What are some of the top mistakes companies make when it comes to marketing their business? Actually, a lot of your marketing plan is not aligned carefully with your business objectives and operational capabilities.
PROBLEM # ONE- Lack of Focus on the whole marketing objective; I once had a client tell me….I have a great marketing campaign in place; I get so many leads in a day I cannot keep up with them. I said that is great; what is your strategy and he replied, what do you mean? His own response told me immediately what the problem was.
Here are the ‘Top Six Marketing Blunders’ Landscape Companies sometimes make with their marketing strategies:
Mistake One- Targeting Everybody. This means you interest nobody. Know who your best prospect is, understand him or her thoroughly, and speak to them directly.
Mistake Two- Do not over-sell yourself. Talking about You is fine, but do in a way that interests the customer. Remember; in general, people don’t care about you; they care about what you can do for them. Focus on benefits, possibilities, and opportunities for your prospect.
Mistake Three- Not Having an Up-to-Date Website (or no web presence at all)
A well-designed and current website will make the best first impression on prospects. If potential clients cannot find you on the web, your prospects will often go & buy elsewhere.
Mistake Four- Not Having professional-looking proposals and presentations. This is where the rubber meets the road, and many landscape contractors lose projects they should have won. A great presentation will not win a job by itself, but a bad one will lose the job. Good proposals and presentations tell a story. Without it, the customer will assume that landscaper “A” is different from landscaper “B” only on price. Your prospects want a reason to choose, and a winning presentation and value proposition will give it to them.
Mistake Five- Lack of follow-up. I often see landscape companies spend money on marketing and cannot keep up with them or do not follow up promptly. The same goes for post-meeting follow-up; it is imperative to return an estimate to a client with a reasonable amount of time. Remember, a responsive company shows that they care about the client and values their time as you expect the client to value yours.
Mistake Six- Marketing can over-sell capabilities if you are not careful. Make sure you have the resources to complete what you sell.
Always remember; the best marketing is always ‘word of mouth.’ The best sources of new customers are former customers. In today’s online world, you must be creative in your marketing approach. Do everything possible to make every customer want to send you referrals. Remember, while you are in a service business, communication about your business will potentially carry you from one job to another. In the end, you do not have to have rich to do successful marketing; just smart in how you do it!.
Looking for a good book on the subject, suggested reading;
- The Visionary Leader: How to inspire success from the top down.
- Susan Bagyura (Author), Michael E. Gerber (Foreword), Fiona Dempsey (Illustrator)
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