Here is an article from our friend Bob at Plan-It Graphics. What types of marketing materials does your company use? What works for you and what doesn’t? Let us know your thoughts and leave a comment at the end of this article.

Some Thoughts and Ideas on Advertising Your Lawn/Landscape Business.

I had a customer ask me the other day if marketing with postcards is effective. I explained to him that they are actually one of the most efficient ways to get customers. I personally acquire 90% of my new “lawn care” customers from direct mail/postcard mailings. I do find, however, that the one thing people [fail to do when sending their postcards is this… they only mail to potential customers once!! It is IMPORTANT to mail to the same list numerous times throughout the year. If you have a list of 600 names and addresses, split it up into 3 groups and send 200 per month and alternate. This helps to build name recognition, and most importantly, it helps you build denser routes.

Here is a Plan-It Graphics direct mail example using 5000 postcards for $365 (design fee, and printing):
If you mailed out 200 cards per month, they would last 2 years.

Each month would cost you $54 in postage and $14 for the cards; TOTAL PER MONTH IS $68.
Looking at the cost, if you only get 12 sales per year, you sill had a HUGE return on your investment. I dare anyone to find a cheaper, more efficient “cost per sale”!

This brings me to my next topic…DOOR HANGERS. Think about when you sort through your mail. Many people are usually in their kitchen, near the trash can, throwing the junk mail immediately into the trash. When using a door hanger/flyer, it has to be removed from the door and walked to the trash can. Now, your advertising piece is the only thing in the customers hand; more importantly, they have now looked at it for more than a millisecond. Although this method is quite effective, there is one thing to consider…The time it takes to distribute them. If you assume your time is worth only $10.00 per hour, you would have to distribute 200 door hangers in 5.4 hours ($54 postage divided by $10 per hour). Sometimes the marketing budget does not allow for the postage, and in those situations door hangers are a great option.

Another method of advertising that is often overlooked is the referral. I can’t begin to tell you how many times I have heard the saying “word of mouth is the best method of advertising.” That may be true, but you need to get the customers first in order for that “word of mouth” to spread. Once you do get the customers, why not give them an incentive to spread the word? When you complete your service, you should leave something behind with the customer offering them incentives for referrals. Plan-It Graphics has a nice flyer with a tear off postcard that the customer can return with a referral’s name. Once the referral signs up, you send the customer whatever the incentive was. Some people offer $25 Visa gift cards or Home Dept/ Lowes gift cards. You can also offer the customer a percentage off their next bill, but I feel that the gift card in the mail makes more of an impact, and makes the customer feel like they really got something. This might make them more likely to refer more customers in the future.

These are a few advertising methods that should surely generate more customers for your business. There are many other good ways, but you can’t beat the tried and true methods. So think it over, and remember, even in the lawn care business… although there are peak times for advertising, you should be doing it YEAR ROUND!

Sincerely,
Bob
www.plan-itgraphics.com

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