Finding a trustworthy plumber online can be difficult. With so many business listing websites showcasing ‘plumbers near me’, it can be tough to distinguish between the real licensed professional plumbers, and the fake ‘lead capture websites’ that are only interested in collecting your email and phone number.
To make finding a local professional plumber easier on you, here are 3 ways to check if that plumbing business is for real.
#1 Does that plumber have an up to date website?
Just because a business has a website, doesn’t make them a legitimate business. What is more likely is if that plumbing business has an up to date website with their business name, street address, and local phone number.
Many times a lead capture website will not have a local street address because they don’t have a real physical location anywhere nearby. What you will likely see is a list of cities and towns where they claim to have an office, with landing pages designed to rank in search for the keyword ‘plumber’ or ‘plumber + city’.
Here are 3 things to look for on a local plumber’s website:
- Check their street address, and verify it using Google Street View
- Street view will show you if they really have a physical location
- Check for a local phone number, not an 800 number
- A number with a local area code is more likely real than a generic 800 number
- Find real customer reviews, either good or bad
- Good or bad, customer reviews can mean the business is real
#2 Does that plumber have a Google My Business listing?
Many business listing websites like Yelp and Google My Business require some level of verification before the listing is published. Now there is a lot of ‘crap on the map‘ so use this in conjunction with the other methods listed here.
The reason you want to see if they have a GMB listing is to find reviews, and check to see if they have updated their information. What you find on their GMB listing should correspond to what you find on their website.
Here are some things to look out for:
- Reviews: Check for spelling errors and anything that looks cookie cutter
- Website: Is the website link different than the business website?
- Phone number: See if it matches their website phone number
#3 Does that plumber have other real business listings?
Here at Pioneer Valley Environmental, we have worked hard to create listings on legitimate business websites in order to build trust with our audience. You can find on listings like:
And many more! That way you can verify our business, location, phone number, customer reviews, and other information against other trustworthy listings. Any fly-by-night plumber or lead generator won’t go to this much effort to win local customer trust.
Here are three more listing website to verify that plumber you found online with:
- Better Business Bureau
- BBB does a good job of reviewing their listings and verifying them
- Yelp
- Even though they are not as trusted as they once were, they still have a strong verification process
- Apple Maps
- You cannot get on Apple Maps without a real physical location
Closing
If you’re located in Western Massachusetts, from New Salem, to West Brookfield, we’d love to help with any of your plumbing needs. We’re available 24/7 for emergencies.