If you’re a contractor or home service provider, you know how difficult it is to be seen by customers on social media. You might feel like you’ve tried everything under the sun to grow organically, but just aren’t getting results.
A lack of engagement and followers is frustrating, especially if you feel you’re doing everything right. But there are some common mistakes you could be making that are causing your social media strategy to fall short.
Let’s go over the top five mistakes that contractors and service providers make on Facebook and how you can fix these problems to start seeing better results.
Mistake #1: Low-Quality or Irrelevant Images
Whether you’re using graphics with stock photos or pictures of your own work, one of the most common mistakes people make on Facebook is using images that make you appear unprofessional.
Images that are poor quality or aren’t relevant to your services or customers don’t have any business being on your company page.
Before posting an image, always think of your audience first:
Why are they viewing my Business Facebook page?
What are they hoping to see or learn about?
What will their perception of my business be if they see this image?
You also need to think about brand consistency. Does the image you’re about to post match the style of all your other content?
Before and after pictures of your work can also be very effective in converting leads, but only if they are high quality.
If the image you’re about to post is blurry, dark, shot from a weird angle, or doesn’t show your best work — don’t post it.
It’s okay if you can’t afford a professional photographer or graphic designer. Follow these steps to get great cell phone pictures of your handiwork on-site:
Remove any unnecessary trash or clutter from the frame
Use natural light
Take pictures from all different angles and perspectives
Take close-up shots to capture details
Add simple props to make the image more interesting (i.e. tools, leaves, flowers, paintbrushes, etc.)
Mistake #2: Not Posting Consistently
If you’re hoping for organic growth, posting inconsistently is one of the worst things you can do for your Facebook business page.
There are many reasons why you should increase your posting frequency: more exposure, increased visibility, constant customer contact...just to name a few!
Many contractors and home service providers don’t post often enough on their company’s Facebook account, which is why they never see any real engagement with their posts.
Customers who are shopping around for your services might stumble across your page, and if your last post was from 3 months ago, they might think you’ve gone out of business. Inconsistent posts make it look like you’re not committed to your own company’s presence online.
But even more important, the Facebook algorithm only shows the most recent, relevant, and popular content to users.
So if you post infrequently, your content will only be seen by a small percentage (10% or less!) of people who scroll through their Facebook feed.
You need to post regularly in order for new content to have an opportunity for engagement on Facebook and to reach the widest audience possible.
Find out what works best for your audience - weekly? daily? multiple times per day? You’ll know after a week or two whether it’s too much or not enough. But in general, 3-5 posts per week is a good rule of thumb.
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Mistake #3: Posting At The Wrong Time
When you post is almost as important as what you post. If you write great content, but you share it at 9am when most of your audience is starting their workday or at 3am when everyone’s sleeping, chances are they won’t see it.
It may seem obvious, but you need to think about your ideal customer and when they might be spending time on Facebook:
Is it in the morning when they first wake up?
At 6pm, when they’re unwinding from work?
Or on the weekend when they are in between household chores and backyard projects?
If you get into a regular rhythm of posting, it will help to check your Facebook Page Insights to see what times are most successful in driving engagement with your audience.
Mistake #4: Only Focusing on Self-Promotion
Do all of your posts read like a sales ad? If so, you’re doing it wrong!
If you’re only posting about your company and services, you’re likely driving customers away. Social media is meant to be fun and engaging, so nothing kills the enjoyment faster than constant selling.
People don’t want to be sold all the time. They’re on social media for a variety of reasons, and you need to find out what theirs are if you want them to follow your page or like your post.
Your posts should be relatable and personable. Consider your ideal customers unique problems and lifestyle:
What keeps them up at night?
What do they enjoy spending their money on?
What do they want to know more about?
How can you answer a question that’s been on their mind?
What might motivate them to tackle a project they’ve been thinking about starting?
Try to keep your self-promotion to a minimum. Instead, focus on content that’s interesting and valuable.
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Mistake #5: Not Using New Features
Most contractors I work with are hesitant to “Go Live,” make a Reel, or post a Story, but the Facebook algorithm rewards pages that use all the newest features.
If you’re creating one unique story per day, or live streaming once a week, you're putting yourself in more places to be seen. And the algorithms will give you a little boost, promoting your content to more people organically.
Plus, these features can be really fun and give potential customers a unique look at your business.
You might feel a little awkward or silly. You might be hesitant for fear of not being interesting or entertaining enough. These are the wrong mindsets!
Facebook Live videos are a great avenue for real interaction with your customers in real time, without having to worry about editing footage later on.
Reels let you get creative, with audio, visual effects, filters, and other fun tools.
And Stories are quick snippets that encourage interaction with unique stickers, like polls and questions.
All of these are great for engagement and for showing your audience what makes your business special.
Don’t be afraid to explore all these great features. You might feel uncomfortable at first and you will make mistakes, but that’s okay! It will show customers you’re human. The key is to just keep trying.
There are tons of ways to make the most of these features. You could:
Give tours of your office
Show a project in multiple phases
Introduce your technicians or other members of your team
Give away some free advice or a quick tip
Show off when you’re working near a local landmark
Host a Q&A
As your audience starts to engage with these types of posts, you’ll find out what’s working and what isn’t.
The social media landscape is constantly changing. You will need to adapt your strategies if you want to beat the competition and grow organically on Facebook.
Fortunately, the tips above are evergreen and you’ll always see better results if you’re avoiding these common pitfalls.
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