Book spring pours now with a deposit, or wait for March ads? When each one wins
Two ways to fill a concrete company's spring calendar: pre-book this fall with a deposit, or run ads when the calls start. Costs, risks and the right mix.
Every concrete contractor knows the pattern. The phone goes quiet when it gets cold, and then one warm week in March it rings all day. By April you are booked six weeks out, turning down driveways, and the homeowner who waited calls someone else.
There are two ways to fill that spring calendar. You can book it now, in the fall, with a deposit. Or you can wait until March and buy the leads with ads. Both work. They work for different companies and different jobs. Here is how to choose.
Option one: pre-book spring this fall
The idea is simple. Between now and the first hard freeze, you go after homeowners who want work done but are running out of season. You quote the job, they sign, they put down a deposit, and you put them on the calendar for April or May.
Who you sell to:
- People who got a quote this year and did not book because you were full or they hesitated.
- Neighbors of jobs you poured this summer and fall.
- Anyone who calls in November asking if it is too late.
What it costs: Mostly your time. A few hours of calls and texts to old quotes, a postcard or door hanger run to the streets you poured on, and maybe a small Facebook ad aimed at a two-mile radius around recent jobs. Call it a few hundred dollars and a weekend.
What you get: A calendar that is partly full before spring starts, deposits in the bank in the slowest months, and the ability to sequence jobs by area so crews are not driving across the county.
The script for old quotes:
"Hi [name], this is [your name] with [company]. You got a quote from us on your driveway back in [month]. We're filling the spring schedule now. If you book this month with a deposit, I can lock in this year's price and give you a first-week-of-April slot. Want me to hold it?"
The price lock is the real reason to say yes. Homeowners know prices can change by spring, and a locked number takes that worry away.
Where it goes wrong: Deposits create obligations. If you take a deposit and then get rained out for three weeks, you owe people a straight answer. Put the weather clause and the rescheduling policy in the contract. Our pricing and quoting guide covers deposit amounts and terms.
Option two: wait and buy March leads
The other approach is to let the season come to you and spend on Google Ads and Local Services Ads when the searches spike.
What it costs: Real money, and at the most expensive time. Every concrete company in your area is turning their ads back on in March. Clicks get more expensive when everyone is bidding. Our Google Ads guide walks through realistic costs per lead and the campaigns that waste money.
What you get: Fresh demand. Some of the best jobs of the year come from people who did not think about their patio until the snow melted. You also get to see current pricing in the market before you commit.
Where it goes wrong: Spring leads arrive all at once. If you cannot answer the phone while you are on a pour, the lead goes to the next company on the map. In our data 38.8% of concrete companies do not even list hours on Google. That tells you how many are not set up to catch the spring rush. Being the one that answers is half the battle. The missed calls guide covers a text-back setup.
When pre-booking wins
- You have repeat demand in tight areas. Subdivisions where you have already done three driveways are full of neighbors who have seen your work.
- Your jobs are larger. Patios, stamped work and full driveway replacements are planned purchases. People are willing to commit early.
- You want cash in winter. Deposits pay for equipment repairs and the slow months.
- You have reviews to show. A homeowner signing in November for an April job needs trust. The median concrete company in our data has 7 Google reviews. If you have well above that, pre-booking gets easier.
When waiting for March wins
- Your work is mostly small and fast. Sidewalk repairs, small slabs and pads are impulse jobs. Nobody books those five months ahead.
- You are new. Without a list of old quotes or past customers, there is no one to pre-book.
- You can handle a surge. If you can add a crew in spring, a flood of leads is good news, not a problem.
The mix most contractors should run
For most concrete companies the answer is both, in sequence.
- Now through the first freeze: Call or text every unbooked quote from this year. Hang door hangers on the streets you poured. Offer a price lock with a deposit for April and May slots.
- December through February: Post finished jobs on your Google profile and ask every fall customer for a review. Fix your website so spring searchers can see your work and call. The website essentials guide has a short list.
- March: Turn on ads for the openings you still have, not for the whole season. If April is already half full from pre-booking, you only need ads to fill May and June.
That way you buy fewer leads at peak prices and spend them on the weeks you actually need.
The short version
Pre-booking is cheap and builds a base. March ads are expensive but bring new demand. Do the pre-booking now, use ads to fill what is left, and make sure someone picks up the phone when spring hits.
If you want help running the fall re-quote texts or setting up spring ads, the free 14-day trial covers any one service, no card. Text or call (385) 832-6924.
Steven has spent the last several years running growth campaigns for local service businesses, concrete contractors among them, and builds the benchmark datasets on this site from public Google listings. About the editor