How to get found on Google, get chosen over the next firm and get the phone ringing. Written by me, the way I'd explain it over a brew.
Three ways to stop losing calls while you're on a job, with real UK prices from October 2026, a side-by-side table and an honest view of when each one is worth paying for. Read more: Call Answering Service for Small Business: AI Receptionist vs Human vs Voicemail
Wix, Squarespace, WordPress, GoDaddy and Google Sites compared for a trade business: real UK prices, what each is good and bad at, the time it really takes, and when paying someone is the better deal. Read more: Best Website Builder for Tradesmen: An Honest UK Comparison
Other lead platforms, the free options you own outright, and the exact steps to cancel a Checkatrade membership without paying for a second year by accident. Read more: Checkatrade Alternatives: Better Ways to Get Work (and How to Cancel)
Three platforms, three completely different ways of charging you. Here's how Checkatrade, MyBuilder and TrustATrader really compare, with every price checked in October 2026. Read more: Checkatrade vs MyBuilder vs TrustATrader: Which Is Worth Paying For?
What the best electrician websites put in front of a nervous homeowner, a landlord and a facilities manager, shown on two demo designs, with the registration, EICR, EV charger and call-out details that win the job. Read more: Electrician Website Examples: What the Best Electrician Websites Show
Every free and nearly free place a UK trade can advertise, from Google and Bing to Facebook groups, free business listing sites and your van, each with an honest note on whether it's worth your time. Read more: Free Advertising for Tradesmen: 15 Ways to Advertise Your Business for Free
How pay-per-click works for plumbers, roofers, electricians and builders, what a click really costs in the UK, the settings that stop you wasting money, and when Local SEO is the better long-term bet. Read more: Google Ads for Tradesmen: UK Costs, Set-Up and When It Pays
The calls stop, the listing's gone from the map and Google's email says your profile is suspended. Here's why it happens to genuine trades, and how to appeal properly the first time. Read more: Google Business Profile Suspended? How Trades Get It Back
The "Google Verified" boxes at the top of plumber and electrician searches, explained: which UK trades can run them, what they cost, what happened to Google Guaranteed, and the catch with bad leads. Read more: Google Local Services Ads UK: What Trades Need to Know (2026)
Going it alone as a builder? How to start a construction business in the UK properly: the registrations, the tax quirks only builders get, insurance, pricing and getting the phone ringing. Read more: How to start a construction business in the UK: a building company guide
Gardening rounds and landscaping projects are two different businesses. Here's how to start either one in the UK: the registrations, the waste rules, pricing that survives winter and your first customers. Read more: How to start a gardening business (or a landscaping one) in the UK
Whether you're a plumber going self-employed or an owner who's never held a pipe cutter, here's how to start a plumbing business in the UK properly, checked as of October 2026. Read more: How to start a plumbing business (even if you're not a plumber)
Going it alone on the roofs? How to start a roofing business in the UK properly: the safety rules, the memberships worth having, insurance, scaffolding and getting found when the weather turns. Read more: How to start a roofing business in the UK: a practical guide
Thinking of going self-employed as a sparky? How to start an electrical business in 10 steps, how hard it really is and what it costs, checked as of October 2026. Read more: How to start an electrical business in 10 steps (UK guide)
Bark is a real company, but legit and worth it aren't the same thing. Here's how Bark credits and leads work for trades, what they cost in October 2026, and who it suits. Read more: Is Bark.com Legit? An Honest Bark Review for Tradesmen
What Yell actually sells in 2026, what it costs, whether the free listing is worth claiming, the questions to ask before you sign, and how to get a Yell listing removed. Read more: Yell.com Advertising: Is Yell Worth It for Trades in 2026?
Everything I'd tell a roofer, plumber or electrician about getting found on Google in 2026: the map, your profile, reviews, the website, links, AI answers, tracking, costs and timescales. Read more: Local SEO for Tradespeople: The Complete Guide (2026)
No membership, no contract, and a fee only when a homeowner shortlists you. Here's how MyBuilder works for tradespeople, what it really costs and who it suits. Read more: MyBuilder for Tradesmen: Fees, How It Works and Is It Worth It
Where plumbing leads come from, what they cost per lead and per job as of October 2026, and how to build a supply of work that nobody else is quoting on. Read more: Plumbing Leads: Where They Come From and What a Job Really Costs
Rated People closed its trade memberships in September 2026 and its jobs now go to Checkatrade members. Here's what that means for the cost, and what else is worth a look. Read more: Rated People Cost and Membership Plans: What Changed in 2026
Facebook, local groups, Instagram and Nextdoor, judged honestly: what they do for a trade business, what they don't, and a ten-minute-a-week routine that's actually sustainable. Read more: Social Media for Tradesmen: What Actually Brings in Work
Building company names, roofing company names, handyman and landscaping ideas, and the four checks to run before you pay a signwriter. Every example checked against Companies House in October 2026. Read more: Building company names: how to pick one, plus name ideas for every trade
Not a gallery of pretty sites. The patterns that make a trade website win calls, shown on demo designs I've built, with what each trade's site has to show before anyone rings. Read more: Trades Website Examples: What the Best Trade Websites Do
TrustATrader doesn't publish a price list. Here's how its annual fee works, what I could and couldn't verify in October 2026, and how to tell if it's worth joining. Read more: TrustATrader Cost: How Much Is Trust a Trader Per Month?
