Why Proposals, Not Just Estimates, Win Premium Work

Too often, landscape companies equate “proposal” with “estimate.” A simple spreadsheet with quantities and pricing may suffice for low-cost, commoditized work—but it falls short in today’s more sophisticated sales environment. Kyle Racki, Co-founder and CEO of Proposify, puts it succinctly: “A proposal is your chance to sell when you're not in the room.”

Especially for residential design-build projects or commercial bids with multiple stakeholders, proposals carry the burden of telling your story. They must communicate not just the scope, but the strategy, the professionalism, and the value behind your pricing.

The foundations of the marketing plan aren’t changing—strategy and brand still set the stage. And as the industry becomes evermore competitive—evermore cutthroat—and as the communications landscape is constantly transformed by technology, managing and promoting your brand only becomes more crucial to building consumer connections.

Your website is a multi-faceted marketing tool that really only reaches full potential when it becomes an effective online hub for driving revenue. It’s the central touch point to all others—it’s where most of your prospects ultimately land, regardless of how they first contact you, and increasingly, that first contact is not made while sitting in a chair, browsing on a desktop computer.

Your website is far from the only asset that benefits from compelling content. Not surprisingly in 2020 and beyond, content is, and will be continue to be, king across all initiatives when it comes to marketing pool builders, landscape designb/builds, and kitchen and bath remodelers.

Project case studies present a serious opportunity to let prospects take a deeper dive into your portfolio, to experience the dramatic transformation of successful projects as they unfold—from concept to completion. They’re an invaluable tool for conveying powerful narratives, not only about your most stunning work but about the distinctive nuances of your value proposition and brand.

Past experiences with search engine optimization professionals may have soured many owners and leadership on the whole concept, but that doesn’t change the importance of organic search and paid search (pay per click or PPC) strategies working in tandem.

Not unlike search, social media marketing for design/builds can effectively be broken down into two categories—paid and organic. Depending on the platform, both are worthwhile to include in your budget, but the tactics deployed on each vary greatly based on expected goals.

It’s well-established that the most convincing source of marketing information has always been endorsements from your satisfied customers. That’s been true from the dawn of commerce, and it’s just as true in the digital age.

Holding the attention of your prospects and reliably capturing leads requires a level of responsiveness that’s just not possible without automation. After all, running a leading design/build firm doesn’t exactly leave for a lot of free time.

Of course, the intent is to empower your sales team by giving them the resources to do their job. It’s incredible how many sales organizations put so much effort into setting goals and incentivizing their sales force, then torpedo the entire effort by not providing the resources they need.

Because marketing is a combination of art, data, science, and human emotion, there are a lot of gray areas—that’s the deal.