The Tuesday Morning Headache Every Boss Knows
It’s 6:30 AM on a Tuesday. You’re sitting in your ute in a driveway in Coorparoo, coffee in hand, waiting for your lead hand to show up. 6:45 rolls around. Then 7:00. You get a text: 'Sorry mate, not coming in today. Found something else. Starts today.'
Your heart sinks. Not just because you’re down a set of hands on a big renovation, but because you know exactly what comes next. You have to jump on Seek, pay $300 for an ad, sift through fifty resumes from people who haven't picked up a hammer in a decade, and pray that someone decent walks through the door.
Most Brisbane business owners I talk to think this is just 'part of the game'. They think the only way to get—and keep—good people is to pay $5 more an hour than the bloke down the road.
I’m here to tell you that’s rubbish.
In marketing, we talk a lot about getting customers. But there is a second type of marketing that is just as important for your bank account: marketing your business to employees. If people think your business is a disorganised mess where the boss screams and the gear is broken, you’ll only ever attract people who can’t get a job anywhere else.
If you want the best staff, you need to change how you sell your business to them. Here is the honest truth about how to build a team that actually helps you grow, rather than giving you a heart attack every Tuesday morning.
The Two Ways to Build a Team (And Which One Costs More)
I’ve seen dozens of local businesses try to scale up. Usually, they fall into one of two camps.
Approach 1: The "Body Shop" Method
This is where you treat staff like a commodity. You need a driver? You hire a driver. You need a receptionist? You hire a receptionist. You pay the award rate, you give them a hi-vis vest, and you expect them to work hard because you're paying them.The Result: High turnover. You spend half your life interviewing. Your customers get frustrated because they never see the same face twice.
Approach 2: The "Local Legend" Method
This is where you build a reputation as the best place to work in your industry in Brisbane. People reach out to you asking if you have any spots. Your staff tell their mates to come work for you.The Result: You can actually afford to be picky. You don't have to pay the absolute top dollar because people value the environment, the stability, and the way you treat them more than an extra fifty bucks in the Thursday pay packet.
Why Most Owners Get This Wrong
Most owners think their "brand" is just their logo on the side of the truck. It isn't. Why people buy from you has very little to do with your logo and everything to do with the feeling they get when they interact with your business. It’s the same for your staff.
If your website looks like it was built in 2004 and your Facebook page is dead, a high-quality worker is going to think you’re struggling. They want security. They want to know that if they leave their current job to join you, you’ll still be in business in six months.
I remember talking to a landscaper in Gumdale who couldn't keep a bobcat operator to save his life. He was paying great money. But his yard was a mess, his trucks were filthy, and he never gave anyone a 'pat on the back'. To a good worker, that looks like a sinking ship. We changed his approach to show off the high-end projects he was doing and started celebrating the wins publicly. Suddenly, he had guys from the big firms calling him.
The "Big Business" Trap vs. The Small Business Advantage
You cannot out-spend the big tier-one companies. If a massive construction firm or a national retail chain wants to outbid you on wages, they will win every time.
But you have a secret weapon: Flexibility and Connection.
I know a small accounting firm in Milton that was losing staff to the big 'Big Four' firms in the CBD. They couldn't match the fancy offices or the $120k starting salaries. So, they leaned into what the big guys hate: school pick-ups, four-day work weeks, and a boss who actually knows your kids' names.
They didn't just 'offer' these things; they marketed them. They put photos of the team at the local pub on their social media. They wrote job ads that sounded like a human being wrote them, not a robot.
When you understand that the way you talk wins jobs, you realise it also wins employees. If your job ad sounds like a legal document, you’ll get people who act like lawyers. If it sounds like a team of hard-working locals who have a laugh while getting the job done, you’ll get people who fit that mould.
What Does It Actually Cost to Get Good People?
Let’s talk numbers. Hiring the wrong person is the most expensive mistake you can make. By the time you account for the Seek ads, the time you spent interviewing, the training, the mistakes they made on the job, and the customers they annoyed, a 'bad hire' can easily cost a small business $15,000 to $20,000.
So, when people ask me what they should spend on their marketing, I tell them to include their recruitment strategy in that budget.
Here is what you should be spending your time and money on:
1. Professional Photos of the Team (Cost: $500 - $1,500): Stop using stock photos of people in hard hats who look like they’ve never seen a day’s sun. Get a local photographer to come out for two hours and take shots of your actual team working. Potential hires want to see who they’ll be standing next to for 40 hours a week. 2. A "Join the Team" Page on Your Site (Cost: $0 - $500): Don't just list jobs. Explain why your shop is better. Do you have a BBQ every Friday? Do you provide new tools? Say it. 3. Social Media Presence (Cost: Time): Show the work you’re proud of. Good tradies and professionals want to work on projects they can show off. If you’re doing 'hack jobs' just to get paid, you’ll only attract 'hacks'.
The 3-Step Plan to Fix Your Hiring This Month
If you’re sick of the turnover, here is what I’d tell my mate to do if we were having a beer at the Brewhouse:
Step 1: Look in the Mirror
Ask your current best employee: "Why do you stay here?" Their answer will surprise you. It’s rarely just the money. It’s usually because you gave them a day off when their mum was sick, or because you actually listen to their ideas on-site. Use those reasons in your next job ad.Step 2: Clean Up Your Digital Act
Before someone applies for a job, they Google you. If they see 3-star reviews from angry customers or a website that doesn't work on their phone, they aren't going to apply. They want to work for a winner. Make sure your online presence reflects the quality of work you actually do.Step 3: Be Direct About Values
Stop using words like "passionate" and "dynamic". Those are marketing words that mean nothing to a bloke in a Hi-Vis. Instead, say: "We show up on time, we don't leave a mess on the customer's floor, and we don't tolerate dickheads."Being that blunt will scare off the people you don't want anyway, and it will make the good ones think, "Finally, a boss who gets it."
Realistic Timelines
You won't fix your staffing issues overnight. It takes about 3 to 6 months of consistently showing that you are a great employer before the word starts to spread. But once that momentum starts, it’s like a snowball.
I worked with an electrical contractor in Morningside who spent six months posting photos of his team’s neatest switchboard installs and their monthly team breakfasts. He hasn't had to pay for a Seek ad in two years. He has a folder on his desk of three 'A-grade' sparkies who have told him, "Let me know when you have a van free, I want in."
That is the power of building a business people actually want to be part of.
Stop Wasting Money on Bad Hires
At the end of the day, your business is only as good as the people representing you in front of your customers. If you keep hiring the 'best of a bad bunch', your reputation will suffer, your stress will go up, and your profits will go down.
Investing in your "employer brand" isn't some fluffy HR exercise. It’s a direct way to protect your time and your bank account. Stop being a 'Body Shop' and start being a 'Local Legend'. The right people are out there—they just need a reason to pick your business over the one next door.
Need help showing Brisbane that your business is the best place to work?
At Local Marketing Group, we help small businesses get their message right so they attract both better customers and better staff. Let’s have a chat about how we can make your business the one everyone wants to work for.