New and Frustrated

[rdean09]

I have put out business cards, flyers, used word of mouth...do you think that a newspaper ad is benefitcal. I know someone that works for a local newspaper and she said that I could run a ad like in the sports page or some other part of the paper for 65 bucks for like 32 days or something like that...do you think that would boost business, since we have onlyl recieved about 5 calls but have no accounts. However my friend has a lawn care company and he recieves calls all the time...thinking about packing it up and trying to get a job with him...please lend me some quality advice from people who have been there

[Phil Nilsson]

Well ... 09 ... this won't be easy but WILL be effective and without a lot of dough ... you can make it happen ... for yourself and gain partnerships with others thus killing two birds with one stone.

Cable TV is relatively low cost but VERY effective advertising ... (most TV is) only problem is one guy "footing the bill" ... so what about like 10 guys footing the bill?

How?

1. The ten of you or 20 of you or 50 of you or 100 of you or 1,000 of you ... and like that ... form a new and separate corporate name. An "entity" that is alive but does nothing but marketing and advertising ... that may sound like a lot of work ... but all it is a TV spot using that one name ... and a toll free number ... using an answering service ... and that's the "end" of that Corporation.

The calls come in from the TV ads run on cable ... the calls are answered by an answering service or other designated "person" (Heck it could be a disabled person for that matter who could use the money right?) who has the 800 # ... okay ... you still with me? ... then given (actually they are sales leads) to the person who has a designated territory and is entitled to those leads. This can be confirmed thru the answering services "call record log" so that everybody can be kept honest.

Yeah so what? ... well if you want to go further than just working the leads and sales and work from that ... then form more of those "smart corporations" ... back to cable ... back to that 800# ... and offer all kinds of "goodies" ... then ... work the leads ... sell the leads ... sub out that work ... or use those leads to pick your teeth ... heck It's your game right?

Advantages and why this is a $1,000,000 idea? ... cooperation with NO competition ... and first class advertising benefit and ... and ... get this part if you slept thru the above parts ... you and those corps will gain immediate "credibility" and over time will become well known ... why? ... small time nickle dime outfits who don't know "Jack" on how to promote their businesses would never think of this and so ... you become a "photo" on TV and (IMAGE) and like the man said "A picture is worth a thousand words"

Thats the answer ... now here's a question for you ...

Did you happen to see the Scotts Ads on TV selling their lawn fertilizer products like you know ... first app ... second app and etc. well I did and I'll tell you that those ads are very impressive. The best I have seen in fact!

Question two for you? ... is there any reason other than money that you don't have but that a "bunch of people have when they pool their resources" ... that you can't look just as good as a Scotts? ... go on TV and get your ball rolling in a direction that will make your wallet fat?

Or ... are you going to give me some reasons why this can't be done, won't work and all that baloney? Because 09 ... it has been done ... is being done ... and has worked ... and proven itself out ever since TV was "invented".

Have a nice day ...

[greenscapeslawncare]

New also

Hey, another new guy here. I have yet to put an ad in the paper, but hear it will work well. I am busy enough part-time already, so gonna do the ad thing here soon looking towards next year. The one thing that I did which has worked really well is to get in touch with realtors. Lots of them have rentals that need taken care of, and those rentals have provided some quick income. Spoke with the realtors also about helping create curb appeal for homes that they have listed, or as I saw Phil phrase it once, quick "Landscape Makeovers". They usually take just a couple of days, and only that long because I am doing this in the evenings after my full-time job and on the weekends, but once the realtor sees how nice the house looks all spruced up, they will use you again, and again, and refer you. I am lucky enough now to be doing "Landscape Makeovers" on million dollar homes, ones where the homeowners were too cheap to hire someone regularly, tried to do it themselves, and now realize that they are in over their heads. It is working wonderfully. They aren't big dollar jobs, but it is mostly mulching, weeding, planting some flowers, trimming some shrubs...that kind of thing, but they don't take much time at all, and these homeowners are impressed enough that they have all mentioned using me when they get into their new homes. Just my ideas, but I am sure that there are plenty more ideas from guys who have been doing this a whole lot longer than me. Good luck to you!!

[Aproct]

This time of the year it is going to be hard in picking up any new lawn accounts. The few that you may pick up, you may want to becareful with them, only because they may have been dropped by another lco for either slow pay or not paying at all, or just a PIA. What I would suggest is maybe start gearing up for the fall season and advertise for overseeding, thatching, aerating and fall clean ups.

