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How to Get Referrals and Repeat Customers as a Contractor

Homeowners most often find a pro they’ve hired before or one a friend recommended. Three habits that turn every finished job into your next one.

By Goanna Digital5 min read
Short answer

Your next job is most likely to come from someone who already knows your work. In a 2026 survey of US homeowners, the top two ways people found the pro they hired were having worked with them before (31%) and a referral from friends or family (31%). Follow up after every job, ask for the referral in a way that’s easy to pass on, and make sure the finished work is easy to find when the referral looks you up.

Where homeowners actually find their pro

Two surveys from 2026 point the same way:

How homeowners found the pro they hired
31%
had worked with them before
31%
got a referral from friends or family
Top two answers. Source: HIRI Q1 2026 Homeowner Project Activity Tracker (1,198 US homeowners), as reported by Angi, Jul 17, 2026.
  • Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI), Q1 2026, as reported by Angi: the top two ways homeowners found the pro they hired were having worked with them before (31%) and a referral from friends or family (31%). Angi’s summary: roughly six in ten jobs won on trust and track record. (Online survey of 1,198 US homeowners, March to April 2026.)
  • Roofing Contractor’s 2026 homeowner survey: 74% find roofing contractors through word of mouth, 62% through repeat business with contractors they already know, and 54% through search engines. People could pick more than one.

Search still matters. But a lot of contractors spend their marketing money chasing strangers, and almost nothing on the customers who already said yes.

Why past customers are worth chasing right now

HIRI’s Q1 2026 numbers show a market where homeowners are careful with money but still have work waiting:

  • 73% of homeowners have a project they want to do but haven’t started, and 49% have more than one.
  • 46% of recent projects were split between DIY and a contractor, up from 23% a year earlier.
  • When homeowners do hire, the top reasons are technical expertise (61%) and work quality (54%).

Your past customers have already seen your work quality. They’re the easiest people to win the next job from, and the most likely to recommend you to someone who asks.

Fix 01: Follow up after the job, not just before it

Most follow-up happens while chasing a quote. Almost none happens after the job is paid.

  • About a week after the job, send a short text: did everything work out, and is there anything else on the list?
  • Note what they mention (“wants the back fence done in spring”) on the customer record, with a date to check back.
  • For seasonal trades (HVAC, pest, gutters, irrigation), send a reminder before the season they’ll need you again.

Keep it short and useful. One message after the job and one before the next season is plenty. Nobody wants a newsletter from their plumber.

Fix 02: Ask for the referral, and make it easy to pass on

Happy customers rarely refer you on their own initiative, because nobody asked them to.

  • Ask in person at the end of a good job: “If anyone on your street needs this done, I’d appreciate you passing my number on.”
  • Follow it with one text they can forward as is: your name, your trade, what you did for them, and your number or website link.
  • Thank everyone who sends you work, whether or not the job goes ahead.

If you offer a thank-you for referrals, keep it simple and say clearly what it is and when it applies.

Fix 03: Show the finished job where people will look

A referral still checks you out before they call. “My neighbour recommended you” turns into a search for your name.

  • Put photos of finished jobs on your website, with the suburb or neighbourhood and what you did.
  • Add the same photos to your Google Business Profile.
  • Ask for a review after the job is paid, so the referral finds recent proof as well as the recommendation.

See our guides on how to get more Google reviews and showing the problem on your estimates.

This week’s checklist

  1. Text your last ten customers. Ask how it’s going and whether anything else is on the list.
  2. Write the one text a customer could forward to a friend, and save it on your phone.
  3. Put photos of your last three finished jobs on your website and Google profile.

Common questions

How do contractors get more referrals?Do good work, then ask. Ask in person at the end of the job, and send one short text the customer can forward. Make sure the referral finds photos of your work and recent reviews when they look you up.

When is the best time to ask for a referral?At the end of a job the customer is happy with, while you’re still on site, and again in a short follow-up about a week later.

How do I get repeat customers?Stay in touch after the job is paid. Note what else they mentioned wanting done, check back at the right time, and send a seasonal reminder if your work recurs.

How Goanna Digital handles this

On every Goanna Digital plan, each job you close in the Goanna Digital app becomes a project page on your website, with the photos, the service and the suburb. Once the invoice is paid, your customer gets a review request. Your customer records, follow-ups and messages live in the same app on your phone.

Want this handled for you?

Goanna Digital runs your website, your Google presence, your lead inbox, quoting and invoicing from one app on your phone.

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Sources

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