Plumber lead generation: building the list
By Doug Nielsen, Product Manager · Updated · first published
To build a list of plumbing companies to sell to, scrape “plumber” and its adjacent categories on Google Maps, dedupe on place ID, and size each firm by its review count. Reaching the owner, who is usually on a job, is the hard part.
An email waits while the owner is on a job: our Google Maps email extractor looks for one on each firm's website.
Key takeaways
- Single-digit review counts usually mean an owner-operator; hundreds mean dispatch, office staff and budget.
- 24-hour listings sell emergencies; office-hours firms sell quotes and installs.
- Call before 8am or after 5pm, or email the office, which usually controls spending.
On this page6
Tell a one-van operator from a multi-truck firm
Review counts grow with job volume: single digits usually mean a one-van operator, several hundred a regional brand with a call center. Secondary categories mark different businesses: drain specialists live on emergency call-outs, plumbing-and-heating firms on seasonal installs and service plans, remodelers on quotes.
- plumbers in our samples also list “drainage service”
- ~1 in 3
- also list “HVAC contractor” or “heating contractor”
- ~1 in 5
- list “bathroom remodeler”
- ~1 in 10
Segmenting a plumber list
Split emergency work from project work
A 24-hour listing's pain is answering the phone at 2am; project-led firms care about quotes and close rates.Check the website, or its absence
About one plumber in fourteen in our samples has no site of its own or only a social page: a pitch for web sellers, a phone-only segment for the rest.Work the map, not the alphabet
Plumbers cluster where the housing is; scraping ZIP by ZIP shows the density for field sales, territories and recruiting.
Build your plumber list
- 100 free credits
- No card required
Reaching someone who's under a sink
Calls reach the owner's cell phone or a dispatcher, and vendor voicemails rarely get returned. The office email usually reaches whoever does the books, often the owner's partner or an office manager, who decides software and marketing spend.
Watch out
Don't text business cell phones
What plumbers buy
Three things get a hearing; brand and social pitches rarely do:
- More of the right jobs: emergencies and high-ticket installs, not small repairs
- Fewer missed calls
- Help hiring: licensed plumbers are hard to find in most markets
Tip
Check the license register
Common questions
Which Google Maps categories should I scrape for plumbers?
Will I get emails for plumbing companies?
When is the best time to contact plumbers?
Written by
Doug Nielsen, Product Manager
Doug works on Hubertino; the guides on this site are published under his name. Last updated .