If you’re a plumber, joiner, electrician, roofer, window fitter, or frankly any trade that involves a van and a toolbelt, chances are you’ve had this call:
“Hi, you’re the fifth company we’ve called today, no one else is picking up or responding to my emails.”
At first, it feels like a little victory. You answered. You’re polite. You’re professional. But underneath that seemingly lucky break is something much bigger and more frustrating:
You’re not the first choice.
You’re the fallback because the top 3 businesses on Google didn’t answer their phones.
And why didn’t they? Because they don’t need to. They’re already inundated with enquiries. Businesses that rank in positions 1 to 3 on Google can get 10 or more leads every single day. That’s 300+ enquiries a month, more than most teams can even respond to. So, they start cherry-picking the jobs that pay the most and take the least effort… and ghosting the rest.
If you’re sitting anywhere between positions 4 and 10, you’re often seen as the “if-no-one-else-picks-up” option. And if you’re buried on page 2 or lower, you may as well be a soggy flyer stuck under a windscreen wiper in February.
This is the brutal reality of online visibility in 2025, it’s not just about being good at your trade, it’s about being seen first.
No matter how skilled you are with your chisel, boiler wrench, or socket tester, if customers can't find you, they’ll never hire you.
Here’s a stat worth engraving above your workshop radio:
Over 90% of users never click past the top three Google results.
(Source: Backlinko)
Let that sink in for a second.
If your business isn’t showing up in the top 3 for searches like “electrician near me”, “boiler repair [your town]”, or “garden decking installer”, then to most people online — you don’t exist. You’re not a contender. You’re the mysterious fourth option that never gets a look in.
So, what’s the solution?
It’s not luck.
It’s not throwing more leaflets through doors.
It’s SEO (Search Engine Optimisation).
The companies who are ranking first aren’t “just established” or “better known”, they’ve invested in SEO, and now they’re reaping the rewards. They’re not chasing work. They’re turning it down. They’ve built a website that ranks locally, speaks their customers’ language, and generates new leads while they’re out fitting kitchens, rewiring sockets, or hanging doors.
Let’s break it down with some simple maths:
The SEO investment has paid for itself five times over, and that’s just month six. Now imagine what month twelve looks like. Or better yet, imagine not needing to post in local Facebook groups begging for work when things go quiet in winter.
Still think SEO’s expensive? Try pricing up 6 months of no leads and a quiet phone.
Let’s bring this down to real-world proof, no theory or fluff.
One of our first SEO clients was a bespoke joiner based in the South East. He was skilled, reliable, and had a great local reputation… but his website was invisible, buried somewhere on page 3 of Google under listings for larger firms with worse craftsmanship but better rankings.
He decided to give SEO a go.
💷 £1,000/month SEO package.
A big commitment for a one-man band. Understandably nervous.
Month 2:
He lands a job worth through the website worth £15,000.
Not from Checkatrade. Not from Facebook. From Google, straight through the site.
That one job paid for over a year’s worth of SEO in one hit.
Now let’s look further ahead...
By month 6:
He’s getting 2 new leads every week, without spending another penny on ads.
By month 12:
He’s fully booked out, raising his prices, and politely turning away work that doesn’t fit.
And that’s not a fluke. We’ve seen the same pattern with:
🔨 Carpenters
🪟 Sash window specialists
🚪 Door fitters
⚡ Electricians
🛁 Bathroom installers
🔧 Heating engineers
The formula doesn’t change:
Invest in SEO → Show up in searches → Get leads → Get paid.
A good SEO strategy doesn’t just “boost rankings”, it transforms your business pipeline. It gives you predictable enquiries from people actively looking for exactly what you offer.
And the best part? It scales. The more you grow, the more your rankings bring in.
Brilliant. That’s a good start.
But here’s the real question:
Does your website actually rank?
Is it showing up when someone types in “electrician near me”, “roof repair Sevenoaks”, or “boiler service in Sittingbourne”? Or is it lost somewhere on page 6 of Google, sitting there quietly like a business card pinned to a corkboard in a shed no one goes in?
We’ve seen it all before, a decent-looking website with a photo gallery, a ‘Contact Us’ form, maybe even a Facebook widget… but zero visibility, no traffic, and not a single click unless you send the link to your mum.
Think of it like this:
You could have the most stunning van on the road, but if you never drive it, no one knows you exist.
SEO turns your site from a digital brochure into a lead-generating machine.
It works while you work. It gets better over time. And it never asks for a tea break.
Let’s clear this up:
SEO isn’t some confusing techy acronym only meant for marketing agencies.
It’s not just “blogging” or “adding some keywords.”
It’s a practical tool that gets your phone ringing and your boots muddy.
Done right, SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is the difference between being busy on-site and wondering why it’s gone quiet again.
Here’s what it actually does for you:
When someone Googles:
Plenty of trades don’t bother with SEO. They let their websites rot, hope Checkatrade does the work, or rely on Facebook groups.
That’s your chance to outrank and outperform them and take the jobs they never even saw.
You’re not paying per click or waiting for word-of-mouth.
You’ve got steady traffic, local enquiries, and a website that works harder than your apprentice on a Monday morning.
You’re not just throwing money at ads that vanish overnight.
You’re investing in something that keeps working, a site that ranks, grows, and brings in leads for years.
And yes, this works for every trade:
If you wear steel-toe boots and spend more time on-site than online, SEO is your best digital tool.
It’s your silent salesman, your online reputation builder, and your ticket to more reliable work, without the constant hustle.
Still thinking SEO is “too expensive”? Think of it this way:
You’d invest in decent tools, a solid work van, or a reliable apprentice… so why not invest in something that gets your phone ringing all year round?
The businesses showing up in the top 3 spots on Google aren’t just working harder, they’re being found faster, by more people, more often.
That means more leads. More reviews. More reputation.
And more jobs that you should be getting.
SEO turns your website from a glorified digital flyer into your busiest employee, one that:
Works 24/7 (including weekends and bank holidays)
Never phones in sick
Doesn’t nick your biscuits from the site kitchen
Let’s get your website climbing the rankings, bringing in the right clients, and doing what it should’ve been doing all along, generating leads while you’re out on-site.
�Want help getting started?
The first consultation’s free. No pressure, no jargon, just honest advice for trades that want to grow.
