To become a master plumber, you’ll need to go through plumbing certification, an apprenticeship program, work as a journeyman, and then pass state exams to hit that rank.
But the struggle and ascent are worth it. Once you do reach the highest levels of mastery, you’ll be prepared to branch out with your own venture where you’re the boss.
Wondering how to start your own plumbing business?
This guide will set you up for long-term success.
So, you’ve already passed the stage of how to become a plumber, and now, after years of working the job, you should have a good idea of what aspects of plumbing work you enjoy, the clients you prefer to work with, and tasks you excel at. When you’re self-employed, you get to decide what type of business you want to be. And while there are several paths before you, the most common plumbing focuses include:
What is it you hope to achieve with your business?
Do you want to work solo or would you prefer to grow it to the point where you have multiple employees and plumbers operating under your brand?
Your specific desires for the business will impact your future plans and actions. Regardless, you must take the time to think and then clearly outline your goals for both the immediate and the long-term future. These will serve as benchmarks that you can review further down the road in order to identify where you’re succeeding and where you’re coming up short.
Plumber Magazine provides the following advice:
A good goal has a measurable outcome. You’ll never reach your goal if you ask for ‘more’ because there is always ‘more.’ Clarify your goals by deciding the degree of change you’d like to see. For example: Instead of ‘make more money,’ say ‘increase revenue by 20 percent.’
Before you invest in a venture, you first must confirm that there’s demand for your services and a fit in the market. Study your competitors to see what they do right or wrong, and to identify factors that differentiate you from them.
Once this initial legwork is complete, you can start creating a business plan for how to grow a plumbing business. This document is composed of three overarching sections—the business concept, the marketplace section, and the financial section. Done properly, it can act as the roadmap that you follow to make business decisions and convince investors or creditors that the business has potential.
As CIO.com notes, those three major sections can be further divided into six key components:
Chances are, you have already assembled an array of plumbing tools and items over the years. That said, let’s assume you’re starting from scratch.
For starters, you’ll need a vehicle to house all of the equipment, especially if you’re making housecalls around your local neighborhood. Aside from that, the essential equipment includes:
A licensed plumber exchanges their expertise, time, and labor for money. For a business to be successful, it needs enough cash flow to cover its obligations. And if the business is profitable, there will be tax responsibilities.
To operate legally and satisfy both state and federal tax requirements, you need to determine what type of business entity you’ll operate as—most plumbers begin as an LLC or sole proprietorship. From there, you’ll be obligated to register the business and apply for an employee identification number (EIN).
Upon registration, you’ll receive your EIN. You should then download, save, or print this document. In the future, you’ll need it for both the business taxes and employee tax withholdings (if you hire).
Once you register your business, you’re almost ready to start working. Before you do so, you need to protect yourself and your plumbing company from risk. All it takes is a single client tripping and falling on your plumbing equipment to jeopardize everything.
So, what types of business insurance should you acquire?
At the very least, you should consider the following:
In the modern work landscape, creating and establishing a web presence is arguably the most important way you can set up your budding plumbing company for success. It will serve as your virtual office front and the chief tool you can leverage for brand building, customer interface, and marketing.
The good news is that it's never been easier to set up a fully-functional website. There are dozens of easy-builders that can help you register a domain name, design the site's look, set up a shop, and begin marketing.
Once that’s done, be sure to harness the powers of search engine optimization (SEO) to help your website improve in its organic search rankings on Google. That starts with your blog. By regularly producing high-quality content about plumbing, subjects related to the plumbing industry, or specific issues people might have, you increase the likelihood that internet users will find you.
For instance, Trinity Plumbing in Atlanta Georgia has a regular blog post titled “Ask a plumber,” which cleverly answers a user’s likely question, improves SEO, establishes their expertise, and then explains why Trinity is the solution. Posts include:
Plumbing is largely word-of-mouth and local-focused business which is why building a presence on Nextdoor is beneficial.
Claiming your Business Page on Nextdoor is a free and easy way you as a licensed plumber can ensure that your operation gets seen by the people in the neighborhood. With Nextdoor, you can establish a digital presence to put your business on the map, interact with potential nearby customers, and gather recommendations once you begin work.
So, how can you grow your business on Nextdoor?
One unique option would be to offer free plumbing advice. For example, Weilhammer Plumbing Co. in Indianapolis encourages homeowners to call or message them with any question or concern they might have about plumbing. Nextdoor makes doing this easy with their “Get more messages” ad format. Other ways you can establish ties with the community include, joining local conversations, listing specials, or sharing Business Posts.
Knowing how to start a plumbing business is just half the battle. Actually building that into something that lasts is where the true challenge begins.
Nextdoor is here to help. It’s a simple solution for plumbers that want to connect more deeply with their neighbors. On Nextdoor, you have the marketing tools you require to meet your community and turn them into clients.