For most roofing companies, Google (map pack, organic search, and Local Services Ads combined) brings in the bulk of booked jobs, often well over half. Facebook and the paid directories still have a role, but they play a different game: lower intent, lower close rate, and a different kind of customer. The fix isn't picking one channel and ignoring the rest. It's knowing which one to fund first and which ones to use for backup.
Why Google wins most of the time for roofing
Someone with a leak in their ceiling doesn't scroll Facebook. They type "roof leak repair near me" into Google at 9pm and call whoever shows up first with good reviews and a real phone number. That's the whole reason Google outperforms for roofing specifically: the intent is already there. Nobody googles a new roof for fun.
Your Google Business Profile (the free map pack listing) is the single highest-value asset you own if you keep it updated with photos, service areas, and a steady flow of reviews. Combine that with Local Services Ads, where you pay per qualified lead, typically $30 to $80 per lead depending on your market and season, and you're covering both the "I trust this company" click and the "I need someone now" click.
Organic search (ranking without paying per click) takes months to build but costs nothing per lead once you're there. Paid Google Ads on keywords like "roof replacement cost" run $15 to $45 per click in competitive metros, less in smaller towns, and work best layered on top of LSA rather than replacing it.
What Facebook is actually good for in roofing
Facebook doesn't catch people mid-emergency. It catches people scrolling who weren't thinking about their roof until your ad showed them a before-and-after photo. That makes it a brand-awareness and retargeting tool more than a direct-response one.
- Storm awareness campaigns. After a hail event, Facebook ads showing your crew inspecting roofs in the area can generate inspection requests even from homeowners who haven't noticed damage yet.
- Retargeting. Someone visits your website, doesn't call, and sees your ad again three days later. This closes jobs that would otherwise be lost.
- Financing offers. A $20,000 reroof is easier to sell with a payment plan mentioned up front, and Facebook's audience targeting is good at reaching homeowners in the right age and income bracket.
Typical cost per lead on Facebook for roofing runs $40 to $90, and close rates tend to run lower than Google because the person wasn't actively shopping when they clicked. Budget for it as a supplement, not your main pipeline.
Where local directories fit (and where they don't)
Angi, HomeAdvisor, and Thumbtack sell the same lead to three or four roofers at once. You're not the only call that homeowner gets. Close rates on shared leads typically land between 10% and 20%, compared to 30% or higher on a Google Business Profile call where you're the only name they found. Lead costs on these platforms run $40 to $150 depending on job type, and a $150 lead that doesn't close stings a lot more than a $40 one.
Nextdoor works differently. It's referral-based and local, and it tends to produce smaller jobs: repairs, gutter work, minor leak fixes, rather than full reroofs. It's worth having a presence there, but don't expect it to fund your truck payment.
BBB accreditation and listing sites rarely generate direct leads anymore, but they still matter for trust. A homeowner comparing three quotes will check your BBB rating before signing, even if they found you through Google.
How to actually get past 60% from one channel
The roofers who get the majority of their leads from Google aren't lucky. They've put in the unglamorous work: asking every satisfied customer for a review the same day the job finishes, keeping their service area and photos current on their Google Business Profile, and answering LSA leads within minutes instead of hours. A lead that sits unanswered for two hours has usually already called your competitor.
Older housing stock areas (asphalt shingle roofs past 20 to 25 years) tend to search more, since homeowners are actively researching replacement timelines. New-build subdivisions generate fewer organic searches and respond better to targeted Facebook ads and direct mail. Knowing your service area's housing age changes where you should spend the next marketing dollar.
Tracking which channel is actually paying off
None of this matters if you can't see where a booked job came from. Most roofing companies lose this data because it lives in someone's head or a sticky note by the phone. Tagging every lead by source inside your CRM, and tracking it through to the signed job, not just the first call, tells you which channel is worth more budget and which one is quietly burning cash. The features built into lınq handle this automatically, so you're comparing real close rates, not guesses.
If you're spending money across Google, Facebook, and a directory or two and still can't say which one actually filled last month's schedule, that's the problem to fix before you spend another dollar on ads. Pull your last 90 days of booked jobs, tag each one by lead source, and look at cost per booked job rather than cost per lead. Check pricing for lınq or see how it fits roofing specifically on the industries we serve page, and reach out when you're ready to set up proper source tracking.
Frequently asked questions
How much should a roofing company spend on marketing per month?
Most established roofing companies spend 5% to 10% of revenue on marketing, with newer companies or those entering storm markets spending more in the first year to build review volume and brand presence. The split between Google, Facebook, and directories should shift based on which one is actually converting for you, not a fixed formula.
Is Google Local Services Ads worth it for a roofing company?
Yes for most roofers, because you only pay for the lead and Google backs it with a "Google Guaranteed" badge that builds trust fast. The tradeoff is you need strong reviews and quick response times, since Google ranks LSA listings partly on how fast you answer.
Should a new roofing company use HomeAdvisor or Angi to start?
It can work as a short-term bridge while you build Google reviews, since shared-lead platforms give volume fast even with zero online presence. Plan to shift budget toward your own Google Business Profile within the first year, since the cost per booked job on directories stays higher long-term than owned organic and LSA traffic.