Resources
Straight answers for trades.
No jargon, no sales pitch dressed up as advice. Honest guides on getting more work: what the lead sites really cost, whether ads are worth it, and how to keep every lead yours.
Lead sites
Is Checkatrade worth it?
The real cost, the shared leads, the twelve-month tie-in, and whether it actually pays off for your trade.
Read itLead sites
How much does Checkatrade cost?
The tariff Checkatrade publishes, why the sign-up flow never shows it to you, what trades actually report paying, VAT, the twelve-month tie-in, and the cost per won job that tells you if it pays.
Read itGoogle Ads
Are Google Ads worth it?
When ads pay for themselves, when they just burn cash, and what a click really costs a UK trade.
Read itAd budgets
How much should you spend?
Work out the right number for your trade, what each budget tier actually gets you, and the daily floor to steer clear of.
Read itGetting work
How to get more leads
Most trades have a leak, not a shortage. The order to fix it, and why the free channels beat paid ones to start.
Read itPhone calls
How to get more calls
Make it dead easy to ring you, turn up where people reach for the phone, and stop losing jobs to voicemail.
Read itLead sites
Is MyBuilder worth it?
What it really costs, how pay-per-shortlist works, the cost per won job nobody shows you, what trades actually say, and who should walk away.
Read itLead sites
Is Bark worth it?
The credits model, your true cost per won job, why it is rated 4 stars and 1 star at once, whether the guarantee pays out, and if it is a scam.
Read itLead sites
Checkatrade vs MyBuilder vs Bark
The three pricing models side by side, your real cost per won job on each, who shares your lead, the contract traps, and which one suits your trade.
Read itLead sites
Is Yell worth it?
What Yell really costs on its own numbers, why you keep your domain but never get the website, the phone number you do not take with you, and what the Lead Guarantee is actually worth.
Read itLead sites
How to get out of your Yell contract
The minimum term, the notice you actually owe, the 80 percent early-exit rule, why there is no cooling-off period for a business, and what really happens if you just stop the direct debit.
Read itGoogle Ads
How to set up Google Ads
Opening the account takes twenty minutes. Knowing which settings Google quietly switches on for you, and which of the eight account types you actually need, is the bit that decides whether you win work or burn cash.
Read itGoogle Ads
Google Local Services Ads: worth it?
Which UK trades are actually eligible, what changed with the Google Verified badge, why the UK cannot use the automatic lead-credit system, and what a lead really costs.
Read itWebsites
Do I need a website?
When a website is genuinely worth it for a trade and when you can skip one, the truth about Facebook and your Google listing, and what separates a site that wins jobs from an expensive ornament.
Read itWebsites
What makes a good trade website?
The one job a trades site has, the handful of elements that win the call, the mistakes that quietly lose you work, the accreditations that buy instant trust, and a five-minute test for your own site.
Read itReviews
How to get more Google reviews
The ask that actually works before you leave the job, the one-tap text from the van, when to ask by trade, the gating trap that gets profiles wiped, and the maths behind how many you need.
Read itGoogle Ads
Google Ads vs Facebook Ads
Which one wins you work, matched to the kind of jobs you do, with real UK costs by trade, the pay-per-lead option nobody mentions, and which to buy first when the budget is tight.
Read itGoogle Maps
How to get on Google Maps
The three things Google actually ranks on, the service-area setup for a business with no shopfront, why you cannot rank everywhere, and the name-stuffing mistake that gets trades suspended.
Read itGoogle Ads
Google Ads vs SEO
Which gets a trade leads faster, the honest UK timings and costs, the free map listing that beats both, and why a firm that runs ads will still tell you not to buy SEO yet.
Read itGoogle Ads
Why aren't my Google Ads working?
The three real reasons a trade's ads fall flat, and only one is the ad: the status to check first, the budget maths that dooms a small spend, and why the click lands but the phone stays quiet.
Read itGoogle Maps
Google Business Profile setup
The setup guide for a trade with no shopfront: why you're a service-area business, how to hide your home address, the right category to pick, and how to get through the video verification that trips people up.
Read itLead sites
Is Rated People worth it?
The subscription-plus-credits model nobody spells out, the two review sites that rate it completely differently, who owns it now, and the real cost per won job.
Read itGoogle Maps
Google Business Profile suspended?
What actually gets a trade's listing pulled, the real appeal process through Google's own tool, and an honest timeline for getting back online.
Read itBusiness setup
What insurance do tradesmen need?
The employers' liability law vs the public liability everyone just expects you to carry, what trade bodies actually require, real costs, and why cover nobody can see wins you nothing.
Read itAdvertising
Is it worth wrapping your van?
Why the viral "30,000 people see it a day" claim does not hold up, and the pence-per-day maths that actually settles it.
Read itBusiness setup
Making Tax Digital for tradesmen
The real thresholds and deadlines, whether you can get compliant software for free, and the payments on account trap that catches newly-profitable sole traders out.
Read itBusiness setup
Sole trader or limited company?
What actually happens to your take-home once CIS, your van and the 2025 employer National Insurance change are factored in, shown with the full workings, not a vague range.
Read itGetting paid
Late payment interest calculator
Work out exactly what a late-paying customer owes you, using the actual locked Bank of England reference rate for your dates, not today's rate like every other calculator.
Read itGetting paid
What to do if a customer will not pay
Who owes you decides what you can claim, and the statutory 8% does not exist against a homeowner. The full ladder, what each rung costs, and the moves that turn a debt into a criminal charge.
Read itRather just get your phone ringing?
Tell us a bit about your business and we'll show you what owning your leads looks like. Got a question first? Just message us.