Facebook has been declared dead for small businesses about a hundred times. And yet, millions of homeowners still use it every day to ask their friends for contractor recommendations, browse local community groups, and decide who to call when something breaks. For home service companies, Facebook isn’t dying — it’s just changed. The businesses that still get results there have figured out what the platform actually rewards in 2025.
Here’s a straight look at what works and what wastes your time and money.
Before getting to the good stuff, it helps to clear out some common mistakes:
The content that gets engagement — and turns into leads — is content that feels real. Photos from actual jobs. Short videos showing work in progress. A quick clip walking through a finished project. Homeowners respond to authenticity far more than to polished marketing copy.
This is the most underused tactic in local service marketing. Nearly every city, suburb, and neighborhood has one or more active Facebook Groups — community boards, homeowner associations, “Recommend a local business” groups. These groups have thousands of members who are constantly asking for contractor recommendations.
Join the groups that cover your service area. When someone posts asking for a plumber or a roofer or a lawn care company, respond quickly and genuinely. Don’t write a pitch. Write something like: “We’re a local [service] company in [city]. Happy to take a look — feel free to DM me or call [number].” Simple, helpful, and it works.
Paid Facebook ads can work for service businesses, but only if you run them correctly. The biggest mistake is targeting too broadly. Facebook’s geographic targeting tools let you set a radius around your service area down to a few miles. Use them. A plumber in Des Moines doesn’t need to show ads to people in Minneapolis.
The ad types that perform best for contractors are retargeting ads (shown to people who visited your website) and lead generation ads that collect a name and phone number without the user leaving Facebook. A $5–$15 per day retargeting campaign targeting recent website visitors can keep your name in front of people who were already interested enough to check you out.
Facebook is good at building awareness and keeping your name familiar. But it’s not where most homeowners go when they’re ready to hire — they go to Google. A solid local SEO strategy means when those homeowners search “roofer near me” or “emergency plumber [city],” your website shows up. Facebook warms them up; search closes the deal.
The best-performing local service businesses use both together. Facebook builds familiarity. Google captures intent. Your website converts the visit into a call.
If you’re not ready to run ads or post five times a week, that’s fine. Here’s the floor that every service business should maintain:
That takes maybe an hour a week. Done consistently, it keeps your name visible and your page looking active when prospective customers check you out. That alone is worth the small investment of time.
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