3 Reasons Why Your Home Services Business Needs a Social Media Presence

Marketing changed a lot in the past few years, thanks to the evolution of digital media. Traditional marketing outlets like email, which once sparked interest for customers, may not be so popular anymore, especially with Millennials entering the market for home services. Based on our research, a social media presence is a marketing strategy every business should adopt.

1. First impressions are important

According to the data, only 3% of Baby Boomers turned to social media to conduct their initial research on prospective companies, while 15% of Gen Zers chose this same research method. Consumers are now five times as likely to conduct their searches on social media when they are in the market for some type of home service.

With 99% of survey respondents active on at least one form of social media, there is a good chance it is going to play a part in their impression of your business. We’ve seen a staggering increase in the importance of social media presence to consumers and don’t have any reason to believe that level of importance is going down any time soon. You want to make sure your social media accounts showcase your brand and what makes it unique.

Not just B2C brands need to worry about social media, though. In fact, when it comes to traditional B2B creative services like architecture and design, over twice as many survey respondents looked at a prospective company’s social media before they read any ratings or reviews. Furthermore, if you’re operating a business that Gen Z’s are interested in, like interior design or home decor, your social media may be valued three times as much as online reviews.

Eye-catching and polished social media profiles will draw in more customers than sloppy ones. Take a look at the Instagram profiles of two construction companies below.

The first company’s profile showcases behind the scenes photos of their business, but they lack in showing their actual services and results. Additionally, they don’t specify their location, so potential customers don’t know where they are based. On the other hand, the second company has a polished profile, complete with a clear theme and location information. This is a perfect example of why companies need to put effort into their social media; the social media-savvy profile has more than eight times as many followers as the one just going through the motions.

2. Social media is outweighing the importance of traditional factors

Since social media has increased five times in importance to consumers, it is vital for companies to adapt to the times and establish a solid media presence. Social media presence tops factors used to be considered more important, like length of time in business, which is very important to Baby Boomers. According to the survey responses, social media presence is 75% as important as length of time in business for all consumers.

This also means a solid social media presence can help a recently established company gain traction to catch up with a company that’s been around for years but has no media profiles of any kind. For example, Refresh Home, an interior design company in Tennessee, gained lots of traction as a result of its social media presence. Although the business opened in 2015, it shows up as one of the first interior design companies in an Instagram search, far above many competitors in business decades longer.

3. Social media is becoming a place for reviews  

Social media has also turned into a place where consumers like to write reviews, with 22% of our survey respondents saying they write reviews for home services on Facebook. These reviews will most likely be seen by customers doing their research, so it’s important to give customers a reason to write positively.

Asking for reviews can be bittersweet, as you might get some bad along with the good. But social media offers customers a chance to show lots of transparency about a business, which can be an incredible opportunity for growth. It’s also a chance to show your own professionalism by handling not-so-positive reviews with dignity and grace.

Conclusion

A new era of digital marketing, driven by the rise of social media, is coming. Specifically, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok are becoming much more popular platforms for businesses to be on.  

Social media is here to stay and the research proves it. Businesses of all kinds, from B2C to B2B, need to ensure they’re optimizing their social footprint to capture and convert more customers.