New business in Richmond, Va

[joneslawnserv]

I need help im just started a lawn service in Richmond, Va and I cant find any work. I have been put up flyers and business cards everwhere I know. This is alot hard than what I was thinking it was going to be. But at the same time I Knew is wasnt going to be easy. Im just try to find out what should be my next step.

[willretire@40]

How many flyers have you passed out door to door?

[joneslawnserv]

I made about 500 flyres, and I have alot more paper so ill have 1,000 out by monday or tuesday. I have one call back that might be a job. they just dont know how much or what kinda of work they would like for me to do. They just want me to cut the grass for now

[joneslawnserv]

O yea i like that logo you got with the cowboys

[willretire@40]

Until you have passed out 10,000 flyers you can not complain about not having any work. If you really want to do this then you have to put your all into it. No work equals pass out flyers every hour your not working during the day. I know I know it is alot easier said then done.

[joneslawnserv]

Ok i get what you are saying. ill jump right on it and priint more out now. you think i should put a business card on every flyer i put out

[Bunton Guy]

I put out since january of this year (jan 09) 11,000 flyers.
Got about 8-10 new lawn accounts out of it. That's less than .2% of a return.
Out of all the estimates I did I dind't land 2 of them...the rest I got.

This is in a town/city of over 1,000,000. Population. Said to be nearly 10,000 landscapers in our city though...so competition is thick.

[joneslawnserv]

O wow that is alot less than what i was thinking. but it will be return for me cause i make my flyers and business cards. I also work by myself so all the return come back to me. Now i know the fall is coming up so how would i go about charging for leaf clean up.

[willretire@40]

Did you answer the phone or did most of the calls go to voice mail? Also did you pass them out door to door or did you hire a company?

[Stuttering Stan]

Distinguish yourself from the lawnboy next door. Signage on truck/trailer, clean cut appearance, uniforms, network with other companies in the area, answer your cell phone (including weekends and midnight). My best advertising experience has been WEBSITE!!! TREAT EVERY CUSTOMER LIKE GOLD

[joneslawnserv]

from the time i said i was going to started a business i answer evey last call that come to my phone

[RodSpots]

Hi, Joneslawnserv --

I replied as follows to a similar query on this forum a few days ago:

Marketing on a Shoestring
This is a particular concern for all kinds of small business startups. Until you build up a customer base, money is probably in extra-short supply. You know you need to advertise, but advertising costs money. Classic Catch-22.

Roy Williams (aka "The Wizard of Ads") wrote a neat article a few years back dealing with this very subject - marketing on a shoestring budget. His first observation was that Time and Money are Interchangeable. When you're short on one, you can spend the other.

So, your friend who suggested door hangers or flyers had a good idea. Make the most of the occasion though. Have some sort of irresistable introductory offer, to get people to try you for the first time. That's the toughest hurdle you'll face. It's much easier to retain a customer than it is to win a new one. Be willing to give up some profit for that first deal, knowing that the odds are in your favor that you'll more than make it back over the life of a new customer relationship that you've just opened.

Those ten customers you already have? Ask each one of them to recommend you to a friend or acquaintance. Consider offering a one-time reward/discount/credit to both the new customer and the one making the referral. It costs you nothing unless and until the new person becomes a customer - at which point, it's well worth it.

Regardless of the business you're in, to the extent that you're working on your business, you're in marketing. Make the most of it!

Best of success to you.

The only other thing I might add, since you're obviously willing to make the effort to print and distribute flyers, is that you test your messages. You may like the content of the flyer you're distributing, but whether you like it or not isn't really the issue. What matters is whether the message is resonating with people and getting results.

Talk to a dozen or more homeowners that you know will give you an honest answer. Ask them what kinds of offers from a business such as yours would they find hard to resist. If you haven't already turned a portion of your flyer into a coupon, do so - then start testing different offers, based on the feedback provided by your homeowner friends. Cover 50 or more homes with one offer, a different group with another offer, and so forth...until you find the offer that pulls better than all the others. Then you can start blanketing your area with just that offer.

Rome, as they say, wasn't built in a day. Most small businesses don't invest sufficient time and effort into testing messages and offers. Those that do are usually rewarded handsomely for their investment. Keep at it, keep talking to prospects and asking them questions about offers they find attractive, you'll get it figured out.

Best wishes for your success!

[kmitt]

When did you start? Your post is is dated July 3rd. By this time of year most people have committed to a lawn service for the season. The best time to get new business is before the season starts.
Your best bet now would be to look for properties that have been neglected or ones that have been maintained poorly and offer to do better. Knock on the door, it's both cheaper and more effective than a flier.
Good Luck.

[TimsLawnCareVA]

I am starting to branch into the Richmond area and it is a tough market, even for me with years of experience. Lots of lco's in the area. This time of year will be hard to find new customers. I stopped advertising the end of May. Your best bet is Feburary through the end of May. I have good luck with postcards in select subdivisions.

[joneslawnserv]

Im looking for work right now, but im not realy thinking im goin to get it. I started thinking about getting into this business almost in mid june. So im just looking for informantion on this but at the same time im still putting out my flyers, just cause you'll never know what might happen. And just last week I got one call back. Im realy taking it slow so i know what im getting into. So when the 1st of the year get here, ill have everything ready for me. Ill also have many diffrent kinds of flyers to see what work best and where it works. I can not just give up just cause its the end of the season, I got to keep trying maybe i can find some people that want me to do a fall cleaning