Many contractors do not know that you can get some free advertising on Google.  The service is called Google Places and it's a fantastic way to get your local business listed on Google in no time.  The process is simple and free to setup.  What more can you ask for?

To get started, you'll need the following pieces of information:

• Description of your business.
• Your phone number, address, and any other contact info you want to advertise.
• A logo or image of your business.
• A coupon or special offer you want to promote (Google allows you to add a coupon for FREE if you want).

Once you have the above information squared away, go to http://google.com/places and click the 'Get Started' link on the right side of the page.  You'll need to create a Google account if you don't already have one.  From there, follow the steps to get your business listed.  Google will mail you a confirmation code to your business address.  You'll need that code to verify your listing.
 
Once you've verified your listing with the code, check back in a few weeks with Google to view your listing.  To update your listing, follow the same process outlined here.  One thing to remember, SEO and content will determine how high your listing will appear in the search results.