Email Marketing for Plumbers: How to Start and Grow Your Business

Email marketing is a practical way for plumbers to connect regularly with customers, generate leads, and increase repeat business. By sending timely, relevant emails, plumbers can promote services, share maintenance tips, and keep their brand top of mind.

Why this comes up / what goes wrong

Many small plumbing businesses rely on phone calls, text messages, or manual follow-up to manage leads. This can cause missed opportunities when follow-up is slow, inconsistent, or disorganized. Without a system, plumbers might forget to contact potential customers, miss seasonal promotions, or fail to nurture repeat clients. Email marketing automates outreach, organizes communication, and helps maintain steady contact with prospects and customers.

Step-by-step

1. Build your email list: Collect emails from your website visitors, customers during service calls, and social media followers. Always get explicit permission to email them.

1. Segment your contacts: Group your contacts by criteria such as service type (emergency repairs, installations), location, or job status (new lead, repeat customer). This makes your emails more relevant.

1. Create useful email content: Write emails that offer discounts, seasonal maintenance reminders (like winterizing pipes), plumbing care tips, and customer testimonials.

1. Set up automated follow-ups: Use email sequences to send a series of messages over days or weeks. These sequences stop automatically when the recipient replies, saving time and avoiding over-contact.

1. Track results and adjust: Monitor open rates, click rates, and responses to see what works. Use this data to improve your messages and timing.

1. Ensure team visibility and response: Use a shared inbox so your whole team can see and reply to customer emails promptly, preventing leads from falling through the cracks.

Make sure your emails comply with CAN-SPAM laws by including an easy unsubscribe option and your business contact details.

Example (fictional figures)

Joe’s Plumbing in Denver, Colorado, wants to increase repeat customers using email marketing. They start with 1,200 contacts.

• They create a 5-step email sequence over two weeks offering a 15% discount on water heater services.
• Assume a 25% open rate: 1,200 × 25% = 300
• Of those who open, 12% click the offer: 300 × 12% = 36
• Of those who click, 40% book a service: 36 × 40% = 14 new jobs
• Average job value: $350
• Revenue from campaign: 14 × $350 = $4,900

Joe’s Plumbing spends $120 on email marketing software and saves 12 hours of manual follow-up.

Common mistakes

• Not building a permission-based list: Always ask customers to opt in to receive emails to avoid spam complaints.

• Sending irrelevant or too frequent emails: Prevent this by segmenting your list and scheduling emails thoughtfully to keep messages relevant and not overwhelming.

• Ignoring replies or leads: Use a shared inbox so your team can see and respond to emails quickly, ensuring no lead is missed.

• Failing to automate follow-ups: Prevent this by setting up email sequences that run automatically and stop when a reply arrives. Learn more about email automation and sequences.

• Not tracking performance: Regularly review email metrics to refine your content and timing for better results.

Doing this in HelloGrowthCRM

HelloGrowthCRM helps plumbing businesses manage email marketing and follow-up efficiently:

• HelloMail shared inbox makes replies to quotation emails visible to the entire team on the deal, so everyone stays informed and can respond quickly.

• Sequences and campaigns allow you to set up a five-step follow-up over two weeks that runs automatically and stops when the prospect replies, helping maintain consistent contact without manual effort.

• Managed RevOps offers a revenue specialist who works your follow-up queue weekly, ideal if you don’t have a dedicated sales manager.

Explore these features at email automation and sequences and WhatsApp and SMS CRM.

Frequently asked questions

How do I start collecting emails for my plumbing business? Start by asking for emails during service calls, on your website with a sign-up form, and through social media. Clearly explain what kind of emails customers will receive and always get their permission.

What should I include in my plumbing email marketing? Include service offers, seasonal reminders like pipe winterizing, plumbing maintenance tips, customer reviews, and company updates. Keep emails helpful and relevant to your audience.

How often should I send emails to my plumbing customers? Typically, 1-2 emails per month work well to avoid overwhelming customers. Use automated sequences for new leads and occasional campaigns for promotions.

Can I manage email marketing and sales follow-up in one place? Yes. HelloGrowthCRM provides a shared inbox and automated sequences so your team can manage emails and follow-ups without switching tools. Learn more about HelloGrowthCRM for the United States.

What if I don’t have a sales manager to handle follow-ups? HelloGrowthCRM’s Managed RevOps service assigns a revenue specialist who works your follow-up queue weekly to ensure leads are contacted promptly.

Key takeaways

• Build a permission-based email list from customers and website visitors.
• Segment your contacts to send relevant, timely emails.
• Automate follow-ups with multi-step sequences that stop when a reply arrives.
• Use a shared inbox so your team can see and respond to all email replies.
• Track email performance and adjust content accordingly.
• HelloGrowthCRM offers tools to automate and manage email marketing and follow-up efficiently.

Start your email marketing journey and manage leads better with HelloGrowthCRM. Start on the Free Forever plan (200 leads, no credit card).