Gain Customers Without Having to Sell: Content Marketing Part 2

by | Aug 27, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Gain Customers Without having to sell: Content Marketing Part 2

In my last tip, I introduced the concept of Content Marketing. In case you missed it, you can read it here. Today, I’m going to give you the framework to set up a successful Content Marketing campaign.

Target Audience – Define your target audience. Who are you trying to help with your content and how will you help them in a way that no one else is? Make sure that you get specific enough to know what your target audience values and where they get their information from. Brainstorming sessions with your team members are the easiest way to define your target audience. A word of caution with brainstorming sessions; appoint someone to facilitate the conversation and ensure that the group remains on task not veering off into a different direction.

Type of Content – After you know who you are targeting and where they learn about things. Determine what type of content your target audience consumes as well as what type of content your team can produce. Start with whatever is easiest for your team. It may be small videos from the field explaining situations or problems that you typically run into or it may be in a written blog format like this post. Whatever it is, don’t try to do too much at first. It is best to get good at one type of content before adding others to the mix. Which leads me to my next point.

Consistency – Content Marketing thrives on consistency. Whichever type of content you are delivering, make sure you are doing it on a regular basis. Your audience will come to expect the information that you are putting out there and will be disappointed if they don’t receive it. Not every piece of content will be relevant to everyone and that’s okay, it is more important to be consistent in your production of the information.

Champion – Lastly, who will be your Chief Content Officer? This does not have to be a formal position with a pay raise and all, but simply someone that is in charge of the content that gets sent out. This person shouldn’t be the only one that is creating all of the content, just the last person to review it so that the messaging is similar across all pieces of content.
Once you have your basic Content Marketing campaign strategy in place, it is time to actually start creating the content. I recently attended a seminar session from Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion. In his presentation he gave us the five areas that you need to address within your content.

Cost/price questions – Explain the range of costs for typical tree care services and what factors play a role in determining the final cost.

Problems/issue questions – What are the most frequently asked questions from your customers? Create content aimed at solving your target audience’s problems. Two examples may be: Why are the leaves on my trees turning yellow? Or how do I know my tree is safe?

Comparison questions – Help your audience determine what the best choice for their situation is by giving them the honest advice about the options to their issue. Example: How to minimize the impact of Emerald Ash Borer; give them information on treating the trees versus the cost to remove and replant.

“Best of” Lists – Many internet searches start with “what is the best…”. Create a list of topics that you can write on including; best trees for backyard shade, best practices for hiring a tree service, best tree services in my area, etc. Yes, you read that right, “what are the best tree services in my area” should be a content piece that you produce. By highlighting a few other professional tree care companies in your area you actually prove that you have the customer’s best interest at heart and more times than not, they’ll call you to do the work because of your openness.

By installing the principles of Content Marketing and committing to the process, you will gain new customers without having to sell them.

Written by: Eric Petersen

Gain Customers Without Having to Sell: Content Marketing Part 1

by | Aug 27, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Gain Customers Without having to sell: Content Marketing Part 1

Gone are the days where consumers purchase a product or service based solely on the salesperson’s ability to convince them to buy. Today, the vast majority of the sales process is done by the consumer before they even reach out to you. So how do you earn the trust of your future customers before they pick up the phone to call you? You do it with Content Marketing.

What is Content Marketing?

Content Marketing is a strategic marketing approach where you give valuable information to your prospects and customers without trying to sell them anything. It allows the consumer to learn about their problem on their own using information that you created. Because it does not involve you thumping your chest saying why you are the best, the consumer appreciates the expertise you bring. And guess what? They will start to buy from you because they now know you and trust that your intentions are in their best interest.

Information can be created and shared in a number of different ways. The more ways you incorporate into your content marketing strategy, the more effective you will be at reaching your target customer. Blogs, newsletters, email campaigns, home & garden show presentations and social media posts are all ways that you can get content out.

Why Content Marketing works in the tree care industry?

Content marketing isn’t about your brand or the services you sell, it is about your audience and what they care about. The tree care industry is perfect profession to utilize content marketing because it allows you to develop rapport with your target customers. For most professional tree care companies, the target customer is someone who has a strong emotional connection to their trees but also understands that their level of knowledge on how to properly take care of their trees is lacking.

