The plumbing business is a very profitable one and the demand for plumbers is through the roof at the moment. This doesn’t mean that this is an easy business, however. The plumbing sector is a very competitive one, and if you’re new to the business as an independent, you have to be ready to contend with both small outfits and big franchises.
You can set yourself apart, however, if you know how to manage your business correctly and avoid some of the pitfalls that so many new plumbers fall into when getting started. Let’s take a look at a few challenges you can expect to face as a new plumber and how you can overcome them.
Getting Initial Clients
Getting your first clients will demand some work, and you have to make sure that your first clients are satisfied with your work and service. You also have to know that return business is not something you can really count on in this business, so you will need to focus on both quantity and quality.
There are various ways to get clients. You can use potentially free methods such as content creation, blogging, and SEO, but these can take time to get results. It would be a better option to start looking at paid marketing methods like PPC and consider buying leads as well.
Managing Projects
In the beginning, you might be able to handle a few projects at a time, but if you start getting a lot of clients, you will need to use some tools to help you handle everything. If you want to be ahead of the curve, you should start getting familiar with plumbing project management software right now.
Plumbing job management software will help you streamline your business in so many different ways. You’ll be able to know how far jobs are from each other and build an itinerary that will make things as easy as possible for you while allowing you to perform more jobs per day. And these are only a few of the benefits project management software has to offer. If you want to learn more about how it can help your business, you should check out this post on job management software for your plumbing business.
High Competition
Competition is something you’ll have to deal with, and there are a few things that you can do to set yourself apart and make a niche for yourself. The first one is to brand your vehicle properly. This may seem like a minor thing, but some plumbers have such good branding that they don’t need to use any other marketing method to get business. So, make sure that your vehicle stands out with nice colours and a simple and easy-to-read font, and consider adding a mascot as they are also effective.
Another thing you’ll have to do is make sure that your reputation is good and that you have a well-designed and active local Google My Business listing so you can show up in local searches. Make sure that the contact information there (name, address, phone number) is consistent across all the platforms you have control over as it will have a direct impact on your visibility. Everything else is about getting your name out there and offering the best service possible while improving on your previous mistakes.
These are only some of the challenges you have to be ready for when starting a plumbing business. If you want to increase your chances of success, it would be a good idea to speak with people who’ve been there while constantly upping your knowledge of the business through your research.
