It’s hard to believe another month is getting ready to go into the books.  It seems like just yesterday the clock turned over to 2007 and here we are already, well over ¾ of the way through the year.  Unbelievable. 

At any rate, as I work to get over my disbelief, there’s no time to rest for the ‘Masters of Marketing’!  Each and every month you should be doing something to stay in touch with at least 2 key groups:

1. The target market you’ve identified and hopefully have a database of contact info for.
2. Your existing customers.

You need to do something to build some strong ‘name recognition’ with your target market and this can come in the form of postcards, flyers, letters, emails, phone calls, face-to-face visits, or any number of things.  Essentially, you want them to become familiar with you, the services you offer, and most importantly, what sets you apart from your competition.

When it comes to your existing customers, just because they keep paying the invoice each month doesn’t mean you have the right to neglect them.  In fact, it means you should be doing even more to make sure they keep paying an invoice for many, many years to come.

So, give some thought this weekend to what you can do to 1) increase your name recognition with your target market, and 2) strengthen the relationship you already have with your existing customers.  As you do, I guarantee your business will become more solid and grow at a pace that will keep you on your toes!

Have a great weekend and enjoy the upcoming Labor Day holiday!

Bookmark Me!

IF YOU’VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT A WEBSITE, NOW’S THE TIME TO ACT:

I’ve had quite a few conversations in the past few weeks with LCO’s that have been considering either getting a website or upgrading their current site. In some cases, certainly not all, the reason they haven’t done it yet is just pure procrastination.

So to help ‘push’ them off the fence here’s what I’m going to offer.

1. For anyone that purchases a Gold Level website package ($397), I’ll throw in a custom fall marketing piece, either a flyer, letter or postcard, plus a 15 minute telephone consultation to discuss any aspect of marketing your business. These bonuses are valued at $247 together.
2. For anyone that purchases a Platinum Level website package ($997), I’ll throw in a custom fall marketing sequence complete with an initial piece (flyer, letter, or postcard) and up to 3 follow-up pieces.PLUS, I’ll give you a 30 minute phone consultation to chat about any aspect of your marketing with the goal of giving you some very specific actionable steps you can take to dramatically improve the results you get. These bonuses together are valued at $597.

Now, as much as I’d love to offer this deal to everyone, I simply don’t have the time or resources to do so. As such, I can only give this to the first 5 people that are looking for a Gold Level website package, and the first 3 people that want a Platinum Level package.

If you’re not sure what’s included in each package, you can get all the details here:

www.lawncarewebdesignmagic.com

So, if you’ve been sitting on the fence, IT’S TIME TO GET OFF IT!

Bookmark Me!

As I’ve been saying for quite some time, a web site is quickly becoming a vital component of any successful marketing plan.  And now, I’m not the only one within the industry saying this.  An article appeared in the August issue of Lawn & Landscape that talks about the importance of having a website for your business.  Especially is you want to beat out your competitors!

If you haven’t already read it, you can go to their website (www.LawnandLandscape.com) and register for access.  But just in case you don’t want to jump over there, I’ve decided to reprint it here.  Of course, all credits go to Lawn & Landscape and the author Mike Zawacki.  I’m just relaying what was printed to you.

Here’s the article:

Study:  Consumers Prefer Firms With Web Savvy

Landscape contractors operating without a presence on the Web may be driving their customers to competitors who are Internet-savvy, according to a recent study.

A Web site improves the interaction between consumers and businesses, and lack of a Web site could drive business away [emphasis added], according to research conducted by 1&1 Internet in Chesterbrook, PA.

For example, more than 33% of US households surveyed agreed that lack of a Web site would lead them to shop elsewhere or select an alternative business, while 28% agreed they would have doubts about doing business with a company without a Web site [emphasis added].  In addition, consumers have become reliant on Web sites to find contact information.

For example, 76% of respondents in the study believe it is easiest to contact a business via a phone number or e-mail address provided online.

“Web sites provide a link between consumers and their purchasing experiences,” says 1&1 Chairman Andreas Gauger.

“Providing an online service is essential to keeping consumers happy and loyal,” Guager says.

Lack of an Internet initiative, though, is commonplace among green industry business owners, according to recent Lawn & Landscape research on attitudes towards business technology.

Sixty-six percent of landscape contractors do not have company Web sites, the Lawn & Landscape research found.  This frequency rises when this issue is examined based on contractor revenue.  For example, more than half of landscape firms reporting more than $500,000 in annual revenue do not have a company Web site, the data says.

Likewise, 63% of contractors who consider themselves “proactive” when it comes to business technology initiatives at their companies don’t maintain a presence on the Internet, according to the Lawn & Landscape study.

