Is it worth paying to advertise (Sponsored ads)

[M-B-Electrical-Services]

Hi all.

I have been running my Sole Trader business for just over a year now and have been quite successful in keeping myself in work.
Word of mouth and regular repeat business is keeping me afloat but I always have my eye on the next 3-6 months and I'm starting to wonder how long this streak of work is going to continue.
If it all dries up, I will be up the creek without a paddle and I can't allow that to happen so I'm considering paying to have my business pop up on google's search feed for local electrical searches.

Do any of you Sole Trader/Business owners do this and do you feel the cost is worth the reward?

I have a free ad on Yell.com but to be honest, who even looks at Yell.com when google is the primary search engine these days.

It's a tough decision to make as a business owner as I have to justify all expenses.

 

[123]

Do you have a good website? Also Google My Business (I think it's going be integrating into google maps) is pretty useful to get you up the search listings without having to pay (much) for it.

I know a few that just use Facebook for advertising and it works quite well for them (it's not for me at all though)

 

[M-B-Electrical-Services]

Do you have a good website? Also Google My Business (I think it's going be integrating into google maps) is pretty useful to get you up the search listings without having to pay (much) for it.

I know a few that just use Facebook for advertising and it works quite well for them (it's not for me at all though)

Hi bud.

I do have a website yes, by all means take a look and give some constructive criticism if you wish: About | MB Electrical Services - https://www.mb-electricalservices.co.uk/about/

I am on Google my business too but I don't get many hits (if any) but I'm not paying anything to push it right now as I'm unsure how it works and the costs involved. I'm led to believe the cost is based on the amount of clicks you receive but I'll have to look a bit deeper into that.

I'm on Yell.com as I said but again, not paying for sponsored links etc.

Facebook.....I'm not on it and, if I'm honest, I'm not a fan of it. It's too intrusive and I have concerns about the type of client it may attract. Don't get me wrong, I was brought up on a council estate and there's nothing wrong with that but I'm also very familiar with the type of people that you could end up dealing with and I don't want to open myself/business up to that kind of work.

I've been pointed towards Linked-In a few times but I've yet to look into that.......

 

[loz2754]

Hi bud.

I do have a website yes, by all means take a look and give some constructive criticism if you wish: About | MB Electrical Services - https://www.mb-electricalservices.co.uk/about/

I am on Google my business too but I don't get many hits (if any) but I'm not paying anything to push it right now as I'm unsure how it works and the costs involved. I'm led to believe the cost is based on the amount of clicks you receive but I'll have to look a bit deeper into that.

I'm on Yell.com as I said but again, not paying for sponsored links etc.

Facebook.....I'm not on it and, if I'm honest, I'm not a fan of it. It's too intrusive and I have concerns about the type of client it may attract. Don't get me wrong, I was brought up on a council estate and there's nothing wrong with that but I'm also very familiar with the type of people that you could end up dealing with and I don't want to open myself/business up to that kind of work.

I've been pointed towards Linked-In a few times but I've yet to look into that.......

Nice looking website.
It's address is just 1 letter different from my own!

 

[M-B-Electrical-Services]

Nice looking website.
It's address is just 1 letter different from my own!

Really!! That's amazing that!

Are you Sole Trader too or Ltd with employees?

 

[loz2754]

Really!! That's amazing that!

Are you Sole Trader too or Ltd with employees?

Just me.
I use Google Ads but it can be quite expensive. You can pause it though at any time.

 

[DPG]

Hi bud.

I do have a website yes, by all means take a look and give some constructive criticism if you wish: About | MB Electrical Services - https://www.mb-electricalservices.co.uk/about/

I am on Google my business too but I don't get many hits (if any) but I'm not paying anything to push it right now as I'm unsure how it works and the costs involved. I'm led to believe the cost is based on the amount of clicks you receive but I'll have to look a bit deeper into that.

I'm on Yell.com as I said but again, not paying for sponsored links etc.

Facebook.....I'm not on it and, if I'm honest, I'm not a fan of it. It's too intrusive and I have concerns about the type of client it may attract. Don't get me wrong, I was brought up on a council estate and there's nothing wrong with that but I'm also very familiar with the type of people that you could end up dealing with and I don't want to open myself/business up to that kind of work.

I've been pointed towards Linked-In a few times but I've yet to look into that.......

The website looks good.

 

[M-B-Electrical-Services]

Just me.
I use Google Ads but it can be quite expensive. You can pause it though at any time.

I'll look into starting that up then as I feel I need to get myself noticed a wee bit. No point in spending all that money on a website if it isn't being noticed!

How long have you been trading for and how are you getting on? (if you don't mind me asking)

 

[M-B-Electrical-Services]

The website looks good.

Thank you very much! I appreciate that.

 

[LukeD]

Depends if you want to be on the end of a phone all day long giving free info and quotes etc etc ? Instagram/facebook and your own customers are the best advertisers.