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Proven strategies from industry experts. Google Ads tactics, copywriting frameworks, and design principles to grow your construction business.
Google Ads Tips
Curated from Jackson Blackledge / Echelonn
Separate Branded vs. Non-Branded Campaigns
The most critical mistake brands make is running branded and non-branded campaigns together. Google will prioritize spending on easy-to-convert branded terms, wasting budget on people who would convert anyway. Branded keywords outperform non-branded by 19x.
Use the 4-Campaign Structure
Every brand should operate with this standard setup: (1) Search brand campaigns, (2) Shopping brand campaigns, (3) Search prospecting campaigns, (4) Shopping prospecting (standard and Performance Max). This lets you pay less for branded terms while investing heavily in new customer acquisition.
Go Deep on Keyword Research
Go beyond surface-level keywords. Research audience interests, competitor strategies, and search trends to build hyper-targeted ad groups around key desires. Create custom ads and dedicated landing pages for each ad group.
Align Landing Pages with Ad Intent
Message match, intent alignment, and traffic quality directly influence conversion rates and Smart Bidding outcomes. Your landing page should deliver exactly what the ad promised.
Own Your Account
Maintain business control over billing and access to avoid agency dependency. This structural choice impacts long-term partnership flexibility. Never let an agency own your ad account.
Expect a Learning Phase
Patience with initial data collection improves long-term results. Google's algorithms need time to learn what converts. Don't panic and make drastic changes in the first few weeks.
Consider YouTube for Top-of-Funnel
YouTube Ads, particularly YouTube Shorts, can be effective for top-of-funnel prospecting when other platforms face reliability issues. It's an underutilized channel for many advertisers.
Implement Clean Conversion Tracking
Proper tracking setup enables effective automation and accurate performance measurement. Bad data leads to bad decisions. Audit your conversion tracking regularly.
What Red Door Suggests for Construction Companies
Start with campaign separation. If you're running branded and non-branded keywords together, you're likely overpaying for customers who would have found you anyway. Split them today.
Own your account from day one. We've seen too many contractors lose years of data when leaving agencies. Make sure billing is under your business email, not your agency's.
Don't panic in the first 30 days. Google needs data to optimize. If you're getting clicks but not conversions, that's normal initially. By week 4-6, patterns emerge and we can optimize aggressively.
Match your landing pages. For contractors, this means service-specific pages. Someone searching "emergency plumber near me" should land on your emergency plumbing page, not your homepage.
Copywriting Tips
Curated from George Ten (@GrammarHippy)
CopyTHINKING > Copywriting
The main work of a copywriter who knows what they're doing is to THINK. Good thinking helps you figure out WHAT to write that will get results. Writing is only about 10% of it.
The Rule of Three
One is an event. Two is a coincidence. Three is a pattern. That's why you always want to use 3 when trying to make a point: three events, three emotions, three bullet points.
The Big Domino Approach
Identify the primary factor that drives decisions in your market. This foundational element determines campaign success before tactics are deployed. Knock over the big domino, and the rest fall.
Market to In-Belief Prospects
Rather than attempting to break limiting beliefs, market to prospects who already hold beliefs aligned with your solution. Target people who already believe your approach works.
Mine Your Existing Clients
Extract endless content angles from your current client base. Their challenges and transformations become your material foundation. Look for words 'between quotes' that describe what stressed customers out before switching.
Tell Stories in First Person
A 5-part framework for telling a good story includes telling it in 1st person. This builds trust and connection with your reader. Make them feel like they're hearing it directly from you.
If You Need Long Nurture Sequences, Redesign Your Funnel
If you require extensive nurturing sequences, your funnel structure needs redesign. Quality positioning should attract naturally aware prospects who are ready to buy.
Sell Before You Build
Establish demand and validate your offer before investing resources in product development. Pre-sell to confirm the market wants what you're creating.
What Red Door Suggests for Construction Companies
Mine your completed projects. Every finished job is a goldmine of copy. What was the client worried about before? What surprised them about working with you? Those stories sell better than any feature list.
Use the Rule of Three everywhere. Three services. Three reasons to choose you. Three steps in your process. It's not a coincidence that "residential, commercial, industrial" feels complete.
Write to people who already believe. Don't waste ad dollars convincing skeptics. Target homeowners who already know they need a professional, not DIYers you'll never convert.
Think before you write. Before creating any ad or landing page, ask: What does this person already believe? What's their biggest fear? What would make them act today? The thinking is 90% of the work.
Design Tips
Curated from Brett Williams (@BrettFromDJ) / DesignJoy
Good Design Won't Make You Rich. Good Marketing Will.
Being an 'above average' designer at best can still generate $2M+ per year. The key isn't being the best designer — it's crafting a model that makes good design easy to get.
Zero-Tolerance Meeting Policy
One of the single best decisions for a design business is never hopping on calls with clients. It's a total game changer, and clients love it just as much. Async communication scales.
Use a Simple Trello Board
A simple 3-column Trello board can manage $1.5M+ worth of design work per year. Clients submit requests via Trello, Google Docs, wireframes, or Loom videos. Deliver within 48 hours.
Skip the Design System Dogma
You don't need design systems, auto-layout, or perfectly named layers. You can even use #000000 for black. Focus on output, not process perfectionism.
Build Your Portfolio First
Design 10 concepts in Figma — this is your portfolio. Then build your site in Framer or Webflow with Stripe for payments. You need work to show before you can sell.
Productize Your Service
Replace unpredictable hourly billing with a subscription model. Flat monthly fee, unlimited requests. This creates predictable revenue and removes friction from the buying process.
48-Hour Turnaround Promise
Promise each task will be done in 48 hours. Make revisions until the client is 100% satisfied. Speed and iteration beat perfectionism.
Build in Public
Market your business by launching on Product Hunt, building in public, joining communities, and posting on Twitter/X. Transparency builds trust and attracts the right clients.
What Red Door Suggests for Construction Companies
Your website is a sales tool, not an art project. Contractors often over-invest in "beautiful" design when what converts is clarity: clear services, clear service areas, clear contact info, clear proof of work.
Speed beats perfection. A good website live today beats a perfect website in 6 months. Get your project galleries up, get your contact forms working, get found on Google. Iterate from there.
Skip the meetings when possible. Detailed Loom videos explaining what you need are often faster than hour-long calls. Save meetings for strategy discussions, not task assignments.
Your photos matter more than your layout. The best website template won't save bad project photos. Invest in photographing your best work — it sells harder than any design element ever could.
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