The ranking of best marketing strategies for lawn care businesses

The ranking of best marketing strategies for lawn care businesses

Lawn care professionals plant seeds of business in any way they can. 

Mow. Add door hangers. Finish mulching, and then post an advertisement on social media. Growing a lawn care business requires continual learning. 

We surveyed 111 lawn care professionals and asked: "What are you currently finding great success with when marketing your business?"

We limited our results to a single response to avoid duplicate responses. It's not lost on us that businesses use several strategies within their marketing plans and that these approaches often change. We also did not include referrals as a marketing strategy. Word of mouth is powerful. It's well-documented and generally accepted as a successful way to win new business.

For this survey, however, we wanted to provide the ways that are working best for professionals and provide insight into how to maximize demand generation. 

 Door hangers provide real results for many survey respondents 

Before sending designs to the print shop, check local ordinances. Some localities lump door hangers in with other forms of solicitation. They may not outright ban flyer campaigns but may limit activity to specific periods of the day. The local city office can explain such bylaws. Call them.

All good? 

It's time to plan out printing. Search the designs of other businesses. Make it look professional. If that's a struggle, hire a designer. Join a Facebook group for lawn care professionals and learn where others found professional services and what to expect regarding cost. Graphic designers saturate sites like Fivver and Upwork, so ask around, research, and find someone who fits your needs.

Print quality matters, too. Don't cut corners here. Get samples from local print shops. Door hangers are a first impression, so make it count.

Create a plan as well. Who will be placing your hangers on doors? When will they do it? It's also a good idea to give a certain amount of training to those responsible for placing the hangers. What should they say if someone comes to the door or speaks to them on a ring camera? 

A simple, non-salesly one-liner would work in most cases: "Hi, I'm with (enter company name), and I'm just spreading the word about our lawn care services since spring is right around the corner. Have a good day." 

Here are some more tips to maximize campaigns:

 Understand the difference between MQLs and SQLs 

Why all the marketing jargon? Business owners need to understand the processes behind the scenes when running campaigns. Marketing qualified leads (MQLs) and sales qualified leads (SQLs) happen at different phases of a business's outreach efforts. 

MQLs need awareness and education. Door hangers are great because they sit on the counter or in a junk drawer if they don't end up in the trash. MQLs don't lead to business right away. The next time they're frustrated with mowing their lawn, they'll think, what's that lawn care company called again?

They'll open the drawer, pull out the door hanger, log on to a website, read the about page, try to mow again, and then give up and make the call — new client onboard. Some may need services immediately. They have a need, they know it, and now, as an SQL, they'll call a business right away. 

 GreenPal brings a lawn care business free SQLs 

GreenPal brings all of these efforts under one roof. Creating demand for business is GreenPal's specialty. It's baked into the platform. If a homeowner uses the app, they're most likely an SQL. 

How? 

GreenPal's ecosystem handles marketing on a massive scale. With more than 1 million users needing lawn care signed on, most homeowners who've downloaded the application need a lawn care service provider—they're SQLs. Demand generation? Check. Lead generation happens when a homeowner places a request and the business owner makes a bid.

GreenPal helps businesses drastically reduce their advertising budgets and increase revenue — sometimes up to $75,000 annually.

 Many businesses utilize a website for marketing 

Some might ask, "Why do I need a website? I'm doing great without one." Those business owners might be right. Many solo-preneurs and small operations do great without one. For those only targeting residential properties, the journey of a potential client going from prospect to closed deal may involve something other than a website. Going for commercial deals? That can be a different game. True, some still thrive. However, business-to-business (B2B) deals play out differently in any industry. There's more scrutiny. A well-designed website communicates professionalism and builds trust. Here are five things a website must have:

1. Reviews 
   Potential clients rely on others in their buying decisions. The review of a complete stranger can make or break a new deal. In today's digital market, humans rely on their most basic instincts — the feedback of those who've gone before them. They want clarity on their decision. 
   
   Businesses must find ways to get great reviews for their Google Business Page consistently. One way is to encourage reviews. Encourage reviews by offering a small gift using services like thnks.com. Once you've received these reviews, add them to your website in a testimonials section. 

2. Contact Information and Calls to Action (CTAs) 
   A well-thought-out website guides visitors. Think through how they will progress through your website. Provide value and insightful information. All the while, make sure there is one clear CTA. It's not pushy. Visitors want to know what to do next. 
   
   If they're ready to buy, what should they do? Call the business? Request a quote? Schedule their service? Whatever it is, make their next step obvious. Also, create a contact page with all the ways site visitors can contact your business. 
   
   

3. Pricing and FAQs
   Create clear pricing tables to eliminate confusion. Buyers seeking services desire clear pricing plans. Businesses can create pricing tiers and promote pricing bundles and savings when purchasing add-on services with core packages. 
   
   Frequently asked questions, or FAQs, must also be addressed. Business owners can easily create FAQs by writing down the questions they often receive from clients. They can then place these on their website to help minimize frustration for both the client and the owner. 

4. Portfolio
   Before and after pictures go a long way. People want to envision what their 
   homes could look like. Remember the MQL versus SQL section? When MQLs look at your before and after pictures, they think more deeply about their projects. If you can make it happen for someone else, why not them? They start saving, talking to friends, pinning more pictures to Pinterest, and — before long — they're an SQL requesting a quote for their project. 

Businesses following these steps set themselves up for success online. Clients and companies shop around. They want to do some digging. A website shows a company's pricing, previous work, and services and creates trust. It also demonstrates professionalism and a commitment to excellence, which customers expect when they receive a service. Moreover, it gives businesses a chance to share their stories. Every business has a mission and vision. It may be simple, but people connect with honesty. 

Find new streams of recurring revenue

Recurring revenue is everything in business. It prevents the feast or famine nature of running a company. One-off services are excellent, but then what? Where's the next dollar coming from? Recurring revenue elevates that stress. GreenPal understands this and provides businesses on their platform with the tools they need to win recurring revenue. Here's how: 

As soon as you finish a job, GreenPal encourages businesses on the platform to ask the customer how satisfied they were with their service and if they'd like to book ongoing service. Once the client agrees, GreenPal allows users to set up recurring services.

GreenPal allows users to set up recurring services in the app.

Each week, business owners using GreenPal receive an email called the "Cold List." This list is full of customers who do not receive repeat service. Businesses can quickly maximize their recurring revenue by reaching out to these individuals.

Quick Summary 

Lawn care professionals utilize many different marketing tactics to land new clients. From door hangers to websites and the GreenPal application, there are many ways to spread the word. In our survey, more than a hundred professionals shared what's working best for them right now. These insights are sure to help others looking to learn more and earn more.

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