Social media strategy for local service businesses in 2025

Executive overview

Most businesses in this room are doing social media but almost none say it's driving growth. The gap isn't awareness — it's execution quality. Social has shifted from the interest graph (who you follow) to what you're interested in, meaning new accounts can reach large audiences without an existing following.

Post one to two original videos and pictures every day across five to seven platforms, tweak copy per platform, then convert top-performing organic posts into paid local ads. Brand built now is the moat against AI displacing Google search within five years.

If you don't build brand on social in the next five years, you will be commoditised by platforms that don't need you.

The interest graph shift

• Social used to reward follower count — a percentage of followers saw each post.
• TikTok changed this: content now surfaces based on interest, not social connections.
• Facebook, Instagram, YouTube Shorts, and LinkedIn have all followed suit.
• A new account can reach thousands without any existing audience.
• This is the single biggest unlock for local and regional businesses right now.

Daily content execution

• Post one to two original videos and one to two original pictures every day.
• Distribute across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, LinkedIn — and optionally Snapchat Spotlight.
• Tweak copy and framing per platform: LinkedIn skews professional, TikTok skews casual.
• You do not need to appear on camera — voiceover, hands-only, or business footage all work.
• Content about your interests (golf, cooking, sports) can build audience; your bio and post copy do the selling.

What to post

• Teach viewers how to do the small fixes themselves — this builds trust and drives inbound calls.
• "So you don't have to hire me" framing converts viewers into customers.
• Review businesses you've done work for — local, relevant, easy to produce.
• Show jobsite footage with a voiceover explanation.
• Avoid hard sales pitches in organic posts; lead with value and reputation.

Converting organic reach into paid ads

• Early posts will get six to nine views — this is normal; keep going.
• When a video outperforms (e.g. 2,000 views vs. your usual 7), the algorithm has validated the creative.
• Take that video and run it as a paid ad in a 5–15 mile radius on Facebook.
• Switch the copy to be more sales-forward when running as an ad.
• A 10-mile radius on Facebook is small enough that $100–$200 reaches almost everyone in that area multiple times.
• Organic posts are free creative validation; you only spend money on proven content.

YouTube Shorts as a search asset

• YouTube is the second-largest search engine in the world.
• Name videos precisely: "how to replace [X]" or "why your [Y] is leaking."
• Most social content has a lifespan of hours or days; a well-named YouTube Short can generate leads nine months later.
• Use the same terms that convert in Google Ads as video titles.

The Thank You Economy: the non-social alternative

• Open Instagram, search your town name, browse posts geotagged nearby.
• Leave genuine, friendly comments from your business account — no pitch, no call to action.
• People rarely receive comments; one kind remark makes you memorable.
• Follow up existing customers with a personal call, not to sell — just to check in.
• Send a small, personalised gift tied to a known interest (a signed jersey, a dart board, a bottle of wine).
• The unexpected gesture of kindness after a job is done converts more referral business than the quality of the work alone.
• Choose a lane: go full new-school (daily social) or full old-school (thank-you economy). The middle is the worst place to be.

Google is dying; brand is the defence

• The majority of businesses in this room are dependent on Google search for leads.
• ChatGPT and AI assistants are already replacing Google for a large share of searches.
• Within four to six years, intent-based search behaviour will be fundamentally different.
• Google AdWords is a toll booth, not a brand — when the platform shifts, the leads vanish.
• AI assistants will route requests to brands they recognise: "Fix my AC" goes anywhere; "Get Peter Holland to fix my AC" goes to Peter.
• Social is how you become the name people say out loud.

Hiring and learning

• Learn the fundamentals yourself before hiring anyone — you cannot manage or judge what you don't understand.
• Spend six months doing it yourself; this costs only time.
• Then hire — an internal person, an agency, or a junior staffer — and evaluate them against what you now know.
• Recommended resource: Day Trading Attention (GaryVee) for detailed execution.
• Metrics to track: business results (leads, sales) after 12 months, not week-one view counts.