Notes on running and marketing a service business
What we have measured on real phones, real Google profiles and real jobs. No listicles and no predictions.
Fix your Google profile or website first
The order that costs least and moves the most, with the reasons.
Website costs for NC trade companies
What a quote should itemize, and how to compare three quotes fairly.
10 questions to ask before buying field service software
Contract length, who owns your data, export, pilots and support, and what a good answer sounds like.
A Google Business Profile checklist for trade companies
Categories, service area, hours, services, photos, posts, Q&A, reviews, and a name, address and phone number that match everywhere.
A two-week plan for estimate follow-up
Same day, day two, day five, then a calm stop. Sample texts for each step.
Business texting registration for contractors
Carriers block business texts from unregistered numbers. Brand and campaign registration, consent, STOP replies and the pages carriers check.
How to ask for Google reviews without breaking the rules
Right after the job, with a direct link and a short text. Google's rules, and example messages that stay inside them.
What a trade company website needs
Tap-to-call, a clear service area, license and insurance, a short form, real photos and speed. Plus what to cut.
What to say in a missed-call text-back (with 4 scripts)
Short, names your company, asks one easy question. Four scripts, and what never to send.
Why missed-call calculators lie, including ours
Most of them multiply one after-hours answer by a whole month of calls. Ours did it too. Here is the arithmetic, the error, and what we changed.
One email when we write something new
Usually one post. Sometimes something we got wrong and fixed. One click to leave.