Hiring a home service marketing agency?
Don't hire a marketing agency yet. Fix setting first.
I'm Brian Graff. Good marketing agencies generate real leads. But a lead that waits hours for a callback, rings to voicemail after 5 PM or never gets a follow-up is wasted ad spend. My team installs the AI systems and trained setters that answer, qualify and book every lead, so the agency you hire has something to build on.
2,500+ appointments and $25M+ in pipeline for partners so far in 2026.
An agency can make your phone ring. It can't answer it.
I've been on the buying side of marketing agencies. I've paid for the campaigns, watched the leads come in and then watched too many of them go nowhere. Most of the time, the ads weren't the problem. The problem was what happened in the hours after a homeowner raised their hand.
A lead that waits until tomorrow for a callback has probably already called someone else. A call that rings to voicemail at 7 PM on a Tuesday is gone. A quote nobody follows up on dies quietly in the CRM. Pour more leads into that and you get more of the same, at a higher monthly bill.
Good agencies know this. The ones I partner with would rather work with a company that answers fast and sets appointments, because their campaigns look better when leads turn into jobs. So the order matters: build the setting system first, or at the same time, and then scale the marketing.
How it works
The right order: setting first, then marketing.
- 1
Audit your lead handling
30 minutes. I look at how fast your leads get answered, what happens after hours and how many turn into booked jobs, so you know what's leaking before you spend more.
- 2
Install AI + setters
My team plugs AI text-back, prequalification, after-hours answering and trained setters into your phones, CRM and calendar. Every lead gets worked to a yes or a no.
- 3
Add or scale marketing
Now hire the agency, or push your current one harder. Every lead they send gets answered in seconds and set by a human, and my setters add outbound appointments on top.
- 4
Measure cost per booked job
Every week we review leads, conversations, booked jobs and revenue by source. You judge marketing on jobs, not clicks, and your agency gets real feedback on lead quality.
What's included
What to have in place before you hire an agency.
- An AI text-back on every new lead within seconds
- After-hours coverage: AI answering 24/7, setters 8 AM to 8 PM
- AI prequalification: homeowner, problem, timeline and budget
- A person whose whole job is setting appointments
- Follow-up on every lead until it's a yes or a no
- Confirmation calls and reminders that cut no-shows
- Tracking from lead to booked job to revenue, by source
What to ask a marketing agency before you sign
A good agency will welcome these questions. They tell you whether an agency thinks in booked jobs or in clicks, and they tell the agency whether you're ready for the leads it's about to send.
If an agency can't answer them, or you can't answer the ones about your own business, that's worth knowing before you commit to a contract. I walk through the full checklist in before you hire a home service marketing agency.
- How will leads reach us, and how fast do you expect us to respond?
- What happens to a lead that comes in at 9 PM on a Saturday?
- Will you report on booked jobs and revenue, or only clicks, calls and cost per lead?
- Can you use our CRM data to see which campaigns produce booked jobs?
- How do you tell a bad lead from a lead that was handled badly?
- What do you need from us each week to improve lead quality?
Notes by trade
The process is the same in every trade. What changes is the timing, the prequalification questions and what a missed lead costs you. A few things to have ready before an agency turns on campaigns:
- Roofing: storm leads are time-sensitive. If your agency runs storm campaigns, someone has to answer the same hour, including evenings when homeowners are home looking at the damage.
- HVAC: no-heat and no-cool calls go to whoever picks up first. Before you pay for emergency ads, make sure a call at 10 PM gets answered and booked.
- Plumbing and water treatment: emergencies need a live answer, and water test leads need follow-up, because many homeowners aren't in a hurry.
- Solar: leads are expensive and consults are long. Prequalify on ownership, roof and power bill before a rep drives out.
- Pest control: calls are urgent and seasonal. Answer fast, then follow up to turn a one-time treatment into a recurring plan.
- Remodeling: decisions take weeks. Most jobs are won in follow-up, long after the first inquiry, so someone has to own it.
Already have an agency? Keep it.
You don't have to fire anyone. I don't run ads, and I'm not trying to replace your agency. My team works the leads they generate: AI texts back in seconds, answers after hours and asks the prequalification questions, and trained setters call, book and confirm. It's the same appointment setting system I install for every partner, plugged into your existing CRM, and you own the data.
That gives your agency something most never get: real feedback. Every call is recorded, transcribed and scored, so you can see which campaigns produced booked jobs, which produced tire-kickers and which leads never picked up. Better data in means better targeting out.
And because outbound doesn't rise and fall with ad budgets, algorithms or the season, my setters add appointments on top of what your marketing brings in, following Do Not Call and consent rules. It's proven to be the more reliable, consistent source of booked jobs, and it keeps the calendar steady while campaigns ramp up. If your agency isn't delivering today, start with why your marketing agency isn't working.
Built for your trade
Marketing Agency Readiness for home service companies.
Marketing Agency Readiness FAQ
Straight answers.
Should I hire a marketing agency or appointment setters first?
Setting first, or both at the same time. If leads already wait hours for a callback or go to voicemail after 5 PM, more leads will mostly mean more waste. Once every lead is answered in minutes and worked by a setter, your marketing dollars go further, and you'll know which campaigns actually produce booked jobs.
Can you work with my current agency?
Yes, and that's most of what we do. My team works the leads your agency sends, plugs into your existing CRM and shares booked-job data so your agency can see which campaigns turn into revenue. You own the data either way.
Do you run ads?
No. I focus on what happens after the lead comes in, plus outbound appointment setting from my setters. If you need marketing too, I can introduce you to a great home services CMO I trust.
What if my agency's leads are bad?
Sometimes they are. But you can't tell until every lead gets a fast answer and a real conversation. Once my setters are working them, call recordings and dispositions show whether the problem is the leads or the handling, and that's the data to bring to your agency.
How is outbound different from what a marketing agency does?
An agency brings inbound leads through ads, search and your website. My setters call targeted homeowners, past customers and old leads, following Do Not Call and consent rules, and book appointments on top. Inbound rises and falls with ad budgets and the season. Outbound gives you steady volume every week.
Talk to Brian
Book a 30‑minute call. Find the leaks.
We'll look at where your leads are going today and what marketing agency readiness would look like in your business.
- 30 minutes with Brian
- See exactly where jobs are leaking
- A clear plan and a clear price. No pitch deck.