Many landscape contractors still don’t see the business potential inherent in having a presence on the Internet, says Sal Mortilla, owner of Landscaping Unlimited in Long Island, N.Y., and a vocal green-industry advocate for the adoption of more Web-based systems.

“This classic example of our industry being in the dark ages,” says Mortilla, who generates about 85% of his business leads via the Web.

-Mike Zawacki

So my question to you is, are you still stuck in the Dark Ages?

Bookmark Me!

Here’s a great post I came across today.  It has some great application to your marketing efforts.

When putting together a Marketing with Postcards strategy, a good first place to start is deciding whether the campaign will be to create awareness or create a quick direct response sale. Don’t get me wrong here, it is all about sales, but is the sale going to come about as a result of continually reinforcing the awareness of the product, or as a result of a one-time here’s-your-offer, direct response message.

The direct response strategy is for products that can be purchased more on a whim or impulse like the CD of the Month Club, a Bose Wave Radio, or candy at the check-out counter. If the customer wants that product, they will buy it now. The rule-of-thumb is that you will get 80% of responses in the first two weeks after mailing. Subsequent mailings will have half of the response rate of the prior mailing. So if you get a response rate of 4% on the first mailing, the second mailing’s response rate should be 2%.

The awareness strategy is for products with a longer sales cycle where customers need to both be at a time in their life when they need to buy, and time to think - products like life insurance, selling a home, or financial planning. The rule-of-thumb is that response rates go up over time as the awareness increases and the probability of hitting the customer at just the right time increases. Most real estate companies, for example, recommend touching prospects at least once per month - continually.

Bookmark Me!

As you no doubt already know, immigrants have become a vital cog in the machine of the green industry. Without many of these hard working and industrious people to fill the available, there would be many LCO’s out of business.

Now, I’m all for giving people the opportunity and after all, isn’t the US of A the home of opportunity? But, I am also of the belief that this opportunity needs to be given to those willing to abide by the laws of this country, including that of not coming and working here illegally.

The group over at PLANET does an excellent job of fighting for the green industry and they’re at it again. Here’s an email I received today inviting us to act and help ensure the continuation of a valuable program.

I invite you to read the email if you haven’t received it already, and then get in touch with your local congressman and/or Senator.

The exemption for repeat workers that utilize the H-2B visa program will expire on

September 30, 2007. Unless Congress acts quickly to extend the H-2B repeat-worker exemption, many in the landscape and tree care industries will be shut out of the program. Even with the exemption in place, the 33,000 cap for the first half of fiscal 2007 was reached on November 28, 2006, and the 33,000 cap for the second half of the fiscal year was reached on March 16, 2007. Without a continuation of the repeat-worker exemption, we can expect the fiscal 2008 caps to be reached far earlier.

The expected increase in enforcement actions related to the Department of Homeland Security’s “Social Security No-Match Rule” could drive additional employers to attempt to

use the H-2B program. These additional H-2B applications will put an increased strain on a program that is already overburdened by the arbitrarily low cap. At a minimum, Congress must provide a lasting extension for the H-2B returning-worker exemption so that employers in the landscape and tree care industries can utilize the only source of legal seasonal labor available to them.

Senators and representatives are working in their home districts during the month of August. This represents a great opportunity to meet with your elected officials at home and ask for their help in addressing the problems associated with the H-2B cap. The H-2B Workforce Coalition, of which the Professional Landcare Network (PLANET) and the American Nursery & Landscape Association (ANLA) are members, designated August 20–24, 2007, as “H-2B Week.” The coalition is asking employers who use the H-2B program, as well as associations and suppliers that support those companies, to urge Congress to pass the “Save Our Small and Seasonal Businesses Act of 2007” (S. 988, H.R. 1843) before September 30.

There are several steps that state associations and your members can take to initiate the grassroots efforts that are needed to compel Congress to promptly extend the H-2B repeat-worker exemption:

1. Meet with your senators and members of Congress at home this week in their offices or at local events or town hall meetings. When possible, coordinate the meetings to include your members, their employees, suppliers, customers, and other H-2B employers in the state.
2. Encourage your members, their employees, suppliers, customers, and other H-2B employers to call and write to their elected officials.
3. Send letters to the editors of local newspapers talking about the problems associated with expiration of the H-2B repeat-worker exemption and its impact on the local community.

Both ANLA and PLANET have sample letters to Congress and other materials on their Web sites at: http://www.landcarenetwork.org/cms/legislation/h2b.html or
http://www.congressweb.com/cweb4/index.cfm?orgcode=pln and
http://capwiz.com/anla/mailapp/ or

http://capwiz.com/anla/issues/alert/?alertid=10116711.

As always, thank you very much for all you do for the green industry and for your efforts to help solve the H-2B problem.

Sincerely,

Tanya Tolpegin

Chief Executive Officer, PLANET

Bob Dolibois
Executive Vice President, ANLA