The short answer
Facebook ads create demand. Google ads catch it.
Facebook ads work for contractors who sell projects people want but aren’t searching for yet, show real photos of their own work, make one specific offer and call leads back fast. That’s the core difference from Google. On Google, the homeowner is already looking for a fence company. On Facebook and Instagram, they’re scrolling past friends’ photos when your finished cedar fence shows up and reminds them theirs is leaning.
That makes Meta ads a pipeline tool, not a phone-ringing tool. They’re good at planting the idea for a remodel, a deck or a new roof weeks before the homeowner would have searched for it, and at staying in front of people who visited your website and left. They’re poor at urgent work. If someone’s water heater failed an hour ago, they’re on Google, not Instagram.
Lithium manages Facebook and Instagram advertising for service businesses alongside Google Ads. See Lithium’s Meta advertising service for how we run it.
Is it right for your trade?
Visual, planned projects fit. Emergencies don’t.
Strong fit for Facebook and Instagram
- Decks, patios, fences and outdoor living
- Kitchen, bath and basement remodels
- Roof replacement, siding and windows
- Painting, landscaping and hardscaping
- Seasonal offers like tune-ups or spring cleanups
Weak fit, use Google first
- Emergency plumbing and drain backups
- No-heat and no-cool repair calls
- Lockouts, towing and storm emergencies
- Highly technical B2B work with few buyers
- Any service where buyers search the moment they need it
If your best jobs are planned, visual and expensive, Facebook can fill the calendar weeks out. If your best jobs are urgent, put the money into Google Ads and Local Services Ads first, and use Meta later for retargeting and seasonal promotions.
The offer
One project, one town, one clear next step.
“We do it all” is the fastest way to waste a Facebook budget. Nobody stops scrolling for a list of services. They stop for a picture of a deck like the one they want and a reason to ask about it now. Pick one project type per campaign, name the area you serve and give people a next step that feels easy.
A free design or estimate visit
“Thinking about a new deck this summer? Book a free design visit in Tigard and Tualatin.” Clear, local and easy to say yes to.
A seasonal booking window
“We’re booking fence installs for spring. Get on the schedule before it fills.” True scarcity works. Fake countdowns don’t.
Financing for big projects
If you offer financing on roofs, remodels or HVAC systems, say so. A monthly payment makes a five-figure project feel possible.
A before-and-after story
Show a tired backyard and the finished patio, with one line about what the homeowner wanted. Proof sells better than adjectives.
Only promise what you deliver. If a “free estimate” means a phone call and not a site visit, say so. If you can’t start until next month, don’t imply next week.
Creative
Your own jobsite photos beat any stock image.
Homeowners can spot stock photos instantly, and they scroll right past them. What stops the thumb is a real project in a real neighborhood: a finished deck at golden hour, a before-and-after slider, a 20-second phone video of your crew setting posts, or the owner talking to the camera about how you handle a remodel. Polish matters less than authenticity.
Run several versions at once. Try a photo against a short video, a before-and-after against a finished shot, and two or three different opening lines. Meta will push budget toward the ones people respond to. When results start to slip because the same people have seen the same ad too many times, swap in new images.
Use only photos of work your company did, describe it accurately and get the homeowner’s okay when their house is recognizable. Keep the image and the offer matched: a kitchen photo has no business in a roofing ad.
Forms and targeting
Instant forms bring volume. Landing pages bring intent.
Meta’s lead ads let people send their name and phone number without leaving Facebook or Instagram. Meta’s lead ads training covers how they work. Because the form is pre-filled, it’s easy to submit, which means more leads and more people who forgot they did. Add a few short questions to slow down the casual taps: ZIP code, project type, rough timeline. Meta also offers a higher-intent form that asks people to review their details before they submit.
Sending people to a landing page on your website takes more effort from them, so you get fewer leads, but they’ve read about your work before reaching out. The landing page guide explains how to build one that matches the ad. Install the Meta pixel and connect the Conversions API so Meta can see which clicks turn into form fills.
For targeting, draw the map around the towns your crews work in and let Meta find the people inside it. Narrow interest targeting often does worse than a broad local audience with good creative. Then add two audiences worth having in every account: people who visited your website in the last few months, and a list of past customers you can exclude from new-customer ads or target with referral and repeat offers.
Follow-up and measurement
Call within the hour or the lead forgets you.
A Facebook lead is colder than a Google lead. They tapped a form between videos, and by tomorrow they may not remember your name. Decide before launch who calls new leads, how fast and how many times. Send an automatic text the moment the form comes in so they know a real company received it.
Track every lead through to the result: reached or not, estimate booked or not, sold or not. Separate leads that were a poor fit from leads nobody called. Poor-fit leads point to a fuzzy offer or loose targeting. Uncalled leads point to the office. Each needs a different fix.
Judge the campaign by cost per booked estimate and cost per sold job, not cost per lead. Facebook leads often look cheap next to Google leads, and they often close at a lower rate. Compare the full math before moving money between the two. The contractor marketing page shows how Meta fits with your website, SEO and Google Ads.
