Learn AI for Painters and Decorators

You know prep, brushes and rollers. These nine short courses cover the business side of painting. After each one, Smoko, our AI agent, builds that part for you to approve.

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What AI can do for painters and decorators

Build Your Painting Brand with AI

  • 56 min
  • 4 modules

Homeowners can't judge your prep, so they judge what they can see: your ute, clean drop sheets over the carpet, the quote and the invoice. AI uses your answers and photos of finished rooms to draft a logo, colours and a way of writing that match across all of them.

  1. Brand Basics

    13 min
    1. What is a brand?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Brands
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Mission, Vision, Values

    19 min
    1. MVV vs Brand: What's the difference?
    2. Define Your Mission
    3. Create a Vision
    4. Write Your Values
    5. What makes you, you?

  3. What Makes a Brand

    15 min
    1. Logos
    2. Colours
    3. Icons, Elements, and Imagery
    4. Tone of Voice
    5. Consistency is King

  4. Let's Implement: Build Your Brand

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Brand
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Brand Bible

Smoko builds your brand bible: a short statement of what you do, logo options that work on a ute and a fridge magnet, colour codes for signs and shirts, and a style for job photos.

See the course: Build Your Painting Brand with AI

Discover Your Painting Offer with AI

  • 61 min
  • 4 modules

List this year's jobs with the paint, labour and days each took. A whole-house interior, a feature wall, a roof repaint, a strata stairwell and an office between tenants rarely pay the same per day. AI shows which jobs pay best, then helps you write the one you want more of as an offer homeowners and property managers understand.

  1. Offer Basics

    14 min
    1. What is an offer?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Offers
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Find the Jobs Worth Chasing

    19 min
    1. Services vs Offers: What's the difference?
    2. Know Your Numbers
    3. Which Jobs Pay?
    4. Which Jobs Sell?
    5. What to Put First

  3. What Makes an Offer

    19 min
    1. Take the Hassle Out
    2. Pricing Your Offer
    3. Guarantees
    4. Bonuses and Add-ons
    5. Naming Your Offer

  4. Let's Implement: Discover Your Offer

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Offer
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Offer Sheet

Smoko builds your offer sheet: your best-paying job written as what the customer gets, what's included, the price with GST, a promise to leave rooms tidy, a deck oiling add-on and a rental repaint offer.

See the course: Discover Your Painting Offer with AI

Launch a Painting Website with AI

  • 55 min
  • 4 modules

People search 'cost to paint house interior' to get a rough idea of price before they ring anyone. AI writes separate pages for interior repaints, exterior repaints, roof painting and wallpaper, and explains what changes the price, such as ceiling height and wall repairs. Every page has a call button and your licence number if your state requires one.

  1. Website Basics

    13 min
    1. What Is a Website For?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Websites
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Plan Your Website

    17 min
    1. Who Is Your Website For?
    2. Your Domain Name
    3. Pick Your Pages
    4. Answer Their Questions
    5. Words That Win Work

  3. What Makes a Website Work

    16 min
    1. Your Homepage
    2. Make It Easy to Call
    3. Photos of Your Work
    4. Reviews and Trust
    5. Mobile and Speed

  4. Let's Implement: Launch a Website

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Website
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Website
Example service page
  • Interior repaints in Morley
  • Adds to the price: high ceilings, lots of patching, a dark colour going light
  • Lowers the price: an empty house, walls already in good shape

Smoko builds your website: a homepage with your trade and area, pages for interiors, exteriors, roofs and wallpaper, your suburb list, job photos with captions and an enquiry form.

See the course: Launch a Painting Website with AI

SEO Basics for Painters and Decorators Using AI

  • 55 min
  • 4 modules

Locals search 'painter near me' or 'wallpaper installer near me' and see a map of nearby businesses first. Some ask an AI assistant instead. AI drafts your Google profile with Painter as the main category, writes pages for exterior repaints and roof painting, and drafts a review request to send once the job is finished.

  1. Search Basics

    12 min
    1. What is SEO?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. How Tradies Get Found Now
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Get on the Map

    16 min
    1. How Google Picks Local Results
    2. Your Google Business Profile
    3. Categories and Service Areas
    4. Keywords Your Customers Use
    5. Directories and Listings

  3. What Makes You Rank

    18 min
    1. Service Pages That Rank
    2. Suburb Pages Without the Spam
    3. Reviews That Move You Up
    4. Show Up in AI Answers
    5. Tracking What Works

  4. Let's Implement: SEO Basics

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your SEO
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Local SEO Setup
Example search
  • exterior house painters norwood
  • Who is searching: an owner who wants a painter with nearby jobs to show
  • What they look for: a Norwood page with before and after photos

Smoko builds your local SEO setup: categories and photos on your Google profile, pages for interiors, exteriors and roofs, suburb pages showing real jobs there, and a review request for after each job.

