February 16, 2017

When deciding on a large home improvement or upgrade decision, most people will take the time to do some research. What research they do depends on a lot of factors that you have very little to no control over as a contractor. What you do have control over is where your business is located on the top review websites. The Internet is where most people look for their information.

Your job as the contractor is to make sure your business is held in the best light in all possible review channels. This can be time consuming and hard to keep up with on a consistent basis. However, if you invest the time and set up the most popular channels, you can see your efforts pay off in a big way.

We’ve simplified the process for you and here are eight of the most popular contractor review websites on the Internet today.

Some are paid subscriptions, but most are free. The paid ones are up to you to determine how much work you can reasonably expect to gain from that presence. If the return on investment looks good, a one-year trial period can be a good idea. Just be sure to track where your business is coming from to understand what is working and what is not.

It is also critical to make sure to ask and remind your own customers to give you reviews on these websites. Having an account is a good start, but positive reviews and stories will make the prospects pick up the phone or send you an email. People want to work with contractors they will like. Stories and positive reviews tell the real story and people trust other people.

The number of websites is rapidly approaching one billion. There are over 928,000,000 websites online right now.

The must haves

Yelp http://www.yelp.com/

 The average annual incremental revenue generated by a business claiming its free Yelp business profile – $8,000. Get on, get reviews, & get going. (Source – Boston Consulting Group – 2013)

Google Maps https://www.google.com/services/#?modal_active=none

Google is the most popular website in the world. They have a free map platform that helps local people find your business. This is an absolute must. You have no idea how much business you are missing out on if you are not on Google Maps.

Bing http://www.bing.com

Bing is another popular search engine with a map feature. Use this free option to get the people who prefer Bing over Google and Yahoo.

Yahoo https://ca.yahoo.com/?p=us

Yahoo is still extremely popular for searches. Yahoo maps still is used by millions. It’s free and easy to get your business signed up here as well.

Facebook https://www.facebook.com

Facebook has a free profile page for businesses and allows reviews and engagement with customers and industry experts. Get on Facebook, use Facebook, and learn to love Facebook. Check out this blog on how to set up a Facebook Page: http://capitaltristateadvantage.com/contractors-how-to-set-up-a-business-facebook-page/.

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/feed/

Another extremely popular website where people can network and put their best and most professional foot forward. Get on LinkedIn and start connecting with everyone you know on it.

The should haves

Houzz http://www.houzz.com

Reach new clients, showcase your business in photos, & work smarter on Houzz. There are nearly 1 million professionals on Houzz.com already. Over 35 Million Active Homeowners have a Houzz profile. Get noticed with a free business profile.

Angie’s List https://www.angieslist.com

Angie’s List has its supporters and detractors. You have to pay to advertise and customize your profile and to post reviews and all reviews are approved by Angie’s List. However, the leads are solid and can easily pay for itself if you can get additional work. Talk to other businesses in your industry to see how it has worked for them.

Make it your goal to get on as many of these websites as possible. Also be sure to upload new photos as often as possible to all of them you can. New updates and good photos can make all the difference. Do all of these things, the sooner the better. Then let your hard work pay off and let the leads roll in.

This article was first published as a blog by CapitalTristate, an electrical distributor in the U.S. Mid Atlantic.