How to run Facebook ads for contractors, one step at a time

There are two kinds of cost here, and they are not the same.

Ad spend is the money you pay Meta for advertising. You set the amount. It keeps going for as long as your ads run.

The kit is a complete software agent for this job, with a database, retrieval and deep expertise. Its price does not include ad spend. Nothing you pay Truline goes to Meta.

To pick your ad spend, answer three questions:

1. What could I spend on a full test without hurting the business? That is your test budget. Pick a safe number, not a hopeful one.
2. How long will the test run? Choose a set number of weeks. Do not judge an ad after two days.
3. What is one new job worth to me? A big job can pay for a test that brings in one real customer. A small job needs more of them.

Set an amount you can afford to test, then check what you actually spent each week.

Before the test starts, write down your stop rule. For example: "If I spend my whole test budget and book no estimates, I pause and change the offer." Decide this while you are calm, not after a bad week.

Photos do most of the work in a contractor ad. A real kitchen you finished or a roof you just replaced makes people stop and look. Real work also counts as proof, which a stock photo never does.

Only use photos you have the right to use:

• Photos you took of your own jobs are the safest choice.
• If a worker or a sub took the photo, ask before you put it in an ad.
• Ask the homeowner before you show their home. Get the yes in writing, even a text. Hide house numbers, faces and license plates unless they agree.
• A stock photo needs a license that allows ads.
• Never use another company's photos, even if they look like your work.
• Never show an AI image as a job you finished. If you use one for a plain background, it must not look like your work.

Short phone videos of a finished room are another good choice. If you have several good pictures of one job, carousel ads let people swipe through them in a single ad.

A good ad has four parts. Keep each part short.

• The first line names the job and the place, not your company. "Need a new roof on the north side?" tells the right person to keep reading.
• The proof is something true you can show: a photo, your license, or how long you have been in business. Only claim what you can back up.
• The offer is what they get if they reply, such as a free estimate. Only offer what you will really give.
• The ask tells them what to do next: fill in the form, call, or send a message.

Do not invent deadlines or claim limited availability. State a deadline or a limit only when it is true.

Write two or three versions. Change only the first line between them, so you can see which one gets more replies. That is your first creative test. Creative is the words and pictures in the ad.

An ad only works if each lead lands somewhere you will see it fast. You have three main choices.

Facebook lead ads put a short form inside Facebook. The person taps, checks any contact details that are already filled in, answers your questions and sends it. Because it is so easy, some people fill it in without much thought. Add one or two questions that matter, like "What town is the job in?" or "When do you want to start?"

A website form sends people to a page on your own site. It takes a bit more effort, so you may get fewer leads, but each person has seen more of your work first.

A call or message button lets people reach you right away. Use it only if you will answer your phone or messages during the day.

Whatever you pick, test it yourself. Fill in your own form. Make sure the lead reaches your phone or inbox right away. Leads from these ads wait inside Meta until you view them in Leads Center or connect a tool that sends them to you, such as a CRM. A lead no one sees goes cold.

This step decides whether your ad money turns into work.

A lead is a person who asked for help a minute ago. Call them right away. If they do not pick up, send a short text that says who you are and why you are reaching out. Try again later that day and again the next day.

When you talk, be a person, not a script. Ask about the job, the timing and the home. If it is a fit, book the estimate on the call. If it is not a fit, say so kindly.

Keep a simple list of every lead: name, date, which ad it came from, when you called and what happened. A notebook works. So does a sheet or a CRM. This list is your tracking. It tells you which ads bring real jobs, not just clicks.

Want help with what to say? Read our guide to sales scripts that close the leads your ads bring in. To set up a quick first reply, learn how to answer every lead fast.

Pick one day and time each week. Open Ads Manager and your lead list side by side.

1. Spend. How much did you spend this week? Is it on track with your test budget?
2. Leads. How many leads came in? How many were real people with real jobs in your area?
3. Speed. Did you call every lead back the same day?
4. Estimates. How many estimates did you book?
5. Jobs. How many estimates turned into signed jobs so far?
6. Comments and messages. Did anyone comment on the ad or send a message? Answer every one, the same way you answer any social media message.
7. Tired ads. Meta's frequency number is an estimate of the average number of times each person saw your ad. When that number climbs and replies drop, swap in a new photo or a new first line.

Then change one thing, and only one. Try a new photo, a new first line, a new offer or a new area. If you change three things at once, you will not know which one made the difference. Give each change a full week before you judge it.

Write down what you changed and why. After a few weeks, that log is the best advertising advice you have, because it comes from your own market.

Later, once your website gets steady visitors, you can add retargeting ads. They show your ad again to people who already visited your site, and they use website activity shared with Meta through the Meta Pixel or Conversions API. Get the basic ad working first.

Example. This business and its ads are made up. They show how the steps fit together. Nothing here is a real result.

• The business: a one-person deck builder who works within about a 20-mile drive of home.
• The job: new wood and composite decks.
• The area and audience: adults in a circle around the shop, with two far zip codes left out because the traffic is bad.
• The budget: a test amount the owner could lose over four weeks without stress.
• The stop rule: if the whole test budget is spent and no estimates are booked, pause and change the offer.
• The photos: six photos of the owner's own finished decks, each with the homeowner's written OK and the house numbers blurred.
• Ad, version A: "Want a new deck before summer? I build every deck myself, start to finish, in town and nearby. See a few I built this year. Tap Get quote and tell me about your yard."
• Ad, version B: the same ad, with a new first line: "Tired of looking at that old deck?"
• The form: name, phone, town, "What do you want built?" and "When do you want to start?"
• The follow-up: each lead sends a text alert to the owner's phone. The owner calls back the same day, books the estimate on the call and logs the lead.
• The weekly check: every Monday morning. If version B brings more real leads after a full week, version A is paused and a new photo goes into the next test.

They can bring in leads, but not on demand. A lead still has to pick up the phone, get an estimate, think it over and say yes. That takes time. If you start your ads the week the work dries up, money goes out before jobs come in.

A better time to start is while you still have work. You can test calmly and have a working ad ready when things slow down.

No one can honestly promise you a set number of leads, a set price per lead or a set return. You control the job, area, pictures, offer, how fast you call back and the weekly check.

Would you rather not run ads yourself? Read about our local marketing engine. Costs for done-for-you work depend on your business, so we answer that on a free call. For more ideas on marketing for home-service businesses, start there.

Facebook ads are one job of many. See how you can run your whole business with AI. Market Loop is Truline software that finds and fixes slow, repeated work across a business, and you make the big calls.

If you want the kit, or you have a question about your own ads, book a free 15-minute call. You talk with Desmond Landry, who runs Truline.