When you compare two moving companies, one that barely books 10 moves a month, and another one with 100+ high valuable moves, you might think that the bigger one somehow got extremely lucky, or because of better referral network of its happy customers, but the real answer here is simple: One invested heavily in marketing strategies and the other did not. Guess which one is which?
Success in the moving industry doesn’t happen by chance. Behind every big moving company, there is a smart, consistent marketing system running in the background, bringing in jobs day after day. So if that’s the case, what is stopping movers from running successful marketing campaigns?
Fear vs Growth
Marketing numbers can seem scary, especially if you have no experience whatsoever in advertising. How does $15-$25k per month spent on advertising sounds like? Pretty big number for an average moving company, you might say, but what if I told you that companies that spend that much on marketing are getting more than 150-250 jobs with $150k-$250k+ in revenue?
Investment, Not A Luxury
All of the sudden, that scary $25k per month now doesn’t look so terrifying, does it? It would be considered a luxury if money invested in ads didn’t generate income, but given the fact that it constantly brings quality jobs, digital marketing is a necessity for every moving company striving for success.
The companies that keep growing understand this principle. The key here is to treat this money as a smart investment that will convert to booked jobs, but you also need to know how and where to spend the money, and most importantly, not to put all in one basket.
Multi-Channel Marketing
Companies that invest huge amount of money don’t rely solely on one type of ads. Diversifying advertising portfolio is a proven strategy when investing large amount of money – if one channel doesn’t bring you expected amount of leads this month, other might surprise you.
Google Search Ads
Search ads are designed to drive both website visits and phone calls, making them a useful marketing option for movers. Verification process is quick and leads can be cost-effective when campaigns are managed properly. This way, you are making sure your name pops up in search when locals are searching for your services.
Local Service Ads
Local Service Ads appear at the very top of Google search result page, giving you premium visibility when people are actively searching. These ads use pay-per-lead model, which means you only pay for qualified leads, typically in the form of phone calls. They are easy to use, making them ideal for businesses new to online advertising. However, the verification and approval process can be difficult to pass.
Performance Max Campaigns
These Google Ads expand your reach across other platforms, such as YouTube, Maps, Gmail and partner websites, meaning you are visible in more places without extra work. These ads work best when combined with a good search campaign. Once Google learns from conversions that booked jobs, Performance Max can then scale your reach by generating more similar leads.
Meta Ads
With Meta Ads, you can target people in the environment where they spend hours every day – social networks. Even if they are not ready to move today, ads help you stay top of mind until the moment they decide. With powerful targeting options, ads are shown to people based on location, interests and behavior, making them an essential tool in your marketing portfolio.
How New Movers Can Scale Up To 100+ Jobs A Month?
First Milestone
Let’s talk strategy. In the beginning, start moving yourself and hire someone to help you. Begin with a small marketing budget of $50 per day. Your only goal here is simple: fill up one moving truck consistently and generate enough money to hire someone in your place, so you can focus on managing your moving company. Even if you are breaking even at this point, that’s a huge win, because you’ve created a system where the truck is busy and you’re not the one lifting the boxes.
Scaling The Fleet
When your first crew is stable, you are ready to expand. Test the demand by using a rental truck and hiring a second team. Once the second team gets 10 jobs a month, invest in buying them a truck and continue with marketing until your second truck is full.
Proven Scalable System
At this point, you’ve seen your strategy in action, so replicate your success onto your third team, and before you know it, your company is handling 60 moves per month with $60k in revenue. After all expenses are paid, you are left with $10k a month. From here, it’s all profit. You’ve managed to create a proven scalable system which is consistently bringing you new jobs, and sooner than later, you are passing that 100 jobs milestone.
The Biggest Mistake New Movers Make
You know the saying, if you want more honey, don’t be afraid to invest more money. This is especially important for young moving companies, where having a consistent, long-term strategy is essential to success. Many movers make the mistake of celebrating too early, when they acquire first 10-20 moving jobs. Buying a fancy new office or taking big personal bonuses quickly leaves you without marketing budget, and business slows down again. Consistency is crucial here: put every extra dollar into more advertising or hiring new staff as your company grows. Growth doesn’t happen in one month, it’s the result of a steady reinvestment over years. That’s how the giants are built.
The Bottom Line
The harsh truth we are trying to tell you is that if you continue to fear increasing the advertising budget, your competitor will happily take your customers. While you are hesitating, they are showing up on Google and social media, while reinvesting their profits to grow even more. Digital marketing isn’t an option, it’s the proven strategy that keeps your moving company not only alive, but constantly growing.
In order to survive, stop relying on referrals, no matter how much happy customers you have. Start investing strategically and scale when you notice success. The opportunity is right in front of you, the question is: will you grab it, or let someone else take the spot?