Guides
What actually makes a service-business phone ring.
No theory and no filler. The same things we check on paid projects, written for owners who'd rather be on a roof than in a dashboard. Original testing where we have it, honest guesses labeled as guesses where we don't.
Start hereOriginal research
I Asked 4 AIs to Recommend a Roofer. 12 of 13 Got No Link.
Five homeowner questions, four AI assistants, thirteen roofing companies, 260 answers. Only one company got its own website handed to a homeowner as a link.
15 min read
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15 min read
Local SEO
Home Services SEO: Emergency vs. Planned
A home services company gets found by two different homeowners: the one with water on the floor tonight and the one pricing a project for spring. Here is how Google and the AI assistants pick companies for each, and the site structure that wins both.
16 min read
Original research
AI Named SERVPRO 142 Times, 13 Locals 56
Thirteen water damage restoration companies on Google's first page, the same thirteen metros as the HVAC, plumbing and electrical studies, 260 answers: the local companies were named 56 times, one national franchise 142.
10 min read
Marketing
Water Damage Leads: Buy, Earn, or Both
Every water damage lead is a homeowner standing in water with a phone. Here is where those calls come from, what it costs to rent them, and how to own them instead.
10 min read
Lead handling
Plumbing Lead Generation: Own the Call
A shared plumbing lead goes to you and two or three other shops at once, paid whether or not you win. Here is the shared-lead math with a plumber's numbers, and the lead sources a plumbing company owns, starting with the phone at 9 p.m.
15 min read
Web design
Plumbing Website Design: Built for 9 p.m.
A plumber's website gets judged by a homeowner standing in water at 9 p.m. Here is what it has to show in five seconds, the pages it needs, the proof, the speed, and what a build should cost.
15 min read
Original research
13 First-Page Electricians Were Named in 67 of 259 AI Answers
Thirteen electrical contractors on Google's first page, the same thirteen metros as the HVAC and plumbing studies, 259 answers: the local electricians were named 67 times, two national franchises 64.
14 min read
Local SEO
Water Damage Restoration SEO, in Order
Restoration search is an emergency search. Here is the work that puts your number on the screen at 2 am, in the order it pays off.
9 min read
Local SEO
Plumbing SEO Keywords: The Full List, by Job
Every plumbing keyword worth a page, grouped by the job it leads to, with real search volume bands and the one question that matters: which page on your site should own it.
14 min read
Marketing
Restoration Marketing to Insurance Agents
The agent takes the first call on a water claim and gets asked who to use. Here is how a restoration company becomes the name they give, and keeps being it.
14 min read
Web design
Website Maintenance Cost, Line by Line
You own a site and you pay something every month to keep it up. Here is what that money should be buying, what each job costs on its own, and how to tell a maintenance plan from a site held for ransom.
12 min read
Sales
HVAC Sales Tips: Start With Lost Bids
Most HVAC owners cannot say why the last ten replacement quotes went to someone else. Here is how to find out in two minutes of your time and sixty seconds of theirs.
10 min read
Local SEO
Roofing SEO Keywords: The Full List by Job
Every roofing keyword worth a page, grouped by job and intent, with volume bands and the page that should own it.
15 min read
Lead handling
HVAC Lead Generation: Win the Season Early
HVAC demand arrives in two spikes a year, and the company that wins each one was set up eight weeks before it hit. Owned leads versus rented leads, speed to lead, and the customer list most shops forget they have.
13 min read
Original research
13 First-Page Plumbers Were Named in 48 of 260 AI Answers
Thirteen plumbing companies on Google's first page, the same thirteen metros as our HVAC study, 260 answers: the local plumbers were named 48 times, a national franchise 73.
11 min read
Sales
Roofing Sales: Start With Lost Bids
Most roofers cannot say why they lost their last ten bids. Here is how to find out in two minutes of your time and sixty seconds of the homeowner's.
14 min read
Local SEO
HVAC SEO Keywords, by Job and by Intent
Every HVAC search a homeowner types is one of about a hundred phrases. Here they are, grouped the way the work is grouped on your trucks, with the volume, the intent, and the page that should own each one.
15 min read
Marketing
Electrician Marketing That Rings the Phone
An electrician gets hired two ways: the breaker that keeps tripping tonight, and the panel upgrade the homeowner has been pricing for a month. Every channel scored on cost, speed, and what you keep.
