In an era where large corporations dominate the industry, supporting local businesses matters more than ever. Alan Butler is the proud owner of Butler Contracting and Roofing Turtle, two family-owned and-operated companies serving the Bastrop area.

Butler said his background in the construction industry provided him with the knowledge and skills to start Butler Contracting in 2015. The outdoor living company provides a variety of services, including:

• fencing: residential, commercial and agricultural fencing, exotic enclosures, and fence repair
• gating: standard and commercial gates, gate automation access and control and gate repair
• staining and sealing: fence and deck staining, outdoor wood structures and cleaning and restoration
• outdoor living: decks and pergolas, enclosed porches, outdoor kitchens and railings

Butler Contracting is accredited by the American Fence Association, which means the company builds and installs fences according to the AFA's industry standards. Butler said his company offers industry-leading warranties on their services and products, and customers can be confident in the security of their purchases.

“The products that we use and the way we build things are just different,” Butler said. “We worked on a lot of deals with manufacturers and our suppliers to back [up] the products and warranties that we have. We will always want to sell something that's backed by something greater.”

In addition to high-quality fencing, gating and outdoor living products, Butler owns a second company: Roofing Turtle. Butler’s roofing experience comes from the work he did on various roofing projects when he was growing up. Roofing Turtle specializes in a variety of roofing services, including:

• roof repair and installation
• asphalt, synthetic and metal roofing
• commercial roofing
• rain gutter installation
• protection plans

In particular, Butler and his Roofing Turtle team specialize in synthetic or fortified roofs. These products are resistant to hail, fire and wind. Butler can also help customers get a large reduction in insurance premiums, and in some cases, insurance companies may pay for the upgrade to a synthetic roof.

“Synthetic or fortified roofs are great because they’re very durable for our weather environments and where we live, specifically [in Bastrop],” Butler said. “Oftentimes [insurance companies] will actually pay for the upgrade because it's less risky for the insurance company to cover your risk.”

Before he established Roofing Turtle, Butler and his team performed a large quantity of roofing services under the Butler Contracting name. However, there was a problem: in the modern age of Google algorithms and artificial intelligence, Google couldn’t differentiate the services the company offered.

“Our customers didn’t realize [Roofing Turtle] is a small local business and it’s connected to Butler Contracting,” Butler said. “You're getting the same local brand and customer service.”

Butler needed to be able to separate his services so customers could find both his fencing and roofing business offerings on search engines. As a long-term marketing strategy, Butler decided to split his two offerings into two businesses: Butler Contracting for fencing and Roofing Turtle for roofing services.

“Once we did that, we jumped to the top three on Google as a fence company overnight,” Butler said. “Prior to that, it had been really hard for us to even get into the top 10. And now Roofing Turtle has been gaining traction. It's worked out great for us.”

With both companies finally getting the recognition they deserve on search engines, Butler and his team have made it even easier to support the two local businesses.

Curious about meeting the team? Butler Contracting and Roofing Turtle will be at the Home & Garden Show of Bastrop. The show hosts a variety of vendors in the ​​construction and home services industry at Community Gardens, and Butler said it’s a great chance for residents to meet with local businesses and talk about their projects.

Both companies are Google Guaranteed, which means they’ve passed a screening that verifies a company’s credibility. To learn more about Butler Contracting’s fencing and outdoor living services, visit www.butler.contractors. For more information about Roofing Turtle’s roofing services and warranties, see roofingturtle.com.

The above story was produced by Senior Multi Platform Journalist Summer El-Shahawy with Community Impact's Storytelling team with information solely provided by the local business as part of its "sponsored content" purchase through our advertising team.