Nextdoor Marketing for Home Service Companies

88% of Nextdoor users have hired a local business based on a recommendation they saw on the platform.

That stat alone should make every home service contractor pay attention.

Nextdoor is the anti-Facebook. Every user is verified by address. No anonymous trolls. No national news debates. Just neighbors talking to neighbors about local stuff, including who fixed their furnace, unclogged their drain, or replaced their roof.

For home service contractors, it’s the closest thing to digital word-of-mouth that exists.

The platform basics

Nextdoor operates in over 305,000 neighborhoods across 11 countries. In the US, it reaches roughly 1 in 3 households.

Users must verify their address to join. This means every person on Nextdoor actually lives where they say they live. For local businesses, that’s gold. No wasted impressions on people outside your service area.

The platform has two distinct sections for businesses: organic presence through Business Pages and paid advertising through Local Deals and Neighborhood Sponsorships.

Setting up your Business Page

Every home service company should claim a free Business Page. This is your profile that shows when neighbors search for local services or when someone tags your business in a recommendation.

The basics to get right

Business name and category: Straightforward. Make sure your trade (HVAC, Plumbing, Roofing, etc.) is correctly categorized so you show up in relevant searches.

Service area: Define the neighborhoods you actually serve. This determines where your Business Page appears in local search.

Description: Skip the marketing fluff. State what you do, how long you’ve been doing it, and what makes you different. “Family-owned HVAC company serving [city] since 2008. Same-day emergency service. Transparent pricing, no trip fees.”

Photos: Real photos of your team, trucks, and completed work. Not stock images. Authenticity matters on a platform built on neighborhood trust.

Contact info: Phone, website, email. Make it easy to reach you.

Responding to recommendations

When someone posts “Looking for a good plumber” in their neighborhood feed, other neighbors reply with recommendations. If they tag your business, you get notified.

Respond to these mentions. Thank the customer who recommended you. Answer the original poster’s questions if they have any. Be helpful, not salesy.

Every recommendation is a public testimonial seen by the poster’s neighbors. Engaging with these builds visibility and trust.

Nextdoor advertising options

Local Deals

Local Deals appear in the Deals section and can include coupons or special offers. They’re shown to users in your specified service area.

Best for: Time-sensitive promotions, seasonal offers, new customer discounts.

“$50 off any AC repair this week” works. “We’re the best HVAC company in town” doesn’t.

Pricing varies by market and target area size, but expect to pay $1-3 per click or engagement, similar to Facebook.

Neighborhood Sponsorships

This is Nextdoor’s premium ad product. You sponsor specific neighborhoods, and your business appears at the top of the neighborhood feed for every member.

The sponsorship is exclusive. Only two businesses per category can sponsor each neighborhood at a time. If you’re the sponsored HVAC company for a neighborhood, no other HVAC company can buy that spot.

Sponsorships include your logo, business description, and special offer at the top of the neighborhood newsfeed. Members see it every time they open the app.

Pricing is by neighborhood and category, typically $50-300/month per neighborhood depending on size and demand. It adds up if you’re targeting 20+ neighborhoods, but the exclusivity has value.

Best for: Contractors who want guaranteed visibility in specific neighborhoods. Particularly effective if you’re trying to dominate your immediate service area.

Sponsored Posts

Sponsored Posts look like regular neighborhood posts but are labeled as ads. They appear in the newsfeed alongside organic content.

You can include images, text, and calls to action. The format feels more native than display ads, which often means higher engagement.

Best for: Promoting content, seasonal reminders, or softer sells that don’t feel like traditional advertising.

Organic strategies that work

Paid ads are straightforward. The organic opportunity is where most contractors miss out.

Encouraging customer recommendations

The most powerful thing on Nextdoor is a genuine recommendation from a satisfied customer.

After every job, ask your customer if they’re on Nextdoor. If they are, ask if they’d be willing to post about their experience. Make it easy by sending them a follow-up text with a direct link to post.

One happy customer posting “Just had ABC Plumbing out, fast, fair price, fixed the issue in an hour” reaches everyone in their neighborhood. And on Nextdoor, neighbors trust neighbors.

