Routes

How people find a tradesperson in 2026

Almost all of it happens before a website: the map pack, a trade directory, and a local Facebook group where someone asks for a recommendation.

The route

  1. Map packLocal firms with reviews
  2. CheckatradeCheckatrade, MyBuilder
  3. Facebook groupLocal recommendation threads
  4. GoogleService pages

The five searches that matter most

Where each one is actually answered. Shares are estimated from what we read across the surfaces.

  • roofer near me

    4,400 searches a month · estimated

    The map pack. The website barely gets opened.

  • kitchen extension cost [town]

    590 searches a month · estimated

    An AI answer and a video, then a group thread.

  • emergency electrician [town]

    880 searches a month · estimated

    The map pack, immediately.

  • best builders [town]

    320 searches a month · estimated

    A recommendation thread in a local group.

  • heat pump installer near me

    720 searches a month · estimated

    The map pack and an installer directory.

Who’s trusted there today

  • Checkatrade

    Directory · Google, AI answers

  • MyBuilder

    Directory · Google

  • Local Facebook groups

    Community · Facebook

  • Google reviews

    Reviews · Map pack

What the work usually is

  • The Google Business Profile treated as the main property, not the website.
  • Directory profiles claimed and kept consistent.
  • Service and area pages that answer the cost question.
  • Review flow fixed, because the map pack ranks on it.

See who owns your search

Tell us one search you’d like to win. We’ll open it live: who’s trusted at each stop, what they have that you don’t, and what it would take.

See who owns your search. Free, on the call.

Send us one search you’d like to win. We’ll open it live: who’s the answer today, what it’s built from, and what it would take to be you. You keep the plan either way.

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