According to Smith, the trick with paid ads is setting an appropriate daily bud- get and using the right message, usu- ally by offering a discount or coupon. “If the daily budget is too low, then you’re only going to get one or two clicks,” he says, adding that you need a good four to seven clicks to get one promising lead. “You just need to make sure you’re going aer the right target. You have to have the right call to action.” Making paid ads work takes regular testing and fine tuning, something some business owners don’t always have the patience for. “Sometimes, the tendency is if you tried something and it doesn’t work to just write it off,” Smith says. “ Both Smith and Hemingway favor paid ads on Google over Facebook and Ins- tagram, although Hemingway says ads on YouTube appear to be on the rise.
got to be consistent with it. I don’t rec- ommend going longer than a month, because people have a short memory.” ORGANIC TRAFFIC VS. PAID ADS Search engine optimization (SEO) rep- resents how high your business ranks during an online search — without the intervention of a paid ad. This organic traffic depends on whether an orga- nization’s website, social media, and other content aligns with what con- sumers are searching for. Search engines such as Google develop complex algorithms to analyze search behavior to deliver only the most rel- evant and qualified results. While tactics like keyword stuffing may’ve worked in the early days of SEO, today Google makes constant adjustments to its algorithms to stay ahead of market- ing short cuts. While these updates can be a source of frustration for marketers struggling to keep up, their ultimate purpose is to protect the interest of consumers. One of Google’s most recent algorithm updates, for example, reduced the number of fake business profiles by 45% in 2023. Instead of trying to outsmart the algo- rithm, businesses can develop organic traffic by learning about their custom- ers and providing content that clearly addresses their needs. Encouraging customers to leave positive reviews – and addressing negative ones – is the modern-day equivalent of good cus- tomer service that any business would benefit from. Of course, paid advertisements certainly have their place, especially with busi- nesses who want to boost sales while they wait for their organic traffic to grow. Google’s pay-per-click advertising pro- vides businesses with the “sponsored” results oen found at the top of search pages. These can be effective in driv- ing customers already searching for your product or service and result in boosted web traffic, which can posi- tively impact organic traffic.
BUYING LEADS For those businesses who want to avoid the marketing mystery, buying leads can be a great way to cut to the chase and build a customer database. “They’re not marketing companies, they’re tree companies,” says John Turssline, Jr., vice president of sales and client services for Tree Leads Today . “Some of them have tried things on their own and realized that the investment of time and money is just not worth it to them. It makes a lot more sense to part- ner with someone in that field.” Tree Leads Today curates exclusive local leads for businesses ranging in size from small companies just getting started to well-established businesses looking to expand. The value of these leads, Turssline says, is that most tree care companies market their services in similar ways, making it hard to compete, and everyone is “at the mer- cy of Google.”
AI’s Role in Marketing
Artificial intelligence technology (AI) is expected to play a huge and developing role in how tree care companies conduct business and save time. Tools can assist with customer service requests, optimize SEO and advertising efforts, and analyze market trends. “That’s where things are going,” Hemingway says, adding that her company is investing heavily in developing AI training for curious clients. “We want to stay on the forefront of that. We want to be leading the field in the tree care industry.” On the customer service side of things, AI chatbots on websites and social media platforms can provide instant responses to common questions, qualify leads, and schedule jobs. AI can also help analyze engagement and identify the kind of content that appeals to audiences. While AI can certainly write chapters of interesting content on a wide range of issues, Google is already optimizing its algorithm to sniff out content that is solely authored by AI programs like Chat GPT. Besides, the technology is still unpredictable. “Writing content right now, you never know what it’s going to spit out,” says Smith, adding that the best way to use AI for content is for idea generation, social media posts, and even creating video content. AI is also great at analyzing data and can provide predictive analytics to identify market trends, forecast service demands, and even develop pricing strategies. It can also be used in search en- gine optimization efforts to identify keyword trends that can be incorporated into a wide range of marketing campaigns. “AI helps us with our strategies behind the scenes to see what’s working for us,” says Turssline, adding, “It’s not all about AI, though. Tree guys have a deep knowledge base. They know when it’s time to pull the lever on a marketing campaign.”
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