Stop Using Random Tactics. Start Using a Marketing Strategy.

A roofing contractor calls us. First thing he says: “I can’t even find my own business on Google unless I search for it by name.”

We ask what he’s tried. He’s got a website—looks decent enough. Paid someone to do “some SEO” last year. Ran Facebook ads for a few months. Posted on social media occasionally. Even tried a Groupon deal once.

Nothing stuck. Nothing generated consistent leads. His phone rings from referrals and the occasional job board lead, but he has zero control over his lead flow.

Sound familiar?

Here’s the problem: You don’t have a marketing strategy. You have a collection of random tactics that don’t connect to anything.

TL;DR: Most roofing contractors throw money at disconnected marketing tactics—a website here, some ads there, maybe SEO. None of it works because tactics alone don’t generate leads. Complete marketing systems do. Here’s the difference and how to actually build one.

Why Random Tactics Keep Roofing Contractors Invisible Online

We’ve taken over dozens of roofing contractor websites. Every single time, here’s what we find:

The website says the exact same thing as every other roofer in town:

“Quality craftsmanship”
“Licensed and insured”
“Roof replacement, roof repair, roof inspection”
“We offer warranties and guarantees”

The only difference? The stock photo in the background. And ironically, most roofing companies are using the same stock photos—roofer on ladder, close-up of shingles, happy homeowner shaking hands.

You’re invisible online because you sound identical to your competitors. Google doesn’t know who to rank. Customers don’t know who to call. You all blend together.

But here’s what most roofing contractors don’t understand: The problem isn’t that you need better SEO or more ads or a prettier website. The problem is you’re buying tactics instead of building a strategy.

And tactics without strategy is just throwing money into a black hole.

The Real Problem: You’re Buying Services, Not Building Systems

Let’s talk about what actually happens when you hire most marketing agencies.

You call them up. You say “I need more leads.”

They say “Great! We can build you a website for $3,000” or “We’ll run Google Ads for you, $1,500/month plus ad spend” or “We’ll do SEO, takes 6-8 months to see results.”

You pick one. Maybe two if you’re ambitious.

The website gets built. It sits there. No traffic.

The ads run. They burn money because the landing page doesn’t convert.

The SEO starts. Nothing happens for months because your Google Business Profile is a mess and your website has no authority.

None of it connects. None of it compounds. You’re buying individual services instead of building a complete marketing system.

Here’s what contractors tell us when they come to Rebel Ape after wasting money on random tactics:

“I spent $5,000 on a website. Looks great. Doesn’t get any traffic.”

“I ran ads for three months. Burned through $8,000. Got maybe 5 leads, closed one job.”

“I paid for SEO for a year. Still on page 3 of Google.”

And when they ask the agency what’s wrong, they get blamed. “Your market is too competitive.” “You need a bigger budget.” “SEO takes time.”

That’s not the problem. The problem is you never had a strategy—just disconnected tactics that were never designed to work together.

Quick Win: The 60-Second Audit to See If You Have Tactics or Strategy

Here’s how to tell the difference right now:

Open your website. Look at your homepage above the fold (what visitors see without scrolling).

Ask yourself:

1. Is your best offer buried or prominent?

We took over a roofing website last year. Their biggest offer—a free roof inspection with a comprehensive assessment booklet—was buried at the bottom of the page in tiny text that blended into the background.

This wasn’t some throwaway offer. It was a $300 value they were giving away for free. And nobody saw it because it looked like every other generic section on their site.

We rewrote the copy with specific, compelling language. Created a custom image that stood out. Made it prominent above the fold. Leads started coming in immediately.

That’s the difference between having an offer and having a strategic offer.

2. Does your messaging sound identical to your competitors?

Go to three of your competitor websites right now. Read their headlines.

If you can swap your company name with theirs and the message still works word-for-word, you don’t have positioning—you have generic contractor speak.