See the course: SEO Basics for Painters and Decorators Using AI

Automated Adwords for Painters and Decorators Using AI

  • 55 min
  • 4 modules

Someone searching 'roof painting' and a suburb usually wants a quote. 'How to paint a roof' is someone doing it themselves, and 'painter jobs' is someone looking for work. AI sorts your keywords into interior, exterior and roof groups, lists the searches to block and writes headlines with the job and suburb. You set the budget.

  1. Google Ads Basics

    11 min
    1. What is Google Ads?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Google Ads
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Budget, Tracking, and Targeting

    19 min
    1. Know Your Numbers
    2. Tracking Calls and Leads
    3. Your Service Area
    4. Keywords: The Jobs You Want
    5. Negative Keywords: The Jobs You Don't

  3. What Makes an Ad Work

    17 min
    1. Writing Ads That Get Calls
    2. Landing Pages That Convert
    3. Quality Score
    4. Smart Bidding
    5. Keeping It in Check

  4. Let's Implement: Automated Adwords

    8 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Campaign
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Google Ads Campaign
Example ad groups
  • Interiors: interior painters, house painters near me, cost to paint house interior
  • Roofs: roof painting, tile roof painting, metal roof painting
  • Blocked: how to, DIY, paint shop, painter jobs, wages

Smoko builds your Google Ads campaign: interior, exterior and roof keyword groups, a list blocking DIY searches and job seekers, headlines for each suburb, call tracking and alerts if costs rise.

See the course: Automated Adwords for Painters and Decorators Using AI

Social Media for Painters and Decorators Using AI

  • 56 min
  • 4 modules

Before and after photos of a house front, or a clean line where a wall meets a white ceiling, show the standard of your work. When locals ask a Facebook group for a painter, they check your page. AI drafts your bio, captions and replies to reviews, comments and messages, and holds each one until you approve it.

  1. Social Media Basics

    13 min
    1. What is Social Media?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Platforms
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Setting Up Your Profiles

    17 min
    1. Business Page vs Personal Profile
    2. Set Up Your Facebook Page
    3. Set Up Your Instagram Account
    4. Profile Photo, Cover, and Bio
    5. Connect Facebook and Instagram

  3. Keeping It Fresh

    17 min
    1. Job Photos That Sell
    2. Before and After Posts
    3. Writing Captions
    4. Reviews, Comments, and Messages
    5. How Often to Post

  4. Let's Implement: Social Media

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Profiles
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Social Profiles
Example post
  • Before: peeling weatherboards and bare timber on the window frames.
  • Prep: scraped, sanded and spot primed before any colour went on.
  • After: two top coats on the boards and white trims. Ballarat, spring.

Smoko builds your social profiles: a bio listing your suburbs and jobs, your logo as the profile photo, your best finished room as the cover photo, before and after posts and draft replies.

See the course: Social Media for Painters and Decorators Using AI

Meta Ads for Painters and Decorators Using AI

  • 59 min
  • 4 modules

Repaints often follow an event: selling the house, a tired lounge room or family visiting for Christmas. Facebook and Instagram ads show your finished jobs to homeowners in your suburbs before then. AI drafts the postcode list, two or three versions of each ad with your photos, and a short form asking which rooms or surfaces need painting.

  1. Meta Ads Basics

    12 min
    1. What Are Meta Ads?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Meta Ads
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Setting Up Your Ads

    19 min
    1. Boosting vs Ads Manager: What's the Difference?
    2. Your Business Portfolio and Ad Account
    3. The Meta Pixel and Conversions API
    4. Targeting Your Service Area
    5. Setting Your Budget

  3. What Makes an Ad Work

    19 min
    1. Ads That Stop the Scroll
    2. Lead Forms vs Landing Pages
    3. Calling Leads Back Fast
    4. Reading Your Results
    5. Testing and Improving

  4. Let's Implement: Meta Ads

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Ads
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Ad Campaign

Smoko builds your ad campaign: your postcode list, ad copy for the repaints you want this season, a finished room in each ad, and a form that asks for rooms, surfaces and suburb.

