How One Contractor Uses Houzz.com to Build Business

Joni Rocco Headshot
Image of Houzz page for Artistic Floors by Design
Image of Houzz page for Artistic Floors by Design

Image of Houzz page for Artistic Floors by DesignImage of Houzz page for Artistic Floors by DesignThere are three reasons most businesses use social media: brand awareness, lead generation and customer support. For most busy contractors, trying to achieve all three on your own is a losing battle. Instead of waving the white flag of surrender, our company chooses to use a social media platform that has helped us successfully demonstrate our expertise in the marketplace to build our brand and generate leads: Houzz.com.

When homeowners are ready to start their remodeling project, Houzz is a site for inspiration, product discovery and collaboration with the perfect architect, designer or contractor. For those who haven’t seen it, Houzz.com is a social media website for home remodeling and design where professionals can post photos of their work and consumers can browse and save photos for design ideas. Unlike Facebook and Pinterest, Houzz connects homeowners to the largest online residential remodeling and design community in the world: more than 20 million monthly users, 3.5 million project photos and 400,000 professionals. The Houzz mobile app is bigger than Angry Birds, but it’s not just popular with quick-thumbed youth: A 2014 survey of more than 200,000 users shows that 90 percent are homeowners and 78 percent are 35–64 years old. Within the next two years, 73 percent plan to redecorate, 41 percent are planning an addition/remodeling project and 7 percent are planning a custom home build.

Let me assure you that Houzz is simple to use.

For those of us who have received Internet tutorials from our teenagers and children, let me assure you that Houzz is simple to use. Stunning, high-resolution photos are the initial draw for most homeowners, but how-to guides and reviews of professionals are the icing on the cake. Those photos, tips and reviews help the inexperienced homeowner find a high-quality contractor.

At least 10 of our clients this year would never have discovered our small contracting company if it weren’t for Houzz. We traditionally invest our marketing dollars into education (mostly through the National Wood Flooring Association Certified Professionals program), and word-of-mouth has been our only advertising. In the past year, we have enjoyed a solid lead time of 60 days out, in part due to our presence on Houzz. Here are a few tips to take advantage of this Internet gem and increase your visibility in your region:

1) Be a “Pro”

Contractors (and distributors, if you sell directly to the public): build your own free Houzz site as a Houzz Pro. Don’t just set up a user account; make sure you’re a Pro, which ensures access to Houzz webinars, tutorials, buttons, badges and an assortment of other useful devices that can boost your search profile. As soon as you’re able, get your Pro site to 100 percent completion to promote your rankings in your category. Each step is clearly explained in detail.

2) Use Keywords to Your Advantage

Take high-resolution, whole-room photos and keyword as much as you can, from “wide-plank dark walnut wood floor,” to “wrought iron sconce.” Record all items in the photo from left to right. It provides more possibilities for searches and gives your project more likelihood of being displayed, saved to users’ Ideabooks and shared with other Houzz users. Now you can save time and keyword a whole project (grouping of photos) instead of individual photos. Additionally, a new “before and after” photo grouping is a perfect visual demonstration of your skill set.

3) Emphasize Reviews

Make your clients and vendors understand how important reviews and testimonials are to your business. Houzz checks every review, and their vetting process usually takes 48 hours. Reviews are a great way to earn trustworthiness with homeowners and build a client base while also supporting and promoting other vendors with whom you work closely. For example, one of our responses to a positive review by a general contractor is: “Thank you for your support. Without someone like you steering the ship, the job would never get done … I look forward to working with you on other luxury flooring projects.” Mutually beneficial reviews demonstrate a solid industry relationship and advance the credibility of both contractors.

4) Thank Customers For Reviews

Be sure to thank clients and vendors for their Houzz reviews. For example, we include a mop kit with our completed work, but we do not deliver it until our client’s Houzz review shows up on our Pro site. As a result, our business currently has 35 reviews and testimonials. We remind our clients that we give the mop kit as a token of reciprocation, not for positive reviews, but for honest ones, to ensure our product and level of service are stellar and determine how we can improve both if necessary. Please don’t be afraid of negative reviews! Your business has the opportunity to respond to every review (whether positive or negative), and your response is the last word on the topic. If you do receive a negative review, respectfully respond as quickly as possible, stay positive and offer to help. Your response to positive reviews also demonstrates that you’re consistent in your outreach.

5) Utilize Houzz For All it Offers

Ask questions, post comments and request help from the friendly, efficient, knowledgeable Houzz team. Once your profile is 100 percent complete, a Pro icon will appear by your company name each time you post. How often do you get called a pro each day? Take advantage of the title! Houzz is also the perfect site to share wood flooring maintenance tips, caution DIY folks and recommend appropriate cleaning methods and products. Additionally, Houzz now offers an NWFA affiliation button. As an NWFA member, our business demonstrates even higher standing.

If you have been too busy to even build a website, Houzz is the perfect platform for you.

If you have been too busy to even build a website, Houzz is the perfect platform for you. Once you build a Houzz Pro site, you will be offered a turnkey website design, which pulls photos you post from your Houzz site and provides all the step-by-step assistance to help you create a free, stand-alone website. Regardless of your size and brand awareness, Houzz is an effective tool. However, if you are a small shop, Houzz is a great way to utilize your time more efficiently online and save some marketing dollars: work smarter, not harder!

Houzz has helped our business successfully solve the challenge of a consistent online presence and outreach to local consumers. And in return, our clients tell me how much they appreciate the confidence they have by finding competent and reliable local experts on Houzz!

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