3. Can you tell where your leads are coming from?

If someone calls and you don’t know whether they found you through Google, saw your ad, got a referral, or found you some other way—you don’t have tracking. And without tracking, you can’t optimize anything.

Want to audit your entire marketing system? Download the Ultimate Online Marketing Checklist—it covers all 50+ elements we check in every roofing contractor campaign.

What Most Agencies Get Wrong About Marketing for Roofers

Here’s the pitch you’ve heard a hundred times:

“You need SEO.” “You need Google Ads.” “You need social media.” “You need a new website.”

Cool. And what happens when you buy all of those?

Your website gets built with generic messaging that sounds like everyone else. Your SEO targets the same keywords every roofer is fighting over. Your ads send traffic to pages that don’t convert. Your social media posts get ignored because they’re just pictures of finished roofs with “Another happy customer!” captions.

None of it works because tactics are just table stakes. Every roofing company needs a website, needs to show up on Google, needs a way to generate leads. That’s baseline—not a competitive advantage.

What actually matters? Your positioning, your offer, and your messaging.

Most agencies won’t tell you this because they make money selling you services. Build a website, charge $5K. Run ads, take a percentage. Do SEO, bill monthly. They’re incentivized to sell you tactics, not build you a strategy.

But here’s the truth: A beautifully designed website with terrible messaging will lose to an ugly website with great positioning every single time.

The roofers who dominate their markets aren’t doing it because they have the prettiest website or the biggest ad budget. They’re doing it because they have a complete system where every piece feeds the others and the whole thing compounds over time.

That’s strategy.

The Rebel Ape Method: How We Build Marketing Systems for Roofing Contractors

When a roofing contractor comes to us, we don’t start by asking what services they want to buy. We start by figuring out what actually makes their company different.

Most roofers have no idea what their customers value about them. They think it’s “quality work” or “fast response times” or “competitive pricing.”

But when we do the research—when we look at what their actual customers are saying about them in reviews, referrals, and testimonials—we find completely different things.

Maybe it’s the way they explain the process so homeowners actually understand what’s happening. Maybe it’s how they handle insurance claims. Maybe it’s their warranty structure or their project management approach. These are the things that differentiate you from the three other roofers the homeowner is getting bids from.

But most roofing contractors never talk about this stuff on their website. They’re too busy saying “quality craftsmanship” like everyone else.

Step 1: Research What Actually Matters to Your Customers

We dig into what your customers are saying about you—not what you think they care about. This research becomes the foundation for everything else.

We’re not talking about generic keyword research or competitor analysis. We’re talking about understanding what specific value you deliver that your competitors don’t, even if you don’t realize it yet.

This is how professional content writing builds authority—it’s based on real differentiation, not generic industry talking points.

Step 2: Build the Foundation (Month 1)

This is the un-sexy work that most contractors want to skip. No leads come in during Month 1. You’re spending money on infrastructure.

But without this foundation, everything else you spend money on is wasted:

Conversion-optimized website: Built around your actual positioning, not generic templates
Custom photography: Your trucks, your crews, your actual projects—not stock photos of random roofers
Messaging that differentiates: Based on what customers actually value about you
Tracking that works: So you know exactly where every lead comes from
Landing pages built for conversion: Not just aesthetics

We had a roofing contractor push back on this once. “Why can’t we just run ads to my current website?”

Because your current website converts at maybe 2-3%. A properly built landing page converts at 8-12%. You’d be paying 4x more per lead by skipping the foundation work.

Step 3: Launch Lead Generation (Months 2-3)

Now the phones start ringing.

Google Ads for immediate leads: Get your phone ringing now while SEO builds
Local SEO and Google Business Profile optimization: Where homeowners actually find roofers
Retargeting: Stay in front of people who visited your site but didn’t call yet

Month 2, your cost per lead is high. The algorithm is learning. Your tracking is gathering data.

Month 3, cost per lead starts dropping. Conversion rates improve. You’re getting more leads for the same budget because the system is optimizing.

