Your advertising - What do you do, if any?

[Jamie-E]

Hey guys,

Hope everyone is looking forward to Christmas...

Just thought i'd ask everyone on here how they'll be generating work from January next year onwards? Do you advertise locally? Still in the Yellow Pages? Do you have a website?

I'm looking in to a few avenues as of next month (my advertising spend starts in January) and wondered what worked for you guys.

My old man used to advertise in the Yellow Pages, when the books were massive and you "had" to be in the book. Now, hardly anyone uses that form of advertising any more and has moved elsewhere!!

Any feedback would be most appreciated.

Jamie

 

[danzor]

Can't remember the last time I received the yellow pages, it would go straight into the bin anyway.

Easier to find what I want online with reviews

 

[john999uk]

Websites are good but to get on the front page of Google is difficult without experience. There are lots of scammers when web sites are concerned, be very careful. Websites are good to provide potential customers a point of contact and to see what work you cover. Please remember to reply to all enquiries and include your contact details and website in the signature of the reply, customer may have sent same email to lots of people so contact details on reply helps.

Maybe carry A5 size leaflets and after you have completed a job post leaflets in rest of street.

Get listed on Google Local (Free).

 

[grantr37]

need to watch out on giving leaflets out, somebody near here put a load in screen wipers in the car parks and people just whipped them off and dropped them on the pavement.....they got done for littering when the council and the Plod started picking them up and seeing contact details.....just a thought, have seen people getting hit for £50.00 for dropping a cigarette recently...

 

[Jamie-E]

Do you have any idea on a good website provider for Sole Traders?

Google Local looks really effective, and as you say, free.

 

[john999uk]

Unfortunately I don't know anyone who I would trust with websites other than me but I don't do them for anyone else.
To build a website is relatively easy the difficult bit is getting Google to put your site on the front page for relevant searches.
What I mean by relevant searches is that it's easy to get to on front page for say 'Fred Bloggs electrician in Orpington'. But to get on the front page for 'electrician in Orpington' is difficult as that is the phrase other electricians want to be on page 1 for.
So bottom line is building a website is easy but make sure the text has words related to 'electrician' and what sort of jobs you do. The difficult bit is what is called Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) i.e. getting to front page of google. If you are paying for SEO make sure they are promoting your site for the phrases you want not the ones they think are easy.

 

[imago]

Hey, I here a new company in Harrogate called Bright Heating are looking for fully qualified electricians. They fit a state of the art electrical ceramic radiator. They employ on a sub-contractor basis with a van and fuel provided.

Be careful with that, from what you describe their they wouyldn't come under the HMRC description of a sub-contractor so would be expected to pay tax and NI as a PAYE.

 

[SYKRAPS]

Word of mouth 1st and foremost and Yell.com work for me the best.

 

[MDJ]

I have regular customers and We are on the Local Authority frame work list so don't need to look for work TBH.

 

[Jamie-E]

Does Yell really work for you?

Currently speaking to a few companies, but stearing clear of Yell as my family and friends have nothing but bad experiences with them.