New Member From Alabama

Pardue · #1 02-13-2010, 10:46 PM

Hi! I own a full service landscape installation and irrigation company near Birmingham, AL. I have been in business for 13 years and have a commercial construction background before starting my landscape business. Due to the state of the economy and lack of new construction, we have expanded to service our customers in the lawn maintenance business. We never had time for maintenance other than a few long time contracts, but find a growing need to diversify. I am glad to be a part of this forum and hope I may be of some help to others as well as get some much needed info.

Steve · #2 02-14-2010, 06:21 AM

Lawn care business tips

Welcome to our forum!

Before you did maintenance, and had those weekly repeat customers, did you find it difficult to reach out to new potential customers?

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Pardue · #3 02-14-2010, 11:26 PM

We actually didn't have any trouble getting new customers. We did so many new construction installations and had contact with large amounts of new homeowners. Word of mouth kept us extremely busy with "back yard" work for homeowners and our builders were throwing houses up as fast as they could. We averaged 5 new construction installs a week. Throw in 2 or 3 homeowner jobs and we had all we could handle. Unfortunately those days are long gone. I find myself wishing we had taken on more maintenance back then but we really didn't need it or have the time.

Steve · #4 02-15-2010, 06:14 AM

Oh that is very interesting!

What kinds of marketing plans do you have to reach out to all these new potential customers in the Spring?

Pardue · #5 02-16-2010, 08:52 AM

I am struggling somewhat with the marketing effort. I have been hitting commercial properties pretty hard already but find that most of them have existing contracts or their own maintenance crews. I have landed 4 year contracts and have a lot of places left to hit. I am concentrating this week for instance on apartment complexes.
On the residential side, I am going to do 2000 door hangers now and again in two to three weeks. I am also in the process of setting up a website and Google Ad Words. We are running an ad in a local paper that targets 24000 households in the general area with an average household income of $125000 as well as some small ads in the bigger county papers. I hope all these things ad up to some good returns.

#6 02-16-2010, 03:47 PM

Welcome to the site and good luck in 2010

If you still have all the addresses for the jobs you did, I would send them all letters with information on the services you now offer. These people already know and trust you getting their business should be a snap.

Pardue · #7 02-16-2010, 11:09 PM

Thanks for the advice. I will definetely do that immediately. I did however have some success today. I fell back on the "not what you know but who you know theory" and went to see a friend who became Mayor of the city I grew up in, which is about 20 minutes away. They recently had a grant to put in new sidewalks around the city which doubled their maintenance work load. They also have a park with ball fields and lots of other amenities as well as some common areas around the city and a cemetery. To make a long story short, I picked up half there lawn maintenance work and a doctors office today. Good day!!!! Hope it continues.

Steve · #8 02-17-2010, 09:15 AM

That is fantastic!

How did you land the doctor's office?

Have you thought of other people you know and could contact that could help you?

Pardue · #9 02-17-2010, 11:19 PM

The doctor's office is where my parents go. They put in a word for me and I went by and talked to them and sold a landscape install for some shrubs and trees as well as the lawn maintenance. I am going to ride this wave of friends that can help until it runs out. It always helps to know someone. I sold two more annual contracts on residential yards and a complete demo and new sod job today also. I think things are starting to pick up with Spring right around the corner.

Steve · #10 02-18-2010, 07:42 AM

When you get a job like this at the doctor's office are you able to use it as a launching pad to get more customers in that immediate area? Do you talk to neighbors or mail them something or even put a lawn sign up for a short time?

What about put a business card holder in the waiting room for the patients?

New Member From Alabama

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