UK Lead Generation Podcast

James Dooley:
I’ve heard a lot of mixed messages about Bark.com. I know business owners who use it alongside us at FatRank.com for lead generation. They say it works. They know the leads are shared, but they’re very good at conversion, and they feel they’ve got a better offer than the competition. They don’t mind shared leads. With FatRank.com, you get exclusive leads, so you can charge a little more and avoid the race to the bottom. But some people are fine with Bark’s shared leads.

On the flip side, I’ve heard horror stories. Some bought a lot of inquiries for long-term services like solar panels, roofing, plumbing, and others. They spent £5,000 with Bark, and the leads just didn’t convert. A lot of the prospects weren’t interested or had already spoken to three other companies. In some industries, Bark resells leads up to five times, so you’re up against multiple competitors. Unless you have an amazing offer, a great sales funnel, and you’re willing to beat competitors on price, be careful.

Personally, I don’t like racing to the bottom. I prefer good profit margins. So the reselling of leads isn’t for me — I prefer exclusive leads.

Kasra Dash:
There are reasons a business might still use Bark. For example, during off-seasons, you may want to keep your team busy. Spending a couple of thousand a month on low-margin work might still make sense to keep vans out on the road. In some cases, Bark can make sense. But because leads are resold to four or five competitors, I’d still invest in better lead generation options — like filling out a form with FatRank, or building my internal marketing team.

Hiring PPC, SEO, and marketing staff isn’t cheap — probably around £150,000 a year for three or four people — but tracking KPIs is key.

James Dooley:
Exactly. KPIs and ROI matter most. Can you get ROI from Bark leads? Yes — if you have the right funnel. One example where Bark worked was in the accountancy space. They signed clients at £29/month for year-end accounts. Not very profitable upfront, but they treated it as a loss leader, hoping that some clients would grow into multi-million revenue and eventually need payroll, bookkeeping, and bigger services. The upsells made it worthwhile long-term.

But for one-off jobs like roofing, it’s usually a race to the bottom. In that case, you’re better off with SEO, PPC, and working with a lead gen company. That way you get fast money now from paid ads and slow money long-term from SEO.

Let me ask you something: If you had £3,000 a month to invest into marketing as a solar installer in Manchester, how would you spend it?

Kasra Dash:
First, I’m biased, but I’d go to FatRank.com. There’s no upfront fee — you fill in your details, and if you qualify, you only pay for converted jobs. I wouldn’t spend anything until I receive the audit. The audit will show weaknesses:
– Maybe they don’t have a website
– Maybe their website doesn’t convert
– Maybe they don’t rank for their brand
– Maybe they lack testimonials or case studies

If they’ve been around for 10 years, do £2M in revenue, and are accepted by FatRank, then I still have my £3,000 monthly budget. I’d split it into thirds:
– One-third SEO (case studies, testimonials)
– One-third PPC
– One-third social ads

Run that for three months, track ROI, and double down on what works. If social ads flop, put more into PPC. If PPC and social don’t work, go heavier on SEO.

They could also try premium directories like Yellow Pages or Checkatrade — directories that already rank for relevant keywords.

Start with FatRank.com → Apply → Get the audit → Fix weaknesses → Then allocate budget based on what performs.

James Dooley:
That’s our overview on whether Bark.com is worth it. If you have questions, drop them below. If you want to apply for FatRank, check the link below or go to FatRank.com and fill in the contact form.

Thanks for watching.