You’re ready to blow the revenue and profit doors off of your green industry company. There’s just one big problem.
You’re not rolling in that big pile of cash like you hoped.
If you’re reading this article it’s likely that you’re either:
- Underwhelmed or frustrated with your current marketing agency
- Finally ready to hire your first agency
- One of our competitors creepin’ on our content (hello there)
One of the best questions I frequently hear is...
“What makes Landscape Leadership® different from (agency name)?”
Today, I’m going to answer that question. I want you to make a great decision. Hell, we’re fine if you work with one of our competitors. We know we’re not a good fit for everyone.
Buckle up…here are the ways we’re different (that could dramatically impact your organization).
1. Practical Green Industry Experience
This factor makes the biggest impact on our clients each day. The quality of the team you hire is more critical than you may think.
Landscape Leadership® has served the green industry exclusively (lawn care, landscaping, tree service, and pest control companies) since our founding in 2010. We weren’t a generalist agency that decided to pivot into this niche.
When I say we have practical experience, let’s explore this at various levels.
Executive Leadership
Strategy and leadership have a huge impact on every client relationship.
Chris Heiler (Founder) and Chad Diller (President) each have 25+ years of experience performing the work, selling it, and running successful marketing campaigns for green industry companies. Before the agency was created in 2010, we got our hands dirty for many years.
Our key leadership is actively involved in our client engagements. We know each owner’s personal strengths and struggles with growing their business.
The green industry is our jam. We regularly attend industry events and are connected with hundreds of the brightest thought leaders in our space.
Account Managers
Believe it or not, some marketing agencies don’t designate a single point person for you.
However, we believe that a proactive account manager is pivotal to your company's success.
(Landscape Leadership® account managers, Kyle Larson and James Conley join President, Chad Diller on a site visit to one of our client's operations.)
Each of our account managers works with 6-8 clients and becomes an extended part of their businesses.
When we hire account managers, we hire two types of people:
- Green Industry Veterans Who Love Marketing: Our account managers typically have 8+ years of experience performing green industry work, selling it, and managing teams.
- Green Industry Marketing Pros: They’ve worked for some of the biggest and most successful green industry companies to manage complex campaigns.
Content Strategists & Creators
Practical green industry experience permeates our team. For instance:
- Content Strategists: They’ve worked for Top 100 companies with annual revenues of $15M and higher. They’ve overseen thousands of content assignments. They’re avid students of SEO, too.
- Writers: They’ve written thousands of articles for green industry companies and the trade associations and publications you follow.
- Visual Content Creators: They’ve created hundreds of videos and tens of thousands of professional images for green industry companies. They speak your lingo and get what you do.
(Landscape Leadership® video team members, Brian and Billy, on a client location)
Website, Advertising, & Technology Specialists
Our team has worked with many green industry leaders over the years.
Whether it’s custom website design and development, digital ad campaigns, or graphic design for offline advertising, we’ve been around the block a few hundred times.
(Learn More About Our Team Members)
2. We Pick Clients Carefully
One criticism that I’ve often heard about other agencies is, “I feel like they got too big, too fast.”
You’d probably be shocked to learn that it’s pretty common for marketing agencies to serve 50-200 clients at any given time. They take almost any client that will throw money at them. There’s a lot of client churn, too.
As an agency, we’re all about fewer clients that are mutual fits. We tell people “No” if we don’t think it’s going to be a win-win arrangement.
Watch This Video: What Our Clients Say
(Check out our client case studies)
Here are some ways that Landscape Leadership® is different from other agencies:
- We intentionally limit capacity to 20-25 clients.
- We don’t work with our clients’ competitors.
- Our current average client tenure is 4.5 years.
- Several clients have been working with us for over 10 years.
A lot of agencies churn out a lot of template websites (on similar templates) each year and have minimal/basic marketing engagements. That’s not our model. Long-term relationships and meaningful impact are what we’re all about.
Client Profile
Here are some interesting characteristics of our clients:
- Most have average annual revenues of $2-$20M.
- Retainer clients spend $70k+ (plus ad spend) with us annually, project clients typically start at $25,000.
