I’ve received quite a few emails the other day about my last message where I talked about surviving IF we are in a recession.  A lot people were telling me how tough it’s been and how difficult they anticipate it will be this upcoming year. 

You’ve got the drought we’re experiencing down here in the Southeast, the housing market collapse in CA, NY, FL, and other areas, plus the rising gas prices all over the county and it sure looks like it’s going to be a tough year. 

The biggest complaint I got from most people was that they really aren’t sure how they’re going to compete, especially when there are so many LCO’s out there willing to cut their prices just to get a job.

Well, whatever you do, DON’T PLAY THE PRICE GAME!

Competing on price is the absolute WORST mistake you could ever make.  First, people don’t value you or the service you provide and they’ll gladly drop you at a moments notice at the first sign of a cheaper alternative.

Second, these people won’t respect you.  If your customers are of the mindset they can find someone else to do the same job, without any regard to the quality of service or the ‘extras’ you provide, then they’re not customers you want to keep anyway.

You see, you want to build a solid business of customers who respect you, value your expertise, and are willing to pay extra for the quality service you provide.

So how do you make that happen?

Well, the first thing you need to do is target the right prospects.  Don’t waste your time with prospects that can’t afford your services or will want to dicker with every line item on the invoice.  Focus your attention and resources on prospects that you know will appreciate the things you can provide for them.

Second, focus your marketing on the benefits your service offers.  Business is really a value proposition.  Your customer needs or wants something and you have a solution that fits their need or want.  The one they choose to go with is the one that provides them with the best value for their hard earned money.

Now, for a great many prospects the real value isn’t just in the price.  In fact, many people would much rather pay MORE if it means there will be ZERO headaches or problems.  And given the current marketplace, your customers might be super-sensitive to this value proposition so it’s VITAL to provide more value than they expect to receive so concentrate on providing the absolute BEST value for their money.

Third, focus on building relationships.  Solid, legitimate relationships that involve people.  Take the transaction out of it and focus on the people on the other end of the line.  Sure, you still need to provide a service and they still need to pay you for it, but everything else should be genuine and real.

Fourth, focus your marketing efforts on relationship type activities.  Everyone knows word-of-mouth marketing is the BEST form of advertising available so spend some serious time creating and implementing programs that will stimulate a decent amount of referrals with both existing customers and joint venture partners. 

Now, there’s no doubt this could be a challenging 2008.  However, if you’re prepared and understand what you need to do in order to not just survive, but THRIVE, you shouldn’t have any trouble making 2008 your best year yet!

One of the BEST ways to engage your prospects and customers and to stand ABOVE the crowd is to engage your personality in all your marketing efforts. If you don’t, you easily get lost in the crowd and are losing countless new customers.Here’s a post from one of the many blogs I read. This chics a copywriter (someone that writes sales letter, ads, etc.) and she really knows what she’s talking about.

And it doesn’t matter that you’re in the Green Industry! Injecting personality into your business NO MATTER the industry is CRITICAL to standing out in today’s competitive marketplace.

clipped from kickasscopyw.setupmyblog.com Are you getting and keeping customers the way you’d like to? � Are you making yourself the star in your own show?� If you, the business owner or CEO, are not the STAR … you’re not getting and keeping all of the customers you should be. What do I mean by that?� I mean that you should be selling YOU … not your products or services! Let’s face it, most of the time there aren’t that many real differences between one product and another.� One dentist is about the same as another.��And one automobile does pretty much the same thing as the others do …they all run on some kind of fuel, have 4 tires, windows and doors, yes? So, the thing that sets one product or service apart from the rest is YOU.� Have you developed a unique character that folks will really like, trust or find amusing? Are you a bit edgy?� Are you funny?� Do you have some kind of quirk that your customers would be drawn to – IF they knew about it? People Buy From You Because of YOU!

So, have you heard the rumors swirling around lately?  You know, the ones about how we’re either headed for or are already caught up in a recession?

Well, regardless of which it is, one thing is definitely true and that’s the fact that it’s becoming increasingly important to change the way you market your business.

You see, even if we’re weren’t fighting a recession, the consumer is gaining control of the communication channels thanks to things like DVR’s, satellite radio, the national Do Not Call List, caller ID, spam blockers, and even pop-up blockers.  Advertisers can no longer simply blast out their message willy-nilly and expect to get good results.

Now, if we are in fact going into a recession, I promise, there will still be PLENTY of people looking to spend money on lawn care and landscaping services.  However, extracting money out of the pockets of your customers and prospects will require a different approach.

These two factors, the difficult economy and the change in control over the conversation, mean the companies that learn how to develop relationships and provide real value are the ones that will not only survive, but ultimately thrive.

So, as I always try to do, let me give you a few suggestions to help you combat these challenges:

First, stop using copycat and image type advertising.  Instead, use powerful, attention grabbing direct response marketing that IMMEDIATELY conveys benefits and starts the relationship building process.

