Run A Google Adwords Ad
You will have to pay to run Google AdWords but it is definitely worth it as this can bring you calls in immediately. You can have this up and running in a morning and it is definitely time well spent.
It is not hard to set up a Google Ad and as long as you keep control of the budget and use the right keywords you will definitely get a few calls coming in. If you would like Google to lead you through this process then you can use the .
If you are patient, you can get a discount. You will need to sign up a couple of weeks before advertising and then do nothing. After your account has sat idle for a couple of weeks, then Google will email you a discount voucher. Its usually something like you spend $90 and get a $90 credit.
If you are going to use Google Adwords, do remember to keep and eye on what the other lawn care operators are doing. See who is spending the most to come up near the top on a regular basis. Pay attention to what they are doing. Start by doing the most common search which is lawn care name of your city here. Example lawn care Hamilton. This will give you and idea of who is doing what.
Attract Up To 56% More Clients By Distributing Landscaping Flyers And Door Hangers
According to the Data & Marketing Association, 56% of consumers trust print marketing more than other marketing mediums which is part of why landscaping postcards can generate up to a 1,400% return on investment
But guess what:
Lawn care flyers and door hangers work too!
Plus:
Theyre extremely affordable! If youre a brand new business trying to figure out how to get landscaping customers, flyers are a good place to start.
The only problem is:
I dont know ANY small business owner who has the kind of time required to pass them out!
When it comes to delivering your flyers, you could:
And while youre crew is handing out your landscaping flyers, have them do this too:
Network In Your Local Market
When youre just starting out, the easiest way to find clients is through networking.
Networking through your local Chamber of Commerce, joining local and county business associations and other networking programs are all ways to find lawn and landscaping clients.
Youll be starting out with residential clients first – unless you know a property manager or business owner who wants you to work for them.
So, its beneficial to walk the neighborhoods surrounding your company to let your neighbors know youre open for business. Design postcards and door hangers and start knocking on doors to see who needs lawn care services.
At the end of the day, the way you build relationships, network and communicate determines the amount and quality of clients you convert.
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How To Get The Revenue Flowing And Attract Your First 25 Customers With Less Work
Now we really come to it! All the licenses, mowers, software and sweat means nothing without the life’s blood of your business customers.
I’ve found that for many folks this is an area where they need the most help or perhaps even have the most fear. That’s natural, really.
After all setting up a bank account and buying a truck, while they do have some tips and tricks, are straight forward. Those are concepts that are easy to understand. When it comes to marketing and customer care, though, that’s where a lot of people want to really learn the methods that work where they’re previous experience may not have prepared them.
That’s okay, though because if you’re in this group, you’ve got a huge advantage over people who try to figure it out on their own. This blueprint is going to peel back the veil for you. In fact, with what’s in this chapter and the next one, you’re already going to have an advantage over 75% of your competition.
It sort of goes with the territory. My experience has shown that a lot of lawn companies have the same problem that a lot of software engineers and networking people have they know how to do the job, but aren’t really that great with people.
The Bottom Line On Running A Lawn Care Business
Running a lawn care business can be a rewarding job. People love sitting in their gardens in the summer, kids outside, BBQs friends and family. When your customers sit outside and their lawn is freshly cut and their plants look healthy, they enjoy their outside space and thats because of you. Lawn care is an important job and can change the way people feel about their homes.
Now that you understand all the pros and cons of running your own lawn care business and some dos and donts once its up and running, you are able to go into this venture with both eyes open. Remember that there is a huge opportunity for growth in this industry so you have the power to really customize its ins and outs so that it reflects your desires and needs.
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Five Tips On How To Get More Lawn Care Customers
Now is the perfect time to drum up more business for your lawn care company. But attracting new customers isnt always easy especially when homeowners think they can handle all their lawn maintenance chores themselves, or when theyre simply reluctant to spend their hard-earned money on their lawn.
Figuring out how to get new lawn care customers requires focusing on your business network, your reputation, your advertising campaign and your business metrics. Provide the best service you can, offer package deals to entice new customers, harness technology to see where youre going wrong and collaborate with other local business owners to generate new referrals. Soon, youll have so many customers youll need to expand to handle them all.
How Can I Advertise Business Quality In My Lawn Care Marketing
Getting quality labor and supplies was a major concern for lawn care businesses, according to Lawn and Landscape’s 2018 State of the Business report.
Low-ball competitors were another concern for landscaping businesses and it’s hard for a service charging a minimum for lawn care to do much more than “mow and blow.” While low-priced competitors may get business in the short-run, if you offer quality service at a reasonable price, you will gain reliable, well-paying customers. Be ready with your lawn care marketing materials and word of mouth to pick up customers with damaged lawns resulting from poor-quality service from “low ball” lawn business competitors.
