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The Landscaper's Guide To Modern Sales and Marketing Newsletter
DECEMBER 2021
7 KEYS TO LANDSCAPE RECRUITING IN 2022—VIRTUAL WORKSHOP
It’s Time to Be Bold
If you’re wayyyy understaffed and you’ve had hardly any response to your open landscaping job ads, you’re not alone. Many landscapers are struggling with this, but some are implementing BOLD, new strategies that are working. Nate Fetig from Alpine Gardens increased his wages 20%–30% for new hires AND existing staff — and finally got a response to job ads that hadn’t had replies for months . Sure, he increased his price with new clients, but guess what: It’s working. Monique Allen from Garden Continuum hired inexperienced people for paid 90- day internships , and it worked! Over 65% stayed on and continued working. Ken and Patrick from Local Roots in Pennsylvania have a waitlist of employees — in part because they create a safe space for employees . Yes, you must be tough to work in the trades. AND, clearly, people are people, and they have emotional and psychological needs that aren’t being even considered at most blue-collar jobs. Ken and
Patrick “get it” and take care of their people, and their people take care of them.
What are you doing besides whining?
Frankly, I’m tired of hearing landscapers complain that they can’t hire anyone IF they haven’t tried ANYTHING NEW to adapt and change. It’s easy to get stuck in old habits. But the fact is, what worked two years ago to recruit people may not work today. What worked last spring may not work this coming spring. I hosted a Breakfast of Champions at the NALP Landscapes Show in Louisville, Kentucky, this year on the topic of how to lead a spring recruiting and employee appreciation event to increase retention. After breakfast, I personally reviewed the Indeed ads of a multimillion-dollar landscape company — that has a full-time HR manager. Guess what I saw? Only 50% of their ads mentioned the actual salary. The rest said “competitive pay.” None of them mentioned the key reason to work there that the manager told me about during the mastermind. And all of the ads were inconsistent. To be fair, that used to be me. Those used to be my job ads back when I “couldn’t hire anyone.” But once I learned to fix it, I started getting qualified job applicants — and I’m finding many of the same strategies are working for landscapers. Writing clear,
compelling, organized job ads is not that complicated, but like many things in life, sometimes the simplest things are the hardest to do when you’re feeling stressed.
How will you stand out in your recruiting this coming year?
Why should people reply to your job advertisement instead of every other open position they’re seeing?
Why should they stay at your company once they’ve been hired?
If you, the owner, don’t know the answer to those questions — and if the answers are not abundantly 100% clear in your Careers page and each job advertisement — you’re toast.
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Read It in Your Truck on a Rainy Day
3 Green Industry Marketing Trends for 2022 As we look ahead to the new year, we can reflect on changes that have taken place and see what trends are coming our way in the world of green-industry marketing. Tip: Have many different people look at your job descriptions and get their feedback. Ask them to be honest on whether or not you are presenting a compelling offer.
1. Using Videos to Automate Aspects of Your Business Videos have been a big trend for some time now, and it’s not going anywhere! Many parts of our lives and businesses have moved online, and now is your opportunity to embrace that fact. Videos can be used to automate aspects of your sales process, disqualify bad leads from your pipeline, and bolster recruiting efforts. The purpose of using videos in your digital marketing is to save you time and money. If you can make one video that will be watched time and time again by potential customers and employees, think about how much time that could save you? What does that translate into as far as a dollar amount? 2. Emphasis on Creative Strategy for Employee Recruiting + Retention Labor is an ongoing challenge in the green industry. Now more than ever, employees are looking for more than just a job. They’re looking for a career that is fulfilling, a work environment that is supportive and enjoyable, and a salary that provides them and their families with the security they need and deserve. What does this mean for you? It’s time to get creative and provide employees with a compelling offer. This might include competitive pay, which will depend on your geographic location (do you research online about what a competitive salary looks like in your area), and it may include a variety of benefits.
3. Green Industry Use of Software The use of green-industry software is on the rise! Lawn and Landscape Magazine and Aspire Software published a report in September 2021, looking at current usage of landscaping business management software. According to a survey done by Lawn and Landscape Magazine that collected 170 responses, 91% of the respondents used their software for billing and invoicing purposes, while other proportions of the respondents used their software for purposes like accounting, job costing, and scheduling.
