5 Proven Strategies to Generate Leads with Social Media Marketing | Painting Contractors

Phone taking a picture of a home exterior for social media.

To grow your painting business, it’s important to develop and maintain a digital and social media presence. Our painting contractor social media strategies can help you get started.

One of the easiest—and lowest cost—ways to generate painting leads and market your business to your local community is by advertising via digital and social media. Here’s how to begin building a presence on five of the most popular social media platforms.

Top Five Social Media Platforms for Painting Contractors

Instagram: Show Off Your Great Work

Attract new clients to your painting business by showcasing your craftsmanship on Instagram via Instagram Reels and impressive before-and-after photo carousels. Instagram has more than 1 billion highly engaged users,* and you never know who may be looking to hire a painting contractor, so always put your best foot forward with high-quality content. Check out our Instagram channel for painting pros for inspiration!

Sample Instagram post to help drive business.

Facebook: It’s Not Just About Friends Anymore

You’re probably familiar with Facebook in your daily life. After all, 2.45 billion people use it worldwide—and 74% of them are high-income earners.** Building a professional presence on Facebook, can get your business seen by many people you likely wouldn’t reach otherwise. What’s more, you can ask clients to post reviews and photos from your completed jobs, making Facebook marketing a wise choice for painters.

Sample Facebook page for painting business.

Pinterest: A Visual Platform to Advertise Painting Services

Inspiration starts on Pinterest. By creating pins that feature your work, you’re gaining exposure and advertising your services while giving users an easy way to save your information. As a bonus, having a Pinterest account lets you work with your clients who may have built Pinterest boards for their upcoming painting projects, giving you access to their vision and encouraging communication and collaboration to bring it to life.

Sample Pinterest page for painting business.

LinkedIn: Networking for Painting Contractors

Network with everyone from past clients to potential new hires to other painters via LinkedIn. While you’re there, take advantage of the ability to connect with groups like the Painting Contractors Association (PCA), which offers everything from talent recruitment to painter training, plus third-party businesses that can help you grow:

Thryv^® can help with lead generation, estimates, and more.

NiceJob encourages clients to write reviews, which you can then share on your website and social media.

PaintScout offers sales software to help you price estimates, present to clients, and get paid all in one place.

Interested in learning more about the above businesses and programs? Your local Benjamin Moore contractor representative can help you get started.

Sample LinkedIn page for painting business.

Google My Business: Beyond the Search Box

Google is often the first place potential painting clients turn to find painters, and that’s why Google Business Profile is invaluable to your company. With Google Business Profile, you can take control of your internet presence, positioning your business front and center among the search results on Google Search and Google Maps.

On your profile, enter all the important information your potential clients will want to see immediately: your phone number, address, website, and business hours. There’s also a painter category on Google My Business, which you will likely want to select for your business.

After you’ve completed a job, reach out to satisfied clients and make it easy for them to leave positive reviews by emailing or texting a link. If they leave a review, feel free to reply and thank them publicly.

Top Five Social Media Best Practices for Painting Contractors

1. Develop a Consistent Posting Schedule

It’s easy to post a few photos and then let your social media presence get lost in the shuffle of everyday life, but one of our biggest painting industry social media tips is developing—and sticking to—a consistent schedule. Whether it’s once a day or once a week, having a reasonable posting schedule will help you get into the routine of social media marketing and keep your business top of mind with your followers. Prone to forgetfulness? Set an alarm on your phone reminding you to post—or enlist the services of a social media marketing company if you have room in your budget.

2. Engage with Your Audience: Comments, Likes, and Shares

Every follower is a potential customer. Keeping your lines of communication open and friendly is a key factor in getting painting jobs through social media. While likes are great, painters tend to see the biggest boost in engagement by asking questions, replying to comments, and encouraging saves and shares, especially on platforms like Instagram and Facebook.

3. Use Hashtags Strategically

Hashtags (e.g., #exteriorpainting, #amazing, #homeimprovement, and #paint) can extend the reach of your posts, as anyone searching for any of your hashtags might find them. To determine which hashtags to use, keep an eye on other painting contractors’ Instagram posts and see what they’re using successfully.

It’s best practice to make sure your hashtags are relevant to your Instagram post—don’t barrage followers with hashtags just for the sake of using them. Also, consider using local or location-based hashtags (e.g., #nycpainters, #torontoresidentialpainters, #texaspaintingcontractor, etc.) to help customers in your specific area find you when they’re searching for contractors.

4. Craft Compelling Captions

A picture is worth a thousand words, but social media captions can help drive the point home. Engage your followers with fun, information-driven captions that showcase the work you did and the Benjamin Moore products you used. Be sure to express enthusiasm for recently completed jobs, using your portfolio of work to encourage prospective clients to consider hiring you for their next project.

5. Analyze and Optimize Your Social Media Performance

When it comes to social media for painting contractors, it’s important to know what keeps your clients coming back for more. An easy way to analyze how your business is doing on social media is to take note of which posts have the most comments and which photos seem to resonate most with your followers via likes (or views for Reels or other videos). For help analyzing, consider hiring a social media agency that can take your understanding of optimization a step further.

Want to discuss your social media presence further? Your local contractor rep can help answer any questions you may have.

Contact a Rep

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How do I find customers as a painter?

A. Using social media is a key marketing move for painting contractors looking to expand their client roster.

Offline, word of mouth from past clients can increase your reach immensely. If you’re new to an area, try to form relationships with real estate agents and the experts at your locally owned Benjamin Moore store.

Q. What is the best lead generation for painters and painting companies?

A. When potential clients are looking for a painter, they are likely going to start online. Make sure your Google Business Profile and Facebook pages are up-to-date with current photography, contact information, and reviews. Additionally, working with your local rep can help you find Benjamin Moore contractor leads or ideas on how to boost your lead generation.

Q. How do I market painting jobs?

A. To grow your painting business, it’s important to develop and maintain a digital and social media presence. Every day, billions of potential customers use digital platforms for inspiration when remodeling their homes, for recommendations when they’re thinking about painting a room, and for finding contractors to hire for the job. Social media and other digital platforms offer an incredible opportunity for you to market your painting business. They are extremely effective for making new connections, showing off your skills, and winning new business.

Not sure where to start? Businesses like Thryv^® can help you create a website if you don’t have one or update your existing site to include search engine optimization (SEO), social media integration, and more.

Q. How do I grow my painting business?

A. One of the easiest—and most cost-effective—ways to generate painting leads and market your business to your local community is by advertising via digital and social media. Offline, we suggest getting to know your community by building a friendly, professional relationship with people who frequently work with homeowners, like real estate agents or the staff at your locally owned Benjamin Moore store.

Sources:
*business.instagram.com
**sproutsocial.com

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Top 5 Social Media Platforms and Best Practices for Painting Contractors