Short answer: lead and directory sites can be useful when you’re starting out or need work quickly. The catch is that you’re paying for every customer, competing on price with whoever else got the same lead, and building somebody else’s brand. Your own Google profile, website and reviews take longer to build, but they keep working without a fee per job.

How lead sites make money

Broadly, they charge one of two ways. Some charge a membership fee to be listed. Others charge you for each lead or each job you’re shortlisted for. Either way, the cost comes out of your margin, and the customer often belongs to the platform, not you.

What’s good about them

  • They bring work quickly when you’re starting out
  • Customers trust the vetting and the reviews
  • You don’t need to know anything about marketing

What’s not so good

  • You’re often up against several other trades for the same job
  • Customers on there tend to shop on price
  • Your reviews live on their site, not yours
  • If you stop paying, the work stops

The alternative: your own marketing

Your own Google Business Profile, a simple website and an active Facebook page do the same job over time, without a fee per lead. The reviews you collect stay yours. The customers phone you directly. And you’re not stood in a queue with four other quotes.

It’s slower to build, which is why a lot of trades use both for a while and drop the lead site once their own marketing is bringing enough in.

A sensible plan

  • Keep the lead site if it’s working, while you build your own
  • Set up and fill in your Google profile properly
  • Ask every customer for a Google review, including the ones from the lead site
  • Get a simple website live
  • Review it after six months and see where the work is coming from

Toflin doesn’t charge lead fees. You pay a set price and keep every customer. Prices are on the pricing page.

Quick answers

Is Checkatrade worth it for a new tradesman?

It can help you get started with work and reviews. Many trades use it alongside building their own Google profile and website.

What’s better than paying for leads?

Your own Google Business Profile, reviews and a simple website. They take longer to build but don’t charge per job.

Can I ask lead site customers for a Google review?

Yes. They’re your customer once you’ve done the job. Ask them the same way as everyone else.

Written by Tony Flynn, who runs Toflin from Carluke and works with trades across Lanarkshire. Want a hand with any of this? Call 01698 598763 or see the prices.