How to Grow Your Handyman Business

by Team Tradify, December 19, 2023

Running your own business is a huge step towards taking control of your life and calling the shots. Starting a handyman business is a sign you’ve dreamed of a life where you can call the shots and collect the financial reward. But if you want to grow your handyman business, there are a few things you should have sorted out first. From marketing and hiring to finance and software, here’s how you can take your handyman business to the next level.

Failing to plan is planning to fail. Get prepared with our Free Business Plan!

Short on time? Skip ahead!

Ramp up your digital marketing processes
Decide which hiring option is best for your business
Take a hard look at your finances
Get the best admin solution possible
Grow your plumbing business to the next level

1. Ramp up your digital marketing processes

Website

How do you search for local businesses? How a customer experiences your website can be a major factor in their decision-making process. As your website is your first impression, it’s important that it looks great and performs well. Check that it's easy to use by seeing how long it takes to send an enquiry. Hint: if it takes more than a few clicks, rethink your setup! Try including your top reviews and testimonials, and adding some photos of past projects that you’re proud of. This not only helps your website look great, but it’ll also give potential customers even more reason to enquire.

Tradify's Instant Website

Websites can be tricky to get right, it's why we’re making websites quick, easy, and affordable with our feature: Instant Website.

Please note: This feature is currently available for all Tradify customers and is an additional (and optional) cost to your Tradify subscription. You can view your Instant Website during your free trial, but you’ll need a paid Tradify subscription to go live.

Google Business Profile

Showing that your business is local, open and legitimate are huge factors in capturing potential customers. A Google Business Profile ensures your business can be found on Google and Google Maps. Getting registered is as easy as filling out a free form online and verifying your profile through a phone call, text, email, or video.

Social media

For a growing percentage of the population, researching potential businesses through social media is part of their verification process - if not their first port of call. Your social media page is the perfect opportunity to share great photos and videos that showcase past projects and your day-to-day processes and experiences. Social media is all about exposure — it’s a great way to grow awareness of your business so that you can reach more people who may want to use your services.

Not sure where to start? Check out our guides for these social media platforms:

Don’t worry about being perfect or going viral — check out your favourite handyman-specific social media pages, reflect on what makes your business tick and go from there! +

Directories

Based upon these vintage things called a "phone book", online directories are now the industry standard for registering and promoting your business to the public. Alongside your website and social media profiles, listing your business with an online directory will spread the word about your handyman services and, hopefully, win you more work so your business can grow.

2. Decide who to hire next

When to hire

There's no golden rule for when to hire your first employee. It's a big commitment and one that requires serious thought, particularly in terms of the employee's cost and your capacity.

Don't get caught out by unexpected expenses. Discover the real cost of hiring an employee.

Apprentices

Hiring an apprentice is an excellent opportunity to train the next generation of handymen, pass on your knowledge and gain a trustworthy employee down the line. But it’s not always as easy as it sounds – finding the perfect match for your business is hard enough without the trade labour shortage that’s being felt worldwide.

Subcontractors

Taking on new staff doesn’t have to be a permanent commitment. Hiring a subcontractor can help propel your business forward without the financial and administrative burden of long-term employment. Here is our guide for hiring and managing subcontractors.

Ready to expand the team? Check out Tradify's Subcontractor Management feature!

Full-time employees

Feel like you need an extra pair of hands to help tackle your workload? Employing full-time staff is a sure sign that your business is growing. If all goes to plan, having one or more full-time staff members should take a lot off your plate so you can focus on winning work and maximising profit.

Not sure whether a subcontractor or full-time worker suits your business better? We’ve weighed the pros and cons of each so you can choose the right option for your business.

When you're ready, get prepared with Tradify's free job description template and interview questions for apprentices and new hires. Still on the fence? Check out or guides to pick the right employment option for your business.

3. Take a hard look at your finances

Cash flow

Between paying staff, investing in tools, and keeping up with operational costs, running a handyman business is a huge financial responsibility. If you feel like you’re treading water where finances are concerned, it’s a good idea to sit down and take a proper look at your cash flow. If you’re really struggling, you can always hire an accountant, too.

Want to turn cash flow into profit? Try our free cash flow forecast template!

Charge-out rate

Calculating the right charge-out rate is one of the fastest ways to guarantee you're growing as fast as possible. The ideal charge-out rate means that you’re not halting growth by charging too little, and you’re not getting in the way of winning more work because you’re charging too much.

Time to see if it's time to charge more? Try our free Charge-Out Rate Calculator!

Profit margin

Incorrectly calculating your profit margin isn't only bad for your bottom line, it could mean a considerable amount of time spent on jobs or materials which don't generate profit. Figuring out your profit margin shouldn't be a guessing game. With our free profit margin calculator, you'll be able to see exactly how much you're making on each job.

Step one - calculate your profit margin. Step two - profit.

4. Get the best admin solution possible

Efficient quoting and invoicing

On average, trade business owners spend over 18 hours on admin every week. Reducing this time is a key way to bring more balance to your life, or expand your ability to work on other aspects of your handyman business! Tradify’s quoting and invoicing features allow you to create and send professional invoices, quotes, and estimates quickly and efficiently. It’s as simple as letting Tradify do the hard work, while you focus on what really matters, like being a good handyman and growing your business.

Keeping track of jobs

Securing an increasing number of jobs is a sure sign your business is growing. But, if you can’t keep up with growing demand, fail to arrive prepared and on time or even miss jobs due to mismanagement, you’ll end up having some very unhappy customers. Tradify’s scheduling and job tracking features will help you keep tabs on all your jobs, giving you a real-time view of active, upcoming, and past jobs.

Easy and professional enquiry process

An enquiry is the first communication you’ll have with new clients. To make sure it’s not the last, you need to leave a lasting good impression. Tradify’s enquiries feature streamlines messages from your email, website, and phone so you can respond quickly and never miss a job opportunity.

5. Grow your handyman business to the next level

Successful handyman businesses aren’t built in a day. On top of all your hard work, you also need effective admin solutions, a strong online presence and a dedicated team beside you. Once you’ve got that in check, business is bound to come rolling in.

Sign up for a 14-day free trial. No credit card required. No commitment. Or pop over to one of our live demo webinars to see Tradify in action.