You win the customer, then lose them
You paid for the advert, answered the call, or got the referral. The job goes well. Then nothing happens. No review, no follow-up, no next booking. You end up paying again to find them.
The Egg Timer Method
Get more repeat work from the customers you already have.
I install the follow-up, reviews, and reminder system that turns one job into the next two — without you doing the chasing, hiring a marketer, or learning new software.
Built on Thames Boilers — 100+ Google reviews, 4,000 monthly visitors. Same method scaled London plumbing operators past £25M.
No contractFree scorecard — no card neededAudit refunded if it does not pay for itselfBuilt on a working trade business
The Egg Timer Method
Make more money from your existing customers without spending more on advertising.
The leak
Most trade businesses do the job well, then lose the next opportunity.
The problem is rarely the workmanship. The leak is everything around it: leads are expensive, recommendations are verbal, notes live in the owner's head, and follow-up happens too late or not at all.
More leads do not fix what happens after the first job.
Good advice gets said but never sent
Your engineer spots a real problem and tells the customer on site. But it is not written down. A week later, the customer has forgotten and the work goes to someone else.
Everything depends on you remembering it
Quotes, reminders, reviews, callbacks, customer notes. It all sits in your head. Your team cannot follow a process that only exists in the boss's memory.
The best time to follow up gets missed
Right after the job, the customer knows you and trusts you. That is when you should ask for the review, follow up the advice, or book the next service. Wait too long and it gets awkward.
The method
Before the job. During the job. After the job.
Before the job, the right customers find and trust you. During the job, what was found and recommended gets written down. After the job, the review, the reminder, the referral, or the follow-up goes out at the right time. That is the whole shape.
Get found and trusted
Before the job
Help the right customer find you, trust you, and feel safe enough to call.
- SEO, helpful pages, directories, and Google Business Profile
- Google and Bing Search Ads
- Social proof, local posts, and local groups
Capture what matters
During the job
Use simple notes, photos, forms, and checks so the job does not live in someone's head.
- Online booking and call handling
- Job forms, photos, and notes
- Written recommendations and customer sign-off
Follow up while it is still warm
After the job
Ask for reviews, follow up advice, send reminders, and bring good customers back.
- Review requests
- Follow-up on written recommendations
- Service reminders and refer-a-friend campaigns
Websites are not enough
A website brings people in. It does not keep them.
A good website gets the phone ringing. But it cannot make your engineer write down the advice, make your office follow it up, get the review asked for, or send the next service reminder. You need the rest of the system too.
I build the whole thing, not just the website.
The website brings the enquiry in. The job process records what was found. The recommendation gets written down clearly. Then the follow-up goes out: review request, reminder, referral, email, postcard, or next quote. All connected, so you are not chasing it yourself.
See the service map
What you get
Get the right customer in, capture the job properly, follow up while they are still warm.
Get the right customer in. Capture the job properly. Follow up at the right time. Nothing vague. Nothing complicated.
Get found and trusted
Before the Job
Help the right customers find you, trust you, and feel safe enough to pick up the phone.
- Website design and build
- Local SEO and service/location pages
- Google Business Profile setup, cleanup, and posting
- Google Ads, Bing Ads, Facebook Ads, and YouTube Ads
- Blog content, SEO/AEO structure, and directory listings
Capture what matters
During the Job
Make sure the photos, notes, findings, and recommendations from each job are written down properly, not left in someone's head.
- ServiceM8 setup and optimisation
- Call handling and booking workflows
- SMS/email confirmations and reminders
- Job forms, photos, time tracking, and documentation
- Quality control processes and checklists
Turn advice into action
Recommendation Follow-Up
When your engineer spots a real problem, write it down clearly and follow it up. The customer gets proper advice and you get the work.
- On-job recommendation process
- Paper and digital sign-off templates
- Follow-up sequences
- Review automation
- Missed opportunity tracking
Follow up while it is still warm
After the Job
Reviews, reminders, referrals, and follow-up go out after the van leaves. You should not have to remember every customer yourself.
- Email marketing setup
- Service reminder systems
- Postcard and direct mail automation
- Refer-a-friend campaigns and loyalty offers
- Monthly reporting
Proof
I have been in the trade since 1999. I test everything in my own business first.
I still run Thames Boilers. Every system, every process, every follow-up gets tested there before I bring it to clients. If it does not work for my own customers, I do not sell it.