Take tree removals for instance which can be viewed as a commodity service. As long as the tree guy gets the tree on the ground without hurting anyone or damaging your property, they’ve done their job. So why should the consumer choose you over the next company? Using content marketing, you explain what goes into a successful tree removal job, such as, what factors affect the price of the removal and what dangers are in performing the job. It is your chance to show that you are the expert by advising them on all things related to the removal without asking for them to call you, thereby transforming your business from being seen as just another provider of a commodity service (tree removal) to a leader in the industry.

An even more powerful way for Content Marketing to work within the tree care industry is using it to promote proper Plant Health Care. Creating a dialogue on all aspects of tree health will demonstrate to your potential customers that you know how to care for their trees and why they need to hire a professional arborist to handle this for them.

Lastly, it’s important to note that Content Marketing isn’t for everyone and it is not always the best way to get in front of potential customers. However, in my opinion it is the best way to get in front of the right potential customer and build a strong customer base who hold the same values as you do. When done properly, Content Marketing helps you remove the salesy feel to a new customer relationship.

In my next tip, I’ll show you how to start a Content Marketing campaign and give you the 5 areas you should be addressing in your Content Marketing.

Written by: Eric Petersen

Work ON Your Business – Not IN It

by | Aug 27, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Work On Your Business – Not IN it

Ever feel like you are constantly spinning your wheels with your business, always busy, but not making much progress? Of course you have. Every business owner feels this way, especially in the tree care industry. With all of the responsibilities of owning a business, a successful owner must be able to take a step back and work ON their business not IN it. Because this is extremely hard to do, I want to give you my 6 tips for beginning to work on your business and not in it.

Desire to work ON your business – If you want to achieve large goals for your company, you must have a desire to work on your business. This is an internal motivation that only you can provide and requires daily discipline and energy to stay focused on what is truly important to your organization.

Establishing the vision and core values – After you’ve committed to working on your business, you must get serious about creating a vision and a set of core values for your company. There are a lot of ways to write vision statements and create core values, but don’t get hung up on the exact words or way to do it right now. Start brainstorming what you want your company to look like in the future and what do you want it to stand for. This is a vital exercise that should be done at least once a year to properly evolve as a business. Over time, you will see a crystal clear picture of who your company is and where it is going.

Hire the right people – The only way you can successfully work on your business is to have the right team members to do the tasks that you used to do. I have always been a large proponent of hiring for attitude and culture fit and then training for the job. Sure the employee must have a base level of competency in the position before I hire them, however, it is much easier to teach the right employee than it is to manage an employee that doesn’t fit in. Now, hiring the right employee isn’t that easy. One of your responsibilities as the business owner is to develop a hiring and recruiting process that will eventually create a pipeline of new talent to your organization for years to come.

Delegation and Empowerment – What tasks do you do every day that could be handed off to someone else? Why do you still do these tasks? Are you afraid that they won’t get done the same way that you would do them? Most owners have a difficult time delegating anything to their employees, however time never stands still and the lack of delegation is the surest way to a stale business. Once you have identified what tasks and responsibilities you can delegate, give your employees the power to make decisions for these. It will only be natural to check on them and question their decisions, but resist this urge. If you have communicated your vision and core values well enough to your team, they will earn your trust by being allowed to carry out that vision. No one likes a micro-managing boss, so allow your employees to take ownership in projects and reward them with encouraging feedback when they do a good job. If an employee’s decision or actions do not result in a positive outcome, work with the employee to help them come up with a different solution for the future. Of all of your efforts to work on your business, this is the most important, your team must know that you trust them to make decisions on your behalf and that their job will be secure if they make a mistake.

Training on Standards and Procedures – The best companies build systems that are standardized and allow for employees to enter in and out of the system with minimal interruption. Developing the way your company operates around a process versus a person may seem foreign and a bit intimidating, but is the surest way to building a rock solid organization. Dissect every aspect of your business from the customer experience to the pruning standards to your equipment maintenance schedule. Create standards for each area so that a new employee can come into the company and know what is expected of them. Please don’t try to do this on your own. Part of the delegation and empowerment is getting your team members to help out with this. You will be surprised how much better your standards and procedures are when you involve your team to develop them.

