Newspaper Classified Ads

[MAllenT]

Anyone using classified ads?? What do you guys think of this one that I'm running starting July 1st? I'll track and post some results at the end of the July run, but in the meantime if you think I could change it & make it better please let me know. Beat The Heat Leave The Mowing To Us! ABC Lawn Mowing Service Affordable, Dependable, Insured Residential, Commercial FREE ESTIMATE (XXX) XXX-XXXX The problem with classifieds in my area is that the price goes up dramatically when you have more than 20 words in the ad, bummer. In case you've not guessed, ABC Lawn Mowing Service is not my real company name and (XXX) XXX-XXX is not my real phone number, LOL. If you're running an ad in the classifieds post it here!!

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Last edited by MAllenT; 06-28-2010 at 01:16 PM.

[Steve]

Lawn care business tips

I like the ad a lot. You are using the heat as a marketing angle. Have you considered taking out the company name in the ad? I think you could take it out and people would still call. Maybe that would say you some money. What's your thought on that?

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[MAllenT]

Originally Posted by Steve

I like the ad a lot. You are using the heat as a marketing angle. Have you considered taking out the company name in the ad? I think you could take it out and people would still call. Maybe that would say you some money.

What's your thought on that?

I didn't think of that but now that I do I see both good and bad in it. Good is that it would save some money on the ad, but the bad part is that it would cost in lost name recognition. One of the keys to effect adverts is being consistant, keeping the name in front of the public. I'm using this same advert angle on my door hangers & flyers.

Comon guys, isn't anyone else out there using classifieds? Let's see'um!!

[jymie]

Honestly, I have not had any real success with classifieds in print publications. Most of my responses has come from:

1. online free classified sites - no limit to size (craigslist, backpage, google search for others)
   
2. door to door advertising around properties I already have
   
3. existing customer referals

I have found that print advertising is becoming obsolete. Internet advertising is where its at since that is where everyone else is searching for everything. Google maps has gotten me a lot of inquiries and was the best move I have made for the business. I tripled my customer base this year alone on google maps. If I triple again next year, I will be looking into expanding my work force.

Originally Posted by MAllenT

I didn't think of that but now that I do I see both good and bad in it. Good is that it would save some money on the ad, but the bad part is that it would cost in lost name recognition. One of the keys to effect adverts is being consistant, keeping the name in front of the public. I'm using this same advert angle on my door hangers & flyers.

Comon guys, isn't anyone else out there using classifieds? Let's see'um!!

[Steve]

The thing I wonder is this.

How important is brand building when a business is small versus simply getting customers?

If extra lines cost money, is it worthwhile to save that money and use it elsewhere?

I was looking up other classified ads on here and we had a discussion on one that said

When your leaves Fall
Give us a call
555-1234
10% off fall yard cleanups by 10/15/09

Something short, sweet and to the point.

There was another discussion on it here
http://www.gopherforum.com/showthread.php?t=6601

Here is another potential classified ad from my blog discussion.

How a lawn care business should write a classified ad.

FREE LAWN MOWING
I will mow your lawn for free.
Find out how! Call now!!
xxx-xxx-xxxx

Free always seems to be the key word in advertising that stops a reader dead in their tracks. If you ran an ad like this, you would most certainly get more calls than the one above. With this ad you could have a promotion where if a lawn care customer signed up with you for an annual contract, they could get 1 or 2 free mowings throughout the year.

The customer would benefit because they would be getting something they could use for free. You would benefit because you would get a lawn care customer that would generate revenue all year long.

[MAllenT]

I like them both & I'm sure they will both work.

[Steve]

I am glad you liked them. I wanted to throw a few more ideas out there. Keep us posted on how your ad works out. I love hearing the updates.

[MAllenT]

Steve I have a question for you about the mow for free ad. This ad invites the reader to call and find out how to get the lawn mowed for free, so what do you say to the caller? Seems like it would be inportant to say something that gets you to the property so that you can give an estimate, right? So what would you say? I'll be the prospective customer,

"Hi, I was calling about the ad in the paper that says I can get my lawn mowed for free. How can I do that?"

[Steve]

How about something like this?

Hello, can I get your address so I can see if you live within my service area?

Great you do. What time would be best for me to stop by and give you an estimate? I offer two free lawn cuts throughout the year when you have me service your property.

[MAllenT]

I tested the ad and it works. I got a call on it today and am meeting with the client tomorrow to look over the lawn. This one called on the ad because her mower is broke, her husband is working a lot of overtime and does not want to mow anyway. She said the lawn is a bit out of control and is fairly overgrown. We'll see what happens but so far so good!