Septic marketing checklist: 48 checks for septic and drain companies

Group 1: Reminders and repeat pumping

Septic pumping is a repeat job on a long cycle. The company that remembers the customer when the tank is due usually gets the call, and a reminder costs far less than a new lead.

• Every pumping job is saved with address, tank size, date, lid depth and access notes. In your software or a sheet. The next crew, and the reminder, depend on it. See septic business software.
• The next due date is recorded for each customer. The EPA says a typical household system is inspected at least every three years and pumped every three to five years, but the right interval depends on household size, usage and tank size, so set it per customer and say so.
• A reminder goes out before the due date by mail, text, email or call, whichever the customer allows. Texts and emails need prior consent, and the rules differ between the US and Canada. Check the current rules for your state or province.
• The reminder contains a way to book in one step. A phone number that reaches a person, a booking link, or a reply word. Test it yourself.
• Customers who do not answer get a second reminder, then a final note. Two or three touches spaced out. Stop after that, and respect any opt-out.
• You keep a list of customers overdue by more than a year and contact them with an honest message. No scare tactics. Say when you last pumped, what the usual guidance is, and offer an appointment.
• You offer a recurring pump-out or inspection plan, and the price and what is included are written. Only offer it if you can schedule it reliably. See the septic and drain follow-up templates for wording.
• Your invoice or door hanger tells the owner the next suggested date and how to reach you. It is the cheapest reminder you will ever send, and it sits on the fridge.

Group 2: Service-area and county pages

Septic searches are local to a county as much as to a town, because rules, permits and inspections are set locally. Pages should reflect that, with no invented detail.

• A page exists for each county or region where you do real work. Each with something specific: the local health department, how long a typical visit takes, the kinds of systems you see. Skip places where you have nothing real to say.
• No two location pages differ only by the place name. Copy-and-swap pages add nothing for visitors and can drag the site down. Merge them or rewrite them.
• Each county page names the authority that governs septic systems there. Often a county health or environmental health office, or a state agency. Link to its official page and say to check its current rules, rather than quoting rules from memory.
• Each page lists the services you offer there and the ones you do not. Pumping, inspections, repairs, installations, drain and sewer work. Customers prefer a clear no to an unreturned call.
• The service area on your Google Business Profile matches the pages. Same places, no more. See the local SEO checklist for the profile checks.
• Travel distance is stated honestly, with any extra charge for far-out properties. A rural caller wants to know before booking if a trip fee applies.
• Real estate agents, inspectors and property managers have a short page or section for them. What you provide for a sale or transfer, how soon you can schedule and what a report contains. Ask your health department what is required locally.
• The site is in the maps and local results for the main town, and you have checked by searching from a phone nearby. Search the way a customer would, in a private window, from the area you serve. See septic pumping near me for what customers see.

Group 3: Emergency and backup handling

A backup or overflow is stressful, and the first company that answers calmly usually gets the job. Plan the call before it comes.

• A person answers emergency calls, day and night, or the greeting says plainly when they will be called back. If you do not run a true emergency service, say so. Promising what you cannot deliver costs reviews.
• The call script asks the right questions in order. Address, what is happening (backup, alarm, slow drains, odour, wet ground), whether it is getting worse, and the best phone number. See answering scripts.
• The script includes a short safety line for the caller. Reduce water use, keep children and pets away from sewage, and contact the local health department for guidance if sewage is in the home or outdoors.
• Emergency pricing is explained before dispatch. After-hours rate, trip charge and what is included. Surprise charges are a common source of angry reviews.
• A back-up person covers the on-call phone. If the first does not answer in a few minutes, the call moves on.
• A text goes to the caller as soon as the crew is on the way, with an arrival window. It cuts repeat calls and shows the customer someone is coming.
• Your drain and backup pages say what you do first on arrival. Find the cause, protect the property and explain options. See emergency plumber marketing.
• Every emergency job gets a follow-up call or text the next day. Check things are working and ask for a review if it went well.

Group 4: Camera, jetting and upsells shown honestly

Camera inspections and hydro jetting are real services with real value, and the quickest way to ruin trust is to sell them without proof. This group is about showing the evidence.

• A camera inspection is recommended only when it answers a question the customer has. Repeated backups, buying a house, an unexplained slow drain. Tell the customer what question the camera answers.
• The customer sees the footage or photos, and gets a copy. Show it on the tablet, send a link and label the location and depth of what you found.
• When the camera finds nothing wrong, the report says so. A clean result is useful, and customers remember the company that did not invent a problem.
• Jetting is recommended with a reason, and the cheaper option is mentioned when it would work. Explain when a cable or snake is enough and when jetting is better, using what you saw. See hydro jetting explained.
• Your price pages explain how camera and jetting are priced. Flat fee, by time, by line length, with the main factors named. See how to price drain cleaning and hydro jetting.
• Techs are not paid or scored on the upsell alone. Commission rules that reward every added service push people towards overselling. Reward booked jobs and happy customers as well.
• Written findings go with the estimate, including photos and the repair options. At least two options when there are two real ones, and the cost of doing nothing, stated factually.
• Risers, lid access or filter upgrades are offered with the reason and price, not as a default add-on. Explain the benefit to the owner, such as easier access for the next pumping.

Group 5: Reviews and photos

Septic and drain customers cannot judge the work itself, so they judge the reviews and the photos. Both must be real and recent.

• Reviews are requested after every finished job, from every customer. A text or email with a direct review link. Asking only the customers you expect to be happy is review gating and goes against Google's policy. See review request templates.
• No reviews are bought, rewarded or written for the customer. Incentivised and fake reviews are against Google's rules and can be removed, along with the profile's standing.
• At least a few recent reviews mention the type of job. You can invite customers to say what you did, for example "pumping" or "a clogged main line", without writing it for them.
• Every review gets a reply, including negative ones. Calm, specific and short. Move the detail offline. See Google reviews for plumbers.
• Photos of real trucks, crew and jobs are added to the profile every month. Your own tank, your own lid, your own crew. Do not use photos of a customer's property without permission.
• Customer addresses and faces are not visible in photos you post. Crop out house numbers and people. Privacy matters more for homeowners with a failing system.
• Reviews on a second site are collected where your customers look. Facebook, plus HomeStars in Canada or the sites your local customers use in the US.

Group 6: Rural, seasonal issues and tracking

Rural customers search differently and seasons change the work. Tracking tells you which of your efforts brings pumping and repair calls.

• Your website loads and the phone link works on a slow rural mobile connection. Test on mobile data with weak signal. Heavy pages and big photos lose rural visitors.
• Some rural callers have no clear street address, so the script asks for a landmark or coordinates. A lot number, a concession road, or a pin from a map app. Missing this wastes the first trip.
• Winter and frozen-ground limits are on your site. Say plainly what you do when lids are buried or the ground is frozen, and what to do ahead of winter.
• You have planned for the busy weeks in your area. Spring thaw, wet seasons and holidays with extra guests can bring calls, but use your own job history to find your pattern. Pages should be live before the rush.
• You know which systems you do not service and refer them politely. Alternative or commercial systems may need other licenses or equipment. A referral is better than a poor job.
• Calls are tracked by source, with separate numbers for ads, the profile and the website. See call tracking for contractors.
• Every lead is logged with the job type and whether it was booked. So you can see how many pumping, repair, install and drain enquiries each channel brings.
• You can state cost per booked job for each paid channel. If you run ads, see Google Ads for septic companies.
• Once a month you review calls answered, jobs booked and reminders that led to a booking. Reminders are marketing too. Note which message and which month worked.