Block out Time – This is my last tip, but really could be listed first. As the owner, you have to block out time to work on your business. This means uninterrupted time where you focus on the most important aspects of your company. Blocking out time is really hard to do if you work out of your home or if you have a busy office, so what works best for me is to schedule time away from my normal desk. This allows me to work on the proactive tasks that I need to do without feeling like I’m ignoring the needs of my team. Find a physical location that you can do some deep work for your business and regularly schedule time to go there.
Starting to work on your business is hard to do, however, by slowly implementing these tips into your work life, you will start to see a transformation within your company.

Written by: Eric Petersen

5 Ways to Combat the Imposter

by | Aug 24, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

5 Ways to Combat The Imposter

Unfortunately, the tree care industry is an over-commoditized industry. A simple Google search in your area will probably show so many tree services it will make your head spin. So how do you compete against the non-professional guys; the ones that aren’t playing by all of the rules and paying cash for labor, not purchasing insurance, and skipping on safety? It is not an easy thing to do, but below are my 5 ways to combat your competition.

Don’t Create the Price Game – Believe it or not, the price game is created by tree services, not the customers. Companies that come in and say that they’ll do the work cheaper than anyone else are the ones who devalue the work that you do. Fight this by getting to know your customer and what their goals for the property are. Do they want a backyard oasis to play and relax in? Are they concerned about a branch falling on their house or children? Whatever their concerns are, focus your solutions around those. Everyday consumers choose certain brands over others and choose to pay more for those products or services because they believe in the value of it. Tree work can be the same way, but you have to believe in your value and know how to communicate it to the customer.

Specialize – What does your company do particularly well? Are you known for a specific service in your area? If so, concentrate your sales efforts on that service as it is much easier for you to explain why you are the better choice than a non-professional tree service. You also should be able to do the work in your specialty more efficiently than your competitors, thereby increasing the value to your customer.

Use Technology – What does your Customer Journey look like? Have you thought about the experience that your customers have each time they come in contact with you? There are many software programs out there to help you make your business stand out: from automatic follow up emails such as Active Campaign, to video email software like BombBomb, to creating proposals for the customer (while still at their house) using Arborgold. Each of these tools will help showcase the level of professionalism that your company has over your competition.

Use Pictures – Examples of poor tree maintenance are all over the place. With digital cameras in everyone’s pocket these days, you should be able to create a vast library of local trees that have been hacked at by an inexperienced tree service. Use these photos, along with before and after pictures of proper tree care, in your presentation to your customers. Your proposal should not be lengthy and full of technical details, but rather clean and crisp, showing what you intend to do and how it will help the customer reach their property goal.

Promote your Professional Designations – Are you touting your designations? Bragging about your credentials is not something that many people are comfortable doing, however when trying to separate yourself from a low bid competitor, you must be able to do so. ISA and TCIA both have great resources that allow you to show why your education and commitment to your industry makes you the best choice for your customer. When the property owner understands that you invest time and money into improving your own company’s professionalism, they will begin to see the value that your expert opinion brings.

Competing against illegitimate businesses is one of the most common challenges within the tree care industry and unfortunately, this problem is not going away. Use these 5 tips to begin to separate your tree service from the rest.

Written by: Eric Petersen

Unlock Your Potential: 4 Steps to Cross-Sell More Business

by | Aug 24, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Unlock Your Potential: 4 Steps to Cross-Sell More Business

One of the most common goals that I hear from our clients is the desire to sell more Plant Health Care work, so I put together my list of 4 steps to effectively cross sell additional services to your customers. Whether you would like to perform more tree risk assessments or sell firewood and mulch to your existing customers, the approach is essentially the same.

Targeted Service – Defining what service you are looking to cross sell to your current customers is the first step. To determine if a particular service is appropriate to begin a cross selling campaign, ask yourself the following:

Is this service a strength for our company? If not, what will help it become a strength?
Can we handle an influx of additional requests for this service?
What challenges could arise if we have increased interest in this service?
Are we known for this service already or do we have to educate our customers?
Does our ideal client need this service on a regular basis?

