7 Tips on How to Advertise Lawn Care to Attract and Retain the Best Customers

When researching how to get more lawn care customers, it pays to target your lawn care advertising to get the best customers and the best return on your investment. There are many kinds of landscaping businesses and your lawn care marketing should reflect your specific expertise and interest.  

The landscaping business includes over 100,000 small businesses with one to four employees¹, providing lawn care and landscaping maintenance for single family residential properties. Maintenance is often the most profitable area of lawn service and tree service. Although some residents enjoy doing their own lawn care, most people turn to a landscaping business or otherwise outsource lawn care to some extent. This can include lawn service and maintenance; fertilizer, mulch, or pesticide work; and arborist, shrub or tree service.  When you plan how to advertise your lawn care business, keep these factors in mind:

1. Clock Out Earlier with Referrals

Referrals within lawn care tend to occur among neighbors and neighborhoods, meaning less travel-time and less gas expense for your small business. Encourage reviews on social media and referrals among neighbors with in-person requests and customized giveaways (see below for our product recommendations). 

2. Neighborhood Marketing

Leave fliers, door hangers, and other customized marketing pieces at homes and on community bulletin boards within your target neighborhoods. Customize your promotional pieces to include specific neighborhoods you service. Tip: For more on door hangers and door-to-door marketing tips, see our blog, Hit the Streets: Door-to-Door Marketing Tips to Increase Brand Awareness.

3. Keep It Personal

If you’re a small business providing landscaping services, leverage your small size in your lawn care advertising. Customers like to know you’re part of their community, including family, friends, and hobbies. Include a photo of your team in your lawn care marketing materials. 

4. Be Specific

Let potential customers know what they can count on you for. This will increase happy clients, lower your investment in various tools and supplies, and increase your team’s expertise and satisfaction.  

• One Specialty or Many: If your lawn care business can take care of any kind of landscaping needs, from planting to tree trimming to pest control, include this in your lawn care marketing materials.  If you only do maintenance, lead with that.
• Arborist Inclinations: If you specialize in indigenous plants or drought tolerant landscaping, lead with this in your marketing.
• Sustainability: Promote any sustainable practices including water recycling, organic or natural fertilizers or pest control, or limited to zero use of those gas guzzling, noise polluting leaf blowers.
• Technology: Many homeowners haven’t mastered their newfangled drip irrigation or their old, temperamental sprinkler systems. If you’re handy with an outdated sprinkler control panel, sing it from the rooftops (and in your fliers).

5. Let Them Pay Their Way

Provide ways to pay that work for your customers. Accepts as many forms of payment as you can, including checks, cash, and online payment options like Venmo® or Paypal®.  

6. Little Things

Leave hoses organized and gates closed. Keep your truck and tools organized so your customers can see you take care of them like you take care of your business.   

7. Reliable Service = Recurring Revenue

It’s easier to keep a customer than chase a new one. Take small steps to ensure happy customers who stick around.   

• Stick to a Schedule: Give your clients a heads-up the day before you come in case they need to move garbage cans or otherwise get ready for you.
• Tech-Friendly Contact: Make it easy for customers and prospects to contact you via phone, text, or email. When it comes to services at home, customers appreciate the personal touch of direct access to you or your team.
• Team They Can Trust: Hire team members with attention to detail and pride in their work.

How to Advertise Lawn Care with Promotional Gifts

Leave customers and prospects with high visibility gifts that will keep your name top of mind and your number within reach. We like magnetic calendars, magnetic note pads, promotional pens, and custom sticky notes, and planter kits. Consider these: 

Design Wrap Monthly Magnetic Calendar: Great for direct mail and holiday giving, and a great way to deliver year-round brand visibility. 

Magnetic Note Pad: Keep your name on the fridge and filing cabinet with this note pad that goes anywhere. 

Eco-Friendly Bamboo Arlington Pen: Of course, a pen made of bamboo brings home the point: plants are good for everyone and everything!  

Design Wrap Color Accent Contour Pen: Enjoy lots of imprint space and design templates to sell your unique services on this bright, affordable, comfortable pen.  

CoCo Planter Kit: A charming nod to the passion for plants you and your customers share.  

Get More Lawn Care Customers You’ll Love

Being outdoors is more popular than ever, and supporting small businesses like your landscaping service is something customers can get behind. Assume your customers are looking for you. Make it easy for them to find you with clear advertising that speaks to your specialties; encourage reviews and referrals; and pursue inexpensive, local marketing like fliers, door hangers, and community bulletin boards. Cheers to a greener, cleaner, more peaceful landscape.  

Sources:  

1. https://www.taradel.com/blog/Amazing-facts-and-statistics-about-the-landscaping-industry-blogpost362