This is exactly what we build for roofing contractors who are serious about lead generation. See how the complete system works at our Marketing Strategy resource page.

Step 4: Build Authority (Months 4-6)

SEO kicks in. Organic traffic grows. Your Google Business Profile starts ranking in the map pack. Reviews pile up.

You’re not just another roofer anymore—you’re the authority in your market.

Content that ranks: Answering questions homeowners are actually searching for
Strategic review generation: Roofing contractors live and die by their Google rating
Social proof and case studies: Show you actually deliver results, not just talk about “quality work”

Step 5: Let It Compound

Month 6 looks nothing like Month 2.

Your cost per lead has dropped by 40%. Your conversion rates have improved because you have real data to optimize against. Organic traffic is bringing in free leads. Your brand is becoming recognizable in your market.

That’s when ROI really takes off. But only if you built the foundation first.

What We’ve Learned From Roofing Contractor Campaigns

Here’s what we see over and over:

The roofers who succeed aren’t the ones with the biggest budgets. They’re the ones who commit to building the complete system and let it compound over time.

We took a surveying startup from $0 to $500K+ in revenue using this exact approach. Not by buying random tactics. By building a complete marketing system where every piece worked together.

Most roofing contractors we work with see similar patterns:

Month 1-2: Spending money, building infrastructure, feeling nervous
Month 3-4: Leads start flowing, cost per lead drops as data improves
Month 6: Organic traffic kicks in, free leads start coming, ROI improves dramatically
Month 12: 2-3x the leads for the same marketing spend because everything is optimized and compounding

But here’s what doesn’t work: Buying a website and expecting leads. Running ads without conversion optimization. Starting SEO without fixing your Google Business Profile. Posting on social media without a content strategy.

Random tactics don’t compound. Systems do.

Implementation Roadmap: DIY vs. Hiring It Out

Let’s be honest about what you’re signing up for if you want to build this yourself.

You could absolutely do this DIY. Here’s what it takes:

60-80 hours to build a properly conversion-optimized website (if you know what you’re doing)
20-30 hours per month managing and optimizing Google Ads
15-20 hours per month on SEO and content creation
10-15 hours per month on Google Business Profile optimization and review generation
Ongoing tracking, testing, and optimization based on real data

And that’s assuming you already know conversion optimization, Google Ads best practices, SEO fundamentals, and how to analyze data to make informed decisions.

If you don’t? Add another 100+ hours learning this stuff through trial and error.

Or we can have it live in two weeks with tracking already dialed in, conversion mechanisms built in, and optimization happening from day one.

Most roofing contractors try the DIY route. They spend 6 months cobbling it together. They launch during their busy season, which means they’re too slammed with jobs to actually optimize anything. They waste their peak revenue months because their marketing foundation isn’t ready.

Then they come to us and say “I should have done this right the first time.”

Your call.

Want to see the timeline and investment breakdown? Check out our complete Marketing Strategy resource that walks through exactly what happens each month.

Common Mistakes Roofing Contractors Make (And How to Avoid Them)

Mistake #1: Buying a Website Without a Traffic Plan

A website without traffic is a digital brochure nobody sees. But most roofers spend $3,000-$8,000 on a website, launch it, and wonder why their phone isn’t ringing.

How to fix it: Your website is part of a system—not a standalone project. Before you build it, know how you’re driving traffic (ads, SEO, referrals) and how you’re tracking where leads come from. Learn more about high-converting website design.

Mistake #2: Running Ads Without Conversion Optimization

Sending traffic to a page that doesn’t convert is like hiring a sales guy who doesn’t know how to close. You’re paying for every visitor—if they’re not converting, you’re burning money.

How to fix it: Build landing pages specifically for ad traffic. Clear offer, single call-to-action, no navigation distractions. Test messaging, images, and form placement based on real data.

Mistake #3: Starting SEO Without Fixing Your Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile is how most homeowners find local roofers. If it’s incomplete, has no reviews, or isn’t optimized, you’re fighting an uphill battle with SEO.

