A machine sitting in the yard earns nothing. Every plant hire firm has kit that goes quiet at some point in the week, and many rely on regulars and word of mouth to fill it. Online advertising helps you win plant hire enquiries from people searching for exactly what you have, in the area you serve.
This guide shows plant hire firms how to use advertising to bring in more hire enquiries, machine by machine.
How big is the plant hire industry?
According to the Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA), the UK plant hire industry is worth £14bn and supports 191,500 jobs. The CPA has about 1,900 members, who supply over 85% of the plant hired to the construction industry.
It is a large, established market with plenty of competition, and that competition is increasingly online. National hire companies spend heavily on advertising, and they often take the clicks for broad terms like "plant hire". Local firms can compete by being more specific.
Why do national firms win the big search terms?
National hire companies have large budgets, strong brands and wide coverage. For general searches, such as "plant hire" or "digger hire", they tend to show up first.
But a customer who needs a machine this week does not only want a big brand. They want one that is nearby, has the right machine available and can deliver quickly. That is where a local firm can win, by advertising the specific machine, in the specific area, with a clear next step.
How do you get more plant hire enquiries online?
Run separate campaigns by machine and by area, send each one to a page about that machine, show availability and delivery details, and track every call and form. When a machine is out on hire, pause its ads so you do not pay for enquiries you cannot fulfil.
Advertise machine by machine
Customers search by machine: "telehandler hire", "mini digger hire", "dumper hire" and so on, usually followed by a town or region. Building a separate campaign for each machine type means your ad and your landing page match what the customer typed. The ad says "Telehandler Hire in Leeds", the page shows your telehandlers, and the enquiry form is one tap away.
Add your area to the targeting
Plant is usually hired within a certain distance of the yard. Target the towns and postcodes you can reach with reasonable delivery, and mention them in the ad. This avoids paying for clicks from people you cannot serve, and it signals to local customers that you are close.
Build a page for each machine
A good machine page includes:
- The machine type and size
- Typical uses
- Hire rates or a starting price
- Delivery and collection details
- Any operator or licence requirements
- A way to ask about availability
Photos of your own machines help, because they show real equipment, not stock images.
Pause ads when a machine is out
If a machine is booked solid, an ad for it generates enquiries you cannot turn into hires. Switching that ad off while the machine is out, and back on when it returns, protects your budget. It also keeps the customer experience positive, because people are not enquiring about kit you cannot supply.
The reverse works too. When a machine has been quiet for a few days, you can increase the budget for its ad, so the advertising follows the gaps in your yard.
Set up trade accounts
Contractors who hire regularly are worth more than one-off customers. Make it easy to apply for a trade account, with a short form and a clear explanation of how credit and invoicing work. A separate campaign aimed at contractors and builders in your area can build a base of repeat customers.
Track calls as well as forms
Many hire enquiries come by phone, because customers want to confirm availability quickly. Call tracking tells you which ads and searches generated calls, so you can see the full picture, not just the form submissions. It also shows whether calls are answered, which is one of the quickest fixes available: a missed call usually goes straight to the next firm on the list.
What about finding operators?
Many hire firms struggle to find operators for machines that come with a driver. The same recruitment techniques used by hauliers can help: a clear advert, a short application form and a fast reply. If operators are your bottleneck, a small recruitment campaign alongside your hire advertising can free up more of your fleet.
How do you measure results?
Measure cost per enquiry, the share of enquiries that become hires and the revenue per hire. Compare machines against each other. You may find that one machine type brings in cheap enquiries that rarely convert, while another brings in fewer enquiries that are worth far more. Move your budget towards the machines that earn.
Where to start
Pick the three machines that most often sit idle, build a page and a small campaign for each and track the results for a month. You will quickly see which ones respond, and you can expand into the rest of the fleet from there.
44 Tonne runs hire enquiry campaigns for plant hire firms, by machine and by area, with pausing built in. If you would like to see what your current search presence looks like against the nationals, send us a quote request.