What jobs can carpenters do?

People might not often think of carpenters in the modern business world. But it’s still a perfectly viable career choice if you know where to find the work. 

This guide will explore the job options for carpenters in today’s world and how they can manage their finances to maximise their earnings. 

Specifically, we’ll cover:

• What jobs can carpenters do?
• How to market yourself as a carpenter.
• How to manage your workload.
• How to manage your finances. 

Most carpenters work on construction sites, but it’s always an option to branch out on your own. You can become self-employed or work freelance, hiring yourself out on a contractual basis. 

If you do, you can still accept large scale construction jobs, or you can move into the more bespoke high-end design market for private contracts. 

Below, we’ve listed some of the jobs available to carpenters and a brief description of what each job involves. 

For beginners looking for a foothold in the business. An apprenticeship will provide on-job training with the promise of a full career after you’re qualified. 

Create load bearing beams used in the construction of buildings. 

A brattice is a partition used in mining to control airflow. 

Building carpenters construct, repair, and install building frameworks and structures made from wood and other materials.

Hired out on a contract basis, you could be asked to create wooden structures for construction sites or private individuals. 

Design, create, and install counters for kitchens, workshops, or offices. 

Fairly self-explanatory. You’ll be commissioned to create beautiful wooden staircases for buildings and houses. 

Finish carpentry involves all the work that needs to be done inside a house after framing, sheathing, wiring, plumbing, insulation, and drywall have been installed. You could be doing window installation and trim, fitting interior doors, wood and laminate flooring installation, wainscoting, crown moulding, and cabinet installation

Create, design, and install hardwood floors for houses or commercial buildings. 

A carpenter who works specifically on the trim and interior finish of a house

Build wooden frames and structures for large scale construction projects. 

Rough carpentry involves building wood or metal support systems that make up a structure’s walls, floors, and roof. Think of it as the bare bones of a building. 

If you do decide to start your own carpentry business, you’ll need to know how to find clients and grow your business. Doing this requires a solid marketing strategy. 

Try some, or all, of the following tactics:

• Digital marketing
• Traditional marketing
• Branding

Having an online presence is a must. 

Building a website is a good starting point. At the very least, it should include information about your business, contact information, and your prices. You can also set up a payment portal so that people can pay through your website, but it will cost you extra when you’re setting up your site. 

For more information about building a website, including the best website builders to use, check out our article ‘What is the best website builder for a small business?’

A good website will make sure you appear when people search for carpenters on search engines like Google. You can improve your search engines rankings by:

• paying for Google ads.
• making a Google business profile.
• making your site SEO (search engine optimisation) friendly.
• asking your customers to leave a Google review.

Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are also great places to advertise your service. You can join dedicated groups and connect with millions of people. 

Posting regularly is the best way to gain some traction, and there’s nothing wrong with getting friends and family to share your posts to get the ball rolling. 

Finally, you should definitely sign up for online directories. They’re basically huge search engines that the public can use to find traders of every kind. The most popular ones for trades like carpentry are:

• Trustedtrader
• Which
• Checkatrade

Alongside digital marketing, some more traditional forms of marketing can also be effective. You should consider:

• making business cards to hand out.
• printing flyers and posting them locally.
• teaming up with other local businesses to refer each other’s businesses.
• encouraging customers to spread the word.
• encouraging friends and family to recommend your business.

Finally, you’ll want to think about the name of your business and if you want to include any unique branding with a logo or slogan. Both will help you stand out from the competition. 

You’ll need to register your logo as a trademark with HMRC to prevent others from using it and to make sure you’re not using one that already exists. 

You don’t have to register your name unless you’re a limited company, but it’s a good idea to check it’s not already being used to avoid confusion amongst customers. 

Trademarking can be an expensive process and involves a few steps, so read our guide for more information. 

Financial management can be stressful and time-consuming when you’re self-employed. That’s why thousands of business owners use the Countingup app to make their financial admin easier. 

Countingup is the business current account with built-in accounting software that allows you to manage all your financial data in one place. With features like automatic expense categorisation, invoicing on the go, receipt capture tools, tax estimates, and cash flow insights, you can confidently keep on top of your business finances wherever you are. 

You can also share your bookkeeping with your accountant instantly without worrying about duplication errors, data lags or inaccuracies. Seamless, simple, and straightforward! 

Find out more here.