How do you make money on social media as a contractor?
Ask the nearest contractor if their social media has ever brought them any leads or business.
You’ll most likely get a resounding no.
But why? Isn’t social media the secret formula for exploding your business and generating as much money as you want?
The truth is, it is. Most contractors just don’t know how to use it properly. They post a couple pictures of a finished house on Facebook and then call it a day.
But check out Odell Concrete. All they did was post a couple of videos on Youtube and now they’re one of the top concrete contractors in their area!
Just look at these numbers:
Social media can be extremely effective if you know how to use it right, but what does that really mean?
Social Media Strategy for Construction Companies
So here’s the strategy, we’re going to position you as the dream contractor people want to work with. Having your social media accounts as your virtual business cards can build trust with people you’re going to work with.
This is split up into 4 parts:
- Awareness Advertising
- Showcasing Work
- Giving Advice to Other Construction Businesses
- Networking with Potential Clients
Each part plays a big role in this whole process, and I’m going to go over each one and show you exactly how to handle this whole social media thing.
Starting with Awareness Advertising.
Awareness Advertising
So, what is awareness advertising? It’s just letting people know you exist. You are not trying to get anyone to do anything other than checking out your page.
You’re selling your reputation, not your services.
You can do this on any platform out there, but I personally recommend you go hardest on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. With LinkedIn being where you’re probably going to find the most potential business.
Awareness advertising isn’t just posting random offers on Facebook; this is an advertisement you’re going to set up and unleash onto potential clients that tells them just who you are.
IMPORTANT: If you have no idea how to set up advertisements on Facebook or LinkedIn, be sure to hire an agency or freelancer to help you out. This is very important to get right.
Ok, now that you can understand the gist of it, we have to decide on what to actually make our awareness ad.
When making your awareness ad, keep in mind that advertising is meant to make people happy enough to buy whatever it is you’re selling. So, what makes contractors, architects, and developers happy?
By showing how efficient your company is. By detailing exactly how you treat your clients. By teaching other contractors how to do things better.
Think about this, what makes the construction industry happy?
Answer this in your awareness ad and watch your office phone explode with people wanting to talk to you.
Of course, to make a genuine awareness ad, you’re going to need to have some experience under your belt you can showcase.
(P.S: Don’t have experience? No problem! Read our guide to get more construction jobs now)
It’s also recommended you hire a video production company if you can afford it to give you the cleanest, most professional-looking video possible.
Also, the text along with the video should be attention-grabbing, and not generic.
I don’t want you to get lost in the crowd of other construction companies. Instead of saying:
“20 Years in Construction Industry. Call Now”
Say:
“One of the Best Drywall Contractors in [insert city]. We Take Care of Our Clients.”
You must give something bold and friendly at the same time, remember, the goal here in the beginning is to bring as much attention as you can to your company.
To help you visualize this process, here’s an incomplete infographic (keep reading for the rest):
So, to sum it up, you’re going to create a video ad on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram that introduces yourself to potential clients, and gets your company name out there.
Next, we’re going to showcase our work so the people who like our awareness ad can have something to look at when they visit our account.
Showcasing Work
At this stage, we have clients coming on to our page interested in our company, so we need to wow them with our experience.
This can be in the form of posting projects you’ve done, and really just showing how amazing your company is at their job.
The more impressive the project, the better. If you’re an already established contractor that’s done some big projects in the city, or anything that’s not a “typical” project, post about it.
Show the end results of your projects, and for good measure add in how long it took to complete or other details regarding the project in the caption.
You can also show how you do business with your clients, how you conduct meetings, and how you manage the job site.
The goal here is to back up what you said in the awareness video with the content on your page.
Remember that you can re-use the same content along LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
Again, some of these things sound very simple but can actually be a little difficult once you get into it, so it’s recommended you hire a social media marketing professional for your construction company to make your ideas come to life.
Let’s check up on that infographic.
We’re definitely going to want to consistently post updates on what we’re doing and some behind-the-scenes footage to make our virtual business card look more professional, but something else that’s more powerful is still on our to-do list.
Teach other construction businesses.
Let’s go over how it works.
Giving Advice to Other Construction Businesses
If you’re a mentor to other companies, your reputation becomes one of authority, as that means you’re so good as a company you consult others on how to operate.
Give some tips on how to negotiate with other contractors or advice on what to say to new clients. This kind of content would fit right in on LinkedIn mostly, but should also be posted on Facebook and Instagram.
If a contractor sees your awareness ad and is interested in your company, then clicks on your account to see you have a ton of free content that’s valuable for his company, and you’re showing how efficiently you run your business…
You’re instantly 5x more attractive as a client.