Recommendation posts convert 5-10x better than any paid ad you can run.

Replying to “looking for” posts

Every day, people post asking for contractor recommendations. “Need an electrician who can do a panel upgrade.” “Anyone know a good roofer?”

You can reply to these as a business if you’ve claimed your Business Page and the post is in a neighborhood you serve.

The key is being helpful, not pushy. Answer their question. Offer useful context. Don’t lead with price or promotions.

“Hi [Name], we do panel upgrades regularly and can usually get out within a few days. Happy to give you a quote if you want to reach out. If you have any questions about what the job involves, I’m glad to answer here too.”

This positions you as knowledgeable and accessible. Other neighbors reading the thread see it too.

Neighborhood expertise positioning

Some contractors post educational content directly to neighborhoods they sponsor.

Seasonal tips, maintenance reminders, or answers to common questions. “With temperatures dropping, here are 3 things every homeowner should check before turning on the heat.”

Don’t overdo it. One helpful post per month is fine. More than that and you become noise.

The goal is being a recognized name when someone needs your service. If you’re the HVAC company that posts useful tips and responds helpfully to questions, you’re top of mind when their furnace dies.

Tracking results

Nextdoor’s analytics are less sophisticated than Facebook or Google. You’ll see impressions, clicks, and engagement, but connecting to actual booked jobs requires your own tracking.

Best practices for attribution

Use unique phone numbers or landing pages for Nextdoor campaigns. When a lead comes from that number, you know the source.

Ask every new customer how they found you. “A neighbor recommended you on Nextdoor” is worth tracking.

If you’re running Neighborhood Sponsorships, compare lead volume from those neighborhoods vs. unsupported areas. The lift should be measurable if the spend is worthwhile.

Read more about marketing attribution for home services.

How Nextdoor fits the marketing stack

Nextdoor isn’t a replacement for Google Ads or SEO. People searching on Google have immediate intent. They need a plumber now. Nextdoor users are often browsing casually.

Think of Nextdoor as mid-funnel. It builds awareness and trust so when someone does need your service, they think of you first.

It also amplifies other marketing. You knock doors after completing a job. Those neighbors see your truck and then see you recommended on Nextdoor later. The touches compound.

Read more about neighbor marketing strategies.

The trust advantage

What makes Nextdoor different is verification. Every user is a real person at a real address. When someone recommends you, their neighbors know it’s a genuine endorsement, not a fake review.

This built-in trust is why 88% of users have hired businesses from the platform. They’re not vetting strangers from the internet. They’re taking advice from people who live on their street.

For home services, where letting someone into your home requires trust, that matters. A Yelp review from “John S.” carries less weight than a Nextdoor post from your next-door neighbor.

Common mistakes

Ignoring the platform. Even if you never advertise, claim your Business Page. Your business might already be on Nextdoor from customer recommendations. Control your profile.

Being too promotional. Nextdoor users hate feeling marketed to. Hard sells in replies to recommendation requests get ignored or flagged.

Inconsistent presence. Sponsoring a neighborhood for one month and then stopping isn’t enough to build recognition. Commit to 3-6 months minimum to see results.

Not asking for recommendations. The best marketing on Nextdoor is free, but only if customers actually post. Make it part of your post-job process.

Targeting too wide. Sponsoring 50 neighborhoods sounds impressive. If you can’t provide responsive service to all of them, you’re wasting money and damaging your reputation when you can’t show up fast.

Making it work

Nextdoor works best for contractors who already deliver good service. The platform amplifies what’s already true. If customers love you, they’ll say so publicly and their neighbors will listen.

If you’re struggling with service quality or response time, no amount of Nextdoor advertising will fix that. The negative posts will drown out the positive ones.

But if you’re doing good work and want more visibility in your immediate market, Nextdoor offers something unique: verified local homeowners who trust their neighbors and are actively looking for contractors like you.

Claim your page. Encourage recommendations. Consider sponsored presence in key neighborhoods. And respond quickly when leads come in because Nextdoor users expect local businesses to be accessible.

Read more about how to market to neighbors after completing a job.