If you have a painting business, you are no exception to the growing expectations of the competitive market that dominates virtual forefronts today. Whether in the construction business or not, the truth is that most entrepreneurs face some kind of hardship when it comes to marketing strategies, especially under the circumstances regarding brand awareness and client fidelity that seem to get tighter as time goes on. Well, no worries: this is the article you need to plan out your commercial cues and learn, once and for all, how to market a painting business from the ground up.
So keep reading to stand above your competitors starting now!
First of all, why market a painting business?
Marketing a painting business is essential for several reasons, especially in today’s unforgiving commercial landscape.
First and foremost, marketing helps you build visibility and brand recognition in a crowded market – with so many painting businesses vying for attention, it’s crucial to differentiate your services and ensure that potential customers are aware of your existence. Effective marketing places your business in front of the right audience, whether through local search, social media, or paid advertising – as we’ll see in a bit – making it easier for customers to find and choose your services over competitors.
Moreover, marketing is key to establishing trust and credibility. By showcasing your work through an SEO-friendly website, Google Business profile, and professional social media accounts, for example, you provide potential clients with a clear picture of your expertise and the quality of your services from the get-go. Positive online reviews, customer testimonials, and a strong online presence contribute to building a reputation that clients can trust, which is vital in an industry where word-of-mouth and referrals play significant roles.
You see, in today’s digital age, the consumer journey has shifted primarily online. Customers are increasingly relying on online research to find and evaluate service providers. If your painting business isn’t visible in search results or doesn’t have a strong online presence, you risk losing potential customers to competitors who are more accessible and engaging online!
At the end of the day, marketing not only drives immediate business but also ensures long-term growth by building a loyal customer base through strategies like email marketing and referral programs.
Finally, marketing also allows you to reach a broader audience and tap into new customer segments (some of which you may never have even considered before). Whether through targeted ads or partnerships with complementary businesses, effective strategies can expand your reach beyond your immediate geographical area, helping your painting business grow. By continually engaging with current and potential clients through consistent and strategic marketing efforts, you ensure that your painting business remains relevant, competitive, and positioned for future success.
Read also: 6 key tips for social media marketing for home builders
How to market a painting business: the 7-step stairway to success
With all of that being said, we’ve listed below 7 crucial pillars of digital marketing that you can start applying to your company as soon as you leave here. Ready? So let’s see some useful tips:
1. Set up a Google Business profile
This one is unavoidable – creating a Google Business profile is essential for any local business, not just a painting one. After all, this tool integrates with Google Maps and Search (two of the most used platforms today), making it easier for potential customers in your area to find your services when they search for terms like “painters near me” or “house painting services.”
An optimized profile with detailed business information, such as operating hours, the range of services offered, and high-quality photos of your completed projects, will enhance your online presence. Customer reviews play a significant role in this platform, so encouraging satisfied clients to leave positive feedback will boost your ranking and establish credibility. The best part is that it’s all for free.
Additionally, keeping your profile updated with posts about promotions, recent projects, and news, while utilizing the Q&A feature to address common customer inquiries (thus avoiding negative feedback that might hurt your reputation at the same time), will keep your business top of mind for those searching for painting services.
2. Build an SEO-friendly website
Your website serves as the digital storefront for your painting business, so it’s crucial to ensure it is SEO-friendly and user-friendly. A well-structured website should be easy to navigate, with clear sections dedicated to your services, a portfolio showcasing your work, client testimonials, and easy-to-find contact information for the distracted.
In terms of content, incorporating relevant keywords that potential customers are likely to search for, such as “residential painting,” “commercial painting services,” and your service areas, can significantly improve your website’s visibility in search engine results. Publishing regular blog posts on topics like “choosing the right paint color” or “how to prepare your home for painting” can also attract visitors and position your business as an authority in the field.
Technical SEO is equally important, of course; therefore, ensure your website loads quickly, is mobile-friendly, and has properly optimized metadata to enhance search engine rankings.
3. Invest in paid ads (pay-per-click)
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a powerful way to drive targeted traffic to your painting business – and goes hand-in-hand with SEO practices. However, unline organic “free” traffic, Google Ads allows you to bid on specific keywords, ensuring that your ads appear when potential customers search for painting services.
