Getting a Feel of your competitors

[turf&tree]

In marketing terms it is called "secret shopper". I did it with all of the fert companies when I started my company. I had no idea what to charge for fert. I now meet with fellow lawn care company owners and we discuss what we charge. I also figured out what I need to make. So yes secret shopping does happen every hour of every day!

[Tom53]

Lawn care business tips

Originally Posted by Steve In the bigger picture, if a new lawn care business owner starts getting a feeling this is going on, what should they do? Should they wrap up the discussion or just play along with it? Should they start asking the other person questions too, to start feeling them out? Is this a problem new lawn care business owners should be worried about? Is there anything bad that can come from this? This kind of problem is not limited to lawn care and landscaping. It is a problem in every line of work. People will be people! Several ways to deal with it. Take the high road and move on is one good one, BUT that can still eat away at you inside and make you resentful. Remember this trash talking is really not about you, it is about the guy doing it. Why does he do it? Any number of reasons. He may honestly be struggling to take care of a family, who have some extreme or life threatening issue. (Possible but not likely) Then again, he may just think he deserves to have all the money because of greed. (More likely) He may also just be jealous of your level of work and feels pressured by that. His resentments toward you may be eating him up inside and that could mean you are driving him nuts! So you may be one step up on him and not even realize it! You just need to make sure and keep your integrity intact however you handle it. No need to stoop to his level. Just make your work stands out more and you will have the pride of knowing that, and the rest of the public will also soon be very aware of it. Good Luck.

[turf&tree]

I honestly don't worry about the competition. I base my relationships with customers on the fact that I am educated in this field. I didn't just get laid off from the factory. I have been doing this all of my life. I love telling clients about new products and techniques. If the customer mentions my competitor, I kind of ignore it or say I don't know of them. I do not slam anyone, and hope they would not slam me. I have had guys at trade shows or landscaper meetings try and get into my head about pricing and everything else. I want to help them, but don't give up all my secrets to the locals. I will chime in on forums like this one though.
Jim

[Steve]

I honestly don't worry about the competition. I base my relationships with customers on the fact that I am educated in this field. I didn't just get laid off from the factory.

This is a very interesting point I haven't heard brought up.

How important do you think it is to point something like this out with a new customer? Do you feel it helps get them to think that another competitor may have just gotten laid off and doesn't know what they are doing?

Also, do you find this is more important with certain services over others?