K.I.S.S...keep it simple stupid. It's an acronym you've probably heard or even told yourself at one point to never over complicate things and keep it simple. This adage can hold true for many things in life including marketing techniques to enhance your tree service company.
Effective tree service marketing campaigns need not be complicated nor fancy to build your brand and business. If you've feared marketing in the past then you're not alone. Countless business are bombarded with so many marketing channels, tools and options that they often get confused or lost as to what they should be doing. So let's review how you keep your tree service marketing simplified and still continue to grow.
Certification: Are you just cutting trees down to make some money or are you an actual tree service business? It's no secret the tree service industry has problems - too many individuals without training or certifications trying to pass themselves off as professionals. If you're in this business because you love trees, the outdoors, you love the work and you want to grow your business to serve customers better. Then you probably have the desire, willpower and smarts to know, that getting certified as an arborist is the best thing you can do. There is no other piece of marketing that you can do that will give you this instant credibility. Certifications should be displayed prominently throughout all other marketing and branding efforts. If you're serious about being a professional tree service then certification is the first step in getting your tree service off the ground.
Reputation First: Before you do anything else with marketing, make sure your reputation is intact. Your brand is your reputation and your reputation is your brand. If you don't have a solid reputation, 4-5 stars on Google, then marketing isn't for you yet. Marketing isn't going to help you if your reputation is in the toilet, it will only be useful after you've cleaned yourself up and established a quality reputation. To learn more about automating the process of building an online reputation visit us here.
Simplify The Process: Have a consistent sales process in place. Your marketing/marketing company could get you all the leads in the world but with no sales process in place to lead customers them through the complete cycle, most leads will fall through the cracks. This leaky sales funnel puts you in the blame mindset where you continue to blame the marketing team for giving you bad leads. It continues year after year until you learn that simple little things like how you answer the phone can make a huge difference in the success rate in closing customers. Even in this day and age there are tree services that don't answer their phone when a potential customers calls. It doesn't matter if you're the sole owner who's fifty feet up in a tree cutting limbs when they call. You need to take that call so you can book your next job. So, what's the solution? Stop taking the blame mindset of..."it's not our fault the customer didn't leave a voice message, the lead was just bad."
The Right Partners: Unless you're fortunate enough to have an in-house marketing master then you have to outsource your marketing or heaven forbid, attempt it yourself. Marketers are very good at what they do but not every marketing company will be a fit for your tree service business. Marketing companies usually specialize in specific industries and techniques, just as you may specialize in a particular area. Working with a marketing partner that specializes in working with tree service business owners means more traction right away. They won't be reinventing the wheel when trying to get you leads and usually have processes in place and systems to use that can help you grow your business.
Don't be a follower: Let's throw more money into something that doesn’t work because it’s all the rage at the moment. That is the mentality of most businesses. Just because social media is cheap and everyone seems to be doing it, doesn't mean it's the right choice for your business. Getting 1000 followers is a great confidence booster but if it doesn't generate any leads for you, your time and effort might be best put forth somewhere else. If you wake up and say "That email series we sent out got a lot of opens but no one called us - we should keep doing it", then perhaps it's time to try something else. Doing marketing that gets you those leads is what you should be doing, not what everyone else is doing. But then again, will it matter if you rank on the first page of Google in your town if no one can get you on the phone when they call? 
Lead Generation Sites: Lead generation sites are great for some businesses but not all will be the right fit for you. With some of the lead gen. sites, the lead will be sent out to multiple contractors. Not a problem if you get back to the homeowner right away and you have all your ducks in a row. However, it is a problem if you don't return their call until the next day... by then the opportunity will be lost. Other lead gen. sites specific to the tree care industry might be a better fit for you if you're interested in getting exclusive leads within a specific geographic area.
Staying Consist: Never stop marketing. When you start to see results from your marketing activity it doesn't mean you should slow down or stop doing it. Having jobs booked for the next two months is a good problem to have. Most businesses make the mistake to invest in marketing only in slow times or when they desperately need it. Your business is going to have to fight hard all the time if you want to stand out from your competition.
