13 Strategies To Get More Landscaping Leads

Generating leads means attracting potential clients to your landscaping business through distinct strategies to convert them into paying customers. It is a crucial aspect of business growth. Consistently attracting new clients distinguishes successful landscaping businesses from their competition. The right lead-generation strategy drives business growth and profit.

Each landscaping business has unique characteristics, including target market, service offerings, region-related factors, and business size—factors that influence which strategies will be most effective. Consider your business type, budget, resources (staff skills and technology tools), and local market conditions to choose the right lead generation strategy.

The below table contains the 13 lead generation strategies to get more landscaping clients.

1. Optimize For SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) for landscaping increases online visibility by optimizing your business website and GMB content to rank higher for relevant keywords. For instance, you'll do local SEO if you're a local business. This means that when a person searches "lawnmowing Denver," your business will appear at the top if you've implemented the correct SEO strategies. 

Landscaping leads from SEO optimization is profound. It's arguably one of the most effective lead gen strategies you can implement. The more you appear in Google and Bing results, the more landscape customers you'll get. 

The major advantage of SEO is its cost-effectiveness and long-term benefits. It's a sustainable method of generating new clients in the long term and can yield a high ROI when done correctly. However, it requires consistent effort as Google regularly updates its search algorithms. It takes time to see results - you won't see an influx of landscaping clients after the first day of an SEO campaign. 

Local SEO / GMB Quick Audit

Any landscaping company can use SEO optimization, especially highly competitive landscaping services like lawn care and hardscaping. I wouldn't advise a new business to use SEO, as you need immediate results when you're just starting your business. It is important for landscapers to start SEO as early as possible (3-5 months from launching the business) after gaining a few clients. Remember, most people search online for service businesses, so by doing SEO, you gain a piece of that client pie.

2. Perform Targeted Email Outreach

Targeted email outreach involves sending personalized emails to potential landscaping clients who have shown interest in your services. These emails can either offer promotions or be a gentle reminder that they need to care for their lawn.  

The success behind email outreach is consistently remaining in the potential landscaping client's subconscious. Think of it this way: When you send an email labeled "Does your lawn need a mow?" or "Have you cared for your lawn today?" Of course, that has an effect on the client, and when they head home and see an overgrown lawn, who are they going to call? That's right, you! 

When done correctly, email outreach can be highly effective and measurable. When done manually, it's basically free landscaping leads, but I recommend you use an email outreach tool. However, most people find email outreach very annoying, so limiting the number of emails you send is best to avoid landscape customers discrediting you and simply calling someone else.

Email outreach is best for landscaping businesses that already have an existing list of interested prospects or past customers - how else would you have obtained their email addresses? My suggestion is to use SEO optimization in conjunction with email outreach. When people visit your website through SEO optimization, ask them if they want to be added to your mailing list, and then you can let the email outreach campaigns take over. 

3. Use A CRM

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software helps you manage your interactions with current and potential landscaping clients. CRM for landscapers streamlines lead management, making it more effective to generate landscaping leads. These tools help improve customer relations and increase sales through better targeting (personalized messages) and follow-ups. 

CRMs improve organizational efficiency and customer satisfaction. They reduce the administrative burden by automating various customer-related tasks. The downside is that most CRMs are expensive, and you and your team will need training to leverage the tool's capabilities fully.

CRMs are ideal for medium to large-sized landscaping businesses, particularly those that have a lot of recurring landscaping clients, such as lawn care and lawn mowing services. The ideal customer is one that is recurring. 

4. Run Facebook Ads

Facebook Ads are paid advertisements placed on Facebook and Instagram, targeted based on user demographics, interests, and behavior. For instance, you can create a Facebook ad and target people in a certain age group that is in close vicinity to your services and have a home.

