SALES AND MARKETING: Wee Willie's Secret

One of the smallest men ever to play major league baseball, “Wee Willie” Keeler, racked up 2,947 career hits and a place in Cooperstown. Keeler did this using one of the shortest bats in baseball history. His secret? His ability to place his hits where there was no one to field them. We can learn from Willie when marketing our landscape companies.
 
Consider the ways contractors market their businesses. Most place an ad in the Yellow Pages or have their names on their trucks. Others mail postcards, advertise on TV or radio or pay for billboards. For each tactic the questions remain the same: Is it effective? Does it increase sales? Is it money well spent?
 
Based on industry research and my own experience, contractors spend about 1.6 percent of their total sales on marketing. Let’s say your annual sales are $500,000; this would mean you would spend about $8,000 a year on marketing. But would you be maximizing the potential of this $8,000 or would you be breaking even? Worse still, would you be throwing it away? This is where Wee Willie’s advice can teach us about marketing.  As he said, “hit’em (your ads) where they (your competition) ain’t.”
 
Say you have a choice between buying a billboard and placing an ad in an arts program. Though it would seem  far wiser to pay for the billboard than the program ad, this is not necessarily so. Where is it located? Is it visible from the road? Are there competing billboards nearby? Now consider the arts program. It’s fair to say most people who support the arts have the discretionary income to spend on cultural outings or, if your ad succeeds, their landscapes.
 
Remember, you want to advertise where your customers are and your competition isn’t. Here are some more vehicles for doing that:

Sponsor a small business award. A business owner sponsors a small business award every year. His is always the only company of his type at the ceremony and he has the coveted opportunity to address hundreds of local business people, all of whom are potential customers and are connected to other potential customers. The up tick in business from this event outweighs the sponsorship cost.
 
Hire an ice cream truck and place a magnetic sign on the side with your company’s name. Ride with the vendor through your clients’ neighborhoods. Give out free ice cream along with your business cards and chat people up.

Chair a benefit dinner. This is a great way to get your name out while giving back to the community. After all, who do you prefer to do business with – the business owner who cares solely about maximizing his profits or the entrepreneur who contributes a portion of his profits to do some good in the world?

Now, can you hit’em where they ain’t?

Marty Grunder is a speaker, consultant and author, as well as owner of Grunder Landscaping Co., Miamisburg, Ohio. Reach him at 866/478-6337, landscapesales@gie.net or via www.martygrunder.com.