Your profile's set up but Google keeps saying "Get verified". Here's how each verification method works, what to film for a video, and what to do when Google says no. Read more: Google My Business Verification: Video, Codes and What to Do When It Fails
Every UK job leads site for tradesmen, checked against its own pages in October 2026: how each one charges, who it suits, and the alternative nobody else can buy. Read more: Best Lead Generation Sites for Tradesmen in the UK (2026)
How to add your business to Google properly the first time, as a trade that goes to customers: hidden address, service areas, categories, services and photos. Read more: Set Up a Google Business Profile: A Step-by-Step Guide for Trades
Google Business Profile optimisation gets sold as a monthly mystery. For a trade it's mostly a one-off checklist and one good habit. Here's the list, with the right categories for each trade. Read more: Google Business Profile Optimisation: A Checklist for Trades
Happy customers rarely leave reviews unless you ask. Here's how to ask without it feeling awkward, what Google allows and bans, and how to handle the occasional bad one. Read more: How to Get More Google Reviews: A Practical Guide for Trades
A direct link that opens the review box is the easiest way to get more reviews. Here's where Google hides it, how to make a QR code, and where a trade should use it. Read more: Google Review Link: How to Get Yours, Make a QR Code and Use It
Search "plumber near me" and three businesses sit on a map at the top. Here's how Google picks them, and what you can do to be one of them. Read more: How to get your business into the Google map results
Six months, a few thousand pounds and still no calls? Here are the warning signs I'd look for, and the questions I'd ask any SEO before paying them a penny. Read more: How to spot an SEO cowboy before you pay them
People are finding your website but the phone isn't ringing. Here's a ten-minute check you can do on your own phone to find out where they're dropping off. Read more: Why your website isn't bringing in enquiries
Directories appeared often in these OpenAI answers. That's worth investigating, but it doesn't show whether paying for a listing helps your business get recommended. Read more: Checkatrade was cited in 67.5% of my AI plumber searches
Checkatrade prices for tradesmen, checked in October 2026: what each tier costs per month, what you get for it, the small print that catches people, and the sum to run before you sign. Read more: Checkatrade Cost in 2026: Prices Per Month for Tradesmen
Thinking "I need a website"? Check first. A three-question test, the three honest exceptions, why a Facebook page isn't enough, and what to do once the answer is yes. Read more: Do I Need a Website for My Business? A Straight Answer
How Checkatrade works in 2026, for homeowners and for trades: the vetting, the reviews, how enquiries flow, who pays, and what it means for your business. Read more: How Does Checkatrade Work for Tradespeople? (The Full Picture)
How to choose a web design agency in the UK: the questions that expose a bad one in ten minutes, ownership traps, and how to compare quotes properly. Read more: How to Choose a Web Design Agency (Without Getting Burned)
Is Checkatrade worth it for tradespeople in 2026? An honest review: when membership pays for itself, when it doesn't, and the alternatives. Read more: Is Checkatrade Worth It? An Honest Look for Trades
Marketing for tradesmen that actually fills a diary: 12 practical ways UK trades get more work in 2026, ranked by effort and payoff, no agency waffle. Read more: Marketing for Tradesmen: 12 Ways to Get More Leads
What actually happens during a website project: the stages from brief to launch, what's normal, where projects stall, and your job as the client. Read more: The Web Design Process: What to Expect From an Agency
What website maintenance costs in the UK in 2026: real monthly figures for DIY, freelancers and care plans, what's actually included, and what to skip. Read more: Website Maintenance Cost UK: What You Should Pay
Where roofing leads come from, what "guaranteed" really guarantees, and the honest arithmetic on buying leads versus building a supply of enquiries you own. Read more: Roofing Leads: Buy Them or Build Your Own? The Honest Maths
Most electrician websites bury EV charger work on a services list. Here is how UK electrical contractors win the searches they are quietly missing. Read more: Electrician SEO: Ranking for EV Charger Installation and Rewires
Your profile exists but never appears in the map pack. Here are the six usual causes, how to diagnose each one, and what you can honestly influence. Read more: Google Business Profile for Trades: Fix the Six Things That Stop You Ranking
An honest local SEO timeline for UK trades: what happens in month one, month three, month six and month twelve, and the warning signs it is not working. Read more: How Long Does Local SEO Take for a Trade Business?
How UK roofing enquiries are really won on Google: what homeowners search, how the map pack picks its three winners, and why timing decides the rest. Read more: How Roofers Get Found on Google: The UK Local Search Guide (2026)
An honest answer to 'is SEO worth it for small business', including the five cases where I would tell a trade not to buy it at all. Read more: Is Local SEO Worth It for a Trades Business?
The real UK price bands for Local SEO, what each one buys you, and how to tell a fair quote from an expensive one. Read more: What Local SEO Actually Costs in the UK (And What You Get for It)
Four types of UK roofing website, what each one gets right and wrong, and the elements that actually turn a visitor into a quote request. Read more: Roofing Website Examples: What Wins the Quote Request
How UK plumbers win emergency call-outs from search: map pack urgency, a page per service, Gas Safe trust signals and answering the phone. Read more: SEO for Plumbers: The Emergency Call-Out Advantage
Location pages either earn a ranking or they are doorway pages. Here is the test, how many are justified, and why fifteen of mine are deliberately hidden from Google. Read more: Service Area Pages for Trades: The Line Between Ranking and a Doorway Page
What a website really costs in the UK in 2026: DIY builders, managed subscriptions, freelancers, specialists and agencies, with the three-year sums and who owns what at the end. Read more: How Much Does a Website Cost UK? Real 2026 Prices
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