[befnme]

I Passed Out 400 Of These And Only Got 2 Call Backs So Far And Its Been About 4 Days.what The H*ll ?

 

[out4now]

Flyers generally have low responses. You have to get your name out there a few times before they will even start to notice it. Full color ads are flashier (and unfotunately more expensive) but catch eye better. I think it was walker talker on here that had a really nice one a few months back. Do a search and see if you can't find that thread. After a while it will be word of mouth advertising and you'll be set

 

[lawnguyland]

Because that flyer is weak.

 

[topsites]

the flyer does look a bit like a rough draft but you gotta pass out a minimum of 4 thousand, 8 is better... and this is the reason i prefer to pay for an ad in a publication.

 

[promower]

Constructive critizism here. I agree that is a very weak flyer, it doesnt grab my attention, and somewhat hard to read. Out of the 400 hundred you passed out 2 calls isnt bad, your right at the .5% response rate. A little more effort in designing yourself a good flyer should get you up to 1.5-2.0% response.

 

[Bulletproof]

BefNMe,

I think it may be a little late in the season to be searching out new contracts in bulk.... Often, people have their lawn contracts in place and will only search out new contracts if they have problems with their present LCO's.

Also, we used to hand out flyers and found the response rate was nil, so we started advertising in the yellow pages and helpful pages... those adds have paid for themselves 25 times over

And it's only been 4 days! More will call, don't worry!

 

[Mo Green]

The flyer could use a little work.

As a rule of thumb, only expect a 1% ratio of new customers to the amount of flyers distributed.

 

[Shuter]

What makes you think all 400 people have been waiting for you to come along. And why do you give your services away???

 

[befnme]

Thanks For The Criticism.i Didnt Know If Was Just Me Or Not.the Reason I Give Away A Free Mow And Blow Is Just So I Can Be Noticed Doing Work In That Neighborhood.i Figure If People In The Community See Me Working And See A Nice Finished Product That May Intice Them To Call Me Also.plus You Gotta Give A Little To Get A Little.and What Is Giving Away One Mowing If You Gain 3 Customers Right?maybe? Has Anyone Ever Tried This?

 

[ChadA]

BefNMe,

I think it may be a little late in the season to be searching out new contracts in bulk.... Often, people have their lawn contracts in place and will only search out new contracts if they have problems with their present LCO's.

Also, we used to hand out flyers and found the response rate was nil, so we started advertising in the yellow pages and helpful pages... those adds have paid for themselves 25 times over

And it's only been 4 days! More will call, don't worry!

I disagree, with all the new homes being built I hand out flyers all season. Just put out 150 and received my 6th call today. All have signed up. Don't give up. Just try another area.

 

[yrdandgardenhandyman]

Thanks For The Criticism.i Didnt Know If Was Just Me Or Not.the Reason I Give Away A Free Mow And Blow Is Just So I Can Be Noticed Doing Work In That Neighborhood.i Figure If People In The Community See Me Working And See A Nice Finished Product That May Intice Them To Call Me Also.plus You Gotta Give A Little To Get A Little.and What Is Giving Away One Mowing If You Gain 3 Customers Right?maybe? Has Anyone Ever Tried This?

You do have a point. I've gotten a lot of walkup jobs. A couple of times it wasn't even a neighbor. It was someone, from an area I wasn't in, who saw me working and just stopped to talk. I have 5 properties in one of those areas now. Visibility IS important and if you've got to 'spend' $30.00, occasionally, to get that visibility in an area, well, that's just an investment. If you gain more than you lose, it is a good investment. You're not really giving anything away. Tactics that work for someone who has been in business for 7 years and is well established, probably won't work for the start up business. Do what you've got to do but always remember that lowballing can come back to bite you later in your career.

 

[HOOLIE]

Drop the home phone number from the flyer, for starters. I'd just put your cell number on there, but not refer to it as "cell".

 

[Howard Roark]

I just had 3000 passed out in a particular subdivision for me, and in 4 days I've gotten 6 calls. Based on percentages you're doing better than I am.

Like someone mentioned, it's only 4 days. I've passed out postcards all year long, and have been surprised everytime at when the calls come in. I still get calls from batches I put out in March.

I didn't see your flyer, but this does make a HUGE difference.

 

[foggyjr5]

You need to really improve the look of your flyers.

 

[greywynd]

With a free cut like that, can you not 'bill' yourself for marketing/sales costs to write it off? Lawn care isn't my thing (I do mostly excavating and hardscapes), but I would think that there is a deduction there somehow, maybe some of the tax guys can fill us in.

 

[SoloMow]

Definitely drop the home phone number!! It's a PITA waiting to happen.

 

[S man]

I've tried most of my big neighborhood and flyers don't do much at all. And people I talk to already have a "professional" and don't want a young kid that don't know anything but pushing a murray. Well I talked to a guy and told him about my services and my equipment and his neighbor might let me do his lawn too. They have to give me a chance instead of preconceived ideas.

 

[Mo Green]

New subdivisions can be a great place to distribute flyers in mid season.