[cjwittnebel]

I've posted a few times and have read many more than a few posts on this board. Next week my new business is official and I am pumped as hell.. Marketing and advertising and equipment buying start! Can't wait to spend, spend spend!!

Marketing:
What types of marketing have been successful? Direct mail, email, advertising, etc? Direct mail response rates of 1% or better are great (from my experience but are they in landscaping)? Anyone do tests to see what types of offers work best? How about providing incentives to give out a promotion code? How about tracking bad addresses? Incoming calls and where the customer found out about you? Any intangibles of marketing?

Email is the most cost effective unless you are renting your lists, but how has the response been on email for landscaping?

How about advertising in local papers, is it usually smaller jobs?

The advice I have heard is that starting out and doing quality work will bring in the referrals - however, I plan to demand more, what types of marketing are working for everyone and what is the timing? In the northern climates is February too early or too late - how about over booking jobs early in the season and over promising, is that typical of landscapers in northern climates?

Fire right back I look forward to contributing to this from a marketing perspective.

Any snowmobilers out there from MN?

Collin

[Stonehenge]

I would say no to newspapers.

I hate yellow pages, but still feel they are a necessary evil.

Never considered email - I get about 100 spam emails a day, so I can't imagine giving any consideration to an email offer.

Door hangers work well for us. We have certain criteria (simple stuff, really) for what houses we hang them on, but we get 5-6% response rate, 50-70% close rate on those.

Non-mainstream, 'guerilla' marketing can work well. Get versed in press releases, write a few articles, build yourself a brand.

Best of luck next spring!

[Mac]

look into permission marketing. Any time you can dialogue with the prospect, your message will be much better received.

I always under promise and over deliver. They are guaranteed to be delighted this way. They are guaranteed to be ticked if you switch it.

Always track where your calls come from. Without this info, you have no idea where your work is coming from and therefore will have no idea how to get more work.

[VoodooChile]

I think your advertising has to be tailored to the services you intend to provide, and what your target markets are.

For instance, if you plan to "mow and go" then dropping a simple flyer in the neighborhoods you are targeting a few weeks before the grass begins to grow should get the phones ringing.

If you are aspiring to be a full-service company, then you are gonna have to create plenty of top-of-mind awareness before Mrs. Moneybags calls about her pond/paver/poodle-proof garden...and top-of-mind awareness will entail the yellow-pages, truck-signs, flyers/hangers, job-site signs, a website...the full-monty...and that justs gets you at the kitchen table, not working on the property.

Advertising has to reflect a business plan, or you are shooting at ducks in the dark.

So...What services will you provide? Who are your potential clients? How competitive is your niche? What means do you have at your disposal (portifolio, knowledge base, experience) to convince a potential client that you are the man?

Good luck with the start-up!

[NCSULandscaper]

Best advertising for me is direct mailing, newspaper ad, and being a member of the chamber of commerce and advertising in their newsletter............ever since i have done all 3 of these combined, we grew 3 times the size as we were last year.

[Rob Shauger]

VooDoo has the best advice I have seen in a while. Can you answer any of his questions?

[cjwittnebel]

Thanks for the info and insights.. Stonehenge, your response rates and close rates are very good from what I can tell, again I don't have experience marketing in this industry but I can tell you that I don't see response rates like that even when selling lower ticket items in my current gig.. Koodoos to you - you must be one hell of a salesman!

I agree with Voodoo's point on tailoring a marketing plan to what services I will be offering. I will be offering Patios, Walls, Shrub, sod and grading work to start and hope to pick ponds up in year two along with irrigation. So to start I plan to use direct mail and newspaper ads, and I will even try the door hangers since I have heard of great results. Definately not going with yeller pages!

In your paper ads and direct mail/door hangers, what calls to action have been most successful in your advertising?

Thanks
Collin

[Rob Shauger]

Collin, at least make sure you have an inline phone number or small ad in the YP. I advertised a small ad in the YP and when I yanked it and they yanked my number, so my number wasnt even in for a year.

IN my market no one does the newspaper. Its such a monopoly here with the local paper and the prices are rediculous. The only ones doing it are Nurserys.

I have had some good luck with combinations, like Cable TV along with Postcards and Doorhangers all at the same time. You can buy cable pretty cheap.

[cjwittnebel]

Rob, I'll look into the line listing in the yellow pages.. How about marketing to real estate agents to set up referrals in both directions, any luck there?

[Rob Shauger]

Collin,

Are you just starting out?

I would suggest getting involved with a local trade association and start networking with others. Find out what others in your market are doing.

What part of Minn are you from? I may have a guy I can hook you up with!

[cjwittnebel]

Hi Rob, thanks--
I am going to a show this weekend and another next weekend. I also need to get into the MN landscape assoc although they apparently require a few years of experience to become a member, doesn't mean I can't network with some of them. My lawyer is also offering some networking opps, although none of those have actually happened as of yet. I am from the Minneapolis area, western suburbs. Yeah, I would definately take you up on that offer!
Thanks,
Collin

[Rob Shauger]

Shoot me your email address and a cell number. My contact out ther is going to the show as well I believe. He runs an irrigation company and has a Christmas Decor Franchise and he is on smart cookie. I will hook you guys up.

Get involved Collin, and get with this lawyer and make him work for you a little as far as the networking goes!!!

[cjwittnebel]

Rob, thanks - check your PM for my phone and email.. To answer your previous question, yes I am starting the business officially this week with all the legal stuff.

[concept]

one of the most expensive parts of a start up is (lead generation).
We have a landscape company,Weed man franchise,&Christmas decor franchise. It depends on what service we are marketing for on how we advertise&market. Door hangers,Door knocking,Direct mail,Flyers, Newspapers, Telemarketing, Telemarketing by appointment,Job signs,Inhouse seasonal promotions,Referal program,Networking,Trade shows Cross marketing.
We have done most and some cost more than others, and some have to be done at certain times of the year.
Sales hid all sins. But you have to start with a (lead) and never let go of it. 60% of all buyers that dont decide at first will do so with someone else in the first year.

[pineapple]

I found some books written by Marsha Yudkin, which are pretty good on these topics. She has a website also.

http://www.yudkin.com/