Facebook ads reach potential landscaping clients on a platform where they spend a significant amount of time, increasing brand awareness and landscaping leads. Facebook Ads are one of the most effective lead-generation strategies you can use, as you can exactly target the people you want for your business. Plus, they offer quick results, and you can set the amount of money you want to pay for the ads. However, many people use Facebook ads, so your ad will need to be of high quality in order to be effective. 

Any type of landscaping business can use Facebook Ads, but we've found it to be most effective when used for general landscaping businesses (lawn care, leaf removal, lawn mowing, mulching). New landscaping businesses will benefit greatly from using Facebook ads as they are an easy way to spread brand awareness. However, your target market is limited to people who use Facebook and Instagram, and of course, they actually need to see your ad. 

5. Set up Google My Business

Google My Business (GMB) is a free tool for businesses to manage their online presence on Google, including Search and Maps. Setting up a GMB profile makes your business more visible when local customers search for landscaping services. 

It's an easy way to generate free landscaping leads and is highly effective for landscaping businesses, as most people use Google to search for landscaping businesses near them. However, in order for GMB to remain effective, you'll need to make sure you regularly update your profile when some aspect of your business changes, whether it's the location, website domain, contact details, or business hours.

GMB is ideal for any type of local landscaping business that relies on local traffic and wants a cheap yet effective way to improve local SEO. The target market for this lead generation strategy is landscaping customers who are searching for a lawn care business near them.

6. Create A Landscaping Website

A landscaping website is your "digital flyer" and storefront where potential landscaping clients can learn about your services, contact you, and receive a free quote. 

A landscaping website's lead generation capabilities are profound. A well-designed website can impress potential clients, showcase your services and portfolio, and serve as a hub for all your marketing efforts, i.e., SEO campaigns can lead back to your website, your Facebook ads can include a link to your website, email outreach campaigns can include a link to your website, etc. 

The main benefit of a landscaping website is that it offers full control over your brand image and lead capture capabilities. Plus, it can help convert potential clients into paying clients when the above-mentioned strategies aren't enough. However, websites require an initial investment and regular maintenance to ensure they keep up with your growing brand. 

All types of landscaping businesses need to have a website, especially niche services like landscaping design and hardscaping, as you need to display your portfolio in order to win clients over. Websites attract any client that uses the internet, so make sure you create a high-quality website.

7. Start A Referral Program

A referral program rewards existing customers for referring new clients to your business. It's word-of-mouth advertising and is highly effective in the landscaping industry. Remember, people are granting you access to the privacy of their homes, so naturally, they want someone trustworthy, which is why an opinion from someone they trust goes a long way in building that trust. 

The best referral programs in the landscaping industry offer a discount on services to people who refer new clients. Referral programs build customer loyalty and generate high-quality leads. They're an easy lead-generation strategy that requires minimal effort. However, you'll need to implement a reward system that can eat away at your profits. Still, they're cheaper than most marketing strategies. 

A referral program is ideal for businesses with an existing satisfied customer base willing to advocate for the service - landscaping clients won't refer you if you're not good at what you do. This type of lead generation strategy works great for both niche landscaping services (hardscaping, design) and common landscaping services (lawnmowing, snow and leaf removal, etc.). 

8. Offer Free Landscaping Quotes

Providing free landscaping quotes involves giving potential clients an estimated cost for their landscaping needs without any obligation. Most often, people will first want to get a landscaping quote before they hire the business. That's why free quotes are effective as they attract potential clients who are considering landscaping services but not yet fully convinced. This allows you to engage with them further, either in person, through email outreach, or by calling them personally.

Landscaping quotes attract leads by offering value upfront (the free quote) but can consume resources, especially if you do in-person quotes. However, if your prices are good and you're good at what you do, you'll most likely end up with a new client.

All types and sizes of landscaping businesses should utilize free landscaping quotes either by doing an in-person quote (most effective) or an online quote. Your target audience for this lead generation strategy is any person who is interested in your services and wants a quote before they hire you. 

9. Hire A Lead Generation Agency

A lead generation company specializes in generating business leads through various marketing techniques, like the ones we discuss in this article. These lead generation companies are able to provide a steady stream of qualified leads, taking the pressure off your internal teams. 