Or in other words, you’re 5x more likely to make more money.
This is a big piece to the puzzle I see many construction companies missing. Making yourself out to be the authority in your area is so huge to potential clients and can position you and your company in a really great spot to grow.
You can make short videos of you in the car talking, or you can make professional videos detailing certain aspects of construction business in general.
Casual and professional videos both perform very well on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
BUT be careful… we find that anything in the middle ground between casual and professional tends to not perform well, so try to stay away from creating professional videos without professional equipment.
So, to tie it all together, at this point we have an awareness ad bringing in specific people to your companies’ social media, we have content showcasing your work, and we’re giving advice to other construction businesses.
Let’s see what that looks like.
All that’s missing is actually putting the “social” in social media and talking to prospects.
Networking with Potential Clients
This is probably the most important part of your social media strategy.
Actually getting into the trenches and talking to just 5-6 potential clients every day is a winning strategy.
Doing this on LinkedIn consistently would work the best, but you can also do it on Facebook and Instagram as well.
After posting the awareness ad, and having great content on your profile, you’re naturally going to attract people to your page, so all that’s left after that is to network and engage with those people.
It’s as simple as leaving a genuine comment on another construction company page, or direct messaging another construction company to get on their bid list.
You need to engage with other construction businesses, and with the valuable content on your social media profiles, it’s a lot easier to do that.
To give you some practical advice you can do right now, go on LinkedIn and search for exactly the kind of client you want (exhibit A):
Then, connect with 15 new people daily (anymore and you might get flagged as spam), and then give them a personalized message on why their company should have interest in you.
Yes, it’s that simple.
You can also reach out to all your followers on any social media platform you have and give your sales pitches.
Now, let’s look at the completed strategy.
Conclusion
Most construction companies don’t understand social media and how to use it, but hopefully with this guide, you can start your journey to using social media to grow your construction business.
Your profiles are like your digital business cards, so make sure they look as professional as possible, and give your company a good reputation.
If you put out great awareness ads, post amazing content about your work that wows people, and engage and network with those exact people, you will find success with social media.
And yes, your construction company will make more money.
Have an interesting take on this piece? Confused about anything?
Then feel free to comment below.
Good luck with your social media journey.
How do you make money on social media as a contractor?
Ask the nearest contractor if their social media has ever brought them any leads or business.
You’ll most likely get a resounding no.
But why? Isn’t social media the secret formula for exploding your business and generating as much money as you want?
The truth is, it is. Most contractors just don’t know how to use it properly. They post a couple pictures of a finished house on Facebook and then call it a day.
But check out Odell Concrete. All they did was post a couple of videos on Youtube and now they’re one of the top concrete contractors in their area!
Just look at these numbers:
Social media can be extremely effective if you know how to use it right, but what does that really mean?
Social Media Strategy for Construction Companies
So here’s the strategy, we’re going to position you as the dream contractor people want to work with. Having your social media accounts as your virtual business cards can build trust with people you’re going to work with.
This is split up into 4 parts:
- Awareness Advertising
- Showcasing Work
- Giving Advice to Other Construction Businesses
- Networking with Potential Clients
Each part plays a big role in this whole process, and I’m going to go over each one and show you exactly how to handle this whole social media thing.
Starting with Awareness Advertising.
Awareness Advertising
So, what is awareness advertising? It’s just letting people know you exist. You are not trying to get anyone to do anything other than checking out your page.
You’re selling your reputation, not your services.
You can do this on any platform out there, but I personally recommend you go hardest on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. With LinkedIn being where you’re probably going to find the most potential business.
Awareness advertising isn’t just posting random offers on Facebook; this is an advertisement you’re going to set up and unleash onto potential clients that tells them just who you are.
IMPORTANT: If you have no idea how to set up advertisements on Facebook or LinkedIn, be sure to hire an agency or freelancer to help you out. This is very important to get right.
Ok, now that you can understand the gist of it, we have to decide on what to actually make our awareness ad.
When making your awareness ad, keep in mind that advertising is meant to make people happy enough to buy whatever it is you’re selling. So, what makes contractors, architects, and developers happy?
By showing how efficient your company is. By detailing exactly how you treat your clients. By teaching other contractors how to do things better.
Think about this, what makes the construction industry happy?
Answer this in your awareness ad and watch your office phone explode with people wanting to talk to you.
Of course, to make a genuine awareness ad, you’re going to need to have some experience under your belt you can showcase.
