How to get more work as a tradesperson in Ireland

Most steady work for Irish tradespeople comes from four free things: a Google Business Profile, a steady flow of reviews, answering enquiries fast, and a few good local contacts who pass jobs on. Lead sites and job-matching platforms can fill the gaps, but only if you work out what each finished job actually costs you in leads, not what each lead costs.

1. Set up your Google Business Profile

When someone searches "plumber near me" or "electrician Navan", the map results at the top come from Google Business Profiles. It is free, and it is the single biggest source of local enquiries for most trades. Set it up as a service-area business if you work from home, list every town you cover, add real photos of your work, and fill in every service you offer. Profiles with photos and recent activity are shown far more often than empty ones.

2. Ask every customer for a review

Reviews decide who gets the call between two trades on the same page. The best time to ask is the moment the job is finished and the customer is happy. Send them the link by text that evening, while it's fresh. Reply to every review, good and bad; a calm, fair reply to a bad one reassures the next customer more than a row of five stars. Never buy or invent reviews: Google removes them, and under Irish consumer law it is illegal.

3. Answer fast

Homeowners usually contact two or three trades and go with whoever gets back first with a clear answer. A reply within the hour, even just "got your message, I can look at it Thursday", wins more work than a lower price sent two days later. If you can't answer the phone on a job, set up a voicemail or auto-reply text that says when you'll call back.

4. Build a few local contacts

Other trades, builders, estate agents, letting agents and property managers all need reliable people and hate chasing new ones. Two or three good relationships can keep a diary full. Hand your number to the electrician or tiler you meet on site, and ask them to pass on jobs that aren't theirs. Letting agents and property managers are especially worth it: they have repeat work all year round.

5. Keep a simple website or page

You don't need anything fancy. One page with what you do, the areas you cover, photos of real jobs, your registration (RGI, Safe Electric, RECI) and a phone number is enough. It gives people who hear your name somewhere to check you out, and it helps your Google Business Profile rank. A Facebook or Instagram page kept up to date with job photos does the same.

6. Use lead sites, but do the sums

Lead sites and job platforms are useful when you are starting out, new to an area, or have a quiet month. There are two models. Pay-per-lead sites charge you for each set of customer details, whether or not you win the job, and often sell the same lead to several trades at once. Subscription platforms charge a flat monthly fee for access to jobs.

The number that matters is the cost per job you win, not the cost per lead. As an example: if a lead costs €30 and you win one job in five, each job costs you €150 before you pick up a tool. Win one in ten and it's €300. Track it for a month, every lead you pay for and every job it turns into, and you will know quickly whether a site is paying its way.

Before you sign up anywhere, ask:

• How many other trades get the same job?
• Do I pay for leads that turn out to be fake or already filled?
• Is the monthly cost fixed, or does it rise the busier I am?
• Can I cancel any time, and is there a free trial?

Where SkillTrade fits

SkillTrade is a subscription platform built by an Irish plumber, for exactly the reasons above. You pay one flat monthly price, from €39.99 ex VAT, with no charge per lead and no commission on your work. Each homeowner chooses whether 5, 7 or 10 trades can take their job, so you are never one of twenty. Basic includes 40 job unlocks a month and Pro 80; Elite is unlimited. You can report a dead lead, every review is tied to a real job posted on the site, and the first month is free.

Also worth a read: how SkillTrade differs from lead-selling sites.