A tradesman in the UK gets more work by being easy to find, easy to trust and easy to reach when someone needs the trade. This guide covers eight places it comes from. Your Google Business Profile and Google Maps. Your reviews. Your website. Word of mouth and referrals. Google Ads. Google Local Services Ads. Lead sites like Checkatrade, MyBuilder and Bark. And now AI search.
Some of those you own. Some you rent. This guide says what each one is, what it costs you and where to read more.
Do this today
- Write down where your last ten jobs came from. Profile, website, a mate, a lead site, a past customer.
- Search your main job and your town on your phone. Note who’s on the map and who’s in the ads.
- Check your Google profile’s main category is your trade and every town you cover is listed.
- Text your Google review link to your last five customers.
- Check your van, cards, website and Google profile all show the same name and number.
On this page
Where trade work comes from
| Channel | What it costs you | Is it yours? |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile and Maps | Free to set up | You control it. Google hosts it |
| Reviews | Free | They stay on your profile |
| Your website | A build cost and running costs | Yes, if it’s in your name |
| Word of mouth and referrals | Free, plus your time | Yes |
| Google Ads | You pay per click | You control it. It stops when you stop paying |
| Local Services Ads | You pay per lead | It stops when you stop paying |
| Lead sites | Fees, credits or a membership | No. It stops when you stop paying |
| AI search | No sign-up or fee that Google or OpenAI describe | In our view, it builds on what’s already out there about you |
In our view, the channels you own are the ones to build first. They keep working whether you pay a platform or not. Paid channels are useful on top, to fill a gap or push a job you want more of.
Google Business Profile and Google Maps
Your Google Business Profile is the free listing that puts your trade on Google Maps and in the local results. Google says you can add or claim your business at no charge.
Setting it up
The parts that matter most for a trade are the main category, your service areas, your services and photos of your own jobs. Here’s how to set up your Google Business Profile step by step.
Showing higher on the map
Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and prominence. It also says there’s no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. What you can do is covered in our guide on how to rank higher on Google Maps.
Reviews
Reviews are what a customer reads before they ring someone they’ve never met. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking too.
Ask every customer the same way, once the job’s done. Don’t offer anything in return and don’t only ask the happy ones. Google’s rules ban both. The full routine is in how to get Google reviews.
Your website
Your website is the one place online that’s fully yours. It’s where you explain each job you do, the towns you cover and why someone should pick you. Google uses the mobile version of a site to decide where it ranks. So it has to work on a phone first.
Prices vary a lot depending on who builds it. Here’s how much a website costs for a trade business, including the running costs people forget.
Word of mouth and referrals
Word of mouth is work that comes from people who know you or know someone you’ve worked for. In our view, it’s where a lot of trades get their first jobs. It’s free. But you can’t turn it up when the diary’s quiet, so it’s worth helping along.
Practical ways to get more of it:
- Make yourself easy to find later. A neighbour who saw your van may search for you, so the name and number on everything should match.
- Leave something behind. A card with your number and your Google review QR code. Google lets you make a review link or QR code from your profile.
- Ask at the right moment. When a customer says they’re pleased, ask if they know anyone else who needs the work.
- Build links with other trades. A plumber, an electrician and a plasterer often work the same houses. Pass work to each other.
- Stay in touch with past customers. A reminder about a service or a yearly check can bring them back. The ICO says you can text or email past customers about similar work without asking first, as long as you gave them a clear way to opt out when you took their details, and in every message.
- Answer the phone or call back the same day. A referral only works if the person can get hold of you.
Just started out? Here’s how to get customers for a new trade business.
Google Ads
Google Ads shows your business on Google for searches you choose, in the towns you choose. Google says you pay for each click on your ad. You set the budget and can turn it up or down.
Ads can bring calls in sooner than SEO. They also stop when you stop paying. Our guide to SEO vs Google Ads for trades goes through which to start with.
Google Local Services Ads
Local Services Ads are a separate kind of Google ad where you pay per lead, not per click. A lead is a call or a message from a customer. Google checks your business first and shows a Google Verified badge once you pass. Plumbers, electricians, roofers and general contractors are all on Google’s UK category list.
The full detail on leads, checks and costs is in our guide to Google Local Services Ads in the UK.
Lead sites
Lead sites are platforms where customers post jobs and trades pay to reach them. Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Bark and TrustATrader each charge in a different way, through plans, per-lead fees, shortlist fees or credits.
