PAINTSQUARE BLOG

One of the most important aspects of marketing for your painting business is audience targeting. When you identify key buyer personas you understand exactly what message your ads should send. One of the best demographics for professional painters is new homeowners excited to transform their new home into a unique living space.

Here we review why new homeowners make excellent prospects and detail different strategies to target and acquire this audience online.

Why Target New Homeowners for Your Painting Business Marketing?

As a painter, you probably already know the answer to this question.

All photos provided by the author

One of the most important aspects of marketing for your painting business is audience targeting.

New homeowners are prime targets because they typically want to erase traces of the previous owners and make the space their own. Homeownership invokes emotional responses, even in homes that are “move-in ready.” Excitement, joy, and the burden of filling the space with new colors are all emotions you can capitalize on. Your job is to identify these individuals and offer to create a customized space for their new home.

According to a recent Houzz survey, when it comes to decorating, 91% of homeowners surveyed intended to paint their walls. This is a huge opportunity for painters, as 33% also said they would speak to an interior designer or decorator. That leaves a lot of homeowners without the budget to work with a designer, but who probably are just as likely to need some guidance in their home decorating schemes.

How To Market To New Homeowners

Now that you know why you should target new homeowners, it’s time to look at the how. Many of the steps we recommend here are free or very inexpensive to implement. Let’s dive in!

Find Industry Partners

This is the best way to identify and capture new homeowner referrals:

1. Realtors and real estate agencies: Networking with realtors is a perfect place to start. You can not only gain business from their buyers, but also from their sellers. Provide images of your work, let them know how quickly you can complete the job, and offer special discounts to entice them to recommend your services.
2. Interior designers: Very few interior designers do their own painting. New designers starting out might do it to save money, but for the most part, they could use a little help. Although many already have partnerships, offering yourself to manage overages can start a lasting relationship.
3. Contractors: Successful contractors have multiple trades they hire for their projects. Reaching out to local contractors offering your services can lead to a profitable partnership.

Offer Industry Partnership Referral Incentives

When approaching possible partnerships, offer a discount or other incentives to help gain more referrals. New homeowners are strapped for cash and would be happy to save money on their interior projects. Real estate agents often form partnerships with local trades and services that help their clients. You are more likely to forge partnerships if you provide further incentives other than your exceptional work and as always, money talks. Just be careful you aren’t eating into your profit margins!

Buy Leads Online

Online registries and databases help you find new leads. They offer email lists based on your specific targets. Companies such as Data Axel offer B2C emails specific to various businesses. Lists include emails “washed” against the Do Not Call Registry in real-time so you remain compliant with email marketing regulations. You can add to your own list or use it to start your email base.

Use Zillow

This is an easy strategy to implement but does require some investment in postcards or flyers. Search listings in your area on Zillow, Realtor.com, Trulia, etc., and target those homes for mailers. A picture is worth a thousand words, so mailers showing before and after shots, with a link to your website to view your gallery is the simplest approach.

Look for “Sold” Signs

Keep track of the houses your find for sale online and look for sold signs. These homes can then be targeted once you see the sign is gone. Postcards or mailers reach the new owners within weeks or even days of moving in, outsmarting the competition.

Create a NextDoor Account

NextDoor allows you to target new homeowners in your area. It is a social media platform that’s specific to homeowners and neighborhoods where people meet, make recommendations, and share area tips. However, it is also where people find local products and services including home repairs, real estate, and maintenance. You create a profile and have your clients leave recommendations and ratings. As your ratings increase, you secure a better position for people to find you. Better yet, it is forum-based, so you can get involved in conversations, answer questions about painting, etc.

Scale Up Your Offering

Do your research and see what the competition offers. For example, do you currently offer a warranty for your work? Do you repaint cabinets? Are you able to offer quality handyman services such as drywall repairs, installing trim, etc.? Do you offer specialty finishes? Do you do exterior makeovers such as front doors, garage doors, window frames, shutters, decks, etc.? The more broad your service offerings are, the more likely you are to gain referrals and attract better partnerships.

Start Blogging

Blogs targeting new homeowners can help increase your organic rankings on SERPs. Content that helps answer common questions about painting can help you reach the top ranking. Video showing how to prep walls before painting, step-by-step blogs explaining how to paint trim, information explaining how to choose the right type of paint for each room, etc. can all help establish expertise. Be sure to make the posts location-based to attract the right audience.

Blogging for Industry Outreach

We already discussed the importance of industry partnerships, and creating a blog post can be the perfect way to break the ice. Here’s how it works – Let’s say you’re a painting business in Grants Pass, Oregon, that wants to acquire new Real Estate Agent partnerships. Simply write a blog post for the “Top 10 Real Estate Agents in Grants Pass” and send an email to all of the Real Estate Agents in that area with a link that states “Are you interested in being added to this list?” Anyone who responds is a potential industry partner who you can engage to exchange a link for future referrals.

Set Up Your Google Business Profile

Because you depend on local customers for your business painting marketing, you need to focus on your local SEO. Your Google Business Profile (formally Google My Business) is a free tool required for all painting contractors. Your business profile appears at the top of search results when homeowners conduct a local search for painters on Google. It works in hand with Google Maps showing your location, your rating, and other pertinent contact information such as your phone number and a link to your website. If you don’t take the time to claim your business profile you will be completely overlooked on local search results.

Much like a social media profile you can add images – a very important strategy for attracting new customers. Be sure to add your best before and after shots, using high-quality images to help show off your skills. You can even post updates, special offers, and other info such as seasonal messages when it’s time for exterior paint refreshes. This is the ultimate free painting business marketing tool that every painting business owner should take advantage of.

Ask for Reviews and Testimonials

Some painters feel awkward asking their customers for reviews, but Google reviews work alongside your Google Business Profile to help improve your rankings in local search results. According to a Forbes article, 87% of people read reviews, 79% trust them just like they would a personal recommendation, and having at least five quality product reviews can increase the likelihood of purchase by 270%. For this, we recommend setting up an automated email that triggers when a job is complete.

Conclusion

Targeting new homeowners can help scale your painting business, encourage more positive reviews, and even create ongoing work and referrals. Implementing tips will help you tap into this valuable audience and generate more high-quality painting leads, and ultimately more business for your company. If you’re looking for a hands-off approach, we recommend reaching out to the experts at Base Coat Marketing. Their team of certified marketing professionals has over a decade of experience generating leads within the professional painting industry, and they even offer a lead guarantee!

ABOUT THE THE BLOGGER Austin Houser As the Founder of Base Coat Marketing, Houser is a data scientist and digital marketing expert with over a decade of lead generation experience within the professional painting industry. SEE ALL CONTENT FROM THIS CONTRIBUTOR