Loading...
Loading...
The essential KPIs and metrics that tell you whether your marketing is actually working and where to invest more.
Most home service business owners know they need marketing, but few can answer basic questions: What does it cost you to acquire a new customer? Which marketing channel generates the most revenue? What's your return on ad spend? Without these answers, you're guessing with your money. The right metrics turn your marketing from an expense into a predictable investment. You don't need a data science degree. You need these seven numbers.
Cost per lead is the total amount you spend on a marketing channel divided by the number of leads it generates. If you spend $3,000 on Google Ads and get 75 calls and form submissions, your CPL is $40. Track this separately for every channel: SEO, Google Ads, LSAs, social media, email, and referrals. The average CPL for home services ranges from $15 for LSAs to $75 for competitive Google Ads markets. If your CPL is climbing, your campaigns need optimization. If it's declining, you're getting more efficient.
Not every lead becomes a customer. Cost per acquisition accounts for your close rate. If your CPL is $40 and you close 50% of leads, your CPA is $80. This is the real cost of winning a new customer. Compare your CPA against your average job revenue. If your average job is $400 and your CPA is $80, you're earning $5 for every $1 spent on marketing. That's a healthy 5:1 return. Track your close rate by channel too. SEO leads often close at higher rates than paid ad leads because organic searchers tend to have higher trust.
A one-time AC repair might be worth $350. But if that customer comes back for annual maintenance ($199/year), eventual system replacement ($8,000), and refers two friends, their lifetime value is $12,000+. Calculate CLV by multiplying average job value by average number of transactions per customer over their lifetime, then add average referral value. When you know your CLV, you can afford to spend more to acquire each customer because you know the long-term payoff. This is how smart contractors outspend and outgrow their competition.
ROAS tells you how much revenue you generate for every dollar spent on advertising. If you spend $5,000 on Google Ads and those leads generate $40,000 in booked revenue, your ROAS is 8:1. For home service businesses, a healthy ROAS is 5:1 or higher. Track this monthly for each ad platform. ROAS below 3:1 signals a problem that needs attention. ROAS above 8:1 means you should probably be spending more. This metric should be on your dashboard and reviewed weekly.
Your website conversion rate is the percentage of visitors who take a desired action: calling, filling out a form, or starting a chat. The average home service website converts at 2-3%. Top-performing sites convert at 10-15%. Calculate it by dividing total conversions by total visitors and multiplying by 100. If you get 1,000 visitors and 30 contact you, your rate is 3%. Improving conversion rate is often the fastest way to get more leads without spending more on ads. A 1% increase in conversion rate can mean dozens of extra leads per month.
Use call tracking numbers to assign unique phone numbers to each marketing channel. Use UTM parameters on every link in your ads and emails. Set up Google Analytics 4 goal tracking. Review your lead sources weekly. Most contractors are shocked to discover their actual lead sources differ dramatically from their assumptions. You might think most leads come from Google Ads when actually organic search drives 60% of your calls. Accurate attribution prevents you from cutting the channel that's secretly carrying your business.
Compile your key metrics into a single-page dashboard. Update it monthly at minimum. Include: total leads by channel, CPL by channel, close rate, CPA, total revenue attributed to marketing, ROAS, and website conversion rate. Compare each metric to the previous month and the same month last year. Look for trends, not just snapshots. A free Google Sheets template works fine. The point isn't fancy dashboards. It's making decisions based on data instead of gut feelings. The contractors who track these numbers consistently outperform those who don't.
Our team specializes in executing these strategies for home service businesses. Get a free marketing audit and see how we can help.
Get Your Free Audit→