The cost of producing DVD brochures is really not that great compared to print brochures when you consider that you only need to burn as many DVDs as you need for now vs. minimum runs for brochures.

For a quick run down of the costs of burning DVDs let’s look at a retail office supply store. Blank DVDs cost about 32 cents each and slim jewel cases cost about 15 cents each. That’s about 47 cents each.  Now, I know you can have brochures printed for about  20 cents each but that’s a minmum run of 500 usually.  So you have a higher upfront cost as well as the design work involved in preparing the brochure.  The software required to produce a DVD is all available free.  So if you already have a camcorder, you’re in business!

Now, your first video brochure may take some time to create as you overcome the learning curve (unless you are already familiar with video and using youtube, etc.)  But once you get the hang of it, you can churn out DVD’s in no time.

And, you burn just a handful at a time.  Keep a few with you as you are out working.  Burn a few dozen if you are attending a lawn and garden show.  They can be made on demand unlike printed brochures, which require a minimum run.

If you don’t happen to have any with you, send your prospect to the website where your videos are posted.  This also can be done with no out of pocket costs.

As cost effective as it is, you could even have a DVD brochure for each individual service you offer.  Or, one about each topic for which you have a solution.  Maybe one for new customers.  And another for Fall aeration and overseeding (with before and after shots.)  And another for leaf collection.  You get the idea.  If you had a printed brochure for for each service, it would cost you an arm and a leg for each run of 1000 copies!  Not so with your own DVD brochure.

And if you need to make a change, its not set in stone and you don’t have to scrap all the extra brochures lying around.  You just make your changes and burn a few new DVD’s.

Stay tuned as I delve into using video for marketing YOUR lawn care services in future posts!

Photo Courtesy Flickr adamfarnsworth

If you want to take advantage of every opportunity possible to grow your marketing and your business, you need to take advantage of your “appearance.” How does your customer see you? This will influence what kind of and how much business you attract. From your personal appearance, to the appearance of your equipment and truck.

I know that if you cut lawns for a living you aren’t going to be dressed in clean clothes for long. And a tie and dress shoes are best left to the Kirby salesman. But, there’s a difference between “suitable attire” and sloppy appearances. Who will your customers respond better to – you in khaki shorts, collared Tshirt with your logo, and decent work boots, or your competitor with ripped blue jeans, a metallica t-shirt with the sleeves ripped off, white tennis shoes permanently stained green with the heel flopping up and down, and two days worth of stubble on his chin?

Hey, it’s your business. You have the right to dress any way you want. But what’s gonna get you the best results for your effort? And if you have employees, don’t feel bad about starting a dress code. It’s your business that puts food on their table. So do what’s in their best interest even if they don’t like it.

When I started a dress code at our lawn care company, to ease into the change, I bought 7 shirts for employee to get them started. I paid less than 2 buck for each shirt and the investment was more than worth it. My people were easy to spot in their pink t-shirts (just kidding – they were blue, and they were still easy to spot.) If I had three people on the job site, my customers could easily see what company they were with.

As for your equipment, if you show up to cut lawns with hobbled together equipment using bungee cords and coat hangers to hold it together, your customer isn’t likely to have much confidence in you for other more expensive services.

Potential customers watching you unload your equipment from the truck will think you can’t afford to get some decent gear.

Just keep your equipment cleaned every couple of days. Once a week touch up the scratches with spray paint. Nothing fancy, just keep it looking neat. And if something breaks, get the correct part and fix it.

You truck should be clean too. Every chance you get, clean it. It’s your mobile office and your customer will judge your work habits by the condition of your truck. You got 200 gas receipts and a weeks worth of mail sitting on your dashboard? Clean it out – people will think you aren’t organized (you probably aren’t if that’s the case.) Did you do a clean up job last week and still have the debris in the bed of your truck? People remember that when they see your truck again. Doesn’t look that good, really.

Just remember, how you present yourself can have a major impact on how much quality business you attract. Always try to see your operation through the eyes of your customers.