Second, stop trying to simply sell your services and instead become a trusted resource for your prospects and clients.  Provide them the tools, information, and resources they need to make informed, educated decisions.

Third, start focusing on developing relationships with your existing customers and partners that can help you grow your business.  As I mentioned in last month’s Champion’s Circle teleseminar, as more and more people start using social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, your customers will be talking to their friends, family, and neighbors about the things going on in their life.  If you work to develop a legitimate relationship, these conversations will include you and the valuable service you provide.

Don’t think so?  Take a look at how fast social networking sites are growing with people OLDER than 30 years of age.  Over 50% of MySpace’s users are 34+ and for Facebook, it’s almost an identical story.  Heck, there are over 100K users on Facebook that are older than 64!

So, if you want to not just survive these tough economic times, but absolutely THRIVE, the time to begin changing how your market your services and interact with your prospects and customers is RIGHT NOW.

If you’re not at all sure how to make this happen, be sure to check out the Lawn Care Champion’s Circle.  It’s basically a constantly growing resource of education, insight, ready-to-implement templates, and tools to help you create marketing campaigns to grow your business in the business environment.

If you haven’t already checked out everything you get with a membership to the Champion’s Circle, you can get all the details right here:

www.LawnCareChampionsCircle.com

So until next time, keep your marketing magical!

One of the hardest parts about creating powerful marketing systems is knowing how much to spend and what your potential ROI is.  Well, the next time you need to figure out your costs and potential ROI, head over HERE to this nifty online calculator.

This nifty ROI Calculator is courtesy of BoomInk.

Well, I’m sitting here looking out the window this morning at maybe 1½ inches of snow on the ground this morning and by all accounts on the local TV and radio stations, you’d think the world was coming to an end.  Schools are either canceled or on multiple hour delays.  Businesses are going to be opening late and employees are being told to sleep in.  And everyone’s being told to not venture out, at least not until it warms up just a bit.

Now, I personally find all this VERY funny.  You see, as a kid I lived in North Dakota for 11 years and I graduated from high school in Gillette, Wyoming.  So to say I’m used to cold, snow, and ice would be a bit of an understatement.

Definitely NOT the case down here in the Carolinas!

As I was thinking about all of this this morning, it made me think of what business can be like at times.  I know, I know.  How is it possible to relate a ‘snow day’ to running a business and how did my twisted mind end up there?

Well, I’m afraid I may never be able to answer the second question, but stick with me for a sec and I’ll try to answer the first.  Here goes.

Running a business is like this snow day we’re having here for a couple of reasons.  First, it seems like as soon as the weather man announces an impending storm, everyone freaks out and runs to the store to buy bread and milk.  (I have NO IDEA why bread and milk and fortunately, I don’t have a marketing analogy for that one.) 

Now, my wife and I are big fans of being prepared, so whenever a storm is on its way, we MAY stop by the store to replenish a few items, but it’s not the mad rush most everyone else makes.

Here’s how this relates to running a business.  It’s a given there will be storms at some point.  It could be with operations, finances, HR, market changes, etc.  But regardless, there WILL be some storms and the better prepared you are, the better you’ll be able to ride out the ‘snow days’.

Second, one of the reasons why even the tiniest amount of snow causes closings and delays is because people aren’t accustomed to driving on snow and ice.  Now, as you probably know, it’s really not that different or difficult, but it does require a bit of knowledge just in case you hit a slick spot or start spinning out.  Again, it’s not rocket science, but not knowing how to handle a situation could make for a hairy situation.

So, in terms of your business, it’s important to learn and study as much as possible the different aspects of what it takes to be successful so when difficult situations arise, you’ll have the knowledge necessary to get through it.  In many cases however, you don’t realize you need the knowledge until it’s too late.  Well, don’t get caught in the trap of thinking everything hunky-dory because you never know when the next ‘winter storm’ might be just around the corner.

On last night’s Champion’s Circle tele-seminar I talked about the changing dynamic with the way the world interacts.  Consumers are so bombarded with advertising messages, but thanks to new technologies, they also have control over which messages they listen to. 

As a result, they’re filtering out those messages they don’t want to hear and are only paying attention to a small few.  And in most cases those few are because of a recommendation by a friend or peer.

This change could be likened to the ‘snowstorm’ we’ve experienced here and if you’re prepared, it shouldn’t be a big deal.  However, if you’re like most people and fail to prepare yourself you could find yourself stuck inside scared to go out.  Don’t let this happen to you!

Anyway, sorry for the long rant this morning but I think the snow had something to do with it.  Even though I don’t miss the long ND or WY winters, I do love a good snow storm so I’m sure that had something to do with my burst of creativity.

Well, I’m off to go shovel some snow.