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The Decking Benchmark
Most Aussie decking businesses leave about $6,300/mo on the table. Here’s where the leak is. Every number sourced. No guesses.
What good looks like across the five measures — the Google review bar, the website scorecard, the GBP setup, the ops baseline, and the buyer’s actual questions. Every figure is sourced or labelled. No guesses.
modelled — sizes the leak, not a quote. Average job value (AJV) from modelled: 25m² mid-spec timber/composite: Airtasker $3,600–$11,500; Canstar $200–$350/m² supply+install → ~$6,875 (airtasker, canstar); close rate from hipages platform analysis (20minutemarketing.com.au); default 10 enquiries/month.
Field data · 2026-06-12 · How we score
Where you stand
Five things decide whether a decking gets found and gets the call. Here’s where you stand on each — and the number to beat.
| The review bar | 16 reviews (your suburb) | → |
| The website scorecard | 33.2/45 vs market 31/45 | → |
| The Google profile | category to fix (most are set wrong) | → |
| Your numbers | AJV $6,000 · leak $6,300/mo | → |
| What buyers ask | 8 questions to answer in writing | → |
The 45-point test for your trade
Decking sites score 33.2 / 45 on the same nine-dimension rubric we ran across 289 Australian trade sites. The market median is 31/45. Read the trade score as a guide, not a hard stat — it rests on 5 AU sites. Your Google review bar above is the harder number. Top of the pack: Deck It Out Decks at 40/45.
The two weakest spots are SEO/AI Usefulness (2.4/5) and Local Relevance (3/5). Good sites look good and they convert. They don't answer buyer questions in plain form.
| Dimension | Trade average /5 |
|---|---|
| 3-Second Clarity | 4.2 |
| Visual Polish | 4.2 |
| Trust Above Fold | 4 |
| CTA Clarity | 4.2 |
| Local Relevance weakest | 3 |
| Service Architecture | 4 |
| Proof Depth | 3.6 |
| SEO/AI Usefulness weakest | 2.4 |
| Mobile/Speed Confidence | 3.6 |
The one to study
GJR Decking — www.gjrdecking.com.au
Copy this: Copy luxury outdoor-elegance positioning and architecture/builder/homeowner audience split.
Design direction: Product education, comparison, showroom/dealer pathway
Build rule. Use AU model for realistic owner-operator structure; use national/US models for scale, proof, conversion and service-page architecture.
Your Map Pack reality
Your suburb's bar: about 16 Google reviews (Google Places API (New) (field median)). The quiet quarter sits at 7, the top quarter at 43, the busiest carries 203 — across 153 listings.
Reviews here are table stakes. The top-3 (median 20) carry about the same as spots 4–6 (median 17). Hit the bar, then win on distance, category fit, and site signals.
| Metro | Median reviews |
|---|---|
| Adelaide | 33 |
| Ballarat | 17 |
| Brisbane | 17 |
| Cairns | 9 |
| Canberra | 39 |
| Darwin | 4 |
| Geelong | 16 |
| Gold Coast | 43 |
| Hobart | 21 |
| Melbourne | 34 |
| Newcastle | 17 |
| Perth | 20 |
| Sunshine Coast | 22 |
| Sydney | 44 |
| Toowoomba | 10 |
| Townsville | 7 |
| Wollongong | 15 |
Reviews get you seen. The profile they tap decides what happens next →
The Google profile
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is the cheapest win on this page. It costs nothing. It moves first.
Quick win. The main category for this trade comes back as the bland “Building Materials Store”. A wrong one drags down your rank. Set yours to the most exact trade category Google offers.
What we measure — and what we won’t
Review count and prominence rank are public — we read them via the Google Places API. The owner-only fields — photo count, post cadence, messaging response speed — we never scrape from a competitor. Connect your own profile to read those.
Profile set right. Now answer what they ask before they ring →
What homeowners ask before they hire you
A homeowner searches before they call. They're already looking, reading and choosing. Below are the real questions — from accounts across 8 states.
Answer each one on your site in plain form. That's the SEO/AI gap, closed.
How much will this cost me?
I do quite a few decks and they average around $200 per square metre. Price/cost · source
How much will this cost me?
$4600 plus GST Price/cost · source
How do my options compare?
Quality composite decking typically costs 40-60% more upfront than timber. However, composite decks last 20 to 30 years for composite, compared to 10 to 15 years for timber. Comparison/alternatives · source
What do I need to know?
Every year you'll need sanding, sealing and staining that can cost $15 to $25 per square metre in labour and materials. Aftercare/maintenance · source
How do I know they're any good?
Deck posts that aren't properly installed may be placed directly in the ground. When this happens, moisture can easily penetrate the wood and allow it to rot. Posts should be installed on concrete deck footings in most cases Trust/red-flags · source
What do I need to know?
In NSW, you can build a deck without approval if it is less than 1m high, has a maximum area of 25m², and is behind the building line. Licensing/compliance/insurance · source
What do I need to know?
the minimum height is 1m (1,000mm) from the finished floor level to the top of the balustrade Licensing/compliance/insurance · source
What do I need to know?
in Australia's intense summer heat, even quality decking can warp if it is not chosen and installed correctly Edge-cases/difficult-jobs · source
Read what your customers are reading — the decking buyer guide on Need A Trade
Where your trade leaks money
AJV: $6,000 (modelled: 25m² mid-spec timber/composite: Airtasker $3,600–$11,500; Canstar $200–$350/m² supply+install → ~$6,875 (airtasker, canstar)). Close rate: 20–25%. With follow-up: up to 33%. (hipages platform analysis (20minutemarketing.com.au))
Revenue-leak calculator
Benchmark close rate ~25–33% (hipages platform data). AJV is modelled — see the label above. This is an estimate to size the leak, not a quote.
The 30/60/90 play
Three stages. Each one closes a gap on a measure above.
-
First 30 days — Foundation.
- Fix the two weak dimensions on the scorecard.
- Set the right Google profile category.
- Tighten the above-the-fold trust strip.
-
By 60 days — Proof.
- Start the review engine. Ask every completed job.
- Push toward the 16 review bar.
- Add before/after proof to the weakest dimension.
-
By 90 days — Activation.
- Publish the structured FAQ/answer blocks.
- Wire fast response to every enquiry.
- Re-score against the 45-point test. Aim for at least 4 points up.
Score yourself (0–5 each)
Ten questions. Tap your score on each. The total updates as you go.
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3-Second Clarity — trade + suburb + customer in your headline?
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Visual Polish — real job photography, consistent design?
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Trust Above Fold — reviews/licence/years visible before scroll?
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CTA Clarity — obvious primary + secondary next step?
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Local Relevance — service area and suburbs explicit?
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Service Architecture — services organised by buyer intent?
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Proof Depth — specific proof stack (before/after, named jobs)?
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SEO/AI Usefulness — buyer questions answered in structured form?
-
Mobile/Speed — fast, readable, thumb-friendly?
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Google reviews vs your trade bar (16)?
Score: 0/50
Tap your score on each question above.
Guides for your trade
Fix the leaks yourself. Each guide is one topic, one method, one move.
Common leaks for this trade
The leaks good deckings feel first. Read the one that sounds like your week.
Build the first fix
Each leak has a fix you can build. Start with the one at the top of your list.
That's what good looks like for decking.
See how your profile, site and reviews actually score.
Run the Visibility Check