Which of these trends will you be following in the new year?
Think Better With Adam Grant’s ‘Think Again’
A BETTER MINDSET FOR GROWTH
Think about the sting you feel when you are proven wrong. It hurts, doesn’t it?
In “Think Again,” Grant’s third book, he argues that as rapidly as we get information in today’s digital world, we cannot be expected to fully know all of it. Being wrong is part of human nature, but as we gain more accessibility to information, we must be willing to do two things: rethink and unlearn. Grant challenges readers to stand in the discomfort of being wrong, celebrate that there is something new to learn, and challenge themselves to interact with those who propose a new way of thinking. By doing so, Grant asserts that we can speak and argue with conviction while actually engaging and listening to arguments as if we are wrong. This allows us to learn, engage, and grow. In “Think Again,” Grant asks readers to consider better ways to approach their steadfast beliefs. Readers will find amusement in Grant’s real-world examples of turning skeptics into believers within a variety of topics. And, through these examples, readers will discover new ways to listen so they can gain a greater understanding of the world around them.
But what if it didn’t have to? Better yet, what if it shouldn’t?
Regardless of our attempts at humility, humans’ egos have inflated, and we are all conditioned to believe that being wrong somehow equates to being a bad
person. However, renowned author and psychologist Adam Grant challenges this notion in his New York Times bestseller, “Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know.” With today’s divisive climate, Grant argues that we hold our beliefs up like a badge, illuminating them so brightly that we become blind to other truths or realities. Far too often, our mindsets focus on what is black and white, rather than understanding the gray nuances found in between.
You can pick up your copy of “Think Again” and other books by Grant from an independent book retailer or by visiting Amazon.com.
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Read It in Your Tru
TAKE A BREAK
DIY Holiday Eggnog Inspired by TastesBetterFromScratch.com
INGREDIENTS
• • • •
6 egg yolks 1/2 cup sugar
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1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 pinch salt
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 tsp vanilla extract Cinnamon and whipped cream, for garnish
2 cups milk
DIRECTIONS
1. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until light and creamy. Set aside. 2. In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together the cream, milk, nutmeg, and salt. Bring to a simmer. 3. Add a spoonful of the milk mixture to the egg
4. When most of the milk is whisked in, add the egg mixture to the saucepan. 5. Whisk until the liquid thickens slightly or reaches 160 F. Remove from heat and add vanilla extract. 6. Pour the eggnog into a glass container and cover. Refrigerate. 7. When the eggnog has thickened, pour it into glasses, garnish, and enjoy!
mixture. Whisk vigorously and repeat, one spoonful at a time.
CANDLES CELEBRATION JINGLE JOLLY
MISTLETOE ORNAMENT PRESENT SANTA
SLEIGH STOCKING WASSAIL WREATH
Get your copy of “The Tree of Good Fortune: The Landscaper’s Guide to Modern Sales and Marketing” at TreeOfGoodFortune.com!
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uck on a Rainy Day
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1 Landscape Recruiting in 2022 2 3 Green Industry Marketing Trends for 2022 2 Embrace Being Wrong With Adam Grant’s Help 3 DIY Holiday Eggnog 3 Take a Break 4 End-of-Year Marketing Analysis INSIDE
END-OF-YEAR MARKETING ANALYSIS
As many landscapers wind down from a very busy season, now is the time to reflect and evaluate some key parts of your business from last year. As you do this, analyzing your marketing is an important part of the process! Here are some tips and tricks for reviewing marketing efforts and grading the quality of leads you gained throughout the year. How to Grade Your 2021 Leads 1. The first step in this process is to create a spreadsheet where you include all of your new leads for the year. 2. Develop a scoring system for the leads that determines their quality. This might include categories like:
3. Lastly, create a column in your spreadsheet labeled “Marketing Source.” For each lead, write down where they came from. Were they a referral? Did they see your signage? Did they come from organic search or online advertising?
well and what is really just a waste of time and money. Once you determine what’s no longer working, you can cut that strategy from your 2022 marketing plan and invest that money in something else — or save it!
See below for an example spreadsheet on how you can do this with your own leads:
Evaluating these aspects of your marketing will help you determine what is working
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Hell-Yes Customer — Yes/No Ideal Location — Yes/No
Met Ideal Project Budget — Yes/No
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