[Woody]

Aproct:

I disagree. All the other LCO's "THINK" this is a bad time of year to pick up new customers, which leaves me as the sole company out there actively seeking them out. People move into and out of houses year round. Never fool yourself that there is some "magical" time of the year that passes by and leaves you stranded with the customers you have.

As Phil says, break the mold, and shatter the invisible "barriers". Many people have done the impossible, either because they were too stubborn to believe all the naysayers, or they were just too stupid to know that something was supposed to be impossible.

Me? I'll admit I'm stubborn. But hell, I may be stupid too.

Woody

[RRS]

We've picked up 11 new maintenance accounts since June 1. 8 basic service, and 3 yearly full service accounts. Several of them were from a round of about 200 late season door hangers put out in a neighborhood we already service, and the rest were referals or drivebys that saw us working.

[P&C Lawn Care]

Guess I have never had a problem getting new accounts (residentials I assume they are referring to), it seems like people in the neighborhood see the knock out job that is being done and know that each week they will see the same truck and trailer (showing that it is reliable). They know the property and it always looks nice and they want the same. They always seem to stop by and ask to have you give them a price for weekly service, I would say about 80 to 85% want to have us start that week. Word of mouth from existing customers and drive-by's seem to get the best results for some reason. Advertising in a cheap weekly flyer or in the endless affordable lawncare classified ad's (in my opinion) only result's in cheap paying customers (and not always long lasting customers). It takes awhile to get established, making $100k to $500K a year doesn't happen overnight, of course some people will tell you it is feasable but your chances of that happening are about 1 in a million. Door hangers work well to target the neighborhood you may want to work or in my case I target only certain housing areas and even certain properties. Why waste a door hanger on a place I don't even want to do.

[MGO]

I tried Direct Mailings in the Spring without much luck.

I ran a Credit Card size add in the local paper and that is where I picked up 90% of my accounts.

You just have to find what works. And also, it can be a tough time of year to pick up new accouints.

[Elwood]

At this point in the game, many clients that you will pick up are those who are A) tired of doing the job themselves or B) frustrated with the current company they are paying, be it poor quality or they just don't show up on time.

At any rate, new clients can be gained this time of year, but probly not as many as in the "spring rush".

Clients gained this time of year will tend to be more loyal. You are "rescuing" them from the heat/labor or poor service.

Try door to door. Leave them a flyer and do your best to give them that free estimate. Sell yourself on quality, don't be forced into beating the price of the current provider. Many price shoppers are not exactly the most honest folks at times. Cloverleaf the areas you want to work in.

Good Luck!

[BCLS]

I just started my business at the beginning of this year and I started like most small business do, passingout flyers and have so a couple more times since and I got a few calls from the fliers locally. However, about a little more than a month ago I decided to try the area paper/s. This has proved to be good, because I get more calls for estimate and work, which gives me the opprtunity to talk with the client directly and persuade them with my services regularly. The paper has brought me 1/3 the customers I have now and these accounts normally are bigger money makers. I acquired a small shopping plaza and a trucking company who just picked up the paper and saw our ad! I was like this is great!! Since, we have continued the ad and we get at least 1-3 a week either where somone is fed up with their current service, wants estimates, or calls the first ad they see.

I would recommend the paper, not that it will work the same for everyone, but you have to keep trying different medians and unitl you determine what works best for your area.

Eduardo
Bayou City Lawn Services

[rdean09]

Thanks guys all of the advice I am getting off this site is great...I wish I would have found this 2 months ago...I would have done all of this before...anyways thanks I think I am going to stick it out...because the benefits are greater than the consequences....I guess.


R&B Lawncare

[SCW]

When you guys say 'an ad in the paper' - do you mean a normal ad that goes in anywhere mixed in with the actual content of the paper...or are you placing a business size card ad in the section called 'Contractors'? Our local weekly paper has an area (about 3/4 of a page) called 'Contractors' and different headings. There's one for lawn maintenance, housekeeping, pressure washing, etc. and different companies bus card size ads are listed there. Hope my question makes sense - it's hard to describe it without seeing it.

[rdean09]

no i know what you are talking about but i was talking about an ad that is throughout the paper not in the classified ads under the title of services...aka lawn service. Although i did talk to a friend that is a manager at a tire company locally and he is going to try and get me all of the tire accounts around here (like 350 a month a piece and i think there are like 10 of them so i am keeping my fingers crossed)


R&B Lawncare