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 I love to ask my audiences this question: How many of you think social media is a total and complete waste of time? I often alter the tone of my voice to help trick the audience into thinking that I believe it’s a waste of time.
This usually brings out all kinds of hands, people thinking, finally, a person who thinks like I do. To those I see who have their hands raised, I say, “Why would you not get involved in an opportunity that takes about one hour per week (if you do it right) that helps you make more friends and grow your network?” Let me explain. Equally important as attracting customers you can work with today is working to attract clients in 5 years and 10 years. Those 24-year-old young professionals will be in a different spot in their lives in the next five to 10 years and it is important to lay the groundwork now.
By having a Facebook page for your company now, you are starting relationships with people who could become clients at a later date. By having a presence on LinkedIn, you are finding all types of possible clients you may be able to work with now and in the future. Twitter, in my opinion, is less beneficial for the landscaper but still has its merits. The point I make is that you need to have a social media presence. Let me share with you what I have found works.
First of all, I am by no means a social media expert. All I can share with you is what I have found works and my thoughts on the role social media efforts play in the successful marketing of a green industry company. If I were you, I’d have two Facebook pages. One for yourself and one for your company. I use my personal page to keep in touch with friends and to make new contacts with people I’d like to do business with. I am careful about what I post on my personal account. I like to post updates about where I have been, what my kids are doing, and then I really like to share business ideas and some sports rants.
I also post pictures of plants and things growing in my home landscape. After all, I want my followers to know what I do for living and that I have a passion for plants. On my company page, we post plants, photos of job sites, tips, help wanted ads, photos of our people working and other information that helps show our followers we do great work and want to work with them. Take an hour to surf the Web, study other landscapers’ social media efforts, but also look at what some of the big companies in other industries do to see what you can learn.
I use LinkedIn and Twitter less than Facebook. For now, I have my “toe in the water” with each of them, as that seems to be the best way to learn more about them than just sitting on the sidelines doing nothing. The key to social media is to be consistent and to be careful. Pretend that someone like your mom or best client is always watching you, always reading your posts.
Be careful what you post. Offer up advice, have an angle. Think about what you’d like to hear your clients say about you and try to post along those lines. In other words, talk about good service, quality and creativity, and then show pictures that demonstrate all that. Social media is here to stay, and it’s foolish not to participate in it. But, it’s foolish to spend hours each day doing it while there are so many other things to do. Social media is like a lot of other things in life: a little bit of it is good for you; a lot of it is bad and can derail your business. So, get into social media, just don’t get addicted to it.
Marty Grunder is a speaker, consultant and author; he owns Grunder Landscaping Co. See www.martygrunder.com; mail
mgrunder@giemedia.com.
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