These companies will generate consistent leads for your business, but you won't have the same level of control over the lead quality as you would by doing it yourself. This can be a problem if your business vision doesn't align with the leads the company is generating. Plus, they can be expensive, especially if you're in a highly competitive landscaping niche. 

This type of lead generation strategy is suitable for any type of landscaping business. However, I'd advise new businesses with limited capital to avoid hiring them initially and first try the other strategies on this list. Once you're big enough, you can outsource your marketing efforts to lead generation services. 

10. Offer Seasonal Promotions & Discounts

Seasonal promotions and discounts involve offering special pricing or additional services at reduced rates during specific times of the year. People love a good deal, so offering seasonal promotions can attract more customers and boost sales during slower seasons. 

It's a great way to onboard new clients and increase revenue during the promotion period, but it reduces profit margins. You'll need a way to retain these new landscaping customers, either through a subscription model or just good service offerings.

It's ideal for new landscaping businesses, particularly lawncare businesses, that need clients and to build up their portfolio. It's effective for businesses in areas with distinct landscaping seasons. For instance, you can offer a subscription model with a discount when people subscribe to your lawnmowing services in the spring and snow removal services in the winter, or leaf removal services in the fall.

11. Host Local Landscaping Workshops

Hosting workshops on landscaping topics can educate the community about your services and showcase your expertise. Although this is an unorthodox method that not many landscaping businesses utilize, it can be very effective because workshops create direct engagement with potential clients and establish your business as a thought leader in the industry. It helps build your brand image and ensure you remain on the top of people's minds when they require services your business offers. 

This strategy generates high-quality landscaping leads and increases community engagement and credibility. However, it requires time, planning, and resources to execute effectively.

Best for all sizes of landscaping businesses, particularly hardscaping and design businesses that want to connect with the community and build a network of potential clients and partners.

12. Sponsor Local Events & Sports Teams

Sponsoring local events and sports teams involves providing financial support in exchange for advertising opportunities. What better way to build your brand reputation and increase its visibility than by sponsoring the local team? 

While its costly and have less direct lead generation impact, it helps build local brand recognition and community goodwill. This strategy is for large businesses that have extra capital resources and want to increase their presence in the local community.

13. Network With Local Businesses

Networking involves building relationships with other local businesses that can refer clients to you. Networking is an essential part of any business. It's how you get new clients and cheaper supplies. 

Through networking, you can access a broader customer base and gain referrals from trusted business partners. For instance, let's say someone goes to a store to buy a new propane tank for their BBQ, and he mentions to the sales clerk that he wants to build a new outdoor BBQ space but doesn't know who to trust or call, the sales clerk can refer you.

Helps build strategic partnerships and can be very effective, especially for gaining access to cheaper supplies and new clients. However, it requires time and effort to build and maintain relationships - a business partnership only works if it benefits both parties.

Networking is great for any landscaping business, regardless of type or size. The target audience would be people that offer services in the same sector as you - outdoor store x patio building business.

How To Pick A Lead Generation Strategy To Grow Landscaping Businesses?

Growing your landscaping business requires careful consideration of the various strategies for marketing landscaping business. However, you can follow these three tips to help you pick the right strategy. 

1. Type of Business: The marketing strategy should align with whether the business is focused on residential, commercial, or niche services.
2. Budget Considerations: The amount of money your business has available for marketing efforts will dictate whether more cost-intensive or cost-effective strategies are appropriate.
3. Utilize Software: Leveraging technology, like landscape management software, CRM, or SEO tools, can boost the efficiency and effectiveness of lead generation strategies.

How To Pick A Lead Gen Strategy By Landscaping Business Type?

You should pick a lead gen strategy that best aligns with your business type. There are three types of landscaping businesses. 

The first is contractors. This landscaper business type handles diverse projects in the landscaping sector, from maintenance to installments. They choose lead gen strategies based on their client needs and project scopes. 

