Three ways roofers get leads
Shared-lead marketplaces (the big directory and home-services platforms) sell one homeowner or building owner to several contractors at once, usually for $50 to $400 per lead depending on the job type. Pay-per-lead and pay-per-call services promise exclusivity at a higher price, but the ads, the landing page, and the data still belong to the vendor. Owning your own system means ads on your account, a funnel you control, and a CRM you can log into.
Side by side
| Shared-lead marketplace | Pay-per-lead service | Your own system | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who else gets the lead? | 3 to 5 other roofers | Usually just you, for a premium | Nobody. It is yours. |
| Who owns the ad account and data? | The lead company | The lead company | You |
| Is the lead qualified before you call? | Rarely | Sometimes | Always: property, address, need, timeline |
| Can you trace a closed job to an ad? | No | No | Yes, in your CRM |
| What happens when you stop paying? | Leads stop, data gone | Leads stop, data gone | Account, audiences, and ads stay yours |
| Speed to lead | Minutes to hours | Minutes | Seconds (CRM text) |
The math that matters: cost per closed job
Cost per lead is the number lead companies want you to look at, because it is the only one they control. The number that runs a roofing business is cost per closed job. A $150 shared lead that closes one time in twenty is a $3,000 job acquisition cost, before you count the hours your estimator spent racing four other roofers to the phone.
On the commercial account we run in Alabama, lifetime ad spend was $6,341.29 and the contractor reports more than $500,000 in roofing jobs from those leads. That is the difference between renting attention and owning a system. See the case study.
“I've been burned by lead companies”
Almost every roofer we talk to has. The pattern is the same: strong first month, quality drops as the platform sells the same leads wider, price goes up, and you cannot tell which leads turned into jobs because the tracking lives on their side. None of that is a reason to give up on leads. It is a reason to own the machine.
What owning it looks like
- Ads on your own Meta account, written for roofing, with the winning creative and audiences staying yours forever.
- A single-screen funnel that asks property type, address, need, and timeline before the phone rings.
- A CRM that texts you in seconds with the lead and the exact ad that produced it.
- One roofer per state, so you are never bidding against a competitor on your own system.
And a guarantee that no lead company will match: $100,000 in new roofing jobs in your first 60 days, or you don't pay the retainer.
Frequently asked questions
Are roofing lead generation companies worth it?
They can fill a slow week, but they rarely build a business. Shared leads go to several contractors at once, the price per lead rises as the marketplace grows, and the data never belongs to you. Roofers who want predictable commercial work almost always end up owning their own system.
What is the difference between shared and exclusive roofing leads?
A shared lead is sold to multiple roofers, typically three to five, who all call the same building owner. An exclusive lead goes to one contractor. Exclusive leads from your own ad account are the only kind where you also own the data behind them.
How do I stop getting residential leads when I want commercial?
Qualify before the phone rings. Your ads should name the property type, and your landing page should ask for it. Leads that answer 'commercial' get flagged and prioritized; leads that answer 'residential' still come through if you want them, but you know what you are dialing.
Ready to stop renting leads?
See if my state is open