Marketing & Sales Insight for the Lawn & Landscape Industry

I've gotta say...I really love working with lawn care companies.

Maybe it's due to the fact that for eight years, I treated thousands of lawns.

Maybe it was due to the fact that this type of work seemed to be the easiest service for me to sell at my 7-year stint as a salesperson at a full-service lawn and landscape company. 

Or possibly it was the thrill I felt figuring out new ways to market lawn care services to add thousands of new lawn care customers each year. 

Whatever the case, it's a rush. But, I get as equally frustrated when I see lawn care companies trying to do their best but failing or getting lackluster results.

Over the years, lawn care and landscaping companies have asked us a LOT of questions about various advertising mediums.

But the one that seems to come up the most often (with skepticism and criticism) is Google Ads (also referred to as PPC, Pay Per Click, or Google Adwords.

Do you find yourself at one of these places?

• You're contemplating using Google Ads for lawn care or landscaping leads

• You did your own Pay Per Click in the past but weren't that impressed

• You hired a marketing agency to place PPC ads for lawn care or landscaping lead generation

• You've grown your business without this advertising medium but are always looking for ways to land new customers

Well, I am assuming most (if not all) of you fit into one of those categories. If so, I've got something special for you. Over the past month, I've taken this complicated (and most often very boring) topic and created a series of videos for you. 

In my last article I suggested you limit your production capacity at least until you reach the profit margins you desire.

In this article I'll give you some tips on how to manage your capacity. But, first, a caveat to this discussion...

The stronger your positioning the easier it will be to manage your company's capacity for work, and thus reap the benefits that come along with this strategy.

On the flip side, a full service one-stop-shop trying to be all things to all people will have a difficult time managing production capacity in a logical and strategic way as compared to a company with a crystal clear identity.

Purchase our entire collection of Green Ways comics on Amazon

We've already burned through the first month in a new year, my friends. Wow...

At Landscape Leadership 2018 was one of our best years yet. I can say that based both on the financial goals we achieved as well as the meaningful impact we had on the green industry companies we work with.

I hope you had similar success in 2018.

In this article I want to share the single strategic initiative that I believe led to our success last year.

Roll back the calendar...it’s 2016. I’ve had my own frustrating experiences marketing at a $13 million lawn and landscape company and now, after coming to work at Landscape Leadership, I have realized my misfortune was a common green industry marketing epidemic.

Ask me the question, “Is Pay-Per-Click (PPC), specifically with Google Adwords, a good idea for a lawn care company?”

The answer then was, “No. Stop wasting your money.”

But...now I would say, “Maybe…” Let me explain why.

In my last article, "Squashing the Full Service Myth", I called bull shit on this idea that your customers want a one-stop shop for all their outdoor needs.

I can summarize it like this:

If "full service" is your company's calling card then you are undifferentiated to the point you are easily replaceable by any competitor claiming the same.

"Full service" is not a strategy, my friends. I think of it more as a "happy accident" you've either intentionally or unintentionally grown into.

While offering every service under the sun may seem like an ideal way to grow top line revenue (spoiler: it's not), this approach to diversification will undoubtedly limit your profit potential.

Purchase our entire collection of Green Ways comics on Amazon

Have you considered spinning off one of your service offerings or divisions into a separate company and brand?

This is not an uncommon strategy in the lawn and landscape industry. We've worked with numerous companies who have attempted this.

Here are a couple off the top of my head:

Kingstowne Lawn & Landscape -->

-> Kingstowne Pest Defense

-> Kingstowne Home Services

Neave Group Outdoor Solutions -->

-> Neave Pools

-> Neave Decor

-> Neave Masonry

-> and others

This is exactly what Archie and the Greenbelt team are scheming about in our Green Ways comic.

Greenbelt Outdoor Services -->

-> Greenbelt Pools

-> Greenbelt Lawn Care

-> Greenbelt Tree Care

In the branding world this strategy is referred to as "brand extension".

Let me be clear: I'm not endorsing this strategy. I'm simply calling it out for what it is and offering an honest assessment of the opportunities and risks in this article.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog you’ve probably noticed my use of the phrase, “Just Another Landscaper”.

This isn’t a label you want your customers attaching to your brand. The reality, however, is that this is exactly where most of you find yourselves currently.

In the previous article I discussed common ways landscaping companies and professional landscape designers charge for landscape design:

• Freebie, foot-in-the-door offer
• Small lump-sum fee (ex- $500)
• Cost-based pricing (time x hourly rate)

Then I proposed the creative way I would price landscape design services if I still had my design firm today:

Price each client and project uniquely by offering three options and prices to choose from.

If you missed the previous article about whether or not to charge landscape consultation fees, I recommend you go back and read it.

Here’s a response to that article from a subscriber:

"What a great article on consultation fees! We’ve been using this strategy for two years. Not only does it do everything you stated in the article, charging a fee has opened up hundreds of hours per year of new time to work on my company as opposed to meeting with potential clients that have absolutely no intention of buying our services. Our close ratio went from 40% to 80% almost instantly when we implemented this strategy." ~ Carson Browning, ITM Landscapes

I love getting feedback like this from readers. Keep your comments coming.

Now, let’s talk about charging a fee for your landscape design expertise.