If landscape marketing strategies feel complex and overwhelming, you’re not alone. At Flagstone Marketing, we know that you need to focus on running your landscaping business. That’s why our staff has compiled five steps for effective digital marketing to help you outperform your competitors.
Most landscaping companies do at least one of the steps in the wrong order, though, which can severely hurt their chances of becoming the go-to landscaping company in their local market. By following our step-by-step guide, you can count on a positive online reputation and enhanced landscape leads.
Five Critical Digital Marketing Steps for Landscaping Businesses
1. Prioritize Your Google My Business Optimization
Claiming and optimizing your company’s Google My Business (GMB) listing can quickly improve your website’s traffic. The online listing provides pertinent details about your company, along with your contact information. Your customers can also find reviews, questions and answers, and more in one location.
Additionally, a solid GMB listing can help your business land a position on Google’s first page. However, a 2016 study indicated that 56% of local businesses hadn’t claimed their company’s GMB listing.
To claim your GMB, head to www.google.com/business. There, you’ll input your company’s basic contact information. Google will mail a code to your business address, which you will need to verify your account.
After verifying your company’s information, you can begin personalizing and optimizing your GMB listing. First, ensure that the information on your GMB and website are the same. Consistent information and details like a local phone number will provide a boost to your listing.
Next, get specific about your business category and company features. You can’t edit your GMB’s description, but you can provide customers with information on your company’s unique offerings through attributes. These attributes will also answer potential questions and give customers a better understanding of your services.
For more information about your Google My Business optimization, check out this separate article we wrote exploring this topic in depth.
2. Focus on Basic Website Optimization for Increased Landscape Leads
Regardless of your prior marketing experience, you’ve likely heard of search engine optimization (SEO). SEO is a relatively simple concept, but implementing it can quickly get complicated.
Don’t get overwhelmed, though. By focusing on two main aspects of SEO—keyword research and website load speed—you can improve your search engine rankings and help customers find your business.
How to Choose Your Main and Secondary Keywords
When it comes to landscape SEO, keywords create the foundation of your website’s content. Your homepage should focus on your primary keyword (i.e., “landscaping company Mountain Brook”). Your primary keyword provides a clear description of your company and the services provided.
Secondary keywords support your primary keyword and add greater detail. You can naturally build secondary keywords into your content while also letting your customers know more about your landscaping services, such as weed control, fertilization, or sod installation.
How to Improve Website Loading Speed
While your website design impacts how customers view your company, your website’s load time can make or break your search engine ranking. While you may see different load speed benchmarks, Google aims for less than a half-second loading time, while two seconds is the slowest acceptable rate.
If you’re wondering why load speed matters, The Financial Times Technology Department found that:
- A one-second delay led to an almost 5% drop in the number of pages or articles a visitor read
- A three-second delay saw a nearly 8% decrease
- Visitors read and interact less when page load times interfere with browsing
You can check your website’s load time using Google PageSpeed Insights. Take a look at your results, and then remove elements that slow down your pages, like extra plugins. Additionally, you can swap out photo and video files with optimized, compressed content for a speedier company website.
3. Generate High-Quality Reviews from Customers to Achieve Greater Social Proof
Landscape advertising has gone digital, but word-of-mouth marketing is still impactful. Your online reputation can have the same effect as a personal referral.
A BrightLocal study noted that 85% of potential customers trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation from a friend or family member. Additionally, the study found that 57% of customers will visit your website after reading positive reviews.
Generally, your clients will happily share a review when asked to provide feedback. You can work a survey into email marketing campaigns or even offer a discount in exchange for an online review. Then, include the reviews on your website or social media so potential leads can access them.
4. Appear in Relevant, High-Quality Online Directories
Online directories make it simple for customers to locate your landscaping business. Plus, a high-quality directory can provide a reputable backlink for your business, boosting your site’s search engine rankings.
That said, not all online directories are created equally. To clarify the process, we’ve compiled three basic sub-steps to choose high-quality online directories and boost your landscape leads:
4a. Find the Best Directories for Landscaping Businesses
You can choose from countless directories, ranging from landscaping sites to local guides and alumni directories. However, if you need a solid starting place, do a bit of sleuthing to find the directories that list your competitors.
You can go about this in two ways. You can perform a Google search of your competitors and see what comes up in the search engine results. Or, you can use a tool like cognitiveSEO to analyze your competitors’ link profiles and find links from online directories.
Add any interesting directories to a list. You will want to return to it later to filter through your findings.
4b. Narrow Down Your List to the Highest-Ranking Directories
For best results, we recommend choosing 30-40 relevant directories. Before you begin submitting to every directory you find, take a look at the requirements. A quality directory will not list sites with adult or illegal content. If a directory doesn’t have any rules, cross it off your list.
Additionally, browse through the other listings in your category. Are the listings relevant? If not, you may prefer another directory instead.
4c. Submit Your Business’s Information to Top-Ranking Directories
Finally, begin submitting your business to your preferred directories. Create a submission template with your basic information, including:
- Business name
- Website URL
- Company description
- Main keywords
- Contact information
After submission, check to ensure that your listing gets posted. Additionally, don’t try to submit to each directory in a day. Set aside a bit of time each week for sustainable growth from your marketing efforts.
5. Build Meaningful Relationships with Both In-person and Online Customers
More than likely, you’ve built your business through client relationships and customer service. When it comes to producing more landscape leads, these relationships can prove invaluable. Thanks to social media, you can easily expand your connections and improve landscape leads.
Create and regularly update at least one social media profile. You can share photos of projects, create videos with tips on lawn care, or feature client reviews on a free, easily accessible platform. Whether you choose to focus on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, create a basic content calendar and take time to respond to every comment for an updated and engaged following.
Full-Service Digital Marketing for Landscaping Businesses
Running your landscaping business isn’t easy. Neither is trying to manage a comprehensive digital marketing strategy. If you need dedicated marketing for the landscaping industry, you can trust our team at Flagstone Marketing.
If you choose to partner with us, we’ll take care of everything we’ve listed above so you’re not worried about being overshadowed by your competitors. Chances are, they’re also searching for ways to unleash the value of online marketing.
Our expert team knows what your customers want, and we know how to improve leads, boost sales, and promote your business. Most importantly, we know how to enhance your online reputation so you can outperform—and outrank—your competitors.
In working with us, you get a team who is dedicated to serving your business, and yours alone, in your market. We don’t pretend to be all things to all people—we exclusively serve the landscaping industry so we can dive deep into the most effective solutions for your business.
For more information on our services or to schedule a call with one of our experts, contact our team at Flagstone Marketing today.
