
• Community and Environmental Efforts: Highlight what you do for the community and the environment.

Helpful Tip: Incorporate a blog to share tips, answer common questions, and address common sales objections. This builds credibility and helps with SEO. A well-rounded website builds trust and shows potential clients that you’re the real deal.

Step 3: Gather and Respond to Reviews

Reviews are crucial for your online reputation and local SEO. Here’s how to maximize their potential:

• Ask for Reviews: After every completed project, ask your clients to leave a review.
• Respond Promptly: Always reply to reviews. It shows you care about customer feedback and boosts your profile in Google’s algorithm.

Helpful Tip: Responding to reviews helps your Google ranking, making your business more visible in local searches. Happy clients sharing their experiences can be the tipping point for new customers.

Step 4: Use Lead Generation Services

Services like Angie can help you get initial leads. Here are some pros and cons:

• Pros: Good for starting out and getting your first few leads.
• Cons: Leads are often shared with other businesses, and the quality can vary.

Helpful Tip: These services are a good starting point, but they shouldn’t be your long-term strategy. They provide a quick influx of leads, but you’ll want to build more sustainable lead sources over time.

Step 5: Set a Marketing Budget

Investing in marketing is crucial for growth. Here’s how to start:

• Start with a Goal: Understand your growth ambitions. If you want to grow quickly, plan to invest more than 1-2% of your revenue initially.
• Be Prepared to Spend: Many deck builders are hesitant to invest enough at the beginning. Starting with a small budget might lead to slow growth. To reach ambitious goals, be ready to invest significantly in your marketing efforts.

Helpful Tip: A good starting point is to invest in a professional website and ongoing SEO to build a strong foundation. Remember, marketing is an investment in your future growth.

Step 6: Leverage Social Media

Social media can be powerful, even without a big budget. Here’s how to get started:

• Create Business Pages: Set up pages on Facebook, Instagram, and other relevant platforms.
• Post Regularly: Share photos of your projects, behind-the-scenes shots, and customer testimonials.
• Engage with Followers: Respond to comments and messages promptly.
• Build a Following: Ask friends and family to follow your page and share it with their networks. Join local Facebook groups and participate in conversations.
• Use Reels and Videos: These tend to get higher engagement. Show before-and-after shots of your work.

Helpful Tip: Platforms like Nextdoor can also be beneficial for connecting with your local community. Social media is great for nurturing leads and staying top-of-mind, even if it’s not your main source of new business.

Step 7: Plan for Paid Advertising

As your revenue grows, consider investing in paid ads:

• Google Ads: Start with a small budget and scale up as you see results.
• Social Media Ads: Facebook and Instagram ads can be effective for local businesses.

Helpful Tip: Set clear goals and track your ad performance to ensure you’re getting a good return on investment. Paid ads can bring in high-quality leads quickly, making them a valuable tool in your marketing toolkit.

Step 8: Create Rich, Helpful Content

Content is king when it comes to SEO and building authority. Here’s what you need:

• Answer Common Questions: Create content that addresses frequently asked questions.
• Blog Consistently: Aim for at least one article per month, more if possible.
• Focus on Quality: Make sure your content is helpful and well-written.

Helpful Tip: Use your content in your sales process to answer client questions and overcome objections. Quality content helps improve your SEO, leading to more leads and revenue. A robust content library positions you as an authority in your field.

Step 9: Delegate and Focus on Growth

As your business grows, delegating tasks is key:

• Hire an Office Admin: They can handle calls and administrative work, freeing up your time.
• Get a Project Manager: They can oversee projects, allowing you to focus on sales and strategy.

Helpful Tip: Investing in CRM software can help manage leads and automate follow-ups, saving you time and helping you stay organized. Delegating allows you to focus on what you do best—building amazing decks.

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FAQs

Wrapping It Up

Marketing your deck building business doesn’t have to be daunting. Start with the basics, be consistent, and as you grow, consider investing in professional help. It’s all about building a strong foundation now, so you’re ready to scale later.

Everything we’ve mentioned here is extremely important and needs to be tackled. Each step and sub-task has explicit reasons behind it, all aimed at setting you up for long-term success. If you have any questions whatsoever, do not hesitate to reach out. And as always, when you’re ready to get serious with marketing, we offer a free strategy session to help you take the next step.