Getting Your First Customers for a Trade Business

The first job is the hardest. After it, you have a customer who can tell others, a photo for your page and a bit of confidence. Before it, you have a van, some tools, a lot of skill and a phone that is not ringing.

Most trade businesses find their first customers close to home, and mostly through people. That is good news, because people are something you can talk to. This guide lays out a friendly, practical way to find your first jobs and turn each one into the next.

Why it is local and personal

Word-of-mouth, the passing of information about a business from person to person, has always been the strongest source of work for trades and services. A recommendation from a friend carries more weight than any advert, because the friend has nothing to gain and something to lose if it goes wrong.

That does not mean you wait for it to happen. It means you make it easy for people to recommend you: they need to know what you do, where, and how to reach you, and they need to feel safe passing your name on.

Start with the people who already know you

Make a list. It will be longer than you think.

• Family and friends. They may not need your work, but they know people who do.
• Neighbours. Often the first jobs, because they can see you and your van.
• Former employers and colleagues. If you worked for someone else, they know your skill. Check any contract restrictions on approaching their customers first.
• Suppliers. The person behind the trade counter knows who is starting out and who is reliable.
• Other trades. A plumber knows a plasterer who needs an electrician.
• Clubs, teams and faith or community groups.
• Your children's school or your own gym.

For each name, write a line on how they might help: a job, an introduction or a recommendation.

Then contact them, individually and kindly. A short message works: "I have started my own business doing X in this area. If you know anyone who needs it, I would be grateful for a mention. Here is how to reach me."

Not a mass message with everyone's name visible. A personal one.

Make a card and a simple page

Have something to hand over.

• A neat card with your name, trade, area, phone number and web address.
• A one-page website or profile, so that someone who hears your name can look you up.
• A short description you can say aloud in ten seconds. "I am an electrician, I do domestic work in the north of the town, small jobs and rewires."

If you are not sure how to set up the page, our guide to launching a service business online goes through it step by step.

Leave your name where people look

Think of the places where people already look for help.

• A map and search profile. Google's help pages explain how to claim and verify a free business profile. Fill it in fully, with an accurate service area, hours, phone number and photos.
• Local directories for your trade or town.
• Community noticeboards, physical and online, where rules allow.
• The trade counter at your supplier, if they have a board.
• Local groups for residents, following their rules about adverts. Some allow businesses to introduce themselves, some restrict it to certain days.
• Launch platforms like this one, where a listing gives you a lasting page.

Do not scatter yourself everywhere. Choose three or four and keep them tidy.

Ask for introductions properly

Introductions from people who trust you are worth more than anything else. Ask in a way that is easy to say yes to.

• Be specific. "I am looking for loft conversions and small extensions" is easier to pass on than "any work".
• Make it easy. Give them a card or a link they can forward.
• Say thank you. A genuine thank-you, and perhaps a small gesture, goes a long way.
• Offer something back. If you meet a customer who needs a trade you do not do, recommend your contacts.

Another trade's recommendation often depends on whether you turn up, do tidy work and treat their customers well. Be the person who does.

Your first job is a shop window

Treat the first few jobs as an investment in reputation.

• Be on time, or tell them early if you will not be.
• Quote honestly and stick to it.
• Keep the site tidy and protect the customer's home.
• Communicate: short updates, a message when you finish.
• Do a little more than expected, within reason.
• Take photos of the finished work, with permission.
• Ask for feedback while you are still there.

Customers rarely remember the price a year later. They remember how they felt.

Ask for comments the right way

After a job that went well, ask for a short comment. Make it easy.

• Ask in person or by message, soon after the work.
• Say how it will be used: "May I put your comment on my page, with your first name?"
• Get permission in writing, even a text.
• Keep it genuine. Do not write it for them or edit it to say something they did not.
• Show it in full, or with clear context.

UK advertising guidance says marketers must hold evidence that testimonials are genuine, must have permission to use them and must not use ones that mislead. A simple record of the message that gave permission is enough.

Never invent a customer comment, and never ask friends to say good things about work they have not had.

Be seen doing good work

Reputation also grows from visibility.

• A tidy, clearly marked van or a sign on a job (with permission and in line with local rules).
• Photos of finished work on your page and profile.
• Short helpful posts on a local group: for example, a seasonal tip, offered freely without selling.
• Turning up at local events, if you enjoy it.

Be useful before you ask for anything. People remember the person who gave sensible advice about damp or a leaking tap.

Pricing your first jobs

It is tempting to undercut to win work. Think carefully.

• A very low price can attract customers who focus only on price and may complain about everything.
• It makes it harder to raise prices later.
• It can make your trade look cheap.

Better to price fairly, explain what is included and, if you want to offer something to new customers, make it small, clear and time-limited. "A free safety check with every first booking until the end of the month" is easier to withdraw than a price cut.

Keep your costs in mind, including your own time and travel. A job that loses money does not help anyone.

Keep a simple record

Write down, for every enquiry:

• Who it was and how they found you.
• What they wanted.
• Whether you quoted and what happened.
• Whether they became a customer.
• What you learned.

After a month you will know which routes work for you. That is far more useful than any national statistic, because it describes your trade, your place and your way of working.

Turn one job into the next

After each good job:

1. Thank the customer the same day.
2. Ask for a comment and permission for a photo.
3. Ask if they know anyone who might need the same or other work you do.
4. Leave a card.
5. Check back after a few weeks to see everything is fine.
6. Remember their seasonal needs. A heating engineer might remind customers each autumn.

Repeat customers and recommendations are the base of a steady business, because they cost far less than finding new ones every time.

If it is slow at the start

Quiet weeks are normal. Use them.

• Improve your page and profile.
• Visit suppliers and other trades.
• Offer to do a small, free, helpful thing for a local group.
• Take photos of past work.
• Learn something that adds a service.

If weeks go by with no enquiries, check the basics. Does your profile show the right area and phone number? Does your page load on a phone? Does anyone know you exist? Fix the simplest thing first.

Protect yourself

As the work starts, keep your paperwork in order.

• Have the right insurance for your work.
• Record your income and expenses. Government guidance explains what sole traders must keep track of.
• Use written quotes and agreements.
• Keep a record of safety and compliance checks where your trade requires them.

It is dull, and it keeps you out of trouble.

On this site

The submit page lets you create a listing that gives customers a lasting page to find, the launches page shows how other businesses introduce themselves, the categories page helps you choose the right shelf and the search page helps customers look by place. The contact page reaches a person.

The short version

Your first customers are mostly nearby people. List everyone who knows you, tell them kindly and specifically what you do, have a card and a simple page, claim your map profile and a few directories, ask for introductions, do your first jobs beautifully, ask for genuine comments with permission and keep a record of what works. One good job, well done, leads to the next.