The first ten customers are the hardest. After that, you have photos, reviews, a few referrals and a reason for the phone to ring. Before that, you're a guy with a truck and a ladder hoping someone calls.
Here's a practical plan to get those first ten without spending much money.
1. Start with who already knows you
Your first customers almost always come from people who already trust you.
- Tell everyone. Family, friends, old coworkers, your church, your kids' teams, your barber. Not a sales pitch, just: "I'm doing siding repair now. Loose panels, storm damage, melted siding, small stuff the big companies won't touch. Send people my way."
- Post it once on your personal social media, with a couple of photos of work you've done, even at your own house.
- Make it easy to pass along. A simple business card or a text people can forward with your name, number and what you fix.
You don't need ten strangers. You need two or three people who'll mention you to their neighbors.
2. Set up your Google Business Profile today
When someone's siding blows off in a storm, they search "siding repair near me." If you're not on the map, you don't exist.
- Create a free Google Business Profile with your real business name, phone number and service area.
- Choose the right categories and list the specific repairs you do.
- Add photos: your truck, your tools, before-and-after shots.
- Ask every early customer for a review right after the job, while they're happy. Text them the link.
Ten honest reviews with photos will do more for you than any ad.
3. Work the neighbors of every job
Siding damage rarely happens to one house. Storms hit the whole block. Mowers and grills are everywhere. Vinyl gets brittle on houses built the same year by the same builder.
After every job:
- Leave a door hanger or card at the houses on both sides and across the street: "We just repaired siding at your neighbor's house. If you've noticed loose or damaged siding, we can fix it while we're in the area."
- Look at the neighbors' siding while you're there. If you see damage, mention it politely on the hanger.
One job can turn into three.
4. Find the people who see damaged siding every day
Some people find siding problems for a living and need someone to send them to:
- Home inspectors list damaged siding in reports, and buyers and sellers need it fixed fast.
- Realtors need small repairs done before listings and closings.
- Property managers have dozens of buildings and a constant stream of small work orders. See our guide on getting work from property managers.
- Handymen and roofers who don't want small siding jobs.
- Hardware store and siding supply counter staff, who get asked "who fixes this?" every week.
Introduce yourself, leave a card, and follow up. Be the guy who actually calls back.
5. Show up like a pro on every job
Your first ten jobs are your marketing. Every one of them should go so well that the customer tells someone.
- Answer the phone or call back the same day.
- Show up when you said you would.
- Explain what you'll do and what it costs before you start.
- Clean up completely.
- Send before-and-after photos with the invoice.
- Ask for the review and the referral.
6. Know what you'll say when they call
Have your answers ready: what you fix, your service area, your minimum charge, and when you can come look. Sounding sure of yourself on the phone wins jobs.
Learn the system that keeps the phone ringing
Getting the first ten customers is step one. Inside Siding Pro Academy, we cover the whole business: pricing your repairs, quoting fast, getting steady referral partners, and building a schedule that stays full without hiring a crew.
Ten good jobs, done right, are the foundation of everything after.