It Is Not About the Sale – It is very important to understand that cross selling additional services should NOT be strictly about the revenue generated from the new service. Instead, the focus should be on the relationship with the customer. When customers hire your company for more than one service or product you will generate much more customer loyalty. These loyal customers will become your promoters and tell others about your organization, driving growth within your ideal clientele.

Training – Not everyone is meant to be a sales person, however, everyone within your organization that has contact with your customers should have a basic understanding of the services you provide and how it can benefit your customers. From the receptionist to the crew foreman, train your team members on the “why” your services are important. A few ideas to help your employees begin a cross sell conversation are:

Emphasize that healthy trees eliminate hazards to your customers and help increase their property values. Proper tree care is much more than pruning and a Certified Arborist can help your customer determine the course of action for their trees.
Use an Amazon approach: Whatever your cross sale service is, combine that with what your ideal client would also purchase for an easy transition into providing additional services. For example; those that have had their trees pruned, also have their trees fertilized. Or, those that have their trees removed also purchase firewood from us.

Reward employees for cross selling additional services. Create a monetary reward for a team member that goes beyond their normal job duties to cross sell your desired service.

Special Offer or Pricing – If your desired cross sell service is new to your organization or one that your customers rarely request, you probably will have to create a special offer or pricing structure to gain interest in the service. This can be a limited time offering for trunk injections or a multi-service discount if they also purchase mulch from you. Be creative with the offer to engage your customer into taking action with your desired cross sell service.

Cross selling additional services to your current customer base can be the hidden secret to growth for your organization. Use these 4 steps to unlock your company’s cross sell potential.

Written by: Eric Petersen

Beat the Weather in 3 Easy Steps

by | Aug 17, 2018 | Business Strategy | 0 comments

Beat the Weather in 3 easy Steps

Written by Eric Petersen, CIC

As you probably know, I’m a work comp geek and pride myself on helping businesses minimize the financial impact that an injury causes their business. When looking at today’s forecast for my town, which calls for 6-8 inches of snow, I realized that weather presents a similar challenge to businesses that an injured employee does. How do you get productive work done when Mother Nature or an injured employee disrupts your upcoming work day?

We all know that your production will be affected by the weather multiple times a year. It doesn’t matter if that weather event is extreme heat or cold, rain or snow, the weather will do what it is going to do and you have to deal with it. The best way to deal with it is to be prepared before it happens just like you are before an injury happens.

Here are my 3 steps to beating Mother Nature and remaining productive during the most severe weather:

1. Weather Protocol – Discuss weather protocol as soon as possible. A storm can creep up fast and I can guarantee your team will be wondering what they will or will not be doing at work when the storm hits. Consider these questions and ask for your employees’ involvement in creating your protocol:

What is your cut off for high/low temperature before it is too dangerous to work outside?
What tasks or projects in the shop do you have that you’ve always wanted to do, but don’t ever seem to have time to do?
Are there safety or equipment training topics that can be presented?
How can we involve every one of our team members in a productive way if they are not in the field?

2. Reserving Jobs – Keep jobs reserved that are lower priority and don’t require climbing or aerial work. Maybe these are small pruning jobs or removals. If it is safe to be outdoors, but not safe to climb, use that to your advantage and get these jobs done when you can. Remember to emphasize proper job site preparation when working in less than ideal conditions and encourage your team that getting the job done safely is much more important than getting it done quickly.

3. Communication – Build a notification system where team members either contact one another or log on to an internal message board before they begin to travel to work. Within my office we use the Slack, a powerful software that allows us to communicate with everyone instantly. It can be downloaded as an app on your phone so all can get the same message at the same time.

Lastly, the preparation work that you just did for a weather event can and should be utilized to be prepared for an injury. The same small projects that you want to accomplish should be integrated into your injury management plan so that you can get the injured worker back on the job as quickly as possible.

We all enjoy and despise weather at times. Make the most of it for your business by being ready so you don’t have to watch valuable production hours or days fly by. If your company needs additional assistance with safety and weather related training, check out ArboRisk’s Thrive Risk Management Safety Package!