7 Proven Ways to Market Your Landscaping Business

Running a successful landscaping business can be a challenging task. While you’re dealing with ever-evolving government regulations and red tape, you have to try and find, train, and maintain a field staff that often requires on-demand help. If you manage to tame these beasts, you still have to fend off fly-by-night companies that operate below the radar, driving down prices and professionalism.

An established landscaping business can do quite well for itself, but getting there can be difficult. You need proven landscaping marketing ideas that cut through the clutter to place your brand in front of potential buyers. Some of these tactics may surprise you. That’s because frequently, the most common strategies are the worst performers. To rise above the noise, you need proven tactics that take the path less traveled.

Here are seven of our favorite landscaping marketing ideas.

LEVERAGE THE POWER OF HANDWRITTEN NOTES

For many, this tactic is the most unfamiliar entry on the list. Not coincidentally, it’s also one of the most effective. That’s because the rarity of handwritten notes in the modern world makes them such an effective way to deliver marketing messages. When someone gets a handwritten envelope in the mail, their curiosity always gets the better of them — they open it.

In fact, handwritten direct mail enjoys a 99% open rate. This is better than standard direct mail, email, PPC, etc. — no other marketing tactic comes close to such a stellar performance.

Additionally, handwritten marketing pieces feel immensely personal, as if someone at the company were writing to speak directly with each consumer. These cards have the capacity to build an instant rapport, dramatically increasing response rates relative to standard printed mailers.

Best of all, you can send out hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of handwritten mailers without ever having to lift a pen. Simply Noted’s fleet of advanced handwriting robots allows you to send out handwritten marketing campaigns as easily as email. Your prospects won’t be able to tell your handwritten cards weren’t written by a person. Our AI-powered smart fonts ensure a thoroughly convincing handwriting experience. They’re indistinguishable from the real thing!

How can you use them? In all sorts of ways.

Handwritten “notes from the owner” introducing your company are a great way to get the word out in your service areas.
Send personalized notes to existing customers occasionally with a request for referrals.
Handwritten thank-you notes mailed automatically after a service call are excellent for customer retention.

Women looking at web content and taking notes.

LET YOUR CONTENT DO THE SELLING

Landscaping is a complicated field. Each region has its own set of ideal plants, growing conditions, seasonal requirements, drainage needs, and a host of other factors. It’s a lot for homeowners to keep track of, which presents an opportunity for savvy landscaping businesses.

If you’re looking for landscaping marketing ideas, you don’t have to look any further than your immense landscaping knowledge. You have information that homeowners crave, and if you help them, they’ll reward you with their business. This is the start of content marketing.

Create informational flyers and distribute them in your local service area. Checklists. Hardiness zone charts. Care instructions. The sky’s the limit. Even better, start an online newsletter and use it to share data on local plants, design ideas, seasonal maintenance reminders, and more. Look for opportunities to get your brand in front of local eyeballs by providing information they’re looking for.

START A LANDSCAPING BLOG

You can give your content marketing efforts a massive shot in the arm by attaching a landscaping blog to your website. Why? Search engines like Google love information. They use it to answer search queries. The more you can include relevant, interesting information on your website, the more often your site will come up in answer to someone’s question. That means more free, organic website traffic and extra leads.

Try adding posts regularly, exploring every topic you can think of that would be relevant to your audience. You can talk about landscaping challenges (and offer the solution,) local plant requirements, proper maintenance procedures, relevant holiday topics, and more. Remember that you’re trying to answer questions your prospects might have. The more answers your website contains, the more profitable your blog can be.

Woman getting a credit card out of her wallet.

ADVERTISE A PRE-PAYMENT DISCOUNT

Cash flow is often a challenge for landscaping businesses. You have a lot of expenses that can become onerous customers don’t pay on time. It’s often helpful to advertise a discount for payments made when the contract is signed. You’ll have better control of your company finances the more you can create regular service calls that are paid for ahead of time.

USE PPC’S HYPER-LOCAL TARGETING CAPABILITIES

With PPC (pay-per-click) advertising, you can target particular geographic regions. This is helpful to businesses like local landscaping companies because it means you can target your ads directly at areas where you want to grow.

But geographic targeting is only the beginning. Using PPC on services like Google or Facebook, you can define very specific demographic fences to spend your ad dollars as efficiently as possible.

HIRE A PHOTOGRAPHER TO TRICK OUT YOUR INSTAGRAM FEED

If you don’t already have an Instagram for Business account, open one. Beautiful landscaping designs make for lovely photos, and compelling images are great for spreading the word about your talents on Instagram.

Or course, you could take photos yourself, but if you don’t have an eye for composition and lighting, your results might not be as effective as they could be. After all, you want people to share your stunning displays. It’s worth investing in a skilled photographer to get the most bang for your Instagram buck.

GET OUT INTO YOUR COMMUNITY

People are drawn to things they recognize. If they’re trying to pick between several options, the ones they’ve seen before will fare better. And the more familiar they are with a given option, the more likely they are to choose it.

For that reason, it’s good to sponsor local events. Also, frequent local home and garden shows and talk with attendees. Let them know what you do and how you can help them. Listen to their challenges and offer honest, practical feedback. In short, create relationships in your local community. Some of them might not be looking for a landscaping company now but may in the future. When they do, they’ll choose you if they already know you.

Try any or all of these seven landscaping marketing ideas, either alone or in tandem. They’re designed with the needs of small businesses in mind. They don’t require a large investment and can supply outsized results. Good luck!