How to Get More Gas & Heating Customers in 2026

If you're a Gas Safe registered engineer wondering how to keep a steady flow of boiler installations, repairs, and servicing work, you're not alone. The heating industry is competitive, but the demand is enormous — especially when winter hits and boilers start breaking down.

Here's what actually works for gas and heating engineers who want consistent work in 2026.

1. Get Your Google Business Profile Right

When someone's boiler packs in on a freezing January evening, they grab their phone and search "boiler repair near me" or "emergency gas engineer." Google shows three local businesses on the map. If you're one of them, you get the call.

To maximise your Google Business Profile:

• Complete every section — services, service area, hours (especially if you offer emergency call-outs), and a clear business description
• Choose the right categories — "Gas engineer" or "Heating contractor" as primary, with "Boiler repair service," "Plumber," or "HVAC contractor" as secondary
• Highlight your Gas Safe registration — mention your registration number in your description. This is a trust signal that sets you apart
• Post regularly — share completed installations, seasonal tips ("Get your boiler serviced before winter"), or special offers
• Add photos — installed boilers, smart thermostats, completed work. Yes, even boiler photos get engagement when they show a clean, professional installation

Emergency and urgent searches are massive in the gas and heating trade. Being in that top-three map pack during winter can keep you busy for months.

2. Reviews Are Everything

For gas and heating work, trust is paramount. Customers are letting you into their home to work on equipment that, if handled incorrectly, can be dangerous. Reviews are how they know you're competent and trustworthy.

How to build your reviews:

• Ask after every job — boiler service, installation, repair. Every single one
• Send a follow-up text with a direct link to your Google review page. Do it the same day while the job is fresh in their mind
• Mention your Gas Safe credentials in your response to reviews — "Thanks for the kind words. As a Gas Safe registered engineer, safety is always our priority"
• Respond to every review — positive or negative. Professional responses to negative reviews often impress potential customers more than the positive ones

Aim for 40+ reviews. In the gas and heating industry, a strong review count combined with Gas Safe credentials creates unbeatable trust.

3. Build a Website That Shows Your Credentials

Gas Safe registration isn't just a nice-to-have — it's a legal requirement, and homeowners know it. Your website is the best place to display it prominently.

Your website needs:

• Your Gas Safe registration number displayed clearly — ideally with the Gas Safe logo on every page. This is the single most important trust signal for your trade
• A full list of services — boiler installation, boiler repair, annual servicing, landlord gas safety certificates, central heating installation, power flushing, smart thermostat fitting, underfloor heating
• Emergency availability — if you offer emergency call-outs, make it unmissable. "Emergency boiler repair — call now" with a click-to-call button
• Your service area — "Gas Safe registered engineer covering Leeds, Bradford, and West Yorkshire"
• Contact details on every page — phone number and enquiry form

A hand-coded gas engineer website built with SEO in mind will rank faster and perform better than any template builder. For a trade where trust and credentials are everything, a professional website makes a powerful first impression.

4. Optimise Your Checkatrade Profile

If you're on Checkatrade, make it count:

• Link to your website — profiles with website links perform better
• Display your Gas Safe registration — make sure it's prominent
• Upload photos of installations — clean pipe runs, new boiler installs, system upgrades
• List services specifically — "Boiler installation," "Emergency boiler repair," "Landlord gas safety certificates," "Central heating installation" rather than just "Gas engineer"
• Respond to every review — especially quickly, as it signals reliability

Checkatrade is a useful supplement, but it works best when customers can click through to your website to see your full credentials and service range.

5. Dominate Local SEO

Local SEO is critical for gas engineers because your customers are always local and often searching in a moment of urgency. Here's how to own your local search results:

• Create service-specific pages — "Boiler installation in Leeds," "Emergency boiler repair in Bradford," "Landlord gas safety certificates in Harrogate." Each page targets a specific service and location
• Target the right keywords — "boiler repair near me," "gas engineer near me," "boiler installation [town]," "Gas Safe engineer [area]," "emergency boiler repair," "boiler service near me"
• Get listed in directories — Yell, Thomson Local, FreeIndex, Bark. Keep your business name, address, and phone number identical everywhere
• Write blog content — "How often should you service your boiler?", "Signs your boiler needs replacing," "What does a landlord gas safety check involve?" Each post targets searches your potential customers are making

The more specific your content, the more search terms you rank for.

6. Use Social Media Strategically

Gas and heating isn't the most glamorous trade on social media, but it can still work well with the right approach:

• Seasonal tips — "5 ways to prepare your heating for winter" or "Why you shouldn't ignore a yellow flame on your boiler." Educational content positions you as the expert
• Before-and-after installations — an old, corroded boiler replaced with a clean new system is a satisfying transformation
• Quick video tips — "What to do if your boiler loses pressure" filmed on your phone takes two minutes and gets engagement
• Share your Gas Safe credentials — post about it regularly. It reinforces trust and reminds people that not all heating engineers are registered

Facebook is particularly effective for gas engineers — join local community groups and be helpful when people ask heating questions. When someone posts "Can anyone recommend a gas engineer?", you want to be the first name mentioned.

7. Google Ads for Emergency and High-Intent Searches

Google Ads are incredibly effective for gas and heating engineers because many searches are urgent. When someone's boiler breaks in December, they're not browsing — they're booking.

Why it works so well for gas engineers:

• Emergency searches are high-intent — "emergency boiler repair" and "no hot water gas engineer" mean someone needs help right now. They'll call the first result
• Boiler installation searches are high-value — a single new boiler installation job can be worth thousands. Even expensive clicks are worth it
• You can target specific areas — only pay for clicks from within your service radius
• Seasonal scaling — increase your budget in autumn and winter when demand spikes, and reduce it in summer

The key is having a proper gas engineer website to send the traffic to. A professional site with Gas Safe credentials displayed prominently and a clear call-to-action converts ad traffic far better than a Checkatrade profile.

8. Annual Service Reminders as a Marketing Tool

This is a strategy most gas engineers overlook, and it's gold. Every boiler you service should generate a reminder twelve months later.

Here's how to systematise it:

• Record every service job — customer name, address, boiler model, date of service
• Set up reminders — a simple spreadsheet or CRM that flags when a customer's annual service is due
• Send a text or email — "Hi [name], your boiler service is due this month. Shall I book you in?" Keep it personal and simple
• Offer a discount for booking early — "Book your service in September and get £10 off" fills your diary before the winter rush

Annual servicing is repeat business you've already won. A simple reminder system turns every service job into a customer for life. It also creates a predictable revenue stream that smooths out the seasonal peaks and troughs.

9. Referrals and Offline Strategies

Don't neglect the traditional approaches:

• Leave business cards at every job — on top of the boiler, on the kitchen side
• Van signage — include your Gas Safe registration number prominently alongside your name, phone number, and website
• Landlord relationships — if you do landlord gas safety certificates, build relationships with letting agents and property managers. One good relationship can give you dozens of annual certificates
• Builder partnerships — plumbers who don't do gas work, bathroom fitters, kitchen installers — they all encounter boiler jobs they can't do. Be their go-to referral
• Referral incentives — £20 off their next service for every customer they send your way

The Bottom Line

Gas and heating is a trade built on trust and urgency. Customers need to know you're Gas Safe registered, reliable, and available when they need you. A strong online presence — your Google Business Profile, reviews, a professional website displaying your credentials, and smart local SEO — makes sure you're the one they find and trust.

The gas engineers who stay busy year-round are the ones who invest in being visible. It doesn't take a fortune, but it does take action.

Axel

Full-stack developer specializing in Shopify and Django. Building automated e-commerce solutions.