Why Your Growing Business Is Suddenly Losing Leads
I see it all the time with successful Brisbane businesses. You start as a sparky in Coorparoo. You're good at what you do, so you grow. You hire a plumber. Then you add air conditioning. Suddenly, your business card is a mess, your website is confusing, and your old customers don't even realise you do more than just power points.
This is where most owners make a massive mistake. They either try to cram everything under one name that doesn't fit anymore, or they start five different businesses with five different names and five different sets of bills.
Both of these options waste money.
If you want to grow from a one-man band to a multi-service powerhouse, you need a plan for how your services sit together. In the marketing world, they call this 'brand architecture'. To you and me, it’s just making sure your customers know exactly what you do so they give you more money.
The Cost of Getting This Wrong
If you don't organise your services correctly, you are leaving money on the table.
1. The Trust Gap: If I hire you to fix a leaking tap and you suddenly mention you do roof tiling, I might not trust you. Why? Because you haven't positioned your business as an expert in both. 2. Marketing Waste: You end up paying for ads for 'Plumbing' and separate ads for 'Roofing', but the two never talk to each other. You're paying twice for the same customer. 3. Staff Confusion: When your team doesn't know how to talk about the 'other' side of the business, they won't upsell. You need to know how sounding like a pro changes the way customers value your time.
Three Ways to Organise Your Multi-Service Business
There are really only three ways to do this. I’ve looked at the data for hundreds of local companies, and one of these will fit your Brisbane business perfectly.
1. The "Master Name" Approach (Branded House)
This is when everything runs under one name. Think 'Jones & Co Trades'. Underneath that, you have Jones & Co Plumbing, Jones & Co Electrical, and Jones & Co Carpentry.The Upside: It’s cheap. You only have one website to manage, one Facebook page, and one reputation to build. The Downside: If one arm of the business messes up, it stains the whole name. Also, it can be harder to sell off just one part of the business later.
2. The "Endorsed" Approach
This is where you have different names, but they all say "brought to you by [Your Main Name]".The Upside: You get to have specialist names (which Google likes), but you still keep the trust of your main brand. The Downside: It’s more expensive to run. You need more logos, more uniforms, and more complex marketing.
3. The "Separate Silos" Approach (House of Brands)
This is having 'Brisbane Best Plumbing' and 'Northside Cooling' as completely separate entities that don't mention each other.The Upside: If one fails, the other is safe. You can sell them separately easily. The Downside: This is the most expensive way to grow. You are essentially starting from scratch with every new service. You'll find yourself constantly trying to stop losing customers because they don't realise you own both companies.
Step-by-Step: How to Structure for Maximum Profit
If you’re sitting in an office in Milton or a warehouse in Eagle Farm wondering what to do next, follow these steps. This is exactly what we do for our clients at Local Marketing Group.
Step 1: Look at Your Data
Where does your money actually come from? If 80% of your profit is from electrical and 20% is from a new solar arm, don't change your whole business name to 'Green Energy Solutions' yet. You'll kill your golden goose.Step 2: Decide on the "Face"
Are you the person everyone knows? Or do you want the business to stand on its own? This is a huge decision. You need to decide if you want to be the face of your business or let the brand do the heavy lifting. If you plan to sell in 5 years, get your name off the door now.Step 3: Audit Your Online Presence
Go to Google and search for your services. If you have three services but your website only talks about one, Google will never show you for the others. You don't need a tech genius for this; you just need to make sure your website works on phones and clearly lists every service on its own page.Step 4: The "Would My Grandma Get It?" Test
Show your proposed structure to someone who doesn't work in your industry. If they are confused about what you actually do, your customers will be too. Confusion is the biggest killer of sales.The Real Cost of Rebranding
Let's talk brass tacks. Rebranding a multi-service business isn't just a $500 logo from a freelancer.
Signage and Uniforms: For a team of 5, expect to spend $3,000 - $7,000. Vehicle Wraps: A single van wrap in Brisbane costs between $2,500 and $4,500. Multiply that by your fleet. Website Updates: To do it properly so you don't lose your Google ranking, expect $4,000 - $10,000.
If you aren't prepared to spend this, stick with your current name and just improve your current marketing. A half-baked rebrand is worse than no rebrand.
How Long Until You See Results?
This isn't an overnight fix. If you restructure your services today: Month 1: Confusion among existing customers (be ready to explain the change). Month 3: Google starts to recognise your new service pages. Month 6: You should see an increase in 'multi-service' bookings (e.g., the same customer booking a service and a repair).
What to Do First
Don't go out and buy five new domain names today.
1. List your services by how much profit they make. 2. Check your current website - does it have a dedicated page for your second and third most profitable services? 3. Talk to your team. Are they telling customers about everything you offer?
Most Brisbane business owners overcomplicate this. They think they need a complex corporate structure. You don't. You need a way for customers to find you, trust you, and pay you.
If you're worried that your current setup is scaring away good jobs, or if you're sick of paying for marketing that doesn't bring in the right leads, we can help. At Local Marketing Group, we specialise in making sure Brisbane businesses are set up to win.
Ready to grow properly? Contact Local Marketing Group today and let’s look at your business structure.