How to Market Your Home Service Business Year-Round

Whenever we work with a client to market your home service business year-round, one of the questions we get asked is, “How much should we spend on marketing?”

It’s a common question and it depends on the scale of the business, the team they have, the systems they have in place and how aggressive they want to be. However, one thing we do recommend is the marketing mix they employ for the season. 

For the most part, home service businesses have cycles they go through. 

Some seasons are busy, some are not, some are so-so and some are a seasons of transition between one to another.

Sound familiar?

This is the cycle that most home service businesses know from experience but don’t proactively plan for throughout the year.

If you’ve ever used all of your marketing dollars to get new leads during your peak season and had nothing left over to market for new customers during the off-season, this is for you.

In today’s article, we’re going to cover how to market your home service business year-round, and tell you how much marketing budget you should use and where to allocate it for each season.

This home service marketing strategy is based on three phases: peak season, shoulder season, and off-season.

When you get this strategy right, you’ll have:

✅ Consistent bookings year-round—not just during emergencies

✅ Lower customer acquisition costs as brand recognition compounds

✅ Predictable revenue that lets you plan hiring and growth

✅ Crews that stay busy even during slow months

This will be a valuable post you can return to when you need to market your home service business year-round. Let’s get started.

The Two Types of Marketing For Home Service Businesses

Before we get into tactics and budget splits, you first must understand the two types of marketing. 

This will seem obvious in a second but these simple definitions will help you understand the seasonal marketing strategy. 

1. Intent-Based Marketing

Intent-based marketing targets customers who are actively searching for solutions to immediate problems.

They already know what they need. They’re comparing providers. And they’re ready to book.

For example: An AC goes out, furnaces stop working, a pipe burst, or storm damage is visible on the roof. 

They have a need and they’re showing intent. Your job is to be visible, credible, and fast when they’re searching.

2. Interest-Based Marketing

Interest-based marketing builds awareness, trust, and consideration among customers before they have an immediate need.

They may not be searching for your services now. They might not even know they have a problem yet. You’re simply positioning your brand so when the time is right,  you’re their first call.

For example, say you’re a plumbing contractor and a homeowner comes across your video titled “5 Signs Your Water Heater Is About to Fail.” 

They watch the whole thing, realize their water heater is showing two of those signs. When it starts leaking three months later, they remember you and you’re their first call.

They’re not ready to hire you today, but you’re planting seeds so when they are ready, they don’t compare you with other providers, they trust you.

Here’s what most contractors miss:

You need BOTH types of marketing. What changes is the percentage mix, depending on the season.

Intent marketing captures customers searching now. Use this more during peak season when search volume is high.

Interest marketing builds future pipeline. Use this more during off-season when CPCs are low and you need to fill the pipeline for next quarter.

When you shift your budget allocation across the three seasonal phases we’re about to show you, you get consistent bookings year-round instead of feast-or-famine.

Now that we’ve established definitions, let’s dive into the seasonal marketing framework.