4 simple ways home service contractors can measure their marketing performance.
Most contractors have a tracking problem.
If you don’t know where leads come from, everything feels like it’s working… or nothing does.
Here’s how to get some clarity without creating a data science project.
1. Use Call Tracking Numbers
Give each channel its own phone number.
- One number for Google Ads
- One for Facebook ads
- One for mailers
- One for your website
- One for your vehicle, etc.
When the phone rings, you already know the source. No guessing.
Bottom line: If the call has a number, it has a source.
2. Add “How Did You Find Us?” to Your Website Contact Form
This tiny field does a ton of work. Make the field mandatory.
Options you could include:
- Google search
- Google Maps
- ChatGPT
- Angi’s
- Thumbtack
- HomeAdvisor
- Yelp
- Porch
- Returning Client
- Referral (word of mouth)
- Mailer
- Other (with a text box the user has to fill in)
Connect the contact form to Google Sheets to easily view submissions and patterns.
Bottom line: Let customers tell you where they came from.
3. Ask on Every Call (Then Tag It)
When someone calls, ask:
- “How did you hear about us?”
Then tag the lead in your system.
No system/CRM? Check out HouseCall Pro: simple, contractor-friendly, and built for this exact thing.
Ask follow-ups when needed:
- If they say social media → “Which platform?”
- If they say online → “Ok great, where did you see us online?”
- If they say referral → “Awesome — who referred you?”
Bottom line: One question turns guesswork into data.
4. Use Website Analytics (Free & Eye-Opening)
You don’t need fancy dashboards.
- Google Search Console shows:
- Which pages get traffic
- What people searched before clicking
- How visible your site is in Google
- Use Plausible to go further:
- Which blog posts bring organic traffic
- Where visitors came from (Google, Facebook, referrals)
- Which pages actually lead to contact form submissions
Bottom line: Your website already tells the story — you just have to look.
Final Word
You don’t need perfect marketing data.
You need clarity.
A few tracking numbers, questions, and basic analytics will save you from wasting money on marketing that feels good but doesn’t bring leads/clients.
Do this tracking consistently, and you’ll know:
- What to double down on
- What to cut
- Where your best customers actually come from
