Starting an excavation business is one thing. Getting your first paying customer is another. If you’re a new operator in FNQ — whether you’re based in Cairns, the Tablelands, or anywhere in between — here’s a practical, budget-friendly strategy to land your first job within 30 days.
You don’t need a massive marketing budget. You need to be visible in the right places when someone in your area needs earthworks done.
This is the single most important thing you can do. When someone searches “excavation near me” or “bobcat hire Mareeba”, the Google Map pack shows up above all other results. If you’re not in it, you don’t exist.
Set up your Google Business Profile with:
Google prioritises profiles with photos and complete information. A profile with 10 photos gets significantly more clicks than one with none.
Create a business page, then join local community groups where people ask for tradie recommendations:
Don’t spam these groups. Watch for people asking “does anyone know someone who can fix my driveway?” or “need stumps removed, any recommendations?” — then reply genuinely.
Post your before/after photos from work on your property. Keep it natural: “Just finished fixing up our driveway here in Koah after the wet season. Starting to take on jobs locally — DM if you need anything done.”
Register on all of these — most are free:
When someone Googles “excavator hire Mareeba” or “stump removal Cairns”, they need someone now. That’s buying intent. Google Ads puts you in front of those people immediately.
Start with a modest daily budget. In regional FNQ, clicks are much cheaper than metro areas. You’re looking at a few dollars per click rather than the ten or more you’d pay in Sydney or Melbourne.
Set up separate ad groups for different search themes:
Broad excavation searches:
Tablelands and Mareeba (less competition, cheaper clicks):
Specific services:
Seasonal and urgent:
Add these immediately to stop your budget being wasted on irrelevant clicks:
Without negative keywords, half your budget will go to people looking for excavator operator jobs or excavator training courses — not people who want to hire you.
In regional FNQ, you should see enquiries within the first week or two of running ads. Expect roughly one in five clicks to turn into a phone call or form submission. One decent job will cover months of ad spend.
Facebook Ads work differently to Google. Nobody scrolls Facebook looking for an excavator. But a well-placed ad builds awareness so when someone DOES need earthworks, they remember your name.
Before/after photos are the most effective creative for earthworks businesses. A carousel showing a washed-out driveway transformed into a clean, graded surface stops the scroll.
Target people within a reasonable radius of your base, aged 25-65, with interests in home improvement, property, rural living, or farming.
Use the “Leads” or “Messages” objective so people can contact you directly through the ad.
A modest daily spend on Facebook is enough for awareness in a regional market. You’re not trying to compete with national brands — you’re making sure the 50,000 people within driving distance of your base see your work.
This feels old school, but in rural and semi-rural FNQ it works. Drive around Kuranda, Koah, Speewah, Mareeba. Look for properties with damaged driveways, overgrown stumps, fallen trees, or messy blocks.
Drop a flyer or knock and introduce yourself: “I’m William from FNQ Earthworks, just started up locally. I noticed your driveway could use some work — happy to give you a free quote if you’re interested.”
People in regional areas trust a face more than a Facebook ad.
Kuranda, Mareeba, Atherton — every hardware store sees property owners daily. Ask if you can leave business cards or a small flyer at the counter.
Properties being listed for sale need cleanup. Rental properties need maintenance. Introduce yourself to a few agents in Cairns and Mareeba — they’ll remember you when a property needs work before a listing.
This is the long game that pays the most. Build relationships with:
Become their go-to subcontractor and they’ll feed you steady work without you spending a cent on advertising.
Your first enquiry will likely come from Google — either your Business Profile showing up in “near me” searches, or a Google Ad click. This typically happens within the first two weeks.
Your first booked job usually follows within three weeks of going live. By day 30, if you’ve done all of the above, you should have completed at least one job and have a few more in the pipeline.
The most important milestone isn’t the first job — it’s the first Google review. One genuine 5-star review with a photo makes everything else work harder. Ask every customer for one.
The total investment for your first month of marketing should be modest — a few hundred dollars on Google Ads, a small amount on Facebook, and the rest is free. One completed driveway repair or stump removal job covers your entire first quarter of ad spend.
The free channels — Google Business Profile, Facebook groups, directories, door knocking, tradie relationships — cost nothing but time and will generate leads for years.
Get your Google Business Profile live with photos on Day 1. Everything else amplifies that foundation. A complete GBP with photos, services listed, and your service area set will show up in local searches immediately — for free.
That’s often where your first customer finds you.
FNQ Earthworks is a locally-owned excavation and earthworks business based in Koah, Far North Queensland. We service the entire region from Mossman to Innisfail, including Cairns, Kuranda, Mareeba, and the Atherton Tablelands. Get a free quote or call us to discuss your project.
We handle driveway repair, post holes, trenching, stump removal, and more across Cairns, the Tablelands, and beyond.
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