If you’re growing your lawn care business rapidly, getting quality employees is also a concern. You will want to have the right lawn care business insurance in place to protect your business, including employees. Make sure that customers know you have qualified employees, provide top-notch service, and offer quality, insured lawn care service.
Lawn care businesses cited insurance costs of all types as one of their small business challenges in Lawn and Landscape’s 2018 report. Getting the right lawn care business insurance that’s designed for your industry and needs will help you to move forward and grow your lawn care business.
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Reach 79% Of Potential Landscaping Customers On Facebook
Facebook marketing is crazy popular, and with good reason.
- 79% of online Americans are on Facebook
- Thats 68% of ALL Americans
- 75% of them go on the site everyday
In other words:
Its a huge opportunity for lawn maintenance advertising.
However:
Many business pages organic reach have declined sharply. For some, its as low as 2 PERCENT.
That means you have to pay up for an ad, like this:
I recommend running Facebook ads at the same time youre mailing your landscape postcards.
In fact:
You can match your Facebook ads special offer and design with that of your direct mail campaign.
Like this:
So your prospects see ONE cohesive marketing message whether they receive your landscaping postcard in the mail OR see your ad on Facebook.
Plus, get this:
So if youre mailing your lawn services postcards to all the homeowners in Nashville, TN, you can then target those same exact people on Facebook in Nashville, too at the SAME time.
Amazing, right?
This coordination of mailing direct mail plus simultaneously showing matching Facebook ads gives your prospects the perception that your landscape marketing is almost everywhere.
Its called Everywhere Small Business. With it, your landscaping business can simultaneously target prospects with:
- Direct mail
- Google ads
- AND Facebook ads.
And YOU dont have to do anything.
Essentially your landscaping marketing will be shown EVERYWHERE your prospects already spend their time, generating the following:
Marketing Tips To Prepare Your Lawn Care Business For Spring
As 2018 winds down and we move into the new year, its time to start thinking about taxes, winter services, new equipment upgrades oh yeah, and marketing your lawn care business for the spring.
If youre in a downward swing of services and income in the winter, its no doubt youre probably getting amped up for March and April services. And you most likely want a big season opener after feeling like youve been skimping by the last and first parts of the year.
Whether you have a marketing budget set aside or are using this time to think about advertising ideas when the time comes, marketing your lawn care business for the spring starts right now! You want to be at the top of your customers minds at the start of the new season both traditionally and digitally.
Here are nine ways to accomplish that goal:
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Can I Upsell Work To Make A Profit On This Contract
Maybe you lose money on the mowing, but you can make 200% on the fertilization package.
In this instance, you might be able to accept the job with the right upsells.
Keep in mind, even when you’re dealing with a high-profit job, you should ALWAYS be looking for ways to upselleveryone.
A great job costing tool, like Service Autopilot, will be able to tell you if a job is worth it.
Optimize Your Social Media Pages
Have you been neglecting your social media pages this season? Its easy to do when youre out in the field and running your business. Finding the time for proper marketing, branding, and maintaining a professional, online appearance is difficult.
Whether most of your customers come from social media or not, people are looking for your brand not only through search engines like Google or Bing, but also through social media. Theyre looking at your community presence, your brand personality, the quality of your work, and most importantly your reviews on multiple platforms.
Residential customers are looking at your Facebook profile while commercial clients are taking a look at your professional appearance on LinkedIn.
Take the time this winter to give your social media pages a professional makeover. If youre not sure where to start, take a look at this guide on how to .
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How To Get Lawn Care Customers Fast
Growing your lawn care business requires a three-prong approach. First, advertise your business through word of mouth with friends, family, and existing customers. Next, establish a digital presence with a Yelp Business Page,social media, and company website. Lastly, utilize more traditional techniques like print marketing, discounts, and referral incentives.
Get a free Yelp page
Promote your business to local customers.
Other Ways To Get Lawn Care Customers
Targeting new markets can be daunting, especially when youre unsure of what your market is. However, there are other ways to gain customers without thinking of a specific target market. These include:
- Wear a uniform: Get some shirts made up that have your business name and phone number listed, and wear them when youre out and about on the job.
- Advertise to neighbors of your existing customers: theres no need to go door-to-door or be an aggressive salesman to your clienteles neighbors, but saying hello and casually offering your services to neighbors when you see them is a great way to gain more customers in areas youre already working.
- Work on weekends: Weekend work is a great way to advertise because everyone in the neighborhood can actively see you working! If youre making your clients lawn the best in the neighborhood on their schedule, chances are, some of their neighbors will also want your services.
