How to Get Painting Contracts: 12 Tips for Growing Your Business 

1. Choose your target market

Before you put in time and effort on marketing, you need to be clear on who you’re looking to get painting contracts from—residential or commercial painting customers.

Residential customers are homeowners who need their homes or fences painted. They won’t typically be long-term customers, since most will only have one property to paint.

On the plus side, residential painting customers typically have less complicated requirements and you can fit more work in in less time compared to commercial painting customers. 

To figure out who your ideal residential client is, answer these questions:

• What’s their age, gender, family status, location, and salary?
• Where do they spend time online?
• Why are they looking for professional painters?

Commercial customers need painting done in commercial properties such as condo buildings, offices, community centers, and retail properties. Your contact will typically be the building manager. 

A big pro of commercial paint customers is that they can offer longer contracts (e.g., painting four separate retail spaces in a 3-month period) and will pay more for the work.

On the downside, they’ll usually have strict deadlines and more complex needs. 

Target commercial customers if you and your team have more experience with large-scale painting projects, you like fast-paced environments, and you’re looking to earn a higher income.

2. Print door hangers and flyers

Print advertisements can help you spread the word about your services at a low cost. Spread out door hangers and flyers in the neighborhoods where you want to get painting contracts.

Door hangers are flyers that fit around a front door handle. They’re hard to ignore and cost pennies to print. Work with a freelance designer or print shop to design an eye-catching hanger that shows off the best of your business.

Pro Tip: Before you start door hanger advertising, check with your local city office to make sure you’re not violating any bylaws.

A tearaway flyer is a letter-sized paper ad with small, tearable pieces at the bottom that have your company contact information on them. As people can take your info and put it in their pocket, they’re likely to have it on hand whenever they need it. 

These are perfect for community bulletin boards, mail lockers, and advertising spaces outside of restaurants and other businesses. The more places you can share them, the more people will see your services and contact information.

3. Use your vehicle and uniforms for marketing

Billboards may be out of budget for your small business—but you can just as effectively promote your business wherever you go by branding your vehicles and uniforms.

A truck or van that’s branded with your company’s name, services, and phone number can get attention from potential customers wherever you drive. 

Here’s how to get painting jobs by making a vehicle wrap or decal:

• Measure your vehicle to make sure you print the right size. You can either print a wrap that goes around your entire vehicle, or a decal that covers one section (like the rear window or a side door).
• Design an eye-catching wrap or decal with your business name, logo, slogan, and contact details. Team up with a local designer to make sure it looks great and is easy to read.
• Get it printed at a local print shop. Some shops can install vehicle wraps for you. If they have a deal for buying decals in bulk, order several and pay people to place your branded decals on their vehicles.

4. Create social media ads

There are over five million social media users around the world. And because social media lets you target the people who are most likely to be interested in your services, advertising on social platforms is a great way to bring in painting leads. 

Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn all offer advertising options that you can use to target your ideal customers. 

Social media platforms also give you a ton of flexibility, you can also control your budget, monitor your results, and make quick changes.

Here are the types of ads you can launch on each major platform:

• Facebook ads. Facebook helps you choose the best kind of campaign to run based on a specific goal (like filling an online booking form on your website). From Ads Manager, you can set a budget, goals, and target audiences on Facebook based on interests, location, and other demographics.
• Sponsored posts on Facebook and Instagram. Sponsoring posts that are already on your business page brings your business to new audiences. Pick the posts that have the most engagement (likes, comments, and shares), then start with a small budget (like $5–$10 per day) and see how effective they are at bringing in leads.
• X ads. X offers 20+ ad formats. You can customize your ads for different goals, and also choose your audience and budget just like on other platforms. Use X to attract residential customers who are interested in home improvement, interior decorating, remodeling, and construction.
• LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn is the largest online professional network with over one billion users. This is your best bet for getting the notice of property managers, general contractors, real estate companies, and other commercial painting partners. LinkedIn has many types of ads—you can pay to directly send messages into the inboxes of LinkedIn members.

5. Advertise on Google

Your commercial and residential leads have one big thing in common: they use Google to find what they need. Google is responsible for 80% of search traffic on computers. Take the time to set up your presence on Google and use their low-cost advertising options.

Set up a Google Business Profile

Creating a Google Business Profile is one of the simplest ways to build an online presence and start getting new painting leads. 

Your Google Business Profile includes your company contact info, location, customer reviews, customers’ frequently asked questions, and photos.

6. Use lead generation sites

Wondering how to get house painting jobs from the people who need them most? Lead generation sites help connect you with homeowners who are actively searching for painting services. 

All you have to do is set up a company profile to catch the eye of people who are searching for painting services in your area. Get started on one or two of these lead generation sites:

• Angi: Formerly known as Angie’s List, Angi matches homeowners with contractors who can do home renovation, repairs, or maintenance projects. It’s great for painters since it’s made for service providers who rely on smaller cost projects and one-off jobs. Angi offers free and paid membership options.
• HomeAdvisor: This one is similar to Angi, but a better match for bigger and more costly jobs. Contractors can pay $300–$350 for an annual HomeAdvisor membership, and anywhere from $15–$100 per lead.
• Thumbtack: Thumbtack helps home improvement businesses bring in new leads. Homeowners can use the platform to make a post for the work they need done—then they can connect with painters like you in their area.
• Porch: This site matches contractors with real estate-based services like moving, buy-and-sell home preparation, and repairs—making it ideal for finding painting leads.

READ MORE:The best lead generation websites for contractors

7. Build long-term relationships with existing customers

Because 88% of people trust recommendations from people they know, don’t forget to use your current customers to get new business. 

To get people talking and recommending your business, you need to spend time building strong relationships with your customers. 

8. Start a referral program

Word-of-mouth marketing is taking the above advice a step further by rewarding customers for referring your business to people they know. This makes it more likely they’ll go out of their way to mention you to friends and family. 

Here’s how to get started:

• Talk to your past referral customers. Who referred them to your business and why? It might be because you offered great paint recommendations or because you do fence painting when your competitors don’t. Once you figure out where your best customers came from and why they chose you, you can build a targeted strategy for getting more referrals by talking up these benefits and putting your efforts on encouraging these customers to keep recommending you. 
• Choose a referral reward. Reward customers who send new business your way. Pick a reward based on what’s in your budget and what you think your customers will appreciate most. Then test your best guesses out to see what works. For example, you could offer a gift card for a store they love, or a discount on your next paint job.
• Promote your referral program. After each visit, leave a card advertising your referral program and send a follow-up email reminding customers to refer you to a business partner, colleague, or friend if they’d like a reward in return. 

To make the process even easier, use Jobber Referrals to promote your referral program to customers with a professional email campaign that’s ready to send in seconds flat.

How to get commercial painting contracts

9. Attend trade shows and industry events

Meeting other contractors and tradespeople face to face is the best way to build relationships that can lead to more commercial painting contracts.

Go to networking events, conventions, and trade shows in your area. They’re good places to meet construction business owners and carpenters who could subcontract your company on bigger jobs or pass your name onto potential customers. 

These events are also great places to meet potential commercial painting customers. 

Wherever you go, here’s how you can make a good impressions on potential customers or other bushes owners who can recommend you:

• Share your business card. Make sure the people you meet can get in touch with you by sharing business cards with everyone you speak to. Add a line to your card saying that you offer free estimates. Then, add a QR code to your card so people can easily scan the code and visit your website.
• Start genuine conversations. It’s tempting to pitch your services to everyone, but most people don’t like to be sold to. You’ll make the best impression if you make friendly conversation without heavy selling. If a potential customer likes and trusts you, they’re more likely to do business with you or refer you to someone else.
• Rent a booth. While this can be a bit of a pricier option, it can be a great way to promote yourself at trade shows and conventions by registering as an exhibitor. With a booth, you can draw more attention to your business, show your work, and talk to potential customers about the different services you offer. Don’t forget to collect email addresses and share brochures or flyers to ensure your relationships continue outside of the convention.

Break out your laptop and see if your city or town has a local construction association and trades associations for electricians, plumbers, and carpenters. Many of these groups host events where you can connect with potential partners.

Visit these websites to find construction and trades associations in your region:

• Associated General Contractors of America
• Canadian Construction Association
• Build UK
• Australian Constructors Association

You can also join Business Network International (BNI), a networking organization for all industries that can connect you with painting leads in your region.

10. Build business partnerships

Secure more commercial painting jobs by fostering relationships with local businesses. Here are some types of businesses you can connect with:

• Property managers. Whether they manage apartment buildings or offices, property managers will always need go-to painting contractors. Visit their offices and introduce your commercial painting services in person. To make a strong impression, make sure you have all the information they’d be interested in to hand, such as a full list of your services and pricing. 
• Construction companies. Message construction companies and builders on Facebook and LinkedIn. Larger construction companies look for “production painters” who can paint quickly for remodels and new constructions.
• Interior designers. Residential and commercial interior designers often work with general contractors on projects. Either the designer or their contracting partner can hire subcontractors for more specialized trades work, like painting. Look for interior designers on social media—you’ll find plenty on TikTok and Instagram.
• Professional house flippers. People who flip houses for a living will always need painting contractors for their projects. Search job board websites for painting subcontractor postings and ask all the tradespeople you know if they have house flipping contacts.
• Real estate agencies. Building personal relationships with realtors can get you closer to bringing in more painting contracts. If they don’t need commercial painters, they could connect you with some of the homeowners they work with. Stop by local real estate offices, leave your business card, and do everything you can to make your company stand out.
• Paint suppliers. Get friendly with your go-to paint supplier, they are some of the best people to put you in touch with people who are looking for painters for their homes and commercial properties.

11. Bid on government contracts 

Find more commercial painting jobs through bidding sites run by government agencies. You can find large painting contracts to bid on on SAM.gov. 

When you sign up to the Multiple Award Schedule on the site, you can bid on contract opportunities from federal agencies. To be eligible, you must have been in business for two years, have two years of financial records, and be able to show past work. 

If you want to know how to get big painting contracts then this site is a great place to look as you’ll find jobs for over $25,000. You can easily search opportunities and store and manage the status of your opportunities from your dashboard.

12. Track the performance of your strategies

Once you’ve put some of the above strategies in place, you need to track them to see which ones work best to bring in more customers. 

Digital platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Google Ads let you directly track metrics like how many clicks or messages you’ve received. 

You can keep track of how successful your offline marketing is at getting more painting contracts by asking people how they heard about you every time they request a quote.