How to Get More Leak Detection Jobs: Slab Leak Marketing for Plumbers

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Summary: To get more leak detection jobs, show up for the searches people make when they suspect a hidden leak, like "high water bill" and "slab leak repair." Build a page that shows how you find leaks before anyone cuts, help with insurance and water-bill paperwork without promising anything, and swap referrals with restoration companies and property managers. Judge it on cost per booked detection and repair, not cost per lead.

Leak detection customers call with a mystery: a water bill that doubled, the sound of running water with every tap off, a damp patch that won't dry. The plumber who explains how they'll find it, before anyone reaches for a saw, gets the job, and a shot at the repair after it.

The searches that start a leak detection job

Water on the floor is an emergency, so run those calls like any emergency plumbing call. The bill-and-noise searches are different: people want to know whether they even have a leak. EPA's WaterSense program gives them a simple test: check the water meter before and after a two-hour period with no water in use, and if it changes at all, there's probably a leak. EPA also lists worn toilet flappers, dripping faucets and other leaking valves as common household leaks, so ask about running toilets before you book a full detection.

Leak detection can pay twice: the detection, then the repair. That's the job-value number in our free guide, How a local service business can spend $1,000 and make $60,000 in a month, which assumes $30 a call and a $3,000 job. Swap in your own detection-plus-repair average and it's the same math; the $60,000 is worked math, not a promise.

A leak detection page that earns the call

• Name the job and the town up top, like "Leak Detection and Slab Leak Repair in [City]," with your number one tap away and a line for active leaks: shut off the main water valve, then call.
• The meter check, in EPA's words, so a worried homeowner can confirm the leak before calling.
• How you find leaks. Name the equipment you actually carry, show your tech using it, and say in one sentence what each tool tells you. The homeowner wants to know you'll narrow it down before anything gets cut.
• What happens after the find: the repair options you offer, such as a spot repair, rerouting the line, or a repipe when the lines keep failing.
• The price in plain words: the detection fee, what it includes, and whether it counts toward the repair.
• Proof: photos of real finds (the marked spot, the opened floor, the failed fitting), reviews that mention leak detection, and your license and insurance.
• The paperwork you provide: a written report with photos, which matters for the next section.

Help with insurance and the water bill, without promising anything

Coverage is the insurer's call, not yours. Texas's insurance regulator, for example, tells homeowners that most policies cover sudden and accidental water damage but usually not damage from gradual leaks, and that hidden water damage usually must be reported within days of finding it. It also tells them to photograph damage before repairs and not to make permanent repairs until the insurer has seen it. So:

• Photograph everything before you open a wall or floor, and again at each step.
• Ask whether they plan to file a claim before any permanent repair.
• Leave a written report: where the leak was, what failed and the date you found it, with photos.
• Itemize the invoice: detection, access, repair, and any restoration work you refer out.
• Let the homeowner deal with the insurer, and never say insurance will pay.

The water bill can be worth money too. Some water utilities adjust a bill once a leak is fixed. Seattle Public Utilities, for example, wants the repair done within 60 days of the first high bill and accepts proof such as photos, receipts or invoices, and for an underground leak it inspects the repair before it's covered up. Learn your local utility's rules, put them on your page, and make your invoice say what you fixed and where.

Partners: restoration companies and property managers

• Water damage restoration companies dry out the house, but someone has to find and fix the source first, sometimes in the middle of the night. Be the plumber they call. Swap referrals both ways, share reports with the customer's OK, and let the customer choose who they hire.
• Property managers get the tenant calls and see the water bills. Offer a standing arrangement: priority detection, a report format the owner can use, and photos. Ask about their other properties after every job.
• Know the lead rules. If a Local Services Ads lead needs a restoration company and you refer them on, Google won't credit that lead. The referral still pays if the partner sends work back.

Local Services Ads, your Business Profile and reviews

• Job types. If your Local Services Ads account lists leak detection or slab leak work, keep on only what you actually do: leave on a specialty you won't take and Google won't credit those leads. In accounts moved into Google Ads the same switches are service type chips (job types explained).
• Advice calls. Google won't credit a lead from a customer asking for advice, and "how do I know if I have a leak?" is advice. The meter check and a clear detection price on your page can cut down on those calls.
• Photos and video. Before-and-after shots are what Google's guidance for these ads asks for, minus anything that identifies the customer. Your Business Profile also takes videos up to 30 seconds: film the find.
• Business Profile services. Add leak detection and slab leak repair as custom services if Google doesn't suggest them.
• Search ads. Give leak detection its own ad group and landing page, apart from burst pipes and emergencies; the setup is in our Google Ads playbook for plumbers.
• Reviews. Every customer gets your review link by text the same day, happy or not; Google bans rewards for reviews and asking only satisfied customers. Name the job: "Thanks for letting us track down that leak today."

Track cost per booked detection and repair

Judge leak marketing on cost per booked job, and follow each lead through: detection booked, leak found, repair booked, job value, and any repipe or restoration referral that follows. Example numbers to swap for yours:

1. Leak detection ads cost $1,500 in a month and bring 25 leads, $60 each.
2. You book 9 detections (36%) and find 8 leaks, and 6 of those customers book the repair with you.
3. That's about $167 in ads per booked detection and $250 per booked repair.

If a slab leak turns into a repipe months later, credit it to the first call's source. Across the accounts we run, leads have averaged $63 over the last twelve months; measure your close rate from your own job records. More in how to track marketing ROI.

What to do this week

1. On your phone, Google "leak detection [your city]" and "slab leak repair [your city]" and list who's ahead of you.
2. Add the EPA meter check and your detection price to your leak page.
3. Write a one-page leak report template: location, what failed, date found, photos.
4. Look up your water utility's leak adjustment rules.
5. Call two restoration companies and one property manager and offer to swap referrals.

FAQ

How do plumbers get more leak detection jobs?

Win the searches people make when they suspect a hidden leak, show how you find leaks before anyone cuts, answer fast, and build referrals with restoration companies and property managers.

Will insurance pay for a slab leak?

That's the insurer's decision. Texas's insurance regulator says most policies cover sudden and accidental water damage but usually not damage from gradual leaks. Photograph everything, give the homeowner a written report and let them file the claim.

How can a homeowner tell if they have a hidden leak?

EPA's WaterSense program suggests reading the water meter before and after a two-hour period with no water in use. If it changes at all, there's probably a leak.

Can a plumber's invoice lower a customer's water bill?

Sometimes. Some water utilities adjust a bill after a leak is repaired and ask for proof such as receipts or invoices, so write down what you fixed and where.

What should a leak detection lead cost?

Across the accounts we run, leads have averaged $63 over the last twelve months, but what matters is ad spend per booked detection and repair.

Opus Group runs Google Ads, Local Services Ads and high-converting landing pages for local service businesses. See how it works.

Opus Group is a plumbing marketing agency working with plumbers across the US, including Chicago, Sacramento, San Diego and Charlotte.

Theo Prada is the founder of Opus Group, which runs Google Local Services Ads and Google Ads for local service businesses.