How to Be a Good Commercial Painter

by Team Tradify, September 14, 2023

Professional painters aren’t just armed with brushes or sprayers, they're equipped with extensive knowledge about the complete paint life cycle, including preparation and the pursuit of lasting, high-quality results.

But becoming a great commercial painter takes more than your skills with a paintbrush. Building your reputation, improving your knowledge of application methods and the science behind adhesion, experimenting with marketing, and creating a strong business foundation are all vital steps to becoming a great commercial painter.

Considering starting a painting business? Check out our plan to get you started

Want more help setting up your painting business? Check out our tools and guides below.

Still deciding which trade is right for you? Check out our guide to choosing a trade career.

Looking for more advice on a specific trade? Check out more of our guides here.

Short on time? Skip ahead!

Getting started as a professional painter
How to grow your skills
Health & safety
Grow your reputation
Keep a steady flow of work and money
Build a digital presence
Attention to detail

1. Getting started as a professional painter

Now’s a great time to enter the painting trade. The demand for skilled painters is on the rise worldwide, making it an opportune time to receive training and secure a rewarding career in the field. Job prospects are on the rise, offering competitive salaries and training opportunities.

Wondering if you should start? Check out the average earning potential and what you need to get started below.

United States:

Average Hourly Rate: $19.82 (USD)/hr
Overtime: Approximately $5,625 per year,
Non-cash benefit: 401(k) contributions
Qualifications: No formal education requirements exist to become a painter in the USA. Most painters learn on the job or through apprenticeship programs. Some technical schools offer certificates in painting.

United Kingdom:

Average Hourly Rate: £15 (GBP)/hr
Average bonus: £940 (GBP)
Qualifications: In the UK, you can become a painter and decorator through various routes, including college courses, apprenticeships, or on-the-job training. A Con struction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) card will be needed in order to paint on construction sites.

Australia:

Average Hourly Rate: $35.82 (AUD)/hr
Average bonus: $2,220 (AUD)
Qualifications: While formal education isn't mandatory, completing a relevant qualification like a Certificate III in Painting and Decorating is beneficial. To work on construction sites, obtaining a White Card through an RTO is necessary. Licensing and registration enable your ability to work as a painting contractor or supervisor.

New Zealand:

Average Hourly Rate: $32 (NZD)/hr
Average bonus: $1,981 (NZD)
Qualifications: No specific requirements are required, but completing an apprenticeship and gaining a National Certificate in Painting and Decorating (Level 4) is common. The Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO) oversees painting and decorating apprenticeships.

2. How to grow your skills

Commercial painting techniques:
One of the biggest differences between professional painters and a newbie is the knowledge of how surfaces such as drywall, concrete, or metal respond to different types of paint and applications. By understanding the science of paint adhesion, including primers and bonding agents, you’re better set up to ensure lasting adhesion, even in challenging conditions.

3. Health & safety

Take care of yourself and your body by focusing on safety when handling paints and chemicals, or while working at height! Painting is a physical job, so prioritise keeping fit and eating healthy.

Check your staff are clued up on health and safety with our free checklist!

4. Grow your reputation

Customer service:
Customer satisfaction is crucial for your painting career's success. This goes further than simply doing a great paint job. Clients appreciate honesty, clear communication and reliability. People talk – and if you’ve got a reputation for great customer service, you’re bound to get more work in the future.

Professional relationships:
Clear and honest communication is also important within your professional relationships. Any current and future business endeavours hinge on your reputation, so it’s key to treat everyone you encounter with respect.

Ready to promote your painting business? These business directories are an ideal way to start.

🇺🇸 USA Small Business Directories
🇬🇧 UK Small Business Directories
🇦🇺 Australian Small Business Directories
🇳🇿 New Zealand Small Business Directories

5. Keep a steady flow of work and money

When it’s time to strike out on your own, it’s vital to keep an accurate track of your expenses and set competitive prices for your services. Tradify can help you monitor your projects, reduce costs, and speed up payment processing.

Tradify helps Rohan, Narelle and the team at Master Painters keep everything on track.

When they get an enquiry – by email, phone, or hipages – it goes into Tradify, and Narelle schedules an appointment for Adam (the general manager) to assess the job. Then a quote is created and sent to the client. Once accepted (all they have to do is click a button), Narelle converts it to a job, and Adam schedules it for when he’s got a free crew.

“He says, ‘Now that I don’t have to do the things I didn’t like doing, it’s great!’”

Check out how Tradify Helped Master Painters Take on More Work here.

6. Build a digital presence

If you’re planning to run a painting business, pay attention to your online presence. These days, local products or services are just a quick Google search away. Make sure you show up in search results by creating a website for your painting business.

Social media profiles will also help to boost your reach. Think about whether these platforms would suit your business:

There are heaps of popular painting content for inspiration; such as ‘How to's’, ‘Paint removal’, and even ASMR videos of commercial painting.

7. Attention to detail

It doesn’t matter how good you are at your job, you need efficient systems to keep things running smoothly. It’s easy to forget to charge for materials, lose track of timesheets or accidentally miss a job booking. Without an efficient system, you could be losing a huge amount of time, money and energy.

But between managing employees, organising jobs and keeping tabs on finances, running a business is quite a juggling act, as Ben from Ready Set Paint found out. The final piece of his business puzzle was an efficient software system to polish things off.

For Ready Set Paint, Tradify helped Ben organise his team and grow his business.

“I like to be organised and obviously, the more straightforward things are, the easier it is for the business to grow… Everything is integrated, so it’s easy and just so efficient and I'm not having to double-handle information.”

By the time you’re ready to start your business, make sure you have your systems in place to take control of the admin. Having an efficient job management system in place to help you run your business smoothly lets you enjoy your job — without the admin hassle.