With all of them, you stop getting leads when you stop paying. In our view a lead site can fill a gap, especially when you’re new. It shouldn’t be the only way the phone rings. Here’s how Checkatrade vs MyBuilder vs Bark vs TrustATrader compare on cost, contracts and refunds.
AI search
AI search is when someone asks a tool like ChatGPT or Google’s AI Mode to recommend a local trade. Google says there are no additional requirements to appear in its AI Overviews or AI Mode. ChatGPT search uses third-party providers for nearby business listings, and OpenAI says placement is not guaranteed.
In our view, the groundwork above is still the place to start for these tools too. More on this in will ChatGPT recommend your trade business.
More work by trade
Each trade gets searched for in its own way. Our UK trade search data shows how many people search for each trade, month by month.
Roofers
Roofers have their own guide on how to get roofing leads without paying per lead.
Plumbers
Plumbers have their own guide on how to get plumbing leads without paying per lead. The busy season is worth knowing. “emergency plumber” reached 33,100 searches in October 2025, against a 12 month average of 12,100 (Google Keyword Planner, UK).
Builders
In our view, building jobs are bigger and customers often take longer to decide. “builders near me” averages 18,100 searches a month in the UK. It peaked at 27,100 in January 2026 and was lowest in December at 12,100. “house extension” peaked at 12,100 in November and dropped to 3,600 from June to September (Google Keyword Planner, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
In our view, what wins building work is proof you can see. Here’s more on marketing for builders. General contractors are on Google’s UK list for Local Services Ads, so that’s an option once your reviews are in place.
Electricians
Electrical work is steadier through the year. “eicr” stayed between 18,100 and 27,100 searches every month. “electrician near me” averages 74,000 and peaked at 90,500 in October 2025 (Google Keyword Planner, UK).
If you’re in England and join an electrical competent person scheme, GOV.UK says you’re included in the electrical competent person register. That’s a single place for householders to find registered electricians in their area. Show your scheme on your website and profile. Only show logos you’re entitled to. Our trade website examples guide covers which ones.
Which to start with
In our view, start with what’s free and yours.
- Get your Google Business Profile complete.
- Ask every customer for a review.
- Make sure your website works on a phone and has a page for your main jobs.
- Help word of mouth along with the steps above.
- Add Google Ads or Local Services Ads when you want more of a job, or a quiet month is coming.
- Use lead sites to fill gaps, not as the only source.
What makes sense for you depends on your trade, your towns and how full the diary is now.
Where to get help
All of this comes down to being found and picked when someone nearby needs your trade. You can do much of it yourself.
If you’d rather hand it over, that’s what we do. Local SEO for trades covers your profile, reviews and website month after month. Websites for trades is how we build a site that brings in work and that you own. Google Ads for tradesmen is for when you want calls sooner or more of one job. And marketing for tradesmen shows what we do for your trade.
Questions tradesmen ask about getting more work
How do I get more customers as a tradesman?
Make it easy to find you, trust you and reach you. Start with a complete Google Business Profile, steady reviews and a website that works on a phone. Then add paid channels when you want more of a certain job.
What’s the best way to get more work as a tradesman without paying for leads?
Your Google Business Profile is free. Reviews cost nothing but the ask. Word of mouth costs your time. In our view those three are the place to start.
Is Checkatrade worth it for a tradesman?
It depends on your trade, your area and how many of the leads you win. Work it out with your own numbers using our guide is Checkatrade worth it.
Do I need a website if I get enough work from word of mouth?
Not always, today. But people you’re recommended to may well look you up first. A website and a Google profile give them something to find. They also give you somewhere to send new customers when word of mouth goes quiet.
Can I text old customers to ask for more work?
You can text past customers about similar work if you gave them a clear way to opt out when you took their details, and you offer it again in every message. That’s the ICO’s rule for existing customers. It doesn’t cover people who’ve never been your customer.
How long before more work comes in?
Nobody can honestly give you a date. Ads can bring calls sooner. Your profile, reviews and website build up over months. It depends on your trade, your towns and how many others are chasing the same work.
More work you own
Getting more work as a tradesman comes down to the same few things. Be easy to find on Google. Have genuine reviews. Own a website that works on a phone. Help word of mouth along. And pay for leads only when it suits you.
Want to see how many people search for your trade in your towns, and which firms show up for those searches now? Our free local forecast shows you.