(P.S: Don’t have experience? No problem! Read our guide to get more construction jobs now)
It’s also recommended you hire a video production company if you can afford it to give you the cleanest, most professional-looking video possible.
Also, the text along with the video should be attention-grabbing, and not generic.
I don’t want you to get lost in the crowd of other construction companies. Instead of saying:
“20 Years in Construction Industry. Call Now”
Say:
“One of the Best Drywall Contractors in [insert city]. We Take Care of Our Clients.”
You must give something bold and friendly at the same time, remember, the goal here in the beginning is to bring as much attention as you can to your company.
To help you visualize this process, here’s an incomplete infographic (keep reading for the rest):
So, to sum it up, you’re going to create a video ad on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram that introduces yourself to potential clients, and gets your company name out there.
Next, we’re going to showcase our work so the people who like our awareness ad can have something to look at when they visit our account.
Showcasing Work
At this stage, we have clients coming on to our page interested in our company, so we need to wow them with our experience.
This can be in the form of posting projects you’ve done, and really just showing how amazing your company is at their job.
The more impressive the project, the better. If you’re an already established contractor that’s done some big projects in the city, or anything that’s not a “typical” project, post about it.
Show the end results of your projects, and for good measure add in how long it took to complete or other details regarding the project in the caption.
You can also show how you do business with your clients, how you conduct meetings, and how you manage the job site.
The goal here is to back up what you said in the awareness video with the content on your page.
Remember that you can re-use the same content along LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
Again, some of these things sound very simple but can actually be a little difficult once you get into it, so it’s recommended you hire a social media marketing professional for your construction company to make your ideas come to life.
Let’s check up on that infographic.
We’re definitely going to want to consistently post updates on what we’re doing and some behind-the-scenes footage to make our virtual business card look more professional, but something else that’s more powerful is still on our to-do list.
Teach other construction businesses.
Let’s go over how it works.
Giving Advice to Other Construction Businesses
If you’re a mentor to other companies, your reputation becomes one of authority, as that means you’re so good as a company you consult others on how to operate.
Give some tips on how to negotiate with other contractors or advice on what to say to new clients. This kind of content would fit right in on LinkedIn mostly, but should also be posted on Facebook and Instagram.
If a contractor sees your awareness ad and is interested in your company, then clicks on your account to see you have a ton of free content that’s valuable for his company, and you’re showing how efficiently you run your business…
You’re instantly 5x more attractive as a client.
Or in other words, you’re 5x more likely to make more money.
This is a big piece to the puzzle I see many construction companies missing. Making yourself out to be the authority in your area is so huge to potential clients and can position you and your company in a really great spot to grow.
You can make short videos of you in the car talking, or you can make professional videos detailing certain aspects of construction business in general.
Casual and professional videos both perform very well on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.
BUT be careful… we find that anything in the middle ground between casual and professional tends to not perform well, so try to stay away from creating professional videos without professional equipment.
So, to tie it all together, at this point we have an awareness ad bringing in specific people to your companies’ social media, we have content showcasing your work, and we’re giving advice to other construction businesses.
Let’s see what that looks like.
All that’s missing is actually putting the “social” in social media and talking to prospects.
Networking with Potential Clients
This is probably the most important part of your social media strategy.
Actually getting into the trenches and talking to just 5-6 potential clients every day is a winning strategy.
Doing this on LinkedIn consistently would work the best, but you can also do it on Facebook and Instagram as well.
After posting the awareness ad, and having great content on your profile, you’re naturally going to attract people to your page, so all that’s left after that is to network and engage with those people.
It’s as simple as leaving a genuine comment on another construction company page, or direct messaging another construction company to get on their bid list.
You need to engage with other construction businesses, and with the valuable content on your social media profiles, it’s a lot easier to do that.
To give you some practical advice you can do right now, go on LinkedIn and search for exactly the kind of client you want (exhibit A):
Then, connect with 15 new people daily (anymore and you might get flagged as spam), and then give them a personalized message on why their company should have interest in you.
Yes, it’s that simple.
You can also reach out to all your followers on any social media platform you have and give your sales pitches.
Now, let’s look at the completed strategy.
Conclusion
Most construction companies don’t understand social media and how to use it, but hopefully with this guide, you can start your journey to using social media to grow your construction business.
Your profiles are like your digital business cards, so make sure they look as professional as possible, and give your company a good reputation.
If you put out great awareness ads, post amazing content about your work that wows people, and engage and network with those exact people, you will find success with social media.
And yes, your construction company will make more money.
Have an interesting take on this piece? Confused about anything?
Then feel free to comment below.
Good luck with your social media journey.
