Should tradespeople bother with Facebook?
Plenty of tradespeople get work through Facebook, especially through local community groups and recommendations. Others find it a waste of time. The truth is that it is useful for some things and poor at others.
What Facebook is good for
Local recommendations: people ask in community groups for a reliable plumber or roofer, and friends tag the trades they trust. Showing your work: regular photos of jobs keep you in front of people who already know you. Staying in touch: past customers see your posts and remember you when they need you again.
What it is not good for
People searching Google for your trade in your town will not usually see your Facebook page in the results. Posts disappear from feeds quickly. And your page lives on a platform whose rules can change. That is why Facebook works best as a supplement to your own website and Google Business Profile, not a replacement.
How to use it without it eating your evenings
Post photos of finished jobs, with permission, a couple of times a week if you can: the job, the area and one line about it. Reply to messages and comments promptly. Turn up helpfully in local groups when people ask for your trade. Link your page to your website and your website back to your page.
Do not spend money on boosted posts until the free basics are working.
Respond like a business
If people message your page, they expect a reply as quickly as a text. Turn on notifications, set up instant replies with your hours and phone number, and answer within the day. A page that ignores messages does more harm than having no page at all.
Handle complaints calmly and publicly where they appear, then move the detail to a private message or a call. Other people judge you by how you respond, not by whether a complaint exists.
Make your page point somewhere
Fill in your page's details completely: services, areas, phone, hours and your website. Pin a post with your best recent work and how to get a quote. Treat the page as a shop window that sends people on to your website and phone, where you can actually win the job.
Common questions
- Do I need a website if I have a Facebook page?
- Usually yes. People searching Google rarely find Facebook pages, and you do not control the platform. See the guide on whether you need a website if you have Facebook.
- How often should I post?
- A couple of times a week is plenty, mainly photos of real jobs.
- Are Facebook groups worth joining?
- Local community groups can bring good recommendations. Read the rules and be helpful rather than advertising.
If you would rather somebody just did it
I build websites for self-employed tradesmen and small businesses across the UK: £249.99 to build, then £49.99 a month to host, maintain and update it. The sites I have built show on page one of Google for 103 searches between them, in Search Console.