2022 Roofing Marketing Guide: Best and Worst Advertising for Roofers

In our last video, I reviewed the top 18 roofing marketing platforms businesses are using to boost lead-gen these days.

My method is simple: to rank all marketers against each other based on 8 different factors.

Think about it as the Olympic games for roofing and construction marketing platforms.

Some of the platforms are old and on their last breath while others are too new for contractors to trust their performance yet. Frankly, I think the old need to retire and let the new players in to dominate.

Below are the 18 Roofing Marketing Platforms I reviewed:

Yelp	Facebook	Yellow Pages
Craigslist -Free classified sites	Porch.com	HomeAdvisor
Thumbtack	Door Knocking/Canvassing	Google SEO
Google Adwords	Call centers	Flyers
BBB accreditation cost (yearly)	BBB advertisement (monthly or yearly per categories)	TV advertising
Radio	Magazines (think Sports Illustrated or GQ)	Print (also known as junk mail)

My reviews are broken down into these 8 categories:

• Impressions (how many people see it)
• Return on Investment (ROI) long term
• Return on Investment (ROI) short term
• Cost
• Leads (actual converted sales or appointments)
• Time required to manage the form of marketing (business or owner involvement)
• For how many contractors (roofers) it works for on average.
• Contracts (is it one time charge or monthly subscription required).

Scoring system 1 to 5 per category:

• 1 being the Worst and 5 being the Best roofing marketing option
• 1 it means it doesn’t work most of the time
• 3 being 50/50 chance of having good results
• 5 it works for most contractors.

Marketing Platform	Rating: 1	Rating: 5
Impressions	Low Impression Volume	High Impression Volume
ROI	Worst ROI	Best ROI
Cost	Expensive	Cheap
Leads	Low Volume of Leads	High Volume of Leads
Time	Large Time Commitment	Low Time Commitment
Frequency of Success	Low Success Rate	High Success Rate
Commitment	Long Term	Short Term

Explanation of scoring by category

Impressions: 1 gets low impression volume 5 gets high impression volume
ROI: 1 =  worst ROI and 5 = best ROI
Cost: 1 = most expensive and 5 = the cheapest.
Leads: 1 = low volume of leads 5 = high volume of leads
Time: 1= large time commitment by you 5 = low time commitment by you
Frequency of Success:  1 = low success rate 5 = high success rate
Commitment:  1 long term 5 = short term

Lowest Score Possible = 8  Highest Score Possible = 40

So at the very best any marketing platform could earn 40 points and would be the best platform to spend money on, learn more, etc.

The lowest score would be 8, and would mean the most expensive, not effective, most frustrated for most, or all combined.

Here is my final recommendation for your 2022 roofing biz marketing budget based on total score from my review.

And results are: From Best overall to Worst:

8-19: Run for your life, most likely you will waste a lot of money, will not get much in return and overall will have more headaches than success stories to offset it.

20-25: You probably can make it work but you will need to dedicate your time or hire someone on your team to hold this group or platform accountable for results. They will take your money but when you don’t get the promised results they will probably say “you are the reason” not them.

26-40: Your money best spent. Start at the top and go down the list. You still have to spend smart, you have to watch what you spend and where.

Please comment below your feedback.

If you want to learn more about “working marketing platforms” check out our Business Class for roofing start-up businesses, next one is scheduled for May 30-31 in Minneapolis and hosted by Dmitry Lipinskiy, no advertisers or sponsors allowed. RSVP your spot now.

Roofing Leads: Roofing Lead Generation Tips For Acquiring More Business

As you can see, Facebook, Door Knocking, BBB accreditation, Google AdWords,

Craigslist/Backpage, TV advertising, SEO, and Thumbtack are all excellent ways to boost lead generation for your roofing company.

But, there are a few other tactics that can help you bring in more leads. Here are some of them, which, when utilized correctly, will help your roofing company see a high return on investment.

Get on Quality Roofing Directories

• weight: 400;”>Get in front of more people
• Be associated with other quality roofers
• Minimal cost on your end = great ROI

There are some bullshit directories out there that will make you jump through all sorts of hoops to get on them, but never actually bring you new business. However, finding a quality roofing directory and creating a strong partnership with them can be extremely beneficial for your roofing company.

