How Contractors Should Follow Up on Facebook Leads

Facebook lead follow-up for a contractor comes down to two clocks. The first runs in minutes: the owner who just asked about an addition is still on their phone, and other contractors' forms are one scroll away. The second runs in months: many planned projects are not ready yet. A good system answers both without relying on an estimator's memory.

Why speed decides

Speed decides because the owner is comparing you before they have met you. Facebook forms get filled in on the couch in the evening, sometimes for two or three contractors in a row. The first one to respond by name, about the right project, sets the tone for the rest of the search.

Contractors find this harder than most trades. Your estimators and superintendents are on jobsites during the day, and nobody checks the lead inbox on a roof. Speed has to come from a system that replies on its own and puts the lead in front of the right person, not from someone remembering to look.

Speed is not the whole story, though. A fast but vague reply ("Thanks, we'll be in touch!") wins nothing. The first message should name your company, the project they asked about and the person who will call.

The follow-up sequence

1. Reply automatically, right away. A text and an email that name your business, repeat the project they picked on the form and ask one easy question, such as "Do you have plans drawn yet, or are you still at the idea stage?"
2. Call within the hour during business hours. Whoever books site walks makes the call. Confirm the project, the property, the start window and the budget range, and aim to book a short phone consult or a site walk. Do not price the project on the phone.
3. Text again that evening if the call went unanswered. Send two or three photos of finished projects like theirs, and one line on what happens next.
4. Call again on day two at a different time. If you called in the morning, try late afternoon.
5. Email your process on day four. Lay out the steps from site walk to bid to contract to schedule, and what you will need from them, such as a survey, plans or the landlord's approval for a build-out.
6. Ask directly on day seven. "Should I keep your project open, or has the timing changed?" A clear question gets more answers than a fourth "just checking in".
7. Move quiet leads to a monthly touch. One message a month with a recent project or a building-season update, until they reply, book or ask to stop.

Here is what the first automatic text might look like for an addition lead:

Hi Sam, this is Jordan at [Your Company]. Thanks for asking about a home addition. I'll call you tomorrow before 10 a.m. Quick question in the meantime: do you have plans drawn, or are you still working out the size? Reply STOP to opt out.

Automating it

Automate everything except the conversation. A CRM can catch the form, send the first messages, alert the right person and run the later steps, so the only manual work left is the call and the site walk.

Your construction CRM, whether Buildertrend, JobTread or Procore, should end up holding the lead and its source. If it cannot receive Meta leads directly, a connector or a front-end CRM can catch them and pass them on. The marketing automation guide for contractors covers the wider setup.

Texting has rules. You need the owner's consent before sending marketing texts (FCC rules), so put clear consent wording on the form. Every message must honor STOP (CTIA principles), and texts from a 10-digit business number need A2P 10DLC registration through The Campaign Registry (registration), or carriers may block them.

Improving lead quality

Improve quality on the form and in the ad, before the lead reaches your phone. Every question you add costs a few submissions and saves your estimator a wasted drive.

• Ask what they are building. A choice of addition, new home, major renovation or other sorts projects before anyone calls.
• Ask about the property and plans. Owned or under contract, plans drawn or not, sets how soon a bid is possible.
• Ask for a start window. "This season", "next year" and "just exploring" each get a different sequence.
• Show the kind of work you take. Ads and forms that show your projects and areas discourage owners whose job is a fraction of your minimum.
• Score lead sources by site walks booked. Look each week at which ads and audiences produce site walks, not just form fills, and move budget accordingly.

The Facebook and Instagram ads guide for contractors covers the ad side of the same problem.

How VETS Growth Marketing helps

We build the whole sequence in your CRM: the instant replies, the alerts to whoever books site walks, the day-seven question and the monthly list for next year's projects. Your texting registration, forms and CRM stay in your company's name. Setup is a project with a go-live date, and afterward we report how many leads reached a site walk and how many became qualified bids. Send us a week of recent Facebook leads before a growth consultation and we will show you where each one cooled off.