I often get asked “what is the best special offer to put on an advertising piece?” That is a VERY difficult question to answer, since nobody knows your business and profit margins as well as you, the owner himself.  However, here are some things to think about. Some people don’t want to put special offers in the advertisement at all, because they feel they are giving some of their revenue away. That may be true, but when your competitors are offering a discount, YOU will not get the sale over them.

Don’t get me wrong there is some customer loyalty in our business, however most homeowners go through the ads they receive and get the best deal. So what to offer and how much… In my opinion you should offer the biggest discount you can afford. Personally I feel 10% OFF means nothing in this day and age, especially with the economy the way it is. FREE is the way to go. People like free stuff regardless of what it is. So possibly a free mowing with mulch installation or spring/fall clean up. If you only do mowing, why not give them a free mowing? But why only one??? Why not 2 or 3 mowings? Do you know anyone else giving away 2 or 3 mowings per year? If you offered that why wouldn’t a homeowner call you instead of someone else? Remember this is an offer for NEW customers only. OK, you may lose some revenue the first year but chances are you will retain that customer for years to come.

Along with plan-it graphics, I also own a lawn care company. I don’t mow, I only fertilize, but I will now tell you my special offer for new customers. Keep in mind most of my clients only get 6 applications per year… I offer all new customers 2 FREE applications! Yes, they only get 6 per year and 2 are FREE!! Why and how do I do it. One of the free applications is lime, my most inexpensive product. The second application is insect control, and is applied the same time as the summer application. So technically this is a 7th application for them and my books, but I’m only on the lawn six times… They got 2 for free, but I was only wasting time once. I understand that if you mow 3 times for free, you are “wasting time” more often, but keep in mind your are mowing much more than 6 times a year!!

It’s no fun giving stuff away but when you think of the life of the customer it will pay for itself multiple times over the next few years. With more people entering our industry everyday, and the shape of our economy (they say it’s getting better, but we certainly haven’t fully recovered), you should do whatever you can to get customers before your competition does. Getting customers is the single hardest thing to do in our industry. Just about anyone can cut grass, spread fertilizer, plant a bush, or lay mulch. In fact homeowners do it routinely. You need to sway a customer to YOUR company and not someone elses, or even better make your offer and prices so the “do it yourself-er” sees it’s not worth his time and should hire you. Keep in mind… You don’t really own a lawn care company… You own a marketing company that happens to cut grass.

Bob Daniels

Plan-It Graphics
www.plan-itgraphics.com

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