How to grow your roofing business

Growing a successful roofing business is about more than just being skilled in your trade. From establishing an online presence, to getting the right accreditations, generating five-star reviews and diversifying the range of services you offer, here we give our top tips that can help roofing contractors expand their businesses.

1. NFRC membership
If you’re not already a member of the NFRC, then this is a good starting point to increase the visibility of your business. As well as giving your customers reassurance of high-quality standards, being a member of the NFRC allows you to have a unique profile on its website and a listing in its directory. This is often the first point of call when someone is looking for a trusted roofing contractor.  

2. Register for installer locator databases
Some roofing manufacturers and trade bodies offer ‘find an installer’ services. This can be a good way of generating sales leads, particularly in the domestic RMI sector. The installer locator on the Marley website is free to join and gets your business in front of the thousands of homeowners visiting our site monthly. To register, visit Supporting The Roofer and fill in the installer locator request form.  

3. Reviews and online business directories
Word of mouth is one of the best ways to get new business leads and your customers are often your best source of marketing.  When you’ve completed a job, provide customers with business cards to pass onto friends and family and ask them to leave a positive online review. This could be on your website or social media page, or on online business directories such as Checkatrade or yell.com. To make sure you appear higher in internet searches for roofers in your area, take out a free Google My Business listing. 

4. Marketing - social media and case studies
Ask customers for permission to take and share photos of projects. These can then be used to showcase your work on your website and through social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. If you don’t already have them, set up business pages on social media, rather than using personal ones. This allows you to create a company description and provide contact details.

Try to post something a couple of times a week, good content to share includes details and photos of projects you have completed, roof maintenance advice and positive customer reviews. You can also share posts from other roofing experts that you follow.  

Consider putting some budget behind social posts to ensure they reach more potential customers. Social media can offer a cost-effective method of advertising your business.

5. Make the most of solar PV opportunities
With Solar Energy UK predicting that changes to Part L in 2022 could lead to a five-fold increase in the number of new homes built with solar technology, there has never been a better time to upskill yourself and your workforce for solar PV installation.

New innovations mean solar PV technology is much easier to install than in the past. The latest integrated solar panels, like our Marley SolarTile®, simply replace sections of the roof tiles and can be installed by any roofer, up until the point of electrical connection.  You can either partner with an electrician to do this or become MCS certified yourself. This can help you grow your business, as people will often search for an MCS Certified installer. As part of our ‘Supporting the Roofer’ initiative, all roofing businesses can claim a £50 discount on their MCS certification application.

6. Accreditations and certificates 
Make sure all your accreditations and certificates are up to date, as some may have lapsed during the pandemic. Some examples of accreditations that can help your business stand out are:

NFRC Competent Person Scheme – As well as offering peace of mind for customers, NFRC CPS allows roofing contractors to self-certify that their work meets the requirements of Approved Document L1B of the Building Regulations, without having to go through the process of getting costly Building Control sign-off. Your business will also be listed in the directory, generating leads from customers looking for a competent roofer.

RoofCERT accreditation – This provides individual roofers with visible proof of their essential roofing skills. It also gives businesses the ability to demonstrate they employ fully qualified roofers, who can do the job safely and properly. 

7. Invest in apprentices
According to figures from the NFRC, 44 per cent of contractors reported difficulties recruiting suitable labour during the first quarter of 2021, with roof slaters and tilers the roles hardest to fill. For contractors looking to grow their business, investing in apprentices is one way of guaranteeing a skilled workforce for the future, while receiving funding from the Government.  

Depending on the size of the business, you could have up to 100% of an apprentice’s training and assessments paid for, you would just need to pay their salary for their working hours and time spent training.