By setting a budget and adjusting bids based on performance, you can optimize your ad spend for maximum return. Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram also offer opportunities for targeted ads – these platforms enable you to reach specific demographics based on location, interests, and behavior, making it possible to showcase your work to homeowners or businesses actively seeking painting services.
Using visually appealing ads that highlight your best projects can effectively capture attention and drive engagement. Moreover, focusing your ad campaigns on the geographic areas you serve ensures that your marketing budget is spent efficiently – thus reaching the most relevant audience.
Some famous approaches to online ads include:
- Local Services Ads, which target customers in your defined service area and appear at the very top of a search results page when a potential customer searches for painting services in their area.
- Google Search Ads, which target potential customers searching for keywords related to your business, like “residential painters in [CITY]” or “commercial painting services in [TOWN]”.
- Facebook ads, which show up in a potential customer’s newsfeed or sidebar and can be targeted to users in a specific geographic area, helping the right people see your ads and contact your company.
- Instagram ads, which work similarly to Facebook ads because it’s an image- and video-based platform where you’ll want to use strong media to stand out from competitors.
And speaking of social media…
4. Create professional social media accounts
In today’s digital age, professional social media accounts are crucial for establishing and maintaining your painting business’s online presence. Platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook are ideal for sharing visual content, which is perfect for a painting business.
Here, regularly posting things like high-quality before-and-after photos of your work, client testimonials, and time-lapse videos of painting projects can showcase your expertise and attract potential clients. Social media also provides a direct line of communication with your audience – so it’s important to engage with followers by promptly responding to comments and messages.
Also, consistent branding across all social media accounts is key to building recognition and trust, as you may already know as a business owner. Use a professional logo, maintain cohesive color schemes, and adopt a tone of voice that aligns with your company’s values and professionalism to strengthen your brand identity online.
5. Send email marketing campaigns
Although seemingly archaic, emails are still an important door to customer relations – and email marketing is a cost-effective way to stay connected with past clients and reach out to potential new ones.
Start by building an email list from your existing client base, website visitors, and social media followers. Offering incentives – such as a free consultation or a discount on services – can encourage sign-ups, but only as long as your content is informative and valuable, providing recipients with seasonal painting tips, special promotions, and updates on your services.
Personalizing emails by addressing recipients by name and tailoring the content based on their previous interactions with your business can make your emails more engaging and effective. You can utilize further tools to automate campaigns, such as follow-up emails after a project is completed or reminders for maintenance painting, to help maintain consistent communication with your clients and keep your painting business top of mind.
6. Start a referral program (in online directories too)
Referral programs are an excellent way to leverage word-of-mouth marketing to grow your painting business. Offering incentives, such as discounts or complimentary services, to customers who refer new clients can encourage satisfied customers to spread the word about your business.
That said, here’s the catch: to make the referral process easy, provide customers with referral links or cards they can share with friends and family above all! Establishing partnerships with complementary businesses, like interior designers or real estate agents, who can refer clients to you is another effective strategy. In return, you can offer them a commission or reciprocate by referring clients to their services.
Additionally, if possible, try listing your business in online directories like Yelp, Angi, and Houzz, which are popular for home improvement services. Encouraging satisfied clients to leave reviews on these platforms will further enhance your visibility-credibility combo and attract new clients looking for trusted painting services.
Don’t miss out: Digital marketing for flooring companies – 5 ways to succeed
The best marketing idea for a painting business: Target Ads
But wait a minute; we mentioned that there were 7 key strategies, but we went over just 6 of them. Well, that’s because we want to leave the best strategy for last!
You see, the best possible strategy you can use is to hire professionals in the marketing business to help with your social media campaigns and overall digital presence. This way, you can focus in offering your best services while professionals help with strategize the best way to market them!
And for that, we here at Target Ads are ready to help you. We specialize in highly specific marketing strategies that always focus on the best results while respecting your budget – we work optimally for maximum return in attracting and retaining your customers.
Contact us anytime to request a proposal and start developing the best marketing campaign for your painting business!
Português do Brasil 
English