- They’re innovators and don’t mind trying new things.
- They want proactive “expert practitioners” not an order-taking vendor.
- They celebrate mutual success and frequently send us referrals.
(Rob Reindl, owner of Oasis Turf & Tree, has been a happy Landscape Leadership® client since 2016)
3. Custom, Comprehensive Strategy
Marketing agencies commonly put clients into a canned package and launch campaigns without much thought.
Here is how we approach strategy and engagements differently:
- Initial Discovery: New clients pay for a Total Growth Review, a deep-dive into goals, past strategies, and performance. We don’t give away a meaningless “free website evaluation”.
- Custom Engagements: The Total Growth Review findings shape a custom 12-month engagement. Although there are commonalities for our clients, each engagement is different.
- Messaging: In order to stand out in a “sea of sameness”, we create unique messaging that resonates more deeply with a client’s target audience.
- Powerful Custom Websites: We strive to make every website look different, starting from the ground up vs. using a canned template. Some websites even include specialized e-commerce and/or AI solutions.
- Integrated Lead Generation: While our primary focus is digital, we support offline marketing efforts as well. We drive strategy, create assets, and measure performance (even on initiatives outside our engagement.)
- Recruiting Assets: Job recruits are just a different type of target customer. This isn’t an afterthought when creating a strategy, websites, written content, videos, or photos.
- Sales: Generating leads is one thing, but deals need to be closed. Many of our clients often include sales technology and training in their engagements.
(Chase Coates, owner of Outback Landscape and Lawn Buddies, has been a happy Landscape Leadership® client since 2014.)
4. Diverse Capabilities
Many of our clients hire us because they have too many marketing partners. They want a partner who can do most of the heavy lifting for them.
Landscape Leadership® offers these services:
- Marketing strategy
- Website design and development
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
- Content marketing
- Videography and photography
- Paid search advertising
- Email & SMS marketing
- Generating online reviews
- Social media content and marketing
- Sales technology and training
- Graphic design
5. Past Client Relationships & Industry Dedication
This may seem like an odd one to include, but our past clients say a lot about us as an agency.
I’ve been on the other side of this with new clients.
They’re pissed because an agency left a bad taste in their mouth. Our reputation is important to us as is the lasting impact we have on clients’ organizations.
(Landscape Leadership® Founder, Chris Heiler, bumping into an old friend and former client, Michael Hatcher, at NALP's Elevate)
Here are a few things that set Landscape Leadership® apart from our competitors.
Easy Transitions
It’s not often we lose a client but when we do, the last thing we want to do is create more frustration for a client and our team. Here are some ways we make sure that doesn’t happen:
- Clients own their websites, all written content, and visual assets.
- Admin access is given to tools and platforms.
- Organic traffic results continue to yield results for years to come.
- We’re fine with working ourselves out of a job. Blow up your company and hire an internal marketing team. We’ll teach you how to do what we do.
Green Industry Dedication
Since 1998, we have benefitted from the generous thought leaders who have gone before us in the green industry. We have a responsibility to serve our industry even if that never results in a direct financial gain.
This is why we've committed to creating helpful content on our blog, podcast, and YouTube channel over the years.
If you're considering hiring another agency take a few moments and investigate their stance on thought leadership in the green industry.
We passionately believe that:
- Our first calling is to be teachers.
- We value leaving a legacy vs. taking over the world.
- We want to raise the bar in the green industry whether you work with us or not.
(Level Green Landscaping owners, Doug Delano and Bill Hardy have been happy Landscape Leadership® clients since 2015.)
Your Next Move: Partnering for Real Growth
Is Landscape Leadership® different? We hope this article helps you to see clear distinctions.
But ultimately, we hope this gives you a gold standard to make the best decision for your green industry company.
Even if it’s not choosing Landscape Leadership®.
It’s your turn to decide how you’ll grow your business. If you’re not ready, take your time—read some client case studies or subscribe to our blog to keep receiving valuable insights. But if you’re ready to take your business where you know it can go, request a consultation. We’re here to help you succeed.