For an example on what a useful roofing directory looks like, take a gander at the new Roofing Insights Directory. One of the worst decisions you can make when choosing a directory for your roofing company is finding one that lets everyone get on their listing. You do not want to be likened to low-quality roofers. When your company is in the same directory as a roofer that continuously gets terrible reviews, your own company will be seen in the same light.

With the Roofing Insights Directory, we bypass this problem because we thoroughly vet all applications for the directory before letting them become a part of it. We wanted to create a platform in which only the best roofers from around the country could get on it. If you think you have what it takes, reach out to us today to start the application process by texting “DIRECTORY” to 612-254-9849. If accepted, you can expect the leads to come rushing in.

Continue to Build Quality Reviews on Google

• Great way to build a strong first impression when people search for you on Google
• Minimal effort = strong ROI

Many consumers love to give good reviews after a positive experience with a company or brand. However, some folks need a little prodding to take the (short) amount of time to write a nice review on your site. Once you complete a roofing project, kindly ask them to write an honest review on Google.

You can’t make everyone happy all the time, and sometimes homeowners want to give a bad review because they are nasty people. When this happens, don’t be discouraged. The occasional 3-star review actually lends even more credibility to your overall rating. According to a recent study, a 5-star rating can lead consumers to be skeptical of the legitimacy of the reviews. The study found that the ideal average star rating for purchase probability is 4.2-4.5 stars.

Does this mean you shouldn’t want all 5-star ratings? Of course not. You should always strive for perfection on every roofing project. This is, however, good information to know so that you don’t feel bad when a 3-star review does come in.

Attend Trade Shows

• Get your name out there
• Build relationships
• Learn new tips for improving your services

Trade shows are a smart way to get your name out there, which can be especially crucial for younger roofing companies. Trade shows can be expensive to attend, though. There is the cost of registration, materials for the booth, and the time commitment. But, trade shows are for more than just attracting homeowners—in fact, they are primarily for building relationships with potential partners, as well as learning new tips for improving your services.

If you want to get the most out of a trip to a trade show, it’s important to walk in there ready to learn. It’s even a good idea to attend a few trade shows without paying for a booth to get a feel for this type of event. What works well? What doesn’t? What are some booths that have a lot of traffic, and what do they do to separate themselves from others? Take notes and be ready to implement what you learned the next time around.

Make sure to also attend as many of the speaking events as possible. You can gain some valuable insight from some of the best roofing professionals around, as long as you walk into the event ready to absorb and learn. You should also be ready to network. Bring a bunch of business cards and strike up some good conversations with potential partners.

Doing all of these things when at a trade show can help you build a better overall business and attract more leads.

Deploy a Fresh Website Redesign

• Improve first impressions
• Convey the quality that your services offer
• Build the brand image you want

First impressions are everything, and often your website is the very first interaction a homeowner will have with your roofing brand. And just how critical are consumers of a website? Well, according to a Stanford study on web credibility, 75% of users make judgments about a company’s credibility based on the visual design of their website alone.

Many companies don’t think of their website as a valid option for roofing marketing. It should be made to bring in business.

When a roofing company’s website looks outdated, homeowners will think that their services are outdated as well. To make an effective website that keeps users engaged and actually converting (therefore increasing your leads), follow these tips from that Stanford study:

1. Make it easy to verify the accuracy of the information on your site.
2. Show that there’s a real organization behind your site.
3. Highlight the expertise in your roofing business.
4. Show that honest and trustworthy people stand behind your site (accreditations, partners, sponsors).
5. Make it easy to contact your business.
6. Design the site to look professional (doesn’t need to be extremely modern or cutting-edge, just clean and seamless).
7. Make your site easy to use.
8. Update your site’s content regularly.
9. Use restraint on promotional content, focus on the consumers’ needs and addressing them.
10. Avoid errors like typos and grammar mistakes.

Consider Starting a Referral Program

A roofing company that nails their referrals is likely one that gets many more leads than their competitors. However, you can’t simply start a referral program and expect the leads to start rolling in.

Instead, you need to make sure that your referral program is easy to understand for homeowners and that they are well aware of it. Creating a dedicated page on your website that breaks down the referral process in easy steps will help your clients see the benefit of the program.

Of course, then you have to perform quality services to get that referral. People aren’t going to recommend your services if they are dissatisfied. So, at the end of the day, doing an excellent job for your customers is a great way to increase your lead generation.