Perhaps the most effective method currently available for generating your own free leads is to start and maintain a blog.  Usually when I make this suggestion to contractors they roll their eyes and blow it off as a crackpot idea, but they do so at their own peril.  Anyone can start a free blog at blogger.com, and if updated regularly it can bring you massive numbers of local, no-cost leads.  Try to write at least one post per week, and the topics could be anything from DIY advice to what to look for in a contractor.  Eventually you will gain a sizable following of local homeowners who will think to call you first when they need work done around the home.

Another way to get free leads is to operate your business in such a way that it attracts publicity and attention from local news outlets and sources.  For example, you could have a policy in place where you only hire laborers who have served in the armed forces.  Or perhaps you’re the only company in town that focuses exclusively on home products and solution that are environmentally friendly.  Just try to be a little bit different from your competitors and you will get attention.  You have to do more than simply make a bunch of construction business cards and hope for the best.  You really have to get out there and create your own opportunities.

There are countless other ways to create your own free project leads, and hopefully the few that I’ve presented here can be a springboard for you to come up with your own ideas.  It’s not impossible to get no-cost leads, but you have to be creative and think outside the box in order to make it happen.