11 min read
AI search
GEO vs SEO: What Contractors Need to Know
SEO gets you into Google's list. GEO gets you named in the answer ChatGPT writes. Here is how the two fit together for a contractor, and what to do first.
15 min read
Local SEO
Contractor SEO: The Work, in Order
Most contractors pay for SEO without knowing what the work is. Here it is, trade-agnostic, in the order it pays off, with a monthly checklist and a way to tell whether the person you are paying is doing any of it.
14 min read
Original research
13 First-Page HVAC Companies, Named in 80 of 260 AI Answers
Thirteen HVAC companies that already hold Google's first page, five buyer prompts, four assistants, 260 answers: twelve got a link to their own site, and 180 answers still named someone else.
9 min read
Web design
Contractor Website Builder vs Owned Site
A sixty-dollar-a-month builder on one side, a built site you own on the other, and an ad in your feed saying the difference is cosmetic. Here is what each costs over three years, who ends up holding the domain, and what walks out the door with you if you leave.
15 min read
Local SEO
How Much Does SEO Cost for a Contractor?
Three SEO quotes on the desk, $400 to $4,000 a month, and no way to tell what any of them buys. Here is how the pricing models work, what real work costs at each band, and how to spot a report subscription dressed up as a plan.
15 min read
Lead handling
Google Local Services Ads for Contractors
Local Services Ads sit above everything else on a contractor search and bill you per lead, not per click. Here is how the program works, what the badge means now, what moves your rank, and why the leads stop the day the budget does.
14 min read
Marketing
Home Services Marketing: The Plan
Every channel a home service company gets pitched, scored on three things: what it costs, how fast it rings the phone, and what you still own when you stop paying. Then a plan for three budgets.
10 min read
Marketing
Restoration Marketing: Leads You Own
A restoration company is hired in the worst hour of someone's week, usually by whoever answered first. Here is every channel that produces that call, and the ones that produce the planned work behind it.
9 min read
Reviews
More Google Reviews for Contractors
Reviews are the hinge in every guide on this site, so here is the whole system: the link, the ask, the timing, the reply, the rules, and why the count matters for ranking.
12 min read
Marketing
Plumbing Marketing: What Rings the Phone
A plumber gets hired in two ways, the burst pipe at 9 p.m. and the water heater that has been making a noise for a month. Here is every marketing channel scored on cost, speed, and what you keep.
16 min read
Web design
Contractor Website Design Guide
A contractor's website gets checked at the shortlist stage, by a homeowner comparing three bids and a property manager confirming you are real. Here is what it has to do for both.
15 min read
Local SEO
Roofing SEO: The Work, in Order
Roofing SEO is nine jobs done in a fixed order. Here is the whole list, what each one costs, and the parts you should never pay for.
13 min read
Web design
HVAC Website Design Guide: Booking Calls
HVAC gets hired at two moments a year a roofer never sees, and most HVAC websites are built for neither of them. Here is the page-by-page fix.
13 min read
Lead handling
Roofing Leads Without Buying Them
A lead broker sells the same homeowner to you and three other roofers; a system you own sends the next one to you alone.
13 min read
Marketing
Roofing Marketing: What's Worth Paying For
Nine roofing marketing channels, each scored on cost, speed, what you keep when you stop paying, and who should skip it, plus a plan for three budget sizes.
10 min read
AI search
How to Get Your Roofing Company Recommended by ChatGPT
Some homeowners now ask ChatGPT who to call before they open Google. Here is the work that gets you into that answer.
11 min read
Local SEO
Roofing Company Not Showing Up on Google?
There are three different things people call "Google," you can be invisible in one and fine in another, and the fixes are not the same.
12 min read
Pricing
How Much Does a Roofing Website Cost?
Every agency dodges this question, so here are the actual tiers, what each one buys you, and how I price my own builds.
10 min read
Lead handling
Speed to Lead: First Callback Wins the Job
Most contractors lose jobs they already paid to generate, in the hour between the form fill and the callback that never came.
9 min read
Conversion
The 5-Second Test for Contractor Sites
Five seconds, two questions, one stranger with a phone. The cheapest test of whether your homepage works, and the reason most contractor sites flunk it.
Next step
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