How to Get Construction Leads: Every Channel Compared

Where do homeowners look for a construction company?

Mostly on Google. In our survey of 1,113 Canadian homeowners, 76% used Google Search to find a contractor, 31% used directories like HomeStars and Houzz, 27% got a referral and 26% asked an AI tool. 68% used more than one place, so even a referral looks you up before calling¹.

23% looked at six or more contractors before hiring, which is common on bigger renovations and new builds¹. Every channel below works better when your Google profile and website back it up.

Which channel gives the cheapest booked construction job?

Referrals and past clients cost almost nothing in cash. Among paid channels, a Facebook lead called within minutes books a job for about $290 in ads, and a Google search lead for about $540. On a $37,500 kitchen or a $50,000 basement, every paid channel works if you call back fast.

The difference between the best and worst row is mostly how fast you call back and quote, not which platform you picked.

How do you get construction leads for free?

Ask every client for a referral and a review at handover, check in with past clients once a year, build relationships with architects, designers and realtors, put a sign on every site, and keep your Google profile and project pages current. None of these cost money; they cost time and a habit.

• Past clients. 38% of homeowners only ever considered one contractor¹, which is what a referral usually gets you. Check in once a year with photos of a recent job: a basement client from 2023 may be planning a kitchen.
• Architects, designers and realtors. For custom homes, additions and commercial work, the person who sends you the project is often the architect who drew it or the realtor who sold the lot. In BC, most single-family and duplex lots in larger municipalities must now allow three or four units¹¹, and owners call realtors first. Give each of them a one-page sheet with your project types, insurance and finished jobs.
• Job-site signs and neighbours. Put a sign on every site where the client agrees, and leave a short note with the neighbours before you start. The people watching a garden suite go up next door are the likeliest to want one.
• Your Google profile. The top 3 construction companies in our 21-market Google Maps snapshot had a median of just 35 reviews¹², so a steady review ask gets most builders onto the map. Our SEO guide for construction companies has the bar for each market.
• Social posts of real projects. A short video of a finished job, posted with the town named, costs nothing and gives people something to share.

Keep any referral thank-you separate from reviews. Google prohibits offering incentives for reviews¹³.

Which paid channels work for construction companies?

For residential work, Google search ads and Facebook ads; for renovations and custom homes, sometimes Houzz or HomeStars. Google catches people searching today, Facebook reaches them months earlier, and the directories reach homeowners who browse projects. Local Services Ads aren't an option for general contractors⁴.

• Google search ads put you at the top today, at about $224 a lead². Split them by project type, with a page for each. Our Google Ads guide for construction companies covers campaigns and budgets.
• Facebook and Instagram cost about $61 a lead³ but reach people earlier, so follow-up matters more. They suit projects people can picture, like basements, suites and custom homes, and not commercial work. See our Facebook ads guide for construction companies.
• HomeStars lets pros sign up free and pay a fee only when a homeowner chooses to get in touch; it lists more than 25,000 pros⁸. Houzz suits design-led renovators: software runs $99 to $399 a month, and the advertising package starts at $685 a month in Canadian dollars⁹, about three Google leads. In our study, none of the 133 construction sites showed a HomeStars badge and 6% linked to Houzz⁵.

If you pay for a lead site, track every lead to a signed job for three months before renewing. In 2023, the US Federal Trade Commission finalized an order requiring HomeAdvisor, which does business as Angi Leads, to pay up to $7.2 million over deceptive claims about the leads it sold to contractors¹⁴.

Which construction lead and bid platforms work in Canada?

For commercial and institutional work, the main ones are BuildingConnected for invitations to bid, ConstructConnect for Canadian project leads, the federal and provincial tender sites, and construction association bid boards. Several sites at the top of US lists, like HomeAdvisor, Thumbtack, The Blue Book and Dodge, are built around US markets.

Tenders bring competition. To get invited to private bids instead, get on general contractors' and owners' prequalified lists. The BC Construction Safety Alliance says many general contractors require subcontractors to have a recognized safety program, such as COR, before they can bid²². In our study, only 2% of construction websites named COR and none said they were bonded⁵. A prequalification page with your safety program, insurance, WCB or WSIB coverage and a project list saves an owner a phone call.

What's the right lead mix for your size?

Start with what costs least and pays most for your type of work, then add paid channels once you can call leads back fast and track them. An owner-operator renovator, a growing residential builder and a commercial contractor need very different mixes. The average small residential builder in Canada brings in about $522,400 a year²³.

Whatever the size, add call tracking before adding a channel. Only 6% of construction websites use it today⁵.

Where should you start?

Fix your Google Business Profile, ask for a review at every handover, list every past client from the last three years and check in with photos, then build one page for your best project type and run search ads to it with call tracking. If you build commercial, add a prequalification page and register on your province's bid sites.

If you'd rather have it set up for you, see our advertising and lead generation service or construction marketing. The full data is in our construction website study.