There are more avenues than ever when it comes to advertising your business and finding new clients. This can differ depending on industry and whether you’re in commercial or domestic, or civil, but overall, similar channels always come out on top.
Word of mouth and industry networking are always effective. These methods build face to face trust, and repeat customers often fall into these channels. Digital marketing is a different beast, and it’s constantly evolving. Social media, SEO, paid ad campaigns and now AI search are all having a significant impact, and can all work.
I took the time to approach a few Australian business owners in the construction and services industries about what they do online, and what works for them. This is what they had to say.
What’s working in marketing and reputation building
Joe Byrne, owner of Byrne Homes said, “for me marketing is becoming more about genuine, personal organic business content and almost nothing spent on paid ads. Then using AI not as a creative tool but as an analysis tool to work on consistency across all platforms. Not sure if I have anywhere near cracked it but working on it”.
Sam Kiely, CEO of Kiely Plumbing, iterated that when it comes to marketing, local trust signals are everything. That includes Google reviews, consistent branding, and showing real work (not stock content). They’ve found that simple, authentic content and proof of performance beats polished ads.
Lee Povh, director at Westland Group, stated that “In this current environment it is essential that a business has a social media presence, but ultimately how you attract clients is your reputation in the industry. I’ve found that in the current economic situation price is everything for most clients. The issue that I have with this is that you are often quoting against other contractors that don’t quote to spec and the client is willing to take the risk of their client not noticing. Very different times indeed”.
I had a chat with Mark Korzec, owner of OTG Rubbish Removals, and he has a very hands on approach to online marketing. Mark taught himself local SEO and his site is performing well, regularly receiving calls and quote requests for a range local search queries. He’s very active on LinkedIn, posting about his services and day-to-day activities. He also mentioned that business networking events in Melbourne have been very successful in building relationships with other business owners, that have led to high-quality jobs down the track.
Dale Seager, director of Foundation Plumbing Group, stated “I use LinkedIn as a platform to showcase our work. Even when we’re too busy to take on any more projects, I will still keep posting”.
What do the numbers say?
I’ve been able to find some solid data on which digital marketing strategies really worked for construction businesses in 2025. While full data isn’t available for 2026 just yet, I think many of these figures are still quite spot on.
These numbers have been drawn from a few different studies and sources, including industry heavyweights like HiPages, and news sources such as Tech Business News.
70% of people rely on word of mouth, at least for the first step
Data from the hipages FY25 Results Announcement and recent industry surveys confirm that 70% of tradespeople still cite word-of-mouth as their primary lead source. However, in 2026, a referral is often not enough to close a deal. Homeowners now use a referral as a point of reference when searching online, wanting to double check.
76% of Aussies check Google, even after a word of mouth referral
According to 2026 digital consumer reports, 76% of Australians will search for a tradie on Google (even after they have been recommended by a friend). This digital double check is where plenty of construction businesses lose leads. If a tradie doesn’t have a professional website or a high-ranking Google Business Profile (GBP), they’re often seen as invisible or unprofessional. That’s where organic search marketing for tradies is critical.
29% of clients coming from Google Ads
Emergency services offered by sparkies and plumbers lean heavily on high-intent search and user urgency. Industry benchmarks for 2026 show that 29% of domestic leads are captured via Paid Search (PPC). In major cities like Sydney and Melbourne, the cost-per-lead (CPL) has risen to an average of $70.11, making expert management of Google Ads essential to avoid wasted spend.
25% of work coming from social media
Social media continues to hold a 25% share of the discovery market, particularly for highly-visual trades like landscaping, painting, and cabinetry. Facebook groups remain the primary hyper-local referral engine in regional Australia, while Instagram provides a solid platform as a digital gallery for high-end residential work.
What conclusions can we draw about client acquisition in 2026?
So in summary, reputation is critical. How this reputation is displayed depends on the business itself – we have owners and directors doing plenty of effective, personalised marketing on LinkedIn. This is great because they can reach other business owners in particular, perfect for building relationships for B2B services.
Word of mouth will always have its place, but it’s not an effective way for your business to acquire work unless you’re maintaining a quality reputation. This of course means quality work, but also a strong reputation online – that stat that shows 76% of Aussies still check online after a word of mouth referral is significant.
Many businesses rely too heavily on paid ad campaigns to generate leads. Many users purposely avoid the sponsored results on Google, or will rapidly skip past ads on Facebook and Instagram. PPC campaigns definitely still have their place for tradies and construction businesses, but these need to tie in with other methods.
In my opinion (backed by numbers of course), maintaining a fantastic Google Business profile that shows real reviews, a high-quality website that brings in the right clients for the right queries, and a strong organic presence on platforms that suit your work (LinkedIn, Instagram, local Facebook groups) is the way to go in 2026.
Reach out here if you’d like to have a chat about your plan this year. Happy to help!
