Guide

Getting Found Locally as a Tradesperson

24 September 2026 · 7 min read

Most tradespeople get work the same way: somebody who used them told somebody else. Everything else — the website, the van, the lead sites — is an attempt to make that happen more often, and some attempts are much better value than others.

Where local work actually comes from

1. A customer telling a neighbour. Free, highest conversion, and almost nobody does anything deliberate to encourage it.
2. Being seen working nearby. The van outside number 12 is why number 20 calls you.
3. Being findable when somebody already has your name. They half-remember "Joe, plumber" and search for it.
4. Buying leads. Fast, expensive, and you compete on price with four other people who bought the same lead.

The first three cost you almost nothing. The fourth costs you a slice of every job.

The one thing most trades never do

Ask. At the end of a job that went well, when the customer is pleased and you are packing up:

"If you know anyone who needs the same doing, I'd appreciate the mention."

That sentence is worth more than most marketing. People are glad to recommend somebody they trust — they just do not think to do it unprompted, and the moment passes.

Then make it easy for them. A card, a link, anything they can forward without having to describe you.

Be findable under the right name

Half the people looking for you are not searching for a plumber. They are searching for you, badly. Make sure that search lands somewhere.

• A Google Business Profile. Free, and it is what puts you on the map for "plumber near me". Fill in the trades, the area and the hours.
• One page they can send. It does not need to be a website. It needs your name, your trade, your area, your number and a reason to believe you.
• Your number saved properly. Put your trade in your text signature: "Joe — plumber". It is how you get saved under a findable name.

Say where you are working

Being seen on a street is worth real money, and most of it is wasted because it only lasts as long as the van is parked there. A board on the fence, a note in the local group, a sign on the job — anything that says "I am working here this week" — gets you the neighbour's job while you are already in the road.

That is also a feature in Rep: a trading sign, anchored to the job's street, shown to the households around it for the days you are there. The household whose job it is has to agree to it first, because it is their house being talked about.

Where lead sites fit

They are not a scam, but be clear about what you are buying. You pay for an introduction, usually shared with several others, and you are then competing on price with people who know nothing about you. That is a reasonable way to fill a gap in a quiet week. It is an expensive way to run a business every week.

The work that comes from a recommendation arrives warm: they already trust you, and the conversation is about when, not how much.

What actually persuades somebody to call

• Somebody they know used you. Everything else is a distant second.
• You answer. A huge amount of trade work goes to whoever picks up the phone or rings back the same day.
• A written quote, quickly. Two days later is often too late; somebody else quoted on the drive.
• Proof where it is required. Gas Safe, NICEIC, insurance. Say it plainly rather than making them ask.

Keep the customers you already have

The cheapest work is a second job for somebody you have already done one for. They know you, you know the house, and nobody is comparing quotes.

That means keeping a record of who they are and what you did, so you can ring them when the boiler service is due. Most trades cannot do this, because the information is in a notebook in the van or nowhere at all.

Where Rep fits

Rep is the first item on that list, made deliberate. Households record the tradespeople they would use again, and a household searching sees the people their own street would have back — nearest first, with no way to pay for a position.

• Claiming your business is free, and if a customer has already recommended you it is waiting there for you.
• You can ask a customer to vouch for a job, which they confirm from their own address.
• When somebody nearby asks for your trade, you hear about it.

How Rep works for tradespeople explains it all, including how the ordering works — and claiming your business takes about a minute.