Landscape Contractors and Pool Builders Can Attract Customers with Strategic Social Media Management
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The Content Team,
HALSTEAD.
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Far and away, one of the biggest challenges that landscape industry pros face with social media is creating enough content, and not just any content—but engaging content that also converts. Properly managed social media accounts both engage customers and help keep a business top of mind, drive traffic to its website, and spread the company’s word to the people who matter most (including potential rockstar team members). To accomplish this, you must first know exactly who your target audience is and what they want. This all sounds great, but how is it tactically done?
Social Media Community Management Strengthens Relationships for Landscape and Pool Contractors
Think of your social media pages as your new and improved customer service and recruiting tool. It makes sense because it’s where your customers and potential employees are already hanging out. It’s where they’re searching for, talking about, and interacting with other businesses. In fact, the average user spends almost two and a half hours per day scrolling through social media feeds. If your company is not active on social media and not sharing information about your landscape business or the pool industry, then you’re missing out on a lot of potential.
But just being on all of the popular social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.) isn’t enough. Social media is a two-way street when it comes to marketing communications—and a very busy one at that. This constant communication on your brand’s part is called “community management,” the interactions between your business and the audience on your Facebook page or group. It also requires keeping an eye on industry hashtags and making sure to interact with posts about your business in local groups.
First of all, when you put your message out there through a post, it needs to be framed in a way that creates conversation, reactions, or engagement. Social posts can build the essential know, like, and trust factors with your audience and create an emotional connection by showing the real benefits of your products, services, and brand—such as the memories they will make around their new fire pit or the camaraderie they would feel as a member of your irrigation tech crew. The right choice of words and content can make a great impact on customers and potential leads, inspiring them to take action.
When the likes and comments start rolling in, engagement is essential. Not with every single one, but with the ones that matter (both the good and the bad). Landscape firms with excellent social media engagement are the ones who make sure to let their audience know they are seen and that their comments have been read. When the business responds with a reply with words or a simple like on a comment, it shows that the business cares and values its audience enough to take the time to engage with them. It’s a simple gesture that can go a long way in building a good reputation and establishing a people-focused culture.
79% of consumers expect brands to respond within a day of reaching out over social media, but less than 25% of brands actually do! Leading companies respond promptly with personalized messages, whether via replies or direct messages, rather than generic “canned” responses that seem disingenuous and that customers can spot from a mile away. The messages include a greeting addressing the person by name, including specific details of their comment or question, and often show gratitude. The language used in responses is technical and customer-service oriented.
Let’s face it: As a landscape contractor, your time is best spent doing what you do best—creating stunning landscapes. Many successful firms recruit the help of an agency to help manage their online reputation and social media, allowing them to put their focus on where they can be most influential and allowing the experts to handle their social media work.
Creating an Effective Content Plan for Engagement and Generating Quality Leads
Beyond the personal communication potential that social media allows for, these platforms also give your landscape business the chance to establish itself in voice, expertise, and culture. But it all comes down to the content that is posted—both visually and through words.
Effective and engaging posts include high-quality photographs or professionally produced videos that match your brand's tone and spirit. Successful social posts also include a clear call to action (CTA), often directing the customer further through the sales funnel to your website where they can then schedule a consultation or submit an application for an open job position. Developing a strategy-based content plan will help you see the results you’re looking for—better engagement, more brand awareness, increased revenue, more website traffic, and the ability to attract more top-notch recruits.
One of the first steps to take when starting or refreshing a social media profile is to take a look at the data. This data includes things like your service area demographics, your target hardscape project size, and your existing customer profile—identifying your target customer. This data can then be used to carve out a unique brand position and voice for your landscape or pool business and help with strategically curating effective content for your social profiles that will engage your audience and inspire them to do something.
This kind of social content is considered “organic,” meaning that it is not a paid ad but naturally engages your audience. Such content allows you to interact and engage with existing followers on an ongoing basis without spending money on ads. This is critical to establishing a heartbeat for your brand voice and communication. It’s where trust and a solid reputation as a credible authority in the industry are built.
Increase the Impact of Your Social Media Strategy with a Paid Budget
Bringing in new target consumers and recruits is something that is done via “paid” Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedInAds. Maintaining active, genuine, relevant social profiles is essential for building lasting customer relationships and professional connections. With strategic effort, particular Facebook and Instagram posts that have been tested to create brand awareness with a target audience can be boosted to amplify the results. An effective strategy requires keeping a close eye on your social accounts.
Periodically, it’s important to analyze the concrete data and numbers and to see how the strategy can be improved and updated. Social posting priorities should align with the strategy—it’s a consistent effort that changes over time as business goals and priorities change. For example, you may prioritize posts about your commercial snow removal services at certain times of the year while prioritizing your lawn fertilization and maintenance services at another.
Leading landscape companies also monitor relevant social groups in the industry to identify trends, any comments or feedback that is helpful, and to look for potential leads. Regional or local Facebook groups are a great place to start, even if they’re not industry related. Oftentimes, potential leads will post about their lawn or landscape pain points in a local Facebook group if they are looking for referrals or recommendations—and this is where you can engage and save the day, all while being helpful in finding a solution for the person posting.