How to fix it: Optimize your Google Business Profile first. Get reviews flowing. Post updates regularly. Make sure your NAP (Name, Address, Phone) is consistent across the web. Then layer in SEO.

Mistake #4: Using Generic Messaging That Sounds Like Everyone Else

If your website says the same thing as your competitors, Google doesn’t know who to rank and customers don’t know who to call.

How to fix it: Research what your actual customers value about you. Talk about specific processes, guarantees, or approaches that differentiate you. Use real customer language—not industry jargon or generic marketing speak.

Mistake #5: Not Knowing Your Numbers

Most roofing contractors don’t know their close rate, average job value, or cost per lead. So when we quote a marketing investment, they default to “that sounds expensive” because they can’t calculate ROI.

How to fix it: Figure out your average job value. Track your close rate. Calculate how many leads you need to close to cover your marketing investment. Suddenly “expensive” marketing looks like an incredible return when you realize you only need 3-4 closed jobs per month to pay for the entire system.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to see results from a marketing strategy?

Month 2, you’re getting leads from ads. Month 3-4, cost per lead drops as the system optimizes. Month 6, organic traffic kicks in and free leads start flowing. Month 12, you’re getting 2-3x the leads for the same budget because everything is compounding. If someone promises results in 30 days, they’re selling you tactics, not strategy.

Why can’t I just buy SEO or ads by themselves?

You can. But SEO without a conversion-optimized website takes twice as long and delivers half the results. Ads without proper landing pages burn money. These tactics work when they’re part of a complete system—not as standalone services. Read more about why comprehensive marketing systems outperform individual tactics.

How much should a roofing contractor spend on marketing?

Depends on your revenue goals and market competition. Most contractors should invest 7-12% of revenue into marketing. If you’re doing $500K/year, that’s $35K-$60K annually. Sounds like a lot until you realize that 3-4 additional jobs per month pays for the entire system—and a properly optimized system delivers way more than that.

What if I’ve tried this before and it didn’t work?

Most agencies sell you services, not strategy. They build you a website and call it done. Run some ads without optimizing the landing page. Start SEO without fixing your Google Business Profile. The tactics fail because they’re not connected to anything. When you build a complete system where every piece feeds the others, the results are completely different.

Can I do this myself or do I need to hire someone?

You can absolutely build this yourself if you have 100+ hours to invest, know conversion optimization, understand Google Ads, and can analyze data to make informed decisions. Most roofing contractors don’t have that time or expertise—and they end up wasting 6 months trying to figure it out during their busy season. Hiring someone who builds complete systems gets you live faster and optimizing from day one.

How do I know if an agency is selling me tactics or strategy?

Ask them: “What happens if we just do SEO without fixing the website?” If they say “Sure, we can do that,” they’re selling tactics. A real strategy conversation starts with “What makes your company different?” and “What does your complete lead generation system look like?” not “Which services do you want to buy?”

What’s the difference between your approach and other marketing agencies?

Most agencies sell you individual services and bill monthly for execution. We build complete marketing systems where every piece works together and compounds over time. We’re focused on ROI and lead generation—not pretty websites or vanity metrics. See the full breakdown of our approach.

The Bottom Line

Random tactics don’t work. They never have. They never will.

You can keep buying individual services and hoping something sticks. You can keep relying on referrals you can’t control. You can keep wondering why your competitors are booking out months in advance while you’re chasing leads.

Or you can build a complete marketing system where every piece feeds the others and the whole thing compounds over time.

Your call.

If you’re ready to stop throwing money at disconnected tactics and start building a real marketing strategy, we’ve laid out the complete roadmap: Marketing Strategy for Contractors.

Or if you want to see if this approach fits your roofing business specifically, schedule a strategy call and we’ll walk through your current situation and what a complete system would look like for your market.

But if you’d rather keep doing what you’re doing and hope for different results—well, we both know how that ends.