A great example is a landscaping contractor networking with hardware stores. Every house requires maintenance, and few people have the time to do it, so naturally, they'll try and find a contractor to handle the maintenance. What better place to find contact details for a high-quality contractor than at a hardware store? Obviously, contractors shouldn't rely solely on networking; they should implement some of the highly effective strategies we mentioned earlier. 

The second business type is residential. These are landscapers who focus on landscaping services for homeowners, such as lawn care and mulching. Residential landscapers should choose lead-generation strategies that target homeowners directly, such as SEO (specifically Local SEO and GMB), community-based marketing, and Facebook Ads. 

Commercial landscapers are the third business type. Their services are orientated around businesses and government institutions like public parks. Commercial landscapers require sophisticated lead generation strategies that focus on building long-term relationships and recurring contracts, such as B2B partnerships, corporate outreach, high-quality SEO, hiring a lead generation company, targeted email outreach, and creating a high-quality landscaping website. 

Which Lead Generation Strategy Is Best For Commercial Landscapers?

Targeted email outreach is the best strategy for commercial landscapers. Commercial landscapers often struggle to understand how to get more commercial contracts. Well, the secret is to identify the primary commercial clientele and build your lead generation strategy around it. Remember, your customers are businesses, schools, and municipalities. 

So, you need strategies that align with how these businesses operate. The most effective ones are LinkedIn marketing, attending B2B networking events, and engaging in direct mail campaigns to ensure multiple touchpoints with potential commercial clients.

Which Lead Generation Strategy Is Best For Residential Landscapers?

Local SEO and social media advertising are the best strategies for residential landscapers. The most important aspect of lead generation strategies revolving around homeowners is knowing your market. By knowing your market, you can create more targeted ads, offering a personal touch to them. 

For instance, let's say there was a massive storm this past weekend in your area. The following week, you can create ads revolving around the storm, such as leaf removal, yard cleanup, etc. Or, if you're in a draught-stricken area, you can create ads for your landscaping design firm that revolve around water-savvy plants.

The most effective platforms you can use are Facebook, GMB, and Instagram for residential lawn care leads.

How Much Should Landscapers Spend On Lead Generation?

On average, landscapers spend 5-10% of their annual revenue on marketing and lead generation. If your business generates $50,000 in revenue, you'll allocate $5,000 to $10,000 to lead generation. Some landscaping businesses with aggressive marketing strategies allocate 20% of revenue to their marketing and lead gen budget.  

Remember to track the return on investment (ROI) of your lead generation strategy—if the strategy costs $1,000 and you make $2,000 in sales, then it's a 50% ROI, not factoring in overheads and labor. A great way to improve your ROI is to prioritize returning landscaping clients, but this is a topic for another day. 

So, suppose a strategy's ROI is low or negative after a trial period. In that case, trying a different lead generation strategy or optimizing the current one is best. Most strategies depend on your budget, so it's important to assess the ROI of that lead gen strategy regularly. 

What Is The Best Way To Get Free Landscaping Leads?

The best way to get free landscaping leads is to use social media (without ads) and local SEO practices (Google My Business). There are several strategies you can implement that will require more time, but less money, including the following.

• Social Media (Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest)
• Referrals from existing customers
• A well-maintained Google My Business profile
• Offering free landscaping quotes
• Manual Email Outreach

Some tools, such as landscaping software, that you primarily use to manage your landscaping business can actually help bring in free leads. 

How Can Landscape Software Help Generate Leads?

Landscape software, like Zentive, significantly aids in lead generation by automating marketing tasks, managing customer data (CRM), and improving service delivery (optimized routing).

The primary purpose of landscape business management software is to make running your business easier. In the process of helping you run your business more efficiently, these lead generation methods improve your brand reputation. This means you look more professional, and people enjoy using your services, which converts to organic referrals and more returning clients, i.e., more high-quality leads.