Built on a working trade business — 100+ reviews, 4k visits a month.
Thames Boilers is where I test everything before bringing it to clients. The review system, reminders, follow-up, and the website itself — it all runs there every day on real customers.
Same method scaled London plumbing operators past £25M.
I did not build those businesses. But the playbook — capture the job properly, write down recommendations, follow up while it is still warm — is the same one I am installing for owner-operators.
Built by someone who still does the work.
In the trade since 1999. I know the callbacks, the busy diaries, the van time, and the admin that follows every job. The method comes from that, not a textbook.
What owners say
Owners I have built for keep recommending me to others.
I will let them tell you in their own words.
The site is detailed, comprehensive and user friendly. Honestly, I can't fault it — it is a first class site and I am extremely happy with the end result. I will have no issue recommending your website building services to other plumbers.
Andy Smitham
Owner and Director, Invicta Boilers
George made the whole website build simple, clear, and stress-free. He guided me through each stage, kept to timings, and adapted quickly whenever changes were needed. I've recommended him before and will happily keep recommending him.
Martin Owen
PropTrest, South Gloucestershire
Real work
Before and after — sites I have rebuilt for trade businesses.
Click any of these. Check the Google reviews. See who is calling them now.
Resources
Get the whole method free. Pay if you want me to install it for you.
Guides, templates, and tools for owners who want to understand the system before committing to anything.
Method
The Egg Timer Method guide
The full framework for getting found before the job, capturing what matters during the job, and following up after the job.
Diagnostic
Revenue Leak Scorecard
Find which part of your trade business is leaking revenue before, during, or after the job.
Implementation
Services
See how the scorecard turns into practical work across your website, job process, reviews, reminders, and follow-up.
Proof
Behind the scenes at Thames Boilers
What George tests in his own heating business before turning it into client implementation.
Offers
Three ways to start — free, audit-guided, or built-for-you.
Start with the free resources, book the £199 + VAT audit call when you want a proper diagnosis, or have the work built for you.
Free
YouTube channel and free scorecard
Free
Trade business owners who want to learn the system themselves before spending anything.
Learn the Egg Timer Method, find where you are leaking money, and get tools you can use today without paying anyone.
- YouTube training on websites, follow-up, reviews, and local marketing
- Free downloads, checklists, and templates you can use straight away
- A simple scorecard that shows you where your business is leaking money
- Plain advice you can act on without a sales call
Audit call
£199 + VAT to start, then we agree what George does and what you do
Done With You
Owners who can roll their sleeves up but want George to find the problems, tell them what to fix, and do the technical bits they do not have time for.
The audit call tells you exactly what is broken and what to fix first. After that we agree what George handles and what you take on yourself.
- Paid audit call covering your website, follow-up, reviews, tracking, and how your jobs get booked and followed up
- A written list of what to fix first, and why
- Follow-up calls where George tells you what to do, not what to consider
- George builds the parts you agree on — pages, automations, templates, or ads — instead of just telling you how
- Accountability so good ideas do not sit in a notes app for six months
Audit refunded if it does not pay for itself.
Custom
Built and run for you
Done For You
Busy owners who want the system built properly without managing every detail themselves.
George builds the system and runs it. You approve the work and get on with running your business.
- Website, landing pages, service pages, and local SEO work
- Google Business Profile, tracking, reviews, reminders, and follow-up systems
- ServiceM8 setup, job forms, and a proper process for writing up and following through on what your engineers find on site
- Ads, content, and reporting — managed and improved as results come in
- Direct work by George, not a pile of instructions for you to interpret
Common questions
What owners usually ask before starting.
Is the Egg Timer Method only for plumbers and heating engineers?
No. It works best for technical trades and field-service businesses where a skilled person visits a property, diagnoses work, and can make honest recommendations on site.
Is this just a website package?
No. A website is part of the top of the egg timer. The method also covers what happens on the job and what gets followed up afterwards.
Do I have to use ServiceM8?
No. ServiceM8 is often a good fit, but the method is about the workflow. The exact tools depend on what is already in the business.
Can I implement it myself?
Yes. The method is explained publicly so a capable owner can build it. Lane Consultancy is for owners who want the system installed for them.
Next step
Find where your trade business is losing work.
Take the scorecard first. Book the audit call if you want me to go through it with you.
No contractFree scorecard — no card neededAudit refunded if it does not pay for itselfBuilt on a working trade business