See the course: Meta Ads for Painters and Decorators Using AI

Creative Content for Painters and Decorators Using AI

  • 57 min
  • 4 modules

Short phone clips of real work, such as cutting in along a ceiling or scraping flaking paint off a fascia, show customers how you work. AI cuts your clips into short upright videos, pairs your before and after photos and writes on-screen text for people watching with the sound off.

  1. Creative Basics

    13 min
    1. What is Creative Content?
    2. Why it matters?
    3. Types of Creative
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Capture Your Jobs

    18 min
    1. Every Job is Content
    2. Photos on Your Phone
    3. Before and After Shots
    4. Short Videos
    5. Reviews and Testimonials

  3. What Makes Creative Work

    17 min
    1. The Hook
    2. Words That Sell
    3. Proof and Trust
    4. Call to Action
    5. Test and Refresh

  4. Let's Implement: Creative Content

    9 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Creative
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Creative Pack

Smoko builds your creative pack: before and after pairs from your repaints, upright clips of cutting in and rolling the last coat, a customer review beside each job, and a quote button on every ad.

See the course: Creative Content for Painters and Decorators Using AI

Build a Painting Proposal with AI

  • 58 min
  • 4 modules

Customers comparing painting quotes want to know which rooms, what prep and how many coats. AI turns your site notes and price list into a written scope, such as 'lounge, hall and three bedrooms, fill cracks, spot prime stains, two coats on walls and ceilings', with options for homeowners, landlords and strata managers, and a follow-up text.

  1. Proposal Basics

    12 min
    1. What is a Proposal?
    2. Why It Beats a Quote
    3. Types of Proposals
    4. Mistakes to Avoid

  2. Price It Right

    20 min
    1. Know Your Numbers
    2. Markup vs Margin: What's the Difference?
    3. Price the Job, Not the Hour
    4. Give Them Choices
    5. Deposits and Payment Terms

  3. What Makes a Proposal

    16 min
    1. Start With Their Problem
    2. Scope of Works
    3. Photos, Reviews and Proof
    4. Guarantees and Warranties
    5. Follow Up and Close

  4. Let's Implement: Build a Proposal

    10 min
    1. Smoko Builds Your Proposal
    2. How to Edit or Improve with Smoko
    3. Approving Your Proposal Template
Example options
  • Walls refresh: walls only, same colours, two coats
  • Full repaint: walls, ceilings and trims, two coats throughout
  • Colour change: the full repaint, plus an undercoat for dark to light

Smoko builds your proposal template: your business details, your licence number if your state requires one, priced options for each job, a scope with colours and sheen levels, payment stages and follow-up texts.

See the course: Build a Painting Proposal with AI

One membership. All nine courses.

Member

$299a month

AUD, GST included. Cancel any time.

  • All nine courses, from Build Your Brand to Build a Proposal
  • Smoko, your AI agent, in every lesson
  • Templates and launch checklists
  • The members' community
  • Live Q&A with the Tradie School team
Join as a member

Owner's Club

$1,997a month

Invite only. Members first.

  • 1:1 consulting with guest instructors and Tradie Team experts
  • Courses on taking a $1m business to eight figures and an exit
  • Guest lessons from nine-figure founders
  • Its own members' community
About Owner's Club

Questions painters and decorators ask

Does Tradie School teach painting work or licensing?

No. Every lesson is about running the business: quotes, pricing, your website, Google and ads. If your state requires a licence for painting work, getting it and following the rules remain your responsibility. The lessons do show where a licence number belongs, such as on proposals and your Google profile.

I work on my own. Is this worth my time?

Yes. The lessons are written for owners who still paint most days, and each one is short enough to read on your phone at lunch. Smoko turns your answers and photos of finished rooms into drafts. You tell him which jobs you want more of, then change and approve what he writes.

My jobs mostly come through builders and property managers. Why bother with marketing?

That work can change when a property manager leaves the agency or a builder gets quieter. Homeowners who hear your name from a neighbour often search for you before they ring. The courses cover the Google profile, website and proposal those homeowners see, and Smoko drafts each one for your approval.

Can I advertise interior work when rain stops exterior jobs?

Yes. Exterior repaints need dry days, so wet weeks are a good time to advertise interiors, wallpaper and rental repaints between tenants. Automated Adwords gives each job its own keyword group and covers when to pause or lower a budget, so exterior ads can pause while interior ones run. Smoko drafts each change for you to approve.

Build the business behind your trade.

Smoko builds your business card while you sign up.

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Learn AI for other trades

Tradie School AI$299 a month, all nine courses

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