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Turn New Movers In Your Area Into Automatic Customers Without Lifting A Finger
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, a little over 11% of the American population moves every year. Many of those people need landscaping and lawn maintenance services!
With our New In Town program, you can reach new movers in your service area every month without you even having to think about it!
Heres how it works:
- You tell us your target demographic and service area
- We design a postcard for your business
- Every month, we automatically send all new movers that fit your targeting criteria your landscape postcards
- They call to redeem your offer, then you wow them with your services and create new customers!
And this is cool:
Your landscape postcards are personalized with the name of the recipient , so they take notice!
Heres an example:
By automatically mailing to all the new movers in your area, your landscaping business can receive a steady stream of new customers who need your lawn maintenance services.
Earth Turf & Wood: Print Media Outreach & Meetings
You can tell that Jarod Hynson and his team at Earth, Turf, & Wood have given a lot of thought to how they nurture the relationships with their high-end residential design/build clients.
They utilize multiple communication methods and mediums throughout their process. In a lot of instances, it can be several months from the time a customer signs an agreement until they get to enjoy their new backyard resort.
Here are some things I love about their customer onboarding process:
- Selfless: In many cases, Jarod visits the customer in the first few days after they sign. For companies of this $4M size, the relationship is commonly managed by a landscape designer/architect. This additional step is something that a busy company owner wouldnt need to do but Jarod has found this means a lot to their clients.
- Purposeful: Someone from the ETW team has weekly conversations with new clients before their project starts months later. There are material selections to be made and things clients need to do on their end to prevent delays. Clients also receive a Who To Call document to eliminate confusion during the design/construction process.
- Thoughtful: Each year, proactive site visits are scheduled a year or more after projects are completed. Instead of waiting for clients to inquire about warranty issues, the ETW team makes this their responsibility. As this is not the industry norm, clients are often blow away and in many cases end up inquiring about additional projects.
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Complete Your Google My Business Profile
In addition to adding your business to review sites, another great way to get customers for lawn care is to make sure you’ve claimed your Google My Business listing. This service is free for all business owners and helps ensure your landscaping company comes up in search results when people are searching from their desktop, laptop, tablet, or Smartphone.
When completing your GMB listing, be sure to fill out all of the fields available for the most favorable results. Open fields include your business phone number, business address, operating hours, the services you offer, brands you use or carry, links to your business website, and a place to upload photos or videos.
Door Hangers Money Really Does Grow On Trees
Yeah, we’re going old school now, right? You know what door hangers are paper or card stock flyers that you wait for it hang on people’s front doors.
You can do the same thing in parking lots, but honestly, there’s a method to the madness of working in a neighborhood.
One of the things that’s going to help you make money and save money too, is what’s called your “route density.” I’ve already touched on this a bit but let me expand on the idea a little.
The more time you can spend cutting and the less you can driving the better. You’ll save on fuel and you’ll maximize the time you’re actually earning money. Remember, you’re only making money while the equipment is running.
Yes, in the beginning, you may get a few customers who are a few miles apart and will probably spend more time than you’d like driving back and forth in your area. This will fix itself as your list of clients grows, of course.
That’s one reason why door hangers are so awesome. Using VistaPrint or another online printer, you can get a few thousand nice paper hangers with your contact info and even a photo you upload for next to nothing.
So now, when you get a customer in XYZ sub-division, for example, you can spend a few hours putting a flyer on all of the homes in that neighborhood. Sooner or later, you’ll start getting customers calling you from the same area.
3 clients X $1,260 = $3,700
Okay, it costs you $420 of your time and maybe $30 in flyers. $450 and you earn more than 10 times that much.
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Create Your Business Plan
Suppose youre ready to transform your nebulous idea for a lawn care business into a glorious reality. In that case, youre going to need a business plan.
Youll use your plan as a detailed outline to get you where you are right now to where you want to be. Its a must for all business owners who want their company to thrive.
Having a business plan means youll accomplish your entrepreneurial objectives sooner rather than later. Itll help organize every detail of getting your business off the ground, exponentially increasing the chances that your lawn care business will be a smashing success.
If you dont need a bank loan, your business plan can be short, sweet, and to the point.
Just remember:
Your lawn care business plan should accommodate your needs, and not the other way around.
Have it be a reflection of you in all your wonderful uniqueness.
According to the Small Business Administration website, there are two categories of business plans:
- Traditional
- Lean startup
Traditional business plans are what most entrepreneurs use, and they require a ton of detail and work. They can get so convoluted and complicated, that they can be dozens of pages long.
Lean startup business plans are far less structured because they focus like a laser-guided missile on only the most essential facts.
They can be completed in sixty minutes or less, and are usually no longer than a single page. Heres